Diary: New Territorials for Luton

Stories from the Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph, January 30th, 1915.

Luton will soon be full with a reserve division of Territorials. It is said that schoolrooms and public buildings will not be commandeered to the same extend at in August and more men than previously will be billeted in private homes.

It is said that 750 Luton lads joined the North Midland Division while it was quartered in Luton and district. A further 50 were recruited by the 23rd Londons during their stay in the town. But there were still many young men in offices and shops in Luton who for some reason or other had not yet seen their way to join the Forces.

Seaman John Goodman

  • Seventeen-year-old John Goodman (picture left), of 103 Boyle Street, High Town, who joined the Navy two years ago, was serving on the ill-fated HMS Hawke until transferring to the Emperor of India a fortnight before the Hawke was sunk by a German submarine on October 15th. His mother had 18 children (13 sons and five daughters) and reared seven other children.

  • The RAMC Hospital at Wardown is a much more cheery and comfortable place than in the early days of the winter, when the Voluntary Aid Nurses commenced work there. Two large wards are now in use.

  • Second Lieutenant E. J. Hobbs, 2nd Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment, who transferred from the Northamptons on receiving his commission, was spending a month at home in Luton recovering from frostbite. "We were up to the knees, and sometimes the thighs, in water and mud, and it was when the water seemed icy cold that I felt frostbite coming on. I tried to walk along the trench, and I felt as if I was treading on air, and I nearly fell down. I took off my boots and massaged my feet with my hands. This did some good, but only for the time being, and I had to leave the trench a day or two later and report myself sick. As my feet got worse the doctor said I had better go into hospital for two or three days." He was granted a month's sick leave by a Medical Board at Plymouth.

  • Bedfordshire Yeomanry promotions include: Lieut A. C. S. Benning to be Captain (temporary), Second Lieut J. Holmes to be Lieutenant (temporary). 21st London: Lieut D. A. English to be Captain (temporary).

  • Captain James Valentine, one of the earliest and most daring of British airmen has been appointed captain (temporary) in the Royal Flying Corps. He is the nephew of Luton Magistrates Clerk Mr William Austin, and was the first man to fly an aeroplane over Paris. In 1911 he was the first Englishman to complete the 1,000-mile circuit of Britain. In 1913 he married Miss Eileen Knox, a niece of Lord Lonsdale.

  • Lance Corporal William Cockrell, who played for and was secretary of Luton Celtic AFC, has been awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for action at the front. It was gained on December 22nd, 1914, when D Company, 1st Battalion Northamptons, repulsed an attack by a superior number of Germans.

  • At the instigation of Canon Morgan Smith, vicar of Christ Church, Luton, a home for eight Belgian refugees is to be maintained by the church at 75 Ashburnham Road.

  • The Luton Parish Church Belgian Relief Committee has been revived. The committee was one of the first to be formed in Luton and the workers were exceedingly enthusiastic, but fo0r some reason which was not explained at the time, the committee disbanded. The endeavour will be to take a house, furnish it and maintain a Belgian family.

  • Congratulations to Mr Thomas Keens, who has just been honoured with the chairmanship of the Finance Committee of Beds County Council. He has also completed 20 years as secretary of Luton Chamber of Commerce.

  • The annual report of Luton Chamber of Commerce reflected that, despite the country being involved in the biggest war in history, the general trade of the town had been good during the past year, and many engineering and allied firms were working at the highest pressure.

  • Yesterday a represented of the Saturday Telegraph interview one of the leading dyers of Luton with regard to the suggestion that the firms in the dyeing trade have taken advantage of the abnormal state of things caused by the war to exploit the straw trade. His response was that coloured dyes were being charged at the exact prices of 18 months ago, and the price of black dyes had not been raised until the stock of several dyers was completely exhausted. Some "special" lots of black had doubled in price, however.

  • The Kaiser's 56th birthday on January 27th brought a budget of bad news to the war lord, said the Telegraph. The British defeated his raiding squadron in the North Sea, the French and British repelled tremendous attacks near La Bassée and Ypres, inflicting losses estimated in Tuesday's communique at 20,000. The Russians torpedoed a German light cruiser in the Baltic and brought down a Zeppelin. Very significant also is the announcement that the German Government is seizing all the stocks of flour and corn in the country, indicating an anxiety as to the national food supply.

  • A second report said that in a despatch from Rome it had been admitted from Berlin that Germany had lost half of her fleet of Zeppelins, including two involved in a recent raid of the East Coast whose fate was still unknown.

  • The visit to Luton of Southern League opponents Gillingham was "not in the nature of a decided attraction". Without an away win this season and averaging only one point from their homes games, the Kent side lost 3-1 to Luton Town.