Stories from The Luton News: Thursday, July 22nd, 1915.

Workers at engineering firms in Luton were given pep talks by MPs to stress the importance of their work and their town in the war effort.

Meetings were held at the Davis Gas Stove Co Ltd in Dallow Road and the Thermo-Electric Ore Reducation Corporation Ltd in Cobden Street on Monday; at Brown and Green Ltd in Windsor Street, at Balmforth and Co in Pondwicks Road, and the Vauxhall and West Hydraulic Co Ltd in Kimpton Road on Tuesday; and at Vauxhall Motors Ltd on Wednesday.

The workers' efforts were praised, and it was stressed that their work in providing the munitions was as important as that of the men fighting in the trenches. There was a close relationship between the men at the Front and the men in the workshop, factory and mine.

The meetings were part of a nationwide morale-boosting campaign organised by the Parliamentary Munitions Committee.

• Writing to Mrs Coupees. of 23 Reginald Street, Luton, who has been taking an interest in the welfare of lonely soldiers, Pte H. Payne, 1st Royal Fusiliers, said: "We are near a famous river that was running thick with blood some time ago, but must not explain where it is." Pte Payne had returned to the Front in February after being invalided home in December with frostbite.

• Yesterday a military funeral took place in Luton. Pte James Pickering, 3077, of the 2/5th Leicesters, died at the Isolation Hospital, Dunstable, last Sunday, after a week's illness from scarlet fever. The coffin was placed on a gun carriage drawn by six horses, and the band of the brigade played funeral marches to the Church Cemetery, where one of the chaplains conducted the service. The firing party fired three rounds, and the Last Post was sounded.

• Pte A. S. Smith, 6620, 1st Beds Regiment, wrote of his experiences of 54 days in the trenches in a letter to his parents at 25 Buxton Road, saying: "We had a very rough time of it, I can tell you. I thought we were all going up in air. The enemy blew up one of our trenches and shelled us properly. The shells came over like rain, but we did not have so many casualties according to the position we were in. We were like rats in a trap for a time, but we still hung on to the trenches, and not a man retired from them. I am pleased to say I did not get a scratch and I am still in the pink." Pte Smith had been working in the felt department at Messrs J. C. Kershaw and Co. when war broke out and was called up as a reservist.

• Over £2,000 damage was caused by fire soon after 10 o'clock on Tuesday night when the building tenanted by Mr Frederick Bailey, straw and velvet hat manufacturer, at 33 Williamson Street, was burnt out. The alarm was raised by a cabman named Brown who was in Williamson Street, and Chief Officer Andrew and 14 men arrived with a motor engine but they had great difficulty getting at the interior of the building, which was full of plait, velvets, ribbons, trimming material and valuable hat sewing machinery. There is no clue to the cause of the fire, one of the most destructive that Luton has recently experienced. A Persian cat called Tiddles perished in the blaze.

• The Leagrave and Limbury Platoon of the Luton Volunteer Corps is making steady progress. On Saturday, Sgt-Major Gething came down for half an hour's strenuous drill, and expressed his satisfaction at the way it was carried out.

• Mr Eric W. Squires, eldest son of Mr J. Squires, of Hart Hill, Luton, has been gazetted as a sub-lieutenant in the Royal Naval Division. He joined the Public Schools Division of the Royal Naval Division in November as a private, received his training at the Crystal Palace and passed successfully the examinations for officers at the Naval Camp, Blandford, in July.

• It is reported that Blackmore End, Kimpton, which was the country house of the late Mrs Birley Baxendale for many years and is now the property of her daughter Mrs Vincent, has been taken over by the hospital authorities, and will shortly be turned into a military hospital.

• Mrs H. Hewitt, of 59 New Town Street, Luton, wrote to The Luton News to say that 19 of her family had served, or were serving, the King. The 19 with the Colours included two sons, two sons-in-law, six brothers and nine nephews. In addition, her father had served 23 years with the 23rd Royal Welsh Fusiliers, including fighting in the Crimean war at the battles of Alma, Inkerman, Balaclava and Sevastopol.

• Saturday last saw the gathering together of about 200 Belgian refugees at the Christ Church Parish Room, in answer to the kind invitation of Mrs Francis Crawley. Unfortunately Mrs Crawley herself, owing to unforeseen circumstances, was unable to be present.

• On Tuesday evening Charlie Smith and George Ruffett were playing at the pond in the brickfield, Stopsley. They had improvised a raft from which they were precipitated into deep water, and but for the prompt help of Edward Ruffett, a bigger lad who works at the Brunswick Street Iron Foundry, there is little doubt they would have lost their lives. They had both gone under twice before being rescued. Expressing thanks, Mr Smith, father of Charlie, said that on the previous Sunday Edward Ruffett had rescued a couple of children named Webb from the same pond.

• Giving evidence at Luton Divisional Police Court on Monday against several parents for the irregular school attendance of their children, Mr Greenwood (School Attendance Officer) said the education authorities were having a good deal of trouble with the children of some of the men who were serving the country. Very often it was neglect on the part of the mothers. The authorities hesitated to take cases against fathers on active service, but there was no alternative.

• As the result of a recent garden party at Farley Lynches, Alderman H. O. Williams has handed the excellent sum of £134 15s 3d has been handed to the funds of the Beds Regiment Prisoners of War Help Committee through the Luton branch.

• There was a meeting of the Directors of the Luton Town Football Club last week in connection with the arrangements for next season.. The meeting considered various suggestions and the views will be placed by their representatives, Messrs Allen and C. Green (Secretary) at the meeting of the Southern League on Monday. Of course there will be no professional football, but there is no doubt that matches of some description will be arranged.