1914 (British Ace) Read Online Free PDF

plans.  When the Balkan Wars began again the regiment believed that it was too far away to affect us. I felt that something was in the air when young Lord Burscough joined the Royal Flying Corps. The automobile had given him a taste for speed and he did not want to go back to horses.  I liked speed but I still loved horses. We found that the air of unease led more men to join the Yeomanry.  The increased numbers led to my promotion to corporal; although they used the term Artificer the NCOs would not use the title and so I was Corporal Harsker.  Sergeant Armstrong was delighted but he still thought that I should have joined a regular regiment.
    When the Archduke was assassinated in June there was a noticeably tense atmosphere everywhere.  The papers were full of talk of war. We knew that Germany had been building up a fleet and an army. As we sat around the table mother fretted away. “Why do we have to have all this talk of war? You can’t go into a shop without someone having an opinion.”
    Sarah shook her head.  She had blossomed into a beautiful young woman and one of the deputy butlers, Rogers, had shown an interest in her.  They were now engaged.  A marriage would put them in a good position when Carter, the head butler retired; he was seventy and it showed. “Don’t worry mother.  It’ll come to nothing. These politicians just like to talk.  They are like a bunch of old women.”
    Albert looked disappointed.  He was seventeen and worked in the gardens.  He had green fingers. “I think we should go to war. Germany is getting too big for its boots.  It’s time we showed them that we still rule the waves.”
    “All this talk of fighting.   My brother Jack was killed in the Zulu wars.  What good did that do us?  We had to go to war a few years after with the Boers and the Zulu War was fought to help them. We should mind our own business.” Mother’s views were not to be gainsaid.
    My father was silent.  I watched him as he finished his meal and placed his knife and fork on the cleaned plate. “I don’t want any British soldiers to get killed, not least of all young William here but you cannot let bullies get away with this sort of thing. If we stand up to Germany then they’ll back down.  You mark my words.”
    Once father had given his views on any subject then mother would never argue with him.  She might disagree but she would always back him up.  She was as loyal a wife as a man could wish for.
    Our new colonel, Colonel Mackenzie, arrived and he came like a whirlwind.  He was only in his forties and, from his sun tan, had served in the tropics. We heard he had been in India and he was a fine horseman. We only found information second hand but one piece of information we had directly from his mouth was that we could expect to be mobilised by the middle of July.  The married men began panicking about their families while the single ones like me were just excited. It seemed to us that this would be fun.  We would swan over to France; rattle our sabres and then there would be peace again.  It would be a lark.
    Sergeant Armstrong took me to one side. “A word to the wise; I think we will be on duty every weekend until we are mobilised.  We are getting a shipment of ammunition next week and the new colonel is keen to give the troopers and the horses the experience of live firing.”
    That was an eye opener; live ammunition suggested they were taking things seriously.  We did fire our guns but it was always at the practice range.  I could not even remember firing when there had been a horse within four hundred yards.  I wondered if that was a mistake. They would need acclimatising if we were going to war.
    We were too small a regiment to have different messes for sergeants and corporals and we shared one.  Those who lived in the barracks all the time kept it well stocked. I liked to sit, nursing a pint of beer, and listen to the old sergeants talking.  It was where you learned what