Description
Mr. Joslin describes learning to play the bugle as a youth, purchasing his first army bugle, and concludes by describing his role as an army bugler.
Maurice Joslin
Maurice Joslin was born in England in 1893. As a youth, he was very musical and learned to play the bugle while in the Boy Scouts. He later bought an Army bugle from an Army Surplus store in London. His family emigrated to Canada, settling in Southern Manitoba. Lured by the local minister, the family moved to the area of North Battleford as homesteaders. Mr. Joslin enlisted at Moosejaw, Saskatchewan, joining the 38th Battalion as a Bugler. In this role he received no basic training whatsoever, even after his arrival in England. His voyage overseas was an eventful one. His vessel sank a German submarine off the coast of Ireland. Mr. Joslin reveals the details of the carnage and his wounding at the battle of Cambrai, with the resulting amputation of his finger. Following his return to Canada, he worked as a car salesman in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan. Remarrying after the death of first wife, Mr. Joslin moved to Penticton, British Columbia where his wife had been hired as a teacher. Mr. Joslin has been actively involved in Canadian Veteran’s organisations and is a Life Member of the Royal Canadian Legion.
Transcript
I learned to play the bugle. And I played in the bugle band in London, England and that’s where I learned to play the bugle. Yeah, I was a boy scout. And then I got older and I don’t know how old I was when I got my first bugle. I told my father I wanted a bugle and so I inquired where I could buy an army bugle, you see. And he gave me the address of an outfit that sold surplus, army surplus. And we went down to the city of London, on Pope Street I think it was. Popes was the name of the outfit and we bought an army bugle. There was always a call, calling up different sergeants on duty, duty sergeant, orderly sergeants. There was a special call for several things, several reasons. And I think, in all, with both cavalry and army calls, I knew a hundred bugle calls. First call you make in the morning is the get up. “Rouse up, rouse up, da da dun dun da da dan da da . So you blow the rise, or the rouse, and then you blow the fall in, and the dinner call, call for the meals. “Come to the cookhouse door, boys. Come to the cook house door.”