Fix bayonets
First World War Audio Archive
Fix bayonets
Transcript
Picture of young Soldier.
England when they had that big parade. They had some great big officer from the British army down there to inspect us. They had picked out 100 of us for to put on a little special performance for this guy. And the first thing they do after he comes there, of course, is to present arms and so on and then ordered arms and wanted fixed bayonets. I don’t know whether you guys ever fixed bayonets? You know the procedure. I’m pretty sure it was... Webb was the guy. He was a big tall fella and he had long arms. When he whips out his bayonet, he jabbed the fella right in front of him. This guy dropped his gun and leaped about six feet ahead and "oooooaaahhhoo." I guess the British officer thought, “Great outfit, they can’t fix bayonets without stabbing one another.”Description
Mr. Stevenson describes an amusing miscue on the parade square.
Donald Robert Stevenson
Donald Robert Stevenson was born in Bracebridge, Ontario, on October 28, 1897. His family moved to Saskatchewan where he worked with his father, a farmer. Mr. Stevenson felt duty bound to support the British Empire and enlisted on February 3, 1916, in the 217th Battalion. He took his basic training at Indian Head, Saskatchewan. He went overseas in May 1917, going to Bramshott where he joined the 46th Battalion. Mr. Stevenson’s service saw him in action at the Oppy Front, the Somme, and Canal du Nord. He was wounded in the neck and back, and returned to Canada to his family’s farm and then received a homestead through the Veterans Land Act, farming on his own at Fir Mountain, Manitoba. He married his wife, Elizabeth Helen, on November 7, 1923. He worked for Public Works in Winnipeg, and finally joined the railroad as a yardman, retiring in 1952. He then joined the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires. Mr Stevenson died on June 27, 1985.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 1:02
- Person Interviewed:
- Donald Robert Stevenson
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- First World War
- Location/Theatre:
- Europe
- Branch:
- Army
- Units/Ship:
- 217th Battalion
- Rank:
- Private
- Occupation:
- Lewis Gunner
Attestation
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