Читать книгу The Times Great War Letters: Correspondence during the First World War - James Owen - Страница 62

BASIL MOON

9 June 1915

SIR,—IT MAY INTEREST many to know that the example of superb bravery, described in the enclosed extract in a letter in The Times of to-day, under the heading “An Officer’s Courage,” was displayed by an officer, the late Sec. Lieutenant Basil Moon (son of Mr. Ernest Moon, K.C., Counsel to the Speaker), who only joined the Army last August.

Yours truly,

ROBSON

The following is the passage to which Lord Robson refers:—

“During the attack, I am sorry to say, I lost two out of my three subalterns (the fourth has not yet returned). Poor old Roy was shot through the body after we had got about half-way, and though we quickly got his wound dressed and moved him back on a stretcher, he died in hospital the same night. Basil was simply magnificent all through; as soon as Roy (who was bomb officer) was wounded, Basil went up to the front and by his coolness and courage helped materially towards the success of the affair, and at last, when all our bombers had been killed and there was just the chance that the Germans might bomb us back again before we could block the trench, he picked up a rifle and ran along their parapet, picking off the German bombers until an exploding bomb blew the lower half of his face off. Even then he had sufficient strength left and sufficient thoughtfulness to write me a note and send it by messenger saying that he was sorry he was ‘out of action.’ Poor old chap, he was full of pluck right to the end.”