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Sailing To England

Heroes Remember

Transcript
They figured that it was the start of T.B. so they sent me home. Well okay, that after I was out of the hospital, I simply re-enlisted again and went to the, volunteered to go on a horse transport back to England where, we... The idea was we volunteered for that, we were getting extra pay, another dollar a day, which to say we were getting a dollar ten a day. That, with looking after the horses and mules on this transport, The Welshman, we were getting this extra money, theoretically. But anyway, 14 days and the Atlantic was like a mill pond. We were alone, not an escort, no nothing. We were loaded with this, with the mules they'd bought in the States. Vicious, just all waiting for a chance to let you have one and horses, lots of good, beautiful horses. Well we got right through, we'd been 14 days from Montreal to Avonmouth We didn't lose a horse which was unusual. Well then they offered us another dollar a day on top of it if we would stay with the ship and clean it, clean it out. No way, you know what they could do it with that extra dollar.
Description

Mr. Henley describes sailing to England aboard the SS Welshman during which he is in charge of the mules and horses, for which he receives premium pay. An offer of extra money to clean the ship afterward is ungraciously declined.

Roy Henley

Roy Henley was born in London, Ontario on September 29, 1898. After enlisting in Toronto in 1916 with the 166th Queens Own Rifles, he was discharged with suspected tuberculosis. Mr. Henley re-enlisted, sailed to England aboard the horse transport SS Welshman, and joined the Quebec Regiment. Mr. Henley's recollections are detailed, sometimes graphic and occasionally humorous. His experiences spanned many battles; the Somme, Vimy Ridge, Passchendaele, Cambrai and Arras.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
1:56
Person Interviewed:
Roy Henley
War, Conflict or Mission:
First World War
Branch:
Army
Rank:
Sergeant

Copyright / Permission to Reproduce

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