Thomas Frederick LIttler

After surviving a leg injury, TF Littler returned to France to care for the wounded. Not only are people being killed by modern war weapons the Spanish Flu also is a killer. In the picture, soldiers are bringing back wounded on nothing more than a stretcher. This shows the extreme difference between the the modern killing technology and the outdated medicine and other means of caring for the wounded or sick. During the War both sides invested much more money in things like airplanes and tanks because they though this would win them the war. They didn't invest very much money into caring for their troups and so many more died from things like gun wounds and illnesses that could have been cured. Another main cause of death is that if people accidentally or purposly got themselves into a freak accident that made them inadequate for battle they were killed. Therefore this war was especially bloody because of all the different ways people could be killed. In the passage i chose, LIttler talks about the Rum that the soldiers got. I'm sure that any person in such a situation would want to drink their troubles away because nobody has any idea how terrible this war would be. He also talks about alll the people in his platoon that were lost. He writes that he could not possibly write down everything that happened and most likely that is because he is trying to forget it. Although he does mention some that died, he is still in shock from the amount of death and the fact that he still is alive.

T.f. Littler was born in 1897 and fought in France. His diary is from 1914-1919. He trainer in Norwich and Northampton before going to England where he then went to France. He met his wife in England. The following is from July 1st 1916.

"After having had our rum issue we stood to till 7-25a.m when we put up a smoke screen and went over the top at 7-30 with the London Scottish and Queens Westminster Rifles, we took four lines of trenches from the Germans, but were driven back by midday to our original position, our losses were very heavy although we took many prisoners, I could not attempt to write all that happened this day, so I'll leave a cutting from the paper here. The casualties from my Battalion were A Company 112, B Company 62, C Company 91, D Company 25, in my platoon we lost the following men Lieutenant Leigh, who had taken over from Lieut. Larne, was wounded the left arm blown off, Private Harry Wakefield, Private Wilfred Carter, killed, Private Jack White, Private Frank Walker, missing, and Private Harry Frodsham, Private Sam Mellor, and Private George Parker wounded, L-Cpl R Eaton, and L-Cpl Harry Carveley wounded, the following men died of wounds during the following week Sgt Piers, L-Cpl J Kinsey, and Private Albert Clarke, Private Jack Perrin, and Private Sidney Jones, we left the line this night being too weak in numbers to hold it, and got back to Souastre about 12-30 p.m."