In the Place du Chatelet, Paris
Came a lone French soldier,
His uniform and boots still
Stained by the mud of trenches.
He walked, dragging a leg,
Having been injured at the front.
On coming across a policeman,
Conversing with a Parisian,
The soldier appealed for help.
Addressing the policeman, he told
Of his thirst – that he was on route
To meet and stay with his parents.
The soldier had been given 20 days
Convalescence for his wounds;
But that night had nowhere to sleep.
The Parisian man took pity
On this wounded soldier.
The man said he was welcome
To eat and drink and if needs be,
To stay with them for a time.
Taken aback by the kindness,
The soldier accepted the man.
It was 2 a.m. when they stepped
Into the Parisian house,
When the man called to his wife,
To ‘prepare a meal and
Give a good bottle of wine
For this wounded soldier.’
The willing wife set to making
Some food - then recalled
A bottle of wine she had kept,
Among other items, bequeathed
To her by an eccentric aunt.
Finding the bottle in their cellar
She brought this into the light.
As she made to open the wine
Came a complete surprise –
About the neck was carefully
Wrapped a 500 franc note.
Also a note in her eccentric aunt’s
Writing; ‘Since you have decided to
Drink this bottle at the birth of your
First child, I reserve this little surprise
For you.’ Happily pouring the wine,
They drank to the soldier’s health.
by Jamie Mann.
Anon.,1914. Virtue’s Reward – Samaritans and Soldier. The Daily
Telegraph, [online] 30 Oct. p.3. Col.2. Available at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11186087/Daily-Telegraph-October-30-1914.html
[Accessed: 30 October 2014].
Mann, J., 2014. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal
communication, 30 October 2014).
#WW1Paris WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #ww1centenary
#worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered
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