Thursday, 17 September 2015

Poem ~ Curate's Wife Seeks Secrets - Friday, 17 September 1915


Impression of a Defence of the Realm Act poster - by Jamie. See original at: http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/41682

With the Defence of the Realm Act,
Giving a range of powers to government
Of Britain - allowed actions for war efforts
To be undertaken - along with prevention
Of persons communicating with enemy.

Activities that had been common place
In peace were not allowed - to include
Giving bread to wild animals, lighting
Of bonfires, kite flying, buying binoculars
And open discussion of military facts.

Under such rules came a case of a curate's
Wife - Louise Herbert aged 55 in 1915.
Mrs Herbert, born in India of a German
Father - with missionary relatives and given
Two educations; in German and English.

Born in Kent Edward Hebert had trained
As a missionary, moved to India to marry -
After his wife later died Edward remarried
Louise Daenble - they returned to England
By 1911 - to take lodgings in Islington.

With Edward, taking position as curate
At St Luke's church, the couple moved
To Darlington - when six months into war,
Louise Herbert came under observation
Of police, over an eight month period.

In use of Defence of the Realm Act,
Section 18 - the accused, well known
And living in Hopetown, was sentenced;
In attempts to obtain information which
Would be of value to the enemy military.

In a strange quest, for a wife of Curate,
Louise Herbert had been reported
In researching for detailed information,
On the type of shells and gun carriages,
Being then manufactured in Darlington.

by Jamie Mann.

Anon.,1915. Curate's Wife Sentenced. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 17 September. P.3. Col.4. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11869468/Daily-Telegraph-September-17-1915.html [Accessed: 17 September 2015].

Source: File: Suspected German spy in Darlington [online] Available at: <http://www.durhamatwar.org.uk/story/11503/> [Accessed: 17 September 2015]

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 17 September 2015). 



#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1England

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