Leslie Lawrence

Leslie was born at South Hide Farm in 1912. He had seven brothers and sisters and began work on the family farm as soon as he was big enough. His father had one of the largest farms in the parish, and owned other land as well. All the family worked on the farm, and several men were also employed, taking their meals in the back kitchen and sleeping in the top rooms of the three storey house, where Lesley joined them when he left school and started work. However, long before that, he had milked a cow before going to school and another when he came home, just as the Fitzers did. One night one of the hired men went to sleep leaving a candle burning on a wicker chair beside his bed, and woke later to find the chair in flames, fortunately before the house was on fire.

Leslies father kept a milking herd, and would drive the morning and evening milk down to Colwall station to catch the evening train to Birmingham. They kept 6 horses at South Hide, and as they bred their own, there were always foals. At that time Colwall had a race course, and Leslies father kept a few race horses. The family seem to have slightly resented this, because the race horses got the best of everything, and produced nothing.

As a boy, Leslie used to catch moles, and sell their skins, shopping round to find the best bidder when he sold them. We both remembered the Sikhs, who in the 1930s travelled around with a suitcase full of articles, selling at the door.

After the days work, his father liked to sit on a large wooden box which held tools, and stood near the back door., and his friends would find him here when they called in and enjoyed a mug of cider with him. It was here that Leslie looked for him, when on Sunday evening, the weeks work done, and after his bath and shave he would hope to get his pay. The agricultural wage at that time was 30s. (£1.50) Leslie got 2s.6d. (12-½ p.) and even then it was a battle of wits, because if his father could disappear into a barn or garden before Leslie got there, he would.

Leslie joined the Territorial Army, so in 1939, he was called up, and though his father tried to get him released, he failed to do so. Leslie would of course have been in a reserved occupation, but probably the fact that he was by now a trained soldier decided the issue. He joined the Shropshire Yeomanry, a medium artillery regiment which had 5.5inch guns. He was in this country until 1942, and then served in Iran, Iraq, and Italy. He fought at the Battle of Cassino, and considers himself very lucky to be alive, having had friends killed on either side, and a dud shell which landed at his feet. He was mentioned in despatches for rescuing wounded men from between the lines, and received the oak leaf award for a repeated act of bravery. He was discharged with the rank of Sergeant.

Coming back to peaceful Herefordshire must have been a strange experience. He remembers the feeling of lost comradeship, and a slight loss of security. Italian and German prisoners of war were still working in Mathon. Leslie, a life-long bachelor, had no time for the Italians –“Ladies men” He had much more respect for the German prisoners., but it must have been strange to be working alongside men against whom he had been fighting in such a bitter battle.

He now decided to take on contract work, for farmers who had not bought the machinery for mowing or threshing, and were glad to have the work done quickly instead of employing men with scythes. But like most men who worked on the land, he says “There was no money in farming till the war”

South Hyde House 1917

South Hyde House 2003-04-29