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bekaroth-reads · 2 years ago

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Alfred Ashford x Reader

[Alright, this is long, but I couldn’t make myself shorten it anywhere so :p ]

[Also, this is going off the idea that the Ashford’s personal living quarters are much larger than what we see in game. It had just been pretty badly damaged so the CV characters couldn’t get everywhere.]

To say the your luck over the last few years had been fickle would be an understatement. And, at the end of a crazy rollercoaster of events was the small office just outside of the personal office of none other than high ranking, Umbrella executive, the Earl Ashford. Things were intense at first to say the least, seeing as the only reason that you were the personal assistant to Ashford was because his last assistant was… let go. You had managed to last in this job for almost a year and the few people that work the reception desk just down the stairs, not to mention you yourself, were shocked that you had been there that long. Everyone knew that you were basically put there as a warm body to be in the spot until Ashford found someone that fit the job better or you messed up bad enough that he had an excuse to, “dismiss,” you like he did poor Bob.

Things seemed like they were starting to get better as you were starting to be trusted, and hopefully here to stay awhile, as you were getting more important work over the past month or so. Certainly, if you were being trusted with this sort of stuff, then you weren’t still in danger of, well, danger. The longer you were handling these things the more cracks in this theory started to appear. It all started with the fact that you were suddenly spending much more time working with Ashford himself, either with him explaining things that you needed to do for certain tasks, or even working on things that were in his office itself. The thing with taking longer to explain the documents or even work on them together made sense at first; if they were that important it was sensible to have multiple eyes on them. It was the other tasks that got you noticing there was something odd.

Now, if you were being honest, the earl was a rather attractive man, and to sound even more odd, his eccentricities, at least the less violent ones, gave him a certain, unique charm. You thought that was what was making you so nervous. But, it didn’t take long for you to realize that you were being watched like a hawk. Once you did realize that, everything started click into place. Of course you getting the harder work wasn’t you gaining more trust! It was him trying to make it easier to mess up so he could get rid of you! That was also why he was having you do things in his office, so he could be there to catch you the second something happened. Sure, there were plenty of rumors (that you felt were certainly verifiable) that people could go missing in an Umbrella branch for seemingly little to no reason, but seeing as there was something of a level of power in the corporation there must have been some sort of red tape keeping Ashford from just tossing you out.

There was a much appreciated break from all of this nonsense today, though. When you walked up the stairs to your office after a quick greeting to the person that was working the reception desk that morning, you were greeted with a note on your desk.

“Needed to take care of other business,

so I will be gone the whole day.

Just do your usual work today.

Be sure it is all finished in a timely manner.

-A. Ashford”

While this was extremely unusual, you weren’t going to complain. There was something so freeing about not having those icy, blue eyes watching you for the first time in a few months. You might even be able to get some extra work done, so if you were caught doing more things for him tomorrow there would be less of a chance of falling behind. You might even be able to go eat your lunch break with your co-workers downstairs. To expound on that, you might actually get an actual, uninterrupted lunch break! Just as you were planning on what you might do on this mostly free day, you heard the door to his office open. There must have been a change in his plans, or perhaps there was something extra for him to tell you about…

That wasn’t the earl that just walked though the door.

The woman certainly had similar features, most notably the striking, blue eyes, and the realization of who this was made your stomach drop and your face pale. This had to be his sister. His sister that he was so protective of, that even mentioning her was enough to make you vanish from the face of the earth. Though you were terrified of what he might do if he found out that you saw her, you were also terrified that she might have some of the more intense aspects of her brother’s personality as well. So, whether she was the one to seal your fate or he was, your fate seemed most certainly to be sealed.

She must have seen the lack of color in you face, because she got a little bit of a smirk on hers. “Would I be correct in assuming you are my brother’s assistant?” The woman asked, the material of her dress making a swishing noise as she approached you. “Uh, y-yes, Ma’am.” You stuttered out. She raised her brow at this response. “Do I look old enough to be addressed as, ‘Ma’am’?” The woman asked pointedly.

Wonderful. First thing that you said, and you accidentally insulted her. You quickly tried to correct this, but just ended up spewing a scramble of words that not even you could understand. This caused the woman to let out a truly jovial laugh, but she quickly composed herself again. You could only imagine that she went to some, princess, duchess, school or something that taught against showing strong emotions and the like; at least that’s what her demeanor seemed to tell you. Either way, it appeared that your struggles were very entertaining for her; something else that she and her brother seemingly shared.

“Oh, don’t worry. I just wanted to see if Alfred was right about those cute, little responses of yours.” She giggled and settled your thoughts on what she was doing. Then you realized how she just phrased that last thought, and you were even more bewildered than you were a moment ago. There wasn’t time for you to process things, however, as the woman continued speaking. “As you may have suspected, I am Alexia Ashford. Your superior is my brother.” She stated proudly. You had known that she must have been his sister, but at least now you knew her name; not that you would even be able to use it. She continued, “Tell me, what was it that you were expected to do today while my brother was out.” You held the note that you were reading when she came into the room up to her as a bit of proof as you answered. “Well, miss, I was supposed to be working on my usual secretarial work.” Alexia took the note from your hands and looked it over. “Anything pressing to be dealt with?” She asked as she handed it back. It took you a few seconds to think it over. “Well… I don’t think so. The most important thing to work on still isn’t due until the end of the week.” This made her face brighten up.

“Brilliant!” Alexia exclaimed as she was suddenly walking to Alfred’s office and motioning you to follow. You did hesitate for a minute, thinking back on your earlier thoughts about how Alfred was so protective of his sister and how even the little interaction that you did have could be enough to send him flying off the handle. But, you quickly followed as you also thought that Alexia could be the same way if you disappointed her. So, being faced with the options of dying now or dying later, you decided that you might as well make it later. So, in you went into the other office. When you got there, you saw her standing at the shelf in the corner, one that you had helped sort many times. It was also one that you had noticed scratch marks on the walls and floors behind, but if there was something that was the number one rule on Rockfort Island it was to never, never, ask questions. “There will be a slight change of plans for the day.” While she said this she pressed a button somewhere hidden on the shelf and a music box started playing something. “I have a few things that I was needing some help with, one thing specifically.” Alexia continued, something about what she just said making her hold in a small laugh. “And, based on the things my brother has told me, you are the only one for the job.”

You followed in confusion into the secret passage that opened up, across the bridge, and through the small courtyard that lead to a rather opulent looking mansion, that you were surprised was hardly visible from the rest of the island. Sure, everyone could see that there was some sort of building on this end, but not that it was anything this fancy. You all had just assumed that it was another part of the military training facility that other people on the island weren’t allowed to access. Alexia was telling you things that she was wanting you to do while you were both walking to the mansion. It seemed to mostly be organizing with her claiming that her and Alfred had looked at those rooms every which way they could think of, and that she thought there should be a new set of eyes to look it over. What you got out of it was that if Alfred by some miracle wasn’t going to kill you before, then he probably would now that you had seen his personal space. The place looked like it was straight out of some gothic soap opera, but was still kept clean which dispelled some thoughts that no one else was allowed here. There had to be some workers of some kind as you couldn’t imagine either of the Ashfords doing such work themselves. You also assumed that there was probably a very high turn over rate for whatever poor souls ended up working in this place.

To your surprise, things actually were going well. Alexia would ask you about certain things, and you would give suggestions. After awhile it actually seemed like you were just helping a friendly neighbor that you just met; a mind boggling idea as you never thought the words Ashford and friendly would ever go with each other. You were reminded of the severity of the situation when she let you know that anything that you were to do was to be on the ground floor only, as she and Alfred’s personal rooms were on the level above. You didn’t need to be told twice to know what a major sort of taboo that was. When the two of you got to the little library nook that was under the stairs, there was something that caught your eye and sent a sour look to your face, not matter how much you tried to hide it. “You know, I’ve quite enjoyed myself today. I will have to have you come over for company again sometime.” Alexia said cheerfully, but paused when she saw your expression. You thought for a moment you had truly offended her this time, but when she looked over to what you were looking at, she gave a huff and gained a similar look to the one that you had. “These horrid things.” Alexia groaned as she walked over to the faded and off putting porcelain dolls that sat on some of the shelves and on a small decorative table nearby. “I keep them around because they were my great grandmother’s, and my brother insists they stay as they are, ‘family heirlooms!’ Personally, I cannot stand the wretched things, so I place them all as far away from my room as possible; though they always end up there once again. And, I certainly have a lead suspect as how they do. I suppose brothers might never grow out of their teasing phase. Do you realize how terrifying it is to wake up with a new one of these staring right at you?” She laughed at the last part. You gave a laugh too, more so at how accurately she was able to mimic her brother’s rather unique voice.

Something seemed to solidify in her mind, and she got a look of absolute trickery on her face. “Speaking of my brother. I suppose I should go tell him that we have a guest here. After all, it would be rather unbecoming of an earl to come into a room and be somehow indecent.” There was a lot to unpack with that revelation. The first word that buzzed by was indecent. You couldn’t imagine him being the walk around the house in his boxers kind of man, especially with his sister around. But, then you realized that for people as well to-do as the Ashfords, indecent probably meant something like khakis and a t-shirt. But, that thought was quickly washed away with the more pressing one that you actually blurted out. “H-He’s here right now?!” This seemed to be hilarious to Alexia, as she let out a laugh like she did earlier in the office. “Why, of course he is, dear! He’s been here the whole day. He simply told you that he had other things to handle because he was too embarrassed to tell you that he wanted to stay home and be melancholy for the day.” She went and sat on a chair near the stairs by the small library. “When he told me the reason for his increasingly glum mood, I couldn’t believe it. He seemed like he could hardly believe it himself. So, I did what any good sister would do and started snooping. Though, I must say, you’ve surprised me! I never thought a common person could be so-” She was trying to explain something, but all you could think at the moment was, “I’m going to die, I’m going to die, I’m going to die, I’m going to die-“

“Well, seeing as I was always the smarter twin, if I were to brag a bit, something that he has been struggling to understand for months made itself perfectly clear to me in one morning.” Alexia continued. “And, I will say, now that I’ve spent time with you myself, I don’t think I mind in the slightest!” She was rather cheerful about the situation that you were still trying to comprehend. You, having no other idea on what to do, went to break the one unspoken rule about Rockfort Island and ask a question. “Lady Ashford-“

“You may say Alexia.” She interjected.

You knew how phenomenally rare this offer was, and that made it feel like it was a test of some kind. With a slight gulp you answered. “Thank you for saying so. But, respectfully, Lady Ashford, I don’t know if I would feel comfortable being so casual with you this soon after meeting you.” Whatever seemed to solidify in her mind earlier looked to fixate itself even more, past the point of no return. This caused her to stand and head towards the stairs. “And, you’re respectful too.” She hummed to herself before turning to talk to you once more. “Please, consider it a personal favour. In any case, I shall go talk to my brother. Please stay here until I return.” She almost sang with glee as you froze with fear.

After you heard Alexia walk up the few sets of stairs, you heard the sound of her dress shoes walking over your head. This was followed by the sound of a few doors opening and closing, which was then itself followed shortly by muffled voices. Suddenly, there was a clearly heard, “We have a what?” You heard the feint voice of Alexia repeat something then add onto it. This was met with and even louder and practically screeching, “IT’S WHOM?!” Which was quickly shushed. Though you couldn’t hear what Alexia was saying, you could tell the tone was a scolding one. You couldn’t hear much more after that as any sort of talking was covered by the sudden presence of many footsteps; first sounding like someone pacing, and then turning into someone frantically rushing around doing something. All you could imagine that was happening was Alfred finding and loading one of his many guns that he seemed to have stashed anywhere that he could fit them, and Alexia hopefully trying to stop him as she did tell you she was starting to like having you around. After about five minutes of this, the commotion made its way back to the stairs. There were a few more whispered things exchanged between the two, that ended with Alexia goading, “Don’t worry about your jacket, just go talk to them!”

The muffled thumping of boots on carpet let you know that it wasn’t Alexia that was headed down the stairs. Not wanting to be caught trying to listen in on the two of them, you quickly turned to make it seem like you were pondering the layout of the doll hoard the entire time. There was the sound of a throat clearing that let you know you were no longer alone. You hesitantly turned to see Alfred standing at the bottom of the steps, with slightly different attire than usual, as his pants today were black instead of white, and he did not have his red jacket nor his cravat. There was a moment where neither of you had anything you could say. Well, that wasn’t entirely true as Alfred seemed to have a lot he wanted to say, but he was deciding whether or not he should actually say it if that annoyed look on his face was something to go off of. Eventually, he settled on, “Did you finish your work for the day?”

All you could do was answer honestly. “Well, no, sir. I was… commandeered by Lady Ashford almost as soon as I got to my office today. She’s been having me help sort…things.” You said with a slight glance toward the crowd behind you, watching you both with sets of glass eyes. That seemed to move his attention that way as well, which was something that you were thankful for as his gaze seemed even more intense than before in someway. Alfred huffed and walked over to the decorative table; standing beside you as he picked up the doll sitting there. “These wretched things!” He bemoaned as he looked it over. “My sister insists on keeping them as they were once our great grandmother’s. I wouldn’t mind so much if she would keep them all in her room instead of placing them all about the place! Do you realize how terrifying it is to have one of these appear on the shelf right outside your door. I suppose sisters never outgrow their teasing.” He chuckled slightly as he handed the doll to you so you could place it back on the table. When you took it from him, your hand accidentally brushed against his. His breath caught, and you thought that he was upset. This caused you to hesitantly put the doll down and look over to him.

When you did, you saw that his vision was slightly glazed over and his face was as red as the blazer that he usually wore. Alfred did notice you after a moment, and cleared his throat awkwardly as he looked somewhere else in the room. Despite not looking at you, he subconsciously stepped closer, hopeful something might happen once more. Not wanting to seem too conspicuous, he started to talk again. “I do hope my sister hasn’t been too demanding with you. She has a way of, as you said, commandeering things.” His nose twitched slightly at that as his annoyance flared up once more. He cleared the feeling with a defeated sounding sigh. “In fact, it seems she had plans for me as well. She wouldn’t let me be for the whole morning no matter how many times I told her I was trying to rest for once.” He mumbled. Without thinking about it, you commented, “Oh, right, she told that you weren’t feeling well…this morning…” You trailed off when you realized how informal you were being, and with whom you were being informal with.

To your surprise, Alfred simply responded with a gentle, “I believe I am feeling much better now. Thank you.” Then his hand brushed against yours. The mixture of his warm skin, no doubt warmed by the flushed that was glowing all over him, and the cool metal and jewel of his ring sent a shiver through you. The room was tense, but it was a quiet sort of tense that made one hold their breath rather than run for the door. You weren’t even able to ponder what Alfred might be thinking as you were too occupied trying to figure out what you were feeling. It was an odd sensation of your heart about to burst from your chest from the energy of the room, yet you not minding the feeling for some reason. Finally, he turned back to look at you, cool sapphire eyes silently willing you to focus on them. “I’ve actually been meaning to talk with you about something for some time.” The way he almost whispered made your face start to heat up like his. Then the next thing he said made all that color drain in a flash.

“I don’t believe I should have you as my assistant anymore.”

Lord, had you just misread the situation in the worst way possible! This was it. You were going the way of the other assistants that he was done with. Your first suspicious had been correct! You were not long for this world-

There was suddenly a hand gently holding the side of your face. “Eyes on me, if you please.” He softly demanded, and made you realize you had looked down to the floor. You did, wanting to prolong your demise as long as possible by doing anything that he asked. You started to feel more and more lightheaded the longer he watched your reaction in silence. In your delirium, you couldn’t help but take note of his features. His lips seemed rosier than you thought they were, yet his eyes had what looked to be slightly dark patches under them. It was most likely just the change in the lighting, you concluded. And, you also concluded that the only reason you were even paying attention to such things was because you were trying not to pass out from nerves. “Poor thing. You’re shaking.” Alfred cooed sympathetically as his other hand went to rest on the upper part of your chest, just below your collar bones. He hummed thoughtfully. “That poor, little heart feels like it’s about to flutter away. Just like you’re a frightened, little rabbit looking at a big, bad wolf.” Alfred teased, but the warmth of his hand over your heart did seem to help it calm down a little.

Alfred’s hand went from the side of your face to the area between your shoulder blades, as if to help you keep your balance. “You certainly are precious enough to be one. I believe I might keep that title for you. You wouldn’t mind being my little rabbit, would you?” He leaned closer to you as he asked. There were plenty of questions buzzing around in your adrenaline plagued mind at the moment; the main one being, what was the usefulness of giving you a pet name that you were going to have for a day at most if things were going as badly as you thought they were. The only part of that question you were able to get out, though, was, “What?”

This caused Alfred to giggle so hard that people would have thought there was a dolphin based B.O.W. that had somehow managed to wriggle its way up here. “Oh, my silly, little, rabbit!” He sighed as he finally caught his breath again. “Shall I have to walk you through everything?” He asked adoringly as he maneuvered the two of you so that he was sitting in the large chair by the stairs, and you were sitting sideways on his lap. Your face started to burn once more with this close proximity, and his started to slightly as well, his newly gained confidence about the situation wavering a bit. But, it truly only wavered a moment, because if there was one thing he had in droves to help him through times of uncertainty it was vibrato. So, he was right back to his smug self in no time. “Now, let’s go over what’s happened, and what’s going to happen, hm?” Alfred was practically giddy, only a step and a half away from singing everything he said.

“About a year ago, I suddenly found myself without an assistant. I brought the first name to pop up on the list of replacements. That would be you.” Alfred tapped your nose at the word, “you,” causing you to instinctively crinkle it at the feeling. This made him start to giggle once more. “If you don’t stop being so adorable it might take me the rest of the afternoon to finish.” He playfully scolded before draping an arm around your waist. “And, then you, oh, so, surprising you, showed up and ruined everything that I thought I knew about life.” Alfred let out a hefty sigh as his whole body relaxed into the chair, like he just released a breath that he had been holding for months. “I have been absolutely beside myself for months trying to deduce what exactly it was you had done- what you still are doing to me. It’s been driving me mad!” You had to fight not to comment on his last statement. “Seeing as there are certain…traditions in my family, I will fully admit, I might have been in denial. It took me finally breaking down and telling my dear Alexia what was happening. And, of course, she knew what was happening right away. Father,” the was a noticeable bit of bile in his tone at the name, but he pressed on through the disgust, “always did say she was the smarter twin.”

Your head was spinning. He was still saying something, but it was muffled by screaming. Your screaming. You didn’t think it was vocal, but at this point your mind was so frazzled that you could neither tell nor be bothered to tell. This was something that he was trying as an odd form of torture right? There was no way he, Alfred Ashford, an earl, the leader of a top secret, military island, high ranking official in an even more top secret, frighteningly powerful super organization, was trying to confess some sort of crush to you. The more you thought of everything, the more the room started to spin. The only part of you that ended up going limp was your head; it was easy to forget how strong all that military training actually made him with how prim and proper he always looked. This immediately caught Alfred’s attention, and he was quick to sit you up properly.

“Now, now, don’t faint on me.” He encouraged and he started to use his hand to fan you. “Oh, dear, it seems I’m starting to lose you. I suppose this all must be terribly overwhelming.” Alfred half said to you and half scolded himself. Once you seemed to be coming back to, he gave a sigh of relief. “How are you, dear?” You were still too hazy to process how gentle he was being, but slurred out, “I think… alright.” This made Alfred huff in disbelief, but he took your word for it anyhow. “I suppose I should do a better job at explaining?” He offered, but just thought of being surrounded by all those facts made your head start to spin again. Alfred decided to push on; giving himself the caveat of, “Succinctly, this time, Alfred.”

He cleared his throat. Then took a steadying breath.

“Approximately one year ago, you became my personal assistant, but I was absolutely planning on killing you after a few months, but then you were too charming to kill, so I moved you to working in my office so I could watch you all day everyday, but because of family expectations and being an earl I felt I could not act on my feelings, so I just took it out on everyone else on the island, and then I noticed you looking at me the way I look at you, and knowing you would never be able to express your feeling like could not, that made me depressed, but then my sister met you, and told me she approves, and since she is the only other family I have left alive, that means that my whole family approves and that’s a nonissue now, but the reason you cannot be my assistant anymore is because I cannot have the person I am going to marry work for me, think of the scandal, and the last thing a man in my position needs is a scandal!”

You were almost positive that he didn’t breathe that entire time. Earlier you were having a difficult time processing things because of there being too much. And, to Alfred’s credit, this time he did just give you the basics. To his detriment, he gave them so quickly that they all mushed together. “M-marry?” You mumbled out, and the sight of you thinking about it made a blush creep back onto Alfred’s face. “Well, of course! I will have to continue the Ashford line at some point. And, when that point comes, I will also need someone to look after our children.” Alfred reveled at just how quickly your face brightened. “You sound so sure that-“

“Well, of course I’m sure. Almost anything is possible with Umbrella already. Just think of the things we might be able to do in a few year when we’re ready for children! It won’t matter how we go about it, but there most certainly be an heir.” He interjected. “But,” he continued as he ran his knuckles gently down your face, “don’t worry your pretty, little head about that yet, rabbit. I will give you plenty of time to adjust to your new life before we move ahead with any wedding plans.” He leaned forward like he was about to kiss your cheek, but second guessed himself at the last moment, leading him to simply tap his forehead against yours. Then, he started to snicker. “After all, it isn’t like I’m some sort of madman who has you trapped somewhere.” Alfred Ashford of Rockfort Island laughed at the absurdity of the thought.

If you were to tell anyone you know, or even yourself yesterday that you would find yourself suddenly engaged to an earl on a secret island in the middle of nowhere because you helped his sister sort a few, old porcelain dolls one morning, there would be no response because that’s something so obtusely obscure that no one would ever think to try to say that for any sensible reason. Except of course, if you found yourself suddenly engaged to an earl on a secret island in the middle of nowhere because you helped his sister sort a few, old porcelain dolls one morning, which you had. The aforementioned earl rested his head on your shoulder, adjusted his arms around your waist to hold you tightly to him, and sighed. “Tomorrow will be such a hassle.” Alfred grumbled. “We’ve both been out the whole day, so who knows what sort of mess I’ll walk into! I’ll have to have what little things you had with you brought to your new room here. Not to mention the Herculean task of finding someone to replace you.” He sighed once again and nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck. “But, that is tomorrow. Today, I’ve got my mind set on staying like this with you. We have plenty of lost time to make up for, after all.” Alfred giggled and placed a small kiss to the part of your shoulder his lips were closest to.

You were still on the fence on whether this turn of events meant the you had a lot of good luck or a lot of bad luck. Whatever the case, you felt like your life was about to change for the weirder. The extent of how weird was something you would never be able to guess.

#alfred ashford #alfred ashford x reader

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k2kid · 7 years ago

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The ties between Canadians and Folkestone go back to the First World War. A popular image was of a soldier holding a rifle with a bayonet, advancing in front of the Union Jack with the assurance: “Don’t be Alarmed, the Canadians are on guard at Folkestone”. The impression made upon the populace and the institutional psyche of the region became so strong that even to this day on every Canada Day the children of Folkestone attend to the graves of the Canadians buried at a local military cemetery by placing Canadian flags at each headstone.

A youngster rememebrs a Canadian soldier during the special service at Shorncliffe Military Cemetery. Source: http://www.kentonline.co.uk/ashford/news/poignant-ceremony-remembers-canadian-soldie-a104215/

The thoughts and feelings of the men of the Canadian Expeditionary Force have been documented in letters and many of the members of the 18th Battalion had family close at hand which led to problems with soldiers being absent without leave. One of the methods to keep the soldiers busy when not actively training was to encourage their participation in sports. These events would engage a small number of active participants in the units competing in the matches, but they would occupy the soldiers of the units as the members of each participating unit would make ready audiences for these events.

Baseball was one such activity. It used a minimum of equipment and allowed for many people to watch the games. Baseball also had the attraction for the general-public of the Folkestone area of being a new and unique sporting event. A sport decidedly new-world and American in character, but somewhat familiar to the English with their knowledge of the game of rounders.

The 18th Battalion participated in baseball and many instances of baseball games and tournaments are recorded in the War Diaries, but the activities of the Battalion with sport of all kinds during its training in England are, sadly, bereft of detail. The War Diaries relate in brief detail the training process of the Battalion that the recent discovery of a news article relating the participation of the Battalion in a baseball match against the 2nd Divisional Supply Column brings the social and physical life of the soldiers to our attention. Their days were not made up of constant training, though a survey of the appendices of Battalion’s War Diary indicate:

Note that the day of a soldier of the 18th Battalion starts at 6.30 AM with a half-hour of “squad drill” and proceeds a-pace with 15 of May involving four hours of entrenching and the 22nd five hours of the entrenching.

But, after 5:00 PM the Battalion was free to participate in sport and this is, most likely, when the baseball match against the 2nd Divisional Supply Column took place.

CANADIAN BASEBALL.

Another Canadian baseball match was played at the Folkestone Cricket Ground on Saturday[i] afternoon, between the 2nd Divisional Supply Column and the 18th Battalion Infantry. The game was watched by a good crowd of spectators, and each successful stroke met with enthusiastic applause from the many Canadians present.

The 18th Battalion won by 12 runs to 9, but the 2nd Divisional Supply Column played a splendid game, and were well on the way to equalizing the score at the conclusion, having scored well in the latter part of the play. The 18th Battalion had excellent pitching abilities.

Teams:–

18th Battalion: Smith[ii], Anderson[iii], Knox[iv], Jefferies[v], Dillon[vi], Huck[vii], Marks[viii], Garside[ix], and Peterborough[x].

2nd Divisional Supply Column: Libby, Coapman, King, Brown, Bennett, Robinson, Kelly, Gallagher, McCullough, and Kearn.

The play throughout was very spirited, and many fine catches were witnessed. At the beginning of the game the 18th scored rapidly, and the position got as far as 9 – 5. When the 2nd got their next point the 18th was still ahead. It was, however, here that the 2nd began to forge ahead, and before very long they had brought their runs up to nine, where their score stood at the close.

The weather was admirable for the match. Baseball, which was a form of sport almost unknown in Folkestone before the coming of the Canadians, has become quite a popular game, and there are more and more spectators at each match.

Source: Folkestone Herald. May 22, 1915. Page 8. Courtesy of Folkestone Baseball Chronicle Facebook Group (Andrew Taylor).

The story relates the essentials of the match. The 18th Battalion leads, there is a tie, end then the 18th Battalion prevails. Many Canadian soldiers are in attendance at each “stroke” there is “enthusiastic applause”. The writer, obviously new to describing a baseball game, does a concise summary of the game and, as time has passed offers to a modern reader some real gems of information and context.

Not only is the author’s familiarity of baseball incomplete, the descriptions of the contest are apt and give the event a flavour tinged in the times of a reporter about the beat of his community reporting on an event. The story offers something, now, much more important. It places specific men o the 18th Battalion at a specific place, time, and activity and allows us to see their lives as much more than simply soldiers. They are active men, pursuing sport after a very heavy day of training. That, after five-hours of trench digging, let alone marching from West Sandling to Tolsford Hill to dig these trenches, the soldiers return, most likely change from some sort of work fatigue uninform into clean clothes to play baseball.

How these men are connected will remain unknown. Where they members of the same Platoon or Squad. Of where they simply the first to volunteer to play against another team. Could the Battalion, through an enterprising officer, had a formal training and practice regime for baseball?

Connected they are. Their names are in black and white and a simple review of the Nominal Roll, April 1915 allows their identity to be determined with some certainty. Of the men identified only Jeffries identifies as British born. All the other identified men are Canadian born. They all range in age from 18 to 27-years old. They share an interest in baseball. Private Jeffries, our Englishman, served two years with a Yorkshire Regiment. Perhaps he was exposed to playing rounders during that service drawing him to participating in baseball.

We can now picture those young men playing during “admirable” day. The soft hit of a ball making contact of the bat as Private Garside hits a grounder towards third base and him sprinting hard towards first, hoping that the immutable physics of a caught and thrown ball will not make him out. That he will run past the bag and make a base hit and turn and smile to a friend along the baseline as he is cheered on. Other men, in civilian clothes, stand beside the raucous Canadians as they cheer on their teams so far from home.

This article, simply entitled CANADIAN BASEBALL, captures moments in time specific to the men of the 18th Battalion. They are identified. They are made real. They are our heritage and we can now understand them better.

[i] The exact date of the game mentioned in the article is unknown. The paper was published on a Saturday – May 22, 1915 – so it is possible the paper is relating to a game played on that date or the Saturday prior to the paper’s publication – May 15, 1915. The 18th Battalion War Diary for April and May 1915 are not help in determining the date. Further, there are no war diaries for the 2nd Divisional War Diary for May 1915.

[ii] This soldier’s identity cannot be determined as there were fourteen privates with the surname “Smith” in the April 1915 Nominal Roll.

[iii] This soldier’s identity cannot be determined as there were four privates with the surname “Anderson” in the April 1915 Nominal Roll.

[iv] MacDonald, John Knox: Service no. 53821 (Military Medal).

[v] Jefferies, Arthur: ��Service no. 54129. He was killed in action at the Somme on September 15, 1916.

[vi] Dillon, Basil: Service no. 53790.

[vii] Huck, Norman: Service no. 54021.

[viii] Marks, William Charles: Service no. 53832.

[ix] Garside, Ernest Albert: Service no. 53676. He was killed in action the day after Private Arthur Jefferies, at the Somme.

[x] This soldier’s name is miss-spelled. Puterbaugh, Alfred Frederick: Service no. 53378. He was shot in the head December 24, 1916 and succumbed to those wounds on July 30, 1917.

#2nd Divisional Supply Column #baseball #Folkestone #rounders

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