Tag Archives: Work

Arthur LInfoot was employed as a clerk at the Hendon Paper Mill in Sunderland prior to joining the RAMC. He rejoined the company after demobilisation and remained there until his retirement, rising to become a Director of the company by that time.

25 August 1914; Tuesday

August 1914, , , ,

Busy at work. Finished shortly after 5 o’clock. News to hand of the fighting. The Allies have retired to the French frontier. The British losses are estimated at 2000. Mr Asquith stated this in the House in reply to a question. Lord Kitchener held midnight Conference. Newspapers try to keep up appearances, but German success cannot be denied. Went to practice. Got on very well. Walked round with Dora’s Charlie, Willie Whittaker and Blaikie and got home late. Japan declares War on Austria1.

  1. Japan declared war on Austria-Hungary on 25 August 1914. ↩

24 August 1914; Monday

August 1914,

George back to work. Alf and Robert off on holiday. 302 tons sent out1 last month. Busy all day.

News to hand of Russia’s big victory in East Prussia & Servia’s2 big victory over Austria. News also of British Force having been in action on Saturday & Sunday. The great battle commenced on Sunday. Namur fell & the French lost & retook Charleroi3. The British held their position.

  1. “302 tons sent out”: 302 tons of paper dispatched from the paper mill. ↩

  2. See note on 23 July about the spelling of Serbia. ↩

  3. Namur and Charleroi: in Belgium, which the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was originally sent to defend. ↩

22 August 1914; Saturday

August 1914, , , , , ,

Busy at work. Finished about 2.15. An aeroplane passed over the town in the afternoon. Trial football match played. Took Histories1 up to Hills’ to be bound. Went to Roker at night with Willie Whittaker and Charlie. Discussed war news. Belgians retire to Antwerp & Germans occupy Brussels. They demand 8 million indemnity for the town. Various rumours from Austria & Russia. Charlie heard of the movement of the German fleet to Ostend.

  1. “Histories”: presumably History of the Nations; see note on 11 April ↩

17 August 1914; Monday

August 1914,

At work as usual. Very busy. Last week’s sent out 269 tons1. About 50 tons went out today. Played and read war news.

French occupied Mulhausen2 on Sunday. French troops showing good form & spirits. Belgians holding out well, but slowly retiring. Leige [sic] forts still intact.

  1. 269 tons etc: quantities of paper despatched from the paper mill. ↩

  2. Mühlhausen: Mulhouse since 1918, in Alsace; see note on 4 May ↩

12 August 1914; Wednesday

August 1914, , , , , ,

Very busy at work. Finished late about 6.15. Went up town with Father and Charlie. A few battle ships off Roker. Soldiers still busy making entrenchments. Read a bit and played a very little. Had walk last thing with Joe. Received postcard from Ernie saying how things were out there1.

A great battle commencing between Liege and Namur. About 2,000,000 men engaged and 200 miles of battle front.

  1. “Out there”: presumably St Andrew’s, where he was working. ↩

11 August 1914; Tuesday

August 1914,

Busy at work. A great deal of interest in the war and in the soldiers who are in the town. They are fortifying all along the coast. An occasional aeroplane passes over the town. A lot of interest shown over the whereabouts of the fighting†, and rumours current that some of our soldiers are in Belgium and France. Special papers out all day.

10 August 1914; Monday

August 1914, ,

At work as usual. Very busy through George being off. Went up the town at night. Charlie on counter duty. Got news of the sinking of the submarine. More soldiers drafted into the town. The Victoria Hall1 and several other buildings in the town including the Havelock House2 taken by soldiers.

  1. Victoria Hall: see note on 10 January. ↩

  2. Havelock House: A department store which, the following year, became the Havelock House cinema. See note on 27 December 1915. ↩

5 August 1914; Wednesday

August 1914, , , , ,

War declared against Germany by England

Busy at work. Great excitement caused through war.1

War declared against Germany by England.2

Joe and I went to Roker at night and saw 5 different bodies of soldiers on parade. Soldiers placed in the Salvation Army barracks, Thompson Memorial Hall, Royal Hospital, Roker House, Mrs Chester’s and Lister’s, Reserve houses, Skating Rink, barracks, pottery plot, and warehouses on the docks. Digging trenches along Roker Way. We saw the big 4.7 guns go out to Cleadon. Ernie & Hilda got a baby daughter.

  1. Most of Britain at the time, outside of Westminster and Whitehall, didn’t know about the final commitment to war until the 5th of August. ↩

  2. ALL’s use here of “England” where one might have expected “Britain” may seem odd but was quite usual at the time – many contemporary newspaper reports similarly cite “England” – for example, see this reprint from the Guardian’s archive, which uses both “England” and “Great Britain”, and this from the New York Times. Incidentally, up to the mid-20th century “North Britain” was still occasionally used, and well understood, to mean “Scotland”, which is consistent with interchangeability between “Britain” and “England”. ↩