Digest of stories from The Luton News: Thursday, October 26th, 1916.

A magnificent result was achieved by the ladies of Luton in their flag-selling efforts on Saturday. The weather fortunately was all that could be desired, and the work was carried out under the best conditions.

It was not an ordinary flag day, for it was part of the big scheme which the Mayor had in hand for the benefit of war charities, including the British Red Cross 'Our Day' Fund, the Beds Territorial Comforts Fund, the Beds Prisoners of War Fund, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and the National Institute for the Blind.

The first donation received was one of £100 from Mrs Francis Crawley, and there has since been a steady flow of cheques and notes from £1 to 25 guineas. There was also a personal donation of 50 guineas from Mr J. W. Green, who said his brewery firm would probably send as much also later on.

The nurses and wounded soldiers at Wardown V.A.D. Hospital also gave valuable help, the latter had charge of a special stall outside the Town Hall. It seems that the soldiers at Wardown participated in a competition, for which prizes were given, and they had made all kinds of fancy articles, including needle cushions, bookmarks, kettle holders, bags and dolls. There were sold to the public at the stall.

• Sad indeed are the circumstances of the death in action of Second Lieut Harold George Fyson, of Leagrave Road, Luton. He had pluckily gone out with his men on October 12th to talk to a German officer and 50 men who had indicated they wanted to surrender. But the Germans had their machine guns trained and fired as the Britishers approached.

• A collision between two trains, fortunately unaccompanied by loss of life, occurred on the Midland Railway on Sunday morning at about 7 am. The scene of the accident was the up goods line half a mile north of Luton, and it appears that the driver of one train was following another, both of which were travelling from Nottingham to London. Owing to a curve in the rails, the driver of the rear train was unable to see at what distance the other train was in front of him, and before he could realise how close he was his engine had run into it. Several trucks containing coal were derailed and one overturned. The line was blocked for several hours, but by noon ordinary working was resumed.

• Young bride Mrs Alice Eleanor Jeffery (nee Tuffnell), of 61 John Street, Luton, received official intimation from the War Office that the husband she married a few months earlier had been reported missing on September 3rd. Some of his comrades wrote that Pte Lusignan Ernest Jeffery had been wounded while fighting with the Local North Lancashires in France. [He was later listed as killed in action on September 3rd].

• The idea of a fund to provide Christmas puddings for troops had attracted little initial interest in Luton. Said The Luton News: "Of course we know that Luton is specially interested just now in the Mayor's big scheme on behalf of war charities, but who could not spare a trifle for Tommy's Christmas pudding? It is not a question of large donations - a single shilling would be the means of giving a little Christmas cheer to two men in the fighting line. We shall be pleased to start a local fund, but the project must meet with more enthusiasm than it has at present received."

• Former Luton telegraph boy Rifleman Arthur James Gaunt has met a soldier's death in France with the 8th City of London Regiment (Post Office Rifles). He was the son of Mr Edward Gaunt, of 12 Hartley Road, Luton, and had transferred to Harrow as a postman.

• On Monday evening between 5 and 6 pm a British aeroplane dropped in a field about halfa mile from Great Bramingham Farm. The wings of the aeroplane were broken, and the next morning Mr James Browning, of Little Bramingham, furnished a farm cart and conveyed a portion of the machinery tote highway, where a motor lorry awaited it, as well as several flying men who took the aeroplane back to headquarters.

• Quartermaster-Sgt Ernest Tibbs (pictured right), of the 1st North Midland Field Ambulance, R.A.M.C., has been granted a commission. He came to Luton on February 2nd, 1915, as billeting sergeant for his unit. While here he was promoted from sergeant a month later and on May 3rd married Elizabeth Young, from Luton. He is now serving in Ireland and was gazetted Lieutenant on September 14th.

• News was received last week by Mr and Mrs Dumpleton, of 24 Gardenia Avenue, Leagrave that Pte Arthur Dumpleton, a brother, had been killed in action on the Somme on September 25th. He was a labourer and had been working at the Biscot Huts just before he became a soldier. The former gamekeeper, born in 1877, had been in the Army for only a few months and in France about two months.

• After 17 months in the fighting line, Pte Walter J. Smith, popularly known as Jack and son of Mr and Mrs William Smith, of 1 Blyth Place, Luton, is at Grazingwell Military Hospital, Chichester, to have a jagged-edged piece of shrapnel removed from the palm of his left hand. The three-ounce souvenir was received on September 12th in the Somme struggle.

• Just over a year ago Luton was agog with excitement over the thrilling story of the escape from a German prison of Sgt Alfred Birley, of the 1st Gloucester Regiment, and a brother-in-law of Mrs W. O. Paine, of 27 New Bedford Road, Luton. Itis not often that an escaped prisoner is allowed to return to the danger of recapture, but that he has done so is now proved by the news that he is in Cambridge Hospital, Aldershot, recovering from gunshot wounds to the neck and face and a fractured jaw received during the fighting on the Somme.

• About 8.25 pm on Wednesday, Special Constables Puddephatt and Allwood were walking up High Town Road, opposite the Primitive Methodist Chapel, when a tramcar proceeding in the same direction caught Allwood and "bowled him over". His head was severely bruised in coming in contact with the control box and his legs and arms were also bruised. He was attended by Dr Lloyd before being taken home in a car.

• Two Royal Naval Air Service observation balloons alighted at about 3.45 on Tuesday afternoon, one in Mr Shaw's meadow at Stopsley and one in Mr Lee's field at Leagrave. Both were removed eventually back to Hurlingham.

• A verdict of accidental death was returned by a jury at an inquest on Tuesday into the death of three-year-old Bert Frederick Dudley, only son of Mr and Mrs Dudley,of 42 Collingdon Street, who died in the Bute Hospital from fatal burns after his clothes caught fire. The child's funeral was held at the Church Cemetery yesterday.