Page 51 - Sylvia Malt - Side by Side

railway, which would eventually take them some 5,000 uncomfortable and adventurous
miles across the vast Russian plains. The men had to travel in low quality cattle-trucks
with tiers of planks for resting and sleeping, and the officers travelled in poorly furnished
compartments. This was the start of many long, dangerous and extremely difficult journeys
across Russia’s vast terrain which Col. Ward and his men endured during the next few
months. The train would sometimes be deliberately held up for many hours, even for
days, for no apparent reason, and all the time they had to be constantly alert to danger,
their safety never guaranteed for a single minute. Once the men were out in the hostile
terrain, they had no barracks to fall back on and had to fend for themselves as best they
could in a very alien environment, as well as having to be prepared to fight “the enemy” as
and when they encountered them. The whole of the Region was in utter chaos. Death and
destruction was all around them.

The British Government had eventually sent out suitable clothing for the men to survive a
Russian winter. However, the sheepskin coats were in black, making them a perfect target
against the white background. Their fur caps were a dark brown, the half-moon peak
making the head of the wearer a good mark at midnight up to 300 yards. What with huge
fur boots, the black pointed caps and long black coats, there was nothing to indicate the
British Tommy from the line of black monks that moved silently over the frozen snow. The
temperature was such that as the slight wind brought the water to the men’s eyes, the
drops froze to hard white spots of ice at the corners. Breath from the nostrils froze before
it could leave the nose.

Christmas 1918 came and went, and Henry Wells was just managing to survive. As a rather
bewildered soldier, miserable and longing to get back to England, he had to witness and
endure many horrific events in a totally alien and hostile environment. Thoughts of his
devoted wife and family in the peace and tranquillity of North Cray must have seemed a
million miles away. But early in February 1919, there was a brief reminder of home and
normality for the home-sick soldiers.
3rd Feb 1919 (Col. Ward’s diary entry): “Lt Munro has just arrived at Ormsk from
Vladivostok with comforts from the ladies at Shanghai, Hong-Kong and Singapore. Words
fail to describe the feelings of both officers and men as they receive these tokens of love
and remembrance from their own countrywomen in this cold, inhospitable climate. It is a
beautiful feeling, and although the actual work performed is the effort of a few, the whole
sex receives a crude sort of adulation from these womanly acts. The way one of the
commonest Tommies looked at a small wash-flannel that had evidently been hemmed by
hands unused to work of any description, and asked me if I would give the unknown lady
my thanks, would have gone to the heart of the fair but unknown worker could she have
witnessed it.”

Two days later a really terrible blizzard occurred, with 20 degrees of frost, which lasted for
over 48 hours. The snow beat into the men’s faces and found its way between the flaps of
their head-covers. As it was impossible for the men to know where they were or see a
building until they crashed up against it, the decision was taken to withdraw all sentries
and send the men to the nearest shelter. It was during this awful spell of especially
atrocious weather, on 8th February 1919, that 43-year-old Henry Wells died, reportedly of
“acute alcohol poisoning”. It is perfectly understandable, perhaps, that in order to forget
the miserable life he was somehow expected to endure, Henry drank a substantial amount
of strong alcohol, such as Vodka, which caused his death. It is not difficult for us to
appreciate how such a tragic episode could have come about.

In Memoriam - Henry Wells is buried in the Churkin Naval Cemetery, Vladivostok, which
is on the Churkin Peninsula and was used by British, French, American and Czechoslovak
troops.

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