Follow-up

FOLLOWING the recent tale of a sergeant-major’s wit (Peterborough), I have never forgotten a comment I heard during my square-bashing days in 1952 at Aldershot. We had a Welsh lad who was always in trouble. He pointed a jammed Sten gun at the sergeant who, having taken it away, screamed at him that ‘he would back-squad him so far that the bow and arrow would still be on the secret list’! Back-squadding — when you had to re-start your training — was a terrible fear for National Servicemen. Bob Wallace, hurstpierpoint, W. sussex.