*****
For some reason, when they were evacuated from London, the train had not taken them to Marwell railway station, but to Rucksford, a larger town nearby. There double-decker buses like the London ones waited for the children. But to Jeffery's surprise, and probably to a lot of the other children also, the buses were painted green and not the familiar London red. Later he learned that all London Transport country buses were painted green.
They had marched onto the buses in a column of twos. An unknown teacher boarded first, directing the line on the left into the downstairs area, the one to the right upstairs. Jeffrey was on the right as was Peter. Arthur went downstairs. The busses traveled through the centre of town, then up a steep hill, and then along country roads. Finally they reached the village of Marwell and a school set in the middle of a large field. There the children marched off the buses and back into the column of twos. The column was guided into the school, down a long corridor and into the school hall. Inside the hall, gathered to one side, small groups of local citizens waited. At the far end of the hall, below a small stage, officials were seated at a large trestle table. The children were marshaled into lines opposite the table. The teachers who traveled with them went over and spoke to the officials. Then the selection process began. As names were called, local people stepped forward to select the children they wanted in their homes.
One of the first called, a farmer, quickly chose Peter and Arthur and hustled them away. By the time all the locals had made their choices, Jeffery and his sister still waited as a London a teacher had promised Jeffrey's mother that they would be kept together. People willing to take two wanted either two girls or two boys, not one of each. But they weren't the only ones, others also waited. Too few locals had turned up for the selection.
The leftover children were again lined up in pairs, this time Jeffery paired with his sister. Off they went again, this time on foot accompanied by a teacher and a billeting officer. They marched along the village streets seeking other billets. Jeffery began to feel a tiny bit of dread of the future, although in some ways everything still felt like a fantastic adventure. The billeting officer knocked on doors, offering the children up to the householders. Once again Jeffery and his sister failed to be chosen, at least until almost all were settled. Most householders wanted girls only and were reluctant to accept one of each or even two boys. But eventually they were settled.
As for the two chosen by the farmer, while Arthur hated the farm, Peter loved it. He always hurried from school back to the farm because there was work to do. Seven days a week the farmer got them up early in the mornings to clean out the horse stables or feed the chickens and sometimes gather the eggs. Arthur didn't care for the animals and feared the chickens most because there was one big cockerel that chased him all the time, pecking at his bare legs. They never seemed to bother Peter.
Peter's family had two children, both boys, but his older brother was fourteen and now worked in his parent's grocery store. Jeffery knew Peter badly missed his family, perhaps more so than other evacuees, even though it seemed as if they all felt sad, lost and troubled at times.
Bomber Overhead Page 4
