Mr and Mrs F Desborough, of Northampton, formerly of Rushden, have received news that their only son, Pte Fred Stanley Desborough, aged 21, has died of septic poisoning. The deceased joined up at the commencement of the war, and had been injured several times. He suffered from frostbitten feet at the first Christmas (1914), was gassed at the Battle of Loos (1915), and in 1917 was blown into the air 30 feet while operating a Lewis gun, with three others, shrapnel entering his stomach, and this was the cause of his having 24 stitches. Then he was blown up by a bomb on May 27th, 1918. Subsequently he was taken prisoner by the Germans, and died in a German camp from septic poisoning. Mr Desborough has received the following letter from Major Ian Macdougall, 2nd South African Infantry:

"Dear Mr Desborough, It is with very deep regret that I have to inform your that your son, No. 10186, Pte F Desborough, 2nd Northants Rgt., passed away on Thursday 13th inst, at 6.45 p.m. I wrote a letter for him last week and we were hopeful that he would pull through. He was very badly hit, and had wounds in several places, which became septic. The German doctors and orderlies were very attentive to him and did all they could for him, but his wounds were too bad. The British orderlies did everything they could do, too. He made a great fight for life and never complained. During the last 24 hours his mind was wandering. I visited him three times a day and spent his last hours at his bedside, but he was quite unconscious. In his wandering he spoke of his home, but it was very difficult to make out what he said. He passed away very peacefully. He was buried to-day in the cemetery set aside for British soldiers, and was accorded full military honours. A detachment of British soldiers attended the funeral, and a short service was held at the hospital, in addition to the service at the graveside. A wooden cross with name and date of birth and death, marks the grave. I am a patient in the hospital, and this explains how I saw so much of your boy. I tender you and your family my deepest sympathy in your sad bereavement".