Rushden Victim of the War
Private Harold Harlow – Formerly of Raunds – Killed in Action

Mrs F Compton, of 26 Essex-road, Rushden, had received the sad news that her nephew, Pte. Harold Harlow, has been killed in France. The deceased soldier, who was only 18 years of age last March, was the second son of Mr and Mrs Thomas Harlow, of Strezleckie, Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Before going to Australia six years ago, Mr and Mrs Harlow resided at Raunds for several years, Mr Harlow being employed at Mr Coggins’s boot factory. Before that, they lived in Newton-road, Rushden. Mr Thomas Harlow is a brother of Mr Ernest Harlow, of Cromwell-road, Rushden, and of Mrs F Compton, of Essex-road, Rushden.

The deceased soldier as a lad attended the Newton-road school at Rushden, and was a scholar in the Park-road Wesleyan Sunday school; and when his parents went to reside at Raunds he attended the Raunds Wesleyan day school, under Mr Lee. Attached to the Australian Expeditionary Force, he saw service in France, where he fell in action.

In the course of a letter to Mr Jordan, deceased’s uncle, dated October 14th, Pte. Tom Watson, a comrade of the deceased soldier, says: “It is with a very sad heart that I write these few lines to tell you that poor old Harold has met his end fighting in France for his King and country. As you know, I was one of his closest friends, and you can realise what a blow it was to me when, after a stunt, I went looking for him and was told by a sergeant in his company that he had died of wounds. One of the — Battalion fellows took his pay-book and cut the disc from around his neck with a bayonet, and handed them to a fellow in A Company, and he gave them to the parson. I saw Harold as we were working up to our objective—that was about 9.30 or 10.a.m. We went over the top at 20 minutes to 6 in the morning of the 20th. Since then the remaining men have been in another fight, and, thank God, I have again missed the blighties, but a fellow can’t head them always; he has a fair trot, then tails them. A fellow is getting full up, with all his mates gone, but I suppose we will have to stick it until something better turns up. About 40 out of our company strength of 120 came out. There were a good many killed and a lot wounded.”

A brother of the deceased soldier, Gnr. E. A. Harlow, is with the Colours, being at the present time in England. He spent his 21st birthday at sea, en route for this country. Mr and Mrs Thomas Harlow have one other son—a young lad—and three daughters.