The website http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/boy_soldiers.htm has the following info: "Recruitment rules were simple. To enlist and fight abroad, you had to be nineteen or over. If you were eighteen, you could enlist but you had to remain in the UK until you were nineteen before being posted abroad. No one could join the army under the age of eighteen." So maybe they wanted to join up but hoped they would not immediately be sent abroad? Just a thought.... Cathy

>From that, one can draw a few possible conclusions: One is that the person wanted to avoid being marked out as a coward (especially in days before conscription), but all the same did not want to be in harms way. After all, it was going to be "all over by Christmas" What i prefer to think is that the more thoughtful man, no matter how keen to "get at the hun", thought that a spot of training was very desirable, and may help him to survive. Dave Beakhust On 14 April 2014 21:58:07 Cathy Roberts <roberts.research36@gmail.com> wrote: > The website http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/boy_soldiers.htm has > the following info: "Recruitment rules were simple. To enlist and fight > abroad, you had to be nineteen or over. If you were eighteen, you could > enlist but you had to remain in the UK until you were nineteen before being > posted abroad. No one could join the army under the age of eighteen." > > So maybe they wanted to join up but hoped they would not immediately be > sent abroad? Just a thought.... > > Cathy > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to SOG-UK-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message