FIGHT IN CORNFIELD

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 5, 1 October 1943, Page 5

FIGHT IN CORNFIELD

Last Glimpse Of Verity LONDON, September 2. Newspapers pay tribute to Hedley Verity, the Test cricketer, whose death as a prisoner of war has been announced. The.“ Yorkshire Post” says that he was “a deep student of problems of his particular circumstance and a conqueror in his own right.” . Verity is also praised for his study,, ot soldiering before the war, but the story of his mortal wounding iu action remains his outstanding memorial. lhe “Daily Express’s” Cairo correspondent obtained it from survivors of Verity s company, which he led against a German strongpoint at Catania, Sicily, ill a mght attack. The company moved forward through a cornfield, which was swept with tracerbullets. Verity walked in front ot machineguns, getting his men under cover and urging them to “keep going; keep The Germans set fire to the corn, but men under Verity’s direction put out the flames, rolling. on them. The machinegunning grew heavier as Verity directed his company toward a farmhouse, which was the Germans’ strongest defence point. While approaching the farmuouse up a slope, Verity was hit in the chest, but continued ahead of his men, saying: “Keep going; get them from that farmhouse.” , Verity then collapsed. His wounds were dressed, hut it was impossible to get him back. Verity's batman elected to stay with him. The last the .survivors saw of them, when they were Ordered to withdraw, was Verity stretched out ou the ground and his biifman holding UP his bend in front of blazing corn.