DESERTER COMPLIMENTED.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 8, Issue 111, 11 May 1916, Page 2

DESERTER COMPLIMENTED.

A STIRRING HISTORY. Alfred Lavergne, ?. deserter, has just been acquitted by court-martial in Paris and congratulated. He deserted to go to the front. When the war broke out he was sent to a depot.

In despair he deserted and enlisted in the Foreign Legion as a Belgian subject, under the name of Leopold van Bout. He then got what he wanted, and was sent at once to fight. But as ill-luck would have it, Belgium claimed all B'elgiums serving with the Foreign Legion and Van Hcut, supposed to be a Belgian, had to obey. He was sent back from the front and told cff to train Belgian recruits. This spoilt his plans again, but after many endeavours he once mere succeeded in being sent to the fighting line, and was in Somme again.

Then while with the Belgian troops, he was mentioned for gallantry by his colonel. General de Castelnau, during a review, presented him with a splendid pipe, and King Albert sent him a box of cigars. Then he was given three weeks' leave, and had the unlucky idea of going to his native village in Dordcgne, where very soon he was arrested as a deserted last August. At the trial h e made a clean breast of it, but added that he had deserted his depot, not deserted France/' He was unanimously found net guilty and went back to the firing line.