Mexborough and Swinton Times, September 9, 1916
A Wombwell Officer
Serves his Country on four Fronts
Second Lieutenant Rowland Thornsby
A very interesting letter has been received from second Lt Rowland Thornsby, son of Mr and Mrs S Thornsby, Thorn Lea house, Wombwell. It runs as follows:
“Here I am in Naples, and it is okay. I had a look round Marseille, stayed the night at the Louvre hotel, left the next morning on my journey to Salonika. It is a very wonderful sight as you enter Naples Bay, with Vesuvius in the background. The first thing we did was to get a guide. Our first visit was to the church of St Francis and Paul. You cannot describe it; it is simply magnificent. Later we went to more churches, then the museum. Most of the things are relics from Pompeii. There were some lovely statues there of Hercules, Venus and heaps of others. Then we had a drive through the main streets. It is a very beautiful city with a population of about 850,000.
The people still had flags out, celebrating their Gorizia victory. The next thing was a motor drive to Pompeii, which is about 22 miles from Naples, at the foot of Vesuvius, which is smoking, but there is no eruption now. Then the guide took us to the ruins of Pompeii, where they are still digging and excavating for relics.
Of course I can’t describe Pompeii to you; the thing is to read Britain’s “The last Days of Pompeii.” One can hardly realise it as you walk down the streets, which are narrow and paved with big stones. The fountains in the streets are worn away where the people used to put their hands and faces when drinking. You can see the stone worn away in the streets, where the chariots had been. The floors and walls of a lot of the houses and shops are in mosaic and very well preserved. The amphitheatre and temples are huge places.
Of course there are only the pillows and parts of the wall to show you where they had been. The guide made it interesting with the usual tale. ‘Mark Anthony this’and someone else the other. One needs a long time to go around and see the things properly. In the courtyard, where the gladiators used to practice, is a place where 63 men were found, all fastened in the stocks. Some of the houses had nice statues in the garden of people who lived there.”
Lt Thornsby has been on a short leave home, his first for 18 months. He took part in the first landing at the Dardanelles, and subsequently at all the landings.
He was attached to the 29th division as ordinance officer, and is the only man left on active service of his original company. He was transferred to Egypt at the evacuation of the peninsula, and spent six months there. He has since been a month in France.
Amongst other interesting relics he secured a magnificent Prussian helmet belonging to a Prussian officer.
He was promoted to a commission in his own Corps while in France, having previously refused this honour while in England and was ordered to proceed to Salonika.
Lt Thornsby enlisted about a month after the declaration of war. His promotion was rapid. He is also mentioned in the Dardanelles dispatches for distinguished service. He has a good word for the Turks, who he says fought fairly and honourably.