Behind every fighting man in France and elsewhere there was a veritable army of men and women at home doing their bit for King and Country. This took many guises, some worked in War factories, some on the land , down the pit. Others engaged in fundraising or caring for the welfare of the troops at the front and when they returned home injured and vulnerable. The redoubtable Mr Fowler , the headmaster of Newbattle School was a avid patriot, raising large quantities of money and sending huge amounts of cigarettes to the front, Newbattle School raised so much money that after the war they were presented with a captured German Mauser rifle, I shudder to think of that happening nowadays. The clippings and stories that folow will hopefully give an idea of this effort. I thought I would take the liberty of starting with my Grandmother Janet Gibson who was involved with Red Cross work.