Gunner Casey
Julian Putkowski
On 19 August 1917, 19-year old Gunner William Casey, married Margaret Connor, a 21-year old spinster at St. Mary’s Catholic, Newcastle upon Tyne. She was eight months’ pregnant with their child and Gunner Casey had overstayed his leave in order to ensure that the baby would be born legitimate.
On returning to his Royal Field Artillery unit, which was attached to 8 Army Corps, Casey was tried by Field General Court Martial. His punishment for what was a capital offence remains unknown, but his illiterate wife persuaded her mother to write a letter to Casey’s commanding officer pleading for clemency. The letter was read out to the court and when the proceedings were drawn to the attention of General Sir Aylmer Hunter Weston, the Corps commander, he found the whole business absolutely hilarious and wrote to Mrs. Casey:
"Allow me as the commander of the Army Corps in which your husband is serving to send you a cheque with which to buy a wedding present… In my official capacity, your husband’s Court-Martial happened to come to my notice, & though of course his commanding officer had no option but to try him for the very heinous offence of being absent without leave & the Court Martial on the evidence had no other course but to condemn him and sentence him to severe punishment, yet, I am glad to say, it has been possible to commute the sentence and suspend its execution. So your Husband will not be punished. I rejoice that when he was forced with the necessity of committing a fault, your Husband had no hesitation in choosing that fault which would bring punishment to him and not to you. You fully realise, I hope, that in coming home thus to marry you he ran a very great risk of being found guilty of desertion & being shot; so he faced death for your sake.
Though I do not know him personally, I feel sure he must be a fine fellow & a good soldier,& I congratulate you very heartily on having gained his love. He went through much and took great risks in doing the right thing & coming home to marry you. I respect him for doing this & coming back again to do his duty straightway thereafter, & I am certain that you will always remember his fine qualities & this great proof of his love for you, and that you will make him a real good wife… I feel confident that you must be a really nice woman, and I think he is a lucky man to have you for a wife.
Send your husband my greetings and best wishes for his success as a soldier…"
