One of the great attributes of those who endured service in WW1 was their humour.  One who was a

successful lifetime exponent was Sir Alan Herbert (A.P.Herbert) who was described in an obituary -

"more than any man of his day, he added to the gaiety of the nation".  The final verse of a poem about 

an unpopular general called Shute  who was critical of the hygiene practices of Herbert's battalion - is 

a grand example of the mastery of words and wit for which he became widely enjoyed and admired.

"For shit may be shot at odd corners

And paper supplied there to suit,

But a shit would be shot without mourners

If somebody shot that shit Shute."

Herbert was the beneficiary of a first class education and his WW1 book "The Secret War" was reported

to have been read and admired by Lloyd George and Churchill after that conflict.  His later successes

in various genres of writing, the law and politics never lost their pervasive underlying sense of humour.

It is interesting to note that he died on November 11 (in 1971).

As the 100th Anniversary of the signing of the Armistice starts its recession into history, it seems

appropriate to remember the humour that Herbert and his kind embodied in those terrible years. 

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