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When the entire population of women,children and old men was evacuated from Gibraltar in 1940 because the Governor at the time considered them "useless mouths",they were first transported to N.Africa,shortly before the capitulation of the French; when that happened they were hurriedly put on board stinking ships and returned to Gibraltar. Some opted to go to Jamaica when they were told to move immediately; others,like my mother,who made up the main bulk,opted to go to London. Here they spent the blitz,women and children,when the London children were being sent out of London.And their treatment was often not good,at the hands of Londoners
Eventually,my mother and female members of the family finished up in Yeovil,where she joined the WVS,and was ordered to take over secretarial duties and be companion to a blind man. He turned out to be an incredibly interesting character,whose eyes had been shot away by shrapnel in the first world war. He was an author and gave my mother an autographed copy of his book,"The Light of the Mind" which described the incident where he lost his eyes,and the desperation he felt at the time.
He had eventually come to accept having glass eyes (and gave my mother a terrible shock one day when he called her and when she turned to look,he had taken his "eyes" out. He only had two holes!).
He became very fond of my mother,and when she returned to Gibraltar he wrote her some letters which I still keep,including his book.

Years later,in the 1960s,we received a letter from his secretary saying that W.J.Voss (that was is name) had passed away. Evidently some thieves had got into his house and had given him a severe beating to get at anything valuable there. He died in hospital shortly after. We never knew if his murderers were caught. My mother died in the early seventies,so the story ends there.......except for the wonderfully written letters which I keep.

Hector Cortes

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