Kaiser Bill’s Black and White Spotted Pigs
This week Eric Forster, the veteran master storyteller, visited the Forum for the sixth time and once again held his audience spellbound with his talk “Kaiser Bill’s Black and White Spotted Pigs”.
Mr. Forster’s chosen special interest is World War One or “The Great War “ as he prefers to call it.
On 4th August 1914 when war broke out on a hot Bank Holiday Tuesday, the Yorkshire Belle was busy at Bridlington ferrying trippers to Flamborough Head and back. Meanwhile in New York and Montevideo respectively British liner the CARMANIA and a German liner the CAP TRAFALGAR were preparing to return to home waters, one to Liverpool, one to Hamburg.
Each was requisitioned for the war effort for naval duties and eventually they met in mid-Atlantic, each disguised in enemy livery. On board the German vessel was a party of opera singers complete with orchestra and the Reich’s chief vet with the two pigs of the title. The pigs had been taken to the Argentine to persuade that beef-producing country of the advantages of pork production for the German market ………….
Alas, at the speaker’s request, I cannot report further on the story of Kaiser Bill’s Black and White Pigs as it may spoil the rest of the story for other groups. Needless to say, in true Eric Forster style, the story reached a very satisfying conclusion.
After questions Keith Wadd proposed the vote of thanks.
John Taylor
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