h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Dear Len,
Please go to my personal page and read mail headings "Bloodhound Needed"
I asked Peter with his superior knowledge of the site if he could find your entry. He has come back with the key to all your postings and the reason he thinks one is missing.
What would we do without Peter.
Regards Frank.

Dear Frank
Many thanks for your trouble. I certainly did send Chapt 9, and never sent anything in between. I sent 'After Dunkirque' if that's what Peter means, last year, I think it was! I remember 9 was longer than the others, could it have rejected because too long? I suppose I'll have to re-do it
Regards Len

Dear Frank
Spare my blushes! I am indeed getting too old. I have carefully checked my last week's work, and I miss-numbered the last contribution. POW 10 should have been entitled POW 9. Do you think Peter is clever enough to alter it for me? And my thanks for your intermediating efforts.
I will try to find time to do the real POW 9 tomorrow afternoon.
Please convey my sincere apologies.
Yours Len

Dear Len,
Blush not, anyone of our age who can get their story onto a computer and sent in the right direction "most of the time" has nothing to blush about.
Right pay attention. Bring up your story POW 10.
When it is on screen look in the green column on the left hand side and you will see EDIT STORY highlighted in sea sick green. (Only you can see this)
Click on to that and change the title to POW 9 and repost.
Now write up POW 10 in the normal way.
To make it easy for yourself just label POW 10-2 on your next story with a short foreword that you misnumbered.
Regards Frank.

Dear Frank
Many thanks for the info. In fact I wrote the next chapter before reading your note, entitling it 10a. I'll now see what I can do following your other instructions.
Yours Len

Dear Len (Snowie) Baynes Sorry to interrupt - I left a message for you here http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/ww2/F136804?thread=373126&latest=1 but I'm not sure if you have seen it. If you can give me a main title for your POW stories I can put them in a section in our 'Book' category as I go through them. It is part of my job to alter article titles as I go, so once I've done a couple you'll know the formula for future stories. Thank you for all your contributions to People's War, and have a good weekend! Best wishes Paul - WW2 Team

Dear Len,
Listen up Len. Paul is good at what he does. What he suggests in the next letter would put all your stories on the one page and you would still find them under other sections too. he did it for me and I have no complaints (if I did he might wipe me out).
Joking aside why not call your Book Page "Singapore Before and after its Fall" "A Commando Soldiers story" that way they could take all your stories as they are titled and they would fit. Sorry to put my neb in Paul but Len has opened my eye's about those times in Singapore. Churchill did write them off as Cowards for giving up easily. Subsequent research plus Len's excellent narative has given me the truth behind those days. They need to be shown,
Regards to you both,
Frank.

Dear Paul
No, I didn't see your message. I suggest the contributions come under four headings:
DUXFORD, 1939
THE FIRST COMMANDO
THE SINGAPORE CAMPAIGN
A JAPANESE POW (Or 'The Railway of Death')
If you don't think any of these appropriate, you have my authority to change them to something more suitable.
Many thanks for your trouble,
Yours Len

Dear Frank
Many thanks for your help and suggestions. You will see what I have written to Paul, and hope you approve.
All the best Len

Dear Len,
Being beautiful I always give way to age.
I think the headings are very good but they do need one main heading to put it all under, I went through the same process. As long as it all gets on the same page where it can be read in total why worry.
Keep at it Len,
Regards Frank.

Dear Len and Frank

Thank you for your suggestions (and kind words Frank!) There's nothing to stop me making more than one 'book' section if there's enough articles to fill them. I can start with the POW stories: I like 'The Railway of Death' so if you give me the go-ahead I'll create a subject called that and sort it out and then we can think about titles to arrange the others under.

Best wishes

Paul - WW2 People's War Team

Dear Paul & Frank
Thanks Paul, that's fine, please proceed as you suggest.
Frank says we need an overall heading to cover all my contributions; I can't think of anything really apposite. Here are some ideas, but maybe you can thing of something better:
SURVIVAL
ONE MAN'S WAR
TO HELL & BACK
THE TERRIERS AT WAR
TO BE A SOLDIER
AN OCTOGENARIAN LOOKS BACK ON HIS WAR
WORLD WAR TWO AND ALL THAT
THE WILL TO LIVE
THE STORY OF Sgt. LEN BAYNES
But I hope you can think of something better.
Incidentally I've just submitted POW 11
Regards to both Len

Dear Paul
I see that there are quite a few of my earlier contributions missing from your more recent lists. Hereunder the earlier ones:
1. How WW2 Began
2. A Very Important Job
3. The Cambridgeshire Regiment
4. After Dunkirk
5. A Long Way Round
6. The Chaos Begins
7. Chaos 1
8. Chaos 2
9. Chaos 3
10 Chaos 4
11 The Fall of Singapore
12. Captured
13. Introduction To Jap POW Life
14. Japanese POW 2
15. Japanese POW 3
Yours Len

Dear Len

I will just look under 'See all Stories and Questions' on your personal page to find the relevant articles. If all the stories are to be listed in chronological order the only way to get the system is to title them accordingly eg

The Will to Live: Chapter 1 - How WW2 Began

so if we decide on the order and the title I can do them or show you how to do it yourself. The problem is that if I do it all and we decide to change the title, I have to retitle all the stories again, so I'm keen to get it right first time!

Is the list above in chronological order?

Best wishes

Paul - WW2 Team

Dear Paul
Yes, in reply to your query, the list is in chronological order, and if 'The Will to Live' is your suggestion for an overall title, that is fine by me, so there is no chance of me asking you to change the title any time in the future. I would therefore be grateful if you would take on the onerous task of completing the job for me when you have time. At 85 my brain is getting more sluggish by the day; and as you know, 'you can't teach an old dog new tricks'.
Yours Len

Dear Len (Snowie) Baynes

'The Will To Live' it is then. I'll get started next week.

Have good weekend!

Best wishes

Paul - WW2 People's War Team

Dear Len,
If your brain is getting sluggish mine must be turgid. For a man of 85 you have a lot more get up and go in your writing efforts than many younger people.
It is good news that your stories will go on the book page and I look forward to seeing them.
Keep writing Len it gets those juices flowing.
Regards Frank.

Dear Len (Snowie) Baynes

I've started putting your stories in order, but I've run into a couple of snags. One is a technical one which we'll have to sort out, obviously, but the other is that for the third chapter you put the Cambridgeshire Regiment, but I think this entry is your personal page, so if you want it to be a chapter you will have to copy it into a new article with the title 'The Will To Live': Chapter 3 - The Cambridgeshire Regiment

Then I can carry on with the others and know that the numbering will be right.

Best wishes

Paul - WW2 People's War Team

Dear Paul,
Thanks for message, and no, I don't want it to be a chapter 3. I only numbered the list to give you an idea of the chronological order of the contributions. None of the numbers relate to the numbering of the contribuitions.
Yours, Len.

Dear Paul,
I noticed that POW 8 had been headed 'In Changi Prison', which was incorrect. Changi prison was a prison building, and contained nearly all civilian detainees. We were camped out in the open. So I have edited 'Prison' out.

Yours Len.