It’s hard enough to concentrate with some minor distraction in the background, much less the imminent possibility of death. But that was the exact challenge Leonard Smith had to endure each time he went over the top. Smith, a sapper with the Royal Engineers, brought along only a few tools—a crumpled piece of paper, a pencil, and crayons.
His sole job was to scout behind enemy lines and sketch the surrounding landscape, including fixed positions, barbed-wire defenses, trenches, troop formations, and enemy headquarters.
While Smith was sketching, he had to avoid mortar shells, sniper fire, machine guns, gas—anything and everything that killed millions on the Western Front.
In one mission, Smith spent four days in the mud avoiding mortar shells and sniper fire to produce a two-yard long, panoramic view of enemy front line troops at Vimy Ridge.
On another occasion in Arras, France, in 1915, Smith crept within yards of an enemy headquarters just to draw a tree so that it could have replaced with a hollow fake one for observation purposes.
Always dodging bullets and shells to creep into no man's land in order to complete his duty, Len has been hailed the unsung hero of First World War espionage...and how he crawled with his enlarged balls, no one truly knows. #ww1 #stayzero #zerofoxtrot #recon #pregoogle