The date is October 1914; the First World War had broken out a few weeks earlier and the enormity of it was dawning on the local population.

The Middlesex Chronicle began to devote many inches to the situation as it affected residents. A roll of honour appeared listing those killed or wounded in the early battles.

This was certainly not allowed in the Second World War, except under extreme circumstances, because of the Official Secrets Act.

Several hundred people attended a meeting on the green in Feltham presided over by Mr E Whiteaway and supported by local clergy and councillors. The subject was Why Are We At War? and the chairman outlined the situation and the futile efforts of statesmen to preserve peace.

The Feltham Prize Band was on hand and marched from the station to the green playing patriotic music and young men were urged to join the forces.

In Hounslow the Alcazar Cinema was placed at the disposal of Mr Shirley Beckley and Mr Sydney Rendell, who organised a variety show in aid of the local branch of the Prince of Wales Relief Fund.

Following a long programme of well known local artistes it was announced that more than £50 had been raised, plus money for the programmes.

An interesting letter had been sent by the chairman of the Minimax Company, an old established firm in the area and manufacturers of fire extinguishers. The letter stated an attack had been made against the company by an opposition firm, saying they were German owned and controlled. One of the directors was Mr James Flucker and while this was a foreign-sounding name he was in fact born in Berwick on Tweed, where his family had resided for centuries. There had been one German on the works roll and he had been dismissed.

An item reported that John Alfred Norris, of Hanworth Road, Hounslow, was a stoker on HMS Aboukir which had been torpedoed by a German submarine. Of the 800 on board Mr Norris was one of the 48 people saved. He had only been back in the Navy a few weeks as a member of the Royal Navy Reserve.

His mother received the news with great joy.

A little humorous event was when Carston Diederich Ahrens, aged 77, of Hampton Road, Teddington, appeared in court charged with being an alien German enemy and failing to register himself.

In an interview with police he stated he was Dutch, then admitted being German. He said he thought that the police would only laugh at him because he had been in the country so many years. He was 77 years old and had been in this country for 76 of those. He thought he was an Englishman. It was stated he was well respected in the community.

The chairman said he had done wrong and would be fined one shilling.