Newfoundland Blue Puttees [audio 6min @14:11]

At the beginning of the First World War, in August of 1914, there was no militia in Newfoundland -- no military organization at all, to speak of. But when Great Britain declared war in that month, residents of the country did not hesitate to pledge to raise five-hundred troops -- just as a start. Those troops would form the Royal Newfoundland Regiment. They came from all over the island, these volunteers, to win the honour of being among "the First 500". As Britain's War Office could not afford to outfit the Regiment, local clothiers were put to work creating uniforms that would be, at least, serviceable. And while enough uniforms were furnished, there was insufficient khaki cloth left to make "puttees" -- leg coverings worn from knee to ankle. So the clothiers scrounged up some blue broadcloth for puttees. And the Royal Newfoundland Regiment had its nickname: the "Blue Puttees". Each July 1st, when the rest of Canada celebrates Canada Day, the province of Newfoundland commemorates a much darker occasion. On July 1st, 1914, 801 members of the Blue Puttees climbed out of their trenches in Beaumont Hamel, France. The next morning, only 68 soldiers answered roll call. The Blue Puttees are heroes in Newfoundland, and the memory of their exploits will never disappear. But the leggings from which the Regiment took its nickname had long since vanished. Until recently. Now, a package full of blue puttees is on its way to St. John's, Newfoundland -- thanks, in part, to the actions of Capt Michael Pretty, of the Canadian Reservist Unit.