Berkshire and The War: the "Reading Standard" pictorial record. Volume 4. p 948

Messrs. HUNTLEY & PALMERS, Ltd.

The Biscuit Factory'™s Part in the Great Victory.

In that world-famous biscuit factory of Huntley and Palmers at Reading there were between six and seven thousand people at work when the shock of war came in August, 1914. What happened then and what has happened since in the factory and to those who took up arms in the fight for freedom is a perfect miniature of the whole nation's problems, and how it met them by sacrifice, gallantry and toil; and, moreover, the parallel is continued when the after-war questions arise, for Huntley and Palmers have set about Reconstruction promptly and on a basis of consultation and co-operation of employers and employed.

1,833 Men Leave the Factory for the War.

It goes without saying that Huntley and Palmers make no claim to be superior to any other British industrial concern in their War Record. But that War Record is something of which everybody at the Reading Biscuit Factory and the London House is proud. To begin with there were, as has been said, between 6,000 and 7,000 on the books of the firm. Are not the following figures, then, admirable? - 1.833 men left their work to go to the war. These included three Directors of the Company.

When their Majesties the King and Queen honoured the Factory with a visit in 1918, it was explained that more than 1,000 of the employees had over 30 years'€™ service. Exactly 100 had put in over 50 years'€™ service. When the proportion of men over military age, and the girls and women, are deducted from the total, the contribution of 1,833 men to the war is even more impressive. It meant a tremendous upset of 6,000 to 7,000!

The Roll of Honour.

The war Roll of Honour shows that: -
145 w ere killed.
47 gained distinctions.They were:
1 D.S.O.
4 M ilitary Crosses.
25 Military Medals, and
1 Bar.
5 Foreign Decorations.
3 Meritorious Service Medals.
1 Distinguished Service Medal.
1 Distinguished Conduct Medal.
1 Distinguished Flying Cross.
5 Mentioned in Despatches.

Leaving out of account the men on the office staffs, a memorandum on the Factory statistics alone shows that 39.5 [%] of the men employees were on War Services.

An extract from the memorandum reads: - "Included in this total are those who were members of the Territorial Forces -€” Army Service Corps, Fourth Battalion Berkshire Regiment and Berkshire Yeomanry -€” and men of the Navy and Army Reserves.

"The Factory men have served in more than a hundred battalions of Regiments of the Line, in Heavy and Light Cavalry, and all b banches of the Artillery, in the Royal Engineers, the Royal Air Force, the Medical, Ordnance Service Corps, the Tank and Armoured Car Corps.

World-Wide Service.

"They have also served in many countries: - France, Belgium, Germany, Russia, Rumania, Italy, Austria, Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria and Turkey; in Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Mesopotamia, Persia and India; and in East and West Africa. The Naval men have been into many far-distant parts, including the South Pacific Seas.

"Not all the wounds received have been caused by enemy fire, for some have been received by prisoners of war when serving behind the enemy lines, bringing up ammunition for the German guns.

"Prisoners of war have also been employed by the enemy Air Force, loading bombing- ...

[photo, interior, industrial] BISCUIT BAKING.