Cooper
A close messmate from May 10, 1917: "He'd be an ideal batman if he were not quite so gifted in the conversational line," Robertson writes, explicitly ruling out the servant reading despite the household chores that keep coming up: heating water, lighting fires, taking more than his share of the blankets. The relationship stays warm and teasing for a full year (Cooper making breakfast suggestions, taking the blame for a ration mix-up, surprising Robertson by "going off on the razzle," springing a prank on him "before I was awake"), through the last confirmed mention, May 23, 1918. Two earlier, thinner appearances are deliberately excluded rather than folded in: a "Cooper (corpl of Guard)" on July 2, 1915 predates Robertson's own commission (August 19, 1915) by six weeks, putting him in a pre-commission training-camp context with no narrative link forward: probably a different person. A bare "Cooper" named once in a list of people met in March 1916 is too thin to place either way and is left unresolved.
Appears in the diary · 11 entries
1917
- 10 May 1917… swing. Lay around & watched them play most of the aft. – Then came back & loafed in my little Armstrong. – Cooper has the place fitted up beautifully. – He'd be an ideal batman if he were not quite so gi …
- 3 October 1917… and brought a prop. blade to make a stick from. – No mail in. – Cleaned up a lot of longstanding ones up. – Cooper wants a board on account of his eyes. Carless was down to tea. – Talks about going to Rom …
- 9 November 1917… . Once more, after dinner was I tempted to count the chips + once more I was unsuccessful. & now the gentle Cooper having heated water, I shall bathe. – The French papers have it to-day that Russia has qu …
- 23 November 1917… ilkes & Hertzy at Div. – We had to speak to Wheeler about the rations to-day. – I guess it was a mistake on Cooper's part that caused it. – Just the same W. is rather a frost after Eddy. – Peake suggested …
- 26 November 1917Cold – Wind Pretty near froze before Cooper got the fire lit this A.M. – Nothing much else to report. Went to MAROEIL with Murray & t …
1918
- 4 January 1918Cold. Got up to breakfast for a change. Murray went on leave. Cooper came back. That’s all +5
- 12 January 1918Fine & muddy. Brekker in bed at Cooper’s suggestion. Played two-handed vingt-et-un) with Sturt after lunch, & then went to the m …
- 3 February 1918Cloudy Quiet. – Reading “The Red Cockade” – Weyman. – Couldn’t raise energy enough to send for the mare. – Cooper surprised me by going off on the razzle, but the fact that the room has been in a deuce o …
- 4 February 1918… well worth a visit. – Must poke Bull up about it. Brought Simpson, Ewart & King (7th F.C.) back to dinner. (Cooper says “Napoo encore vin blonq”)
- 1 April 1918Fine. Dark Cooper spring one on me before I was awake. No news from South except that we’re holding ‘em. Sk …
- 23 May 1918… again to-night but with the rubber gun – Sounds like he’s getting them in round Bray & the pump station. – Cooper has taken the blankets below again any how. Nothing much doing today – He’s increasing hi …