JF Ptak Science Books Quick Post
People were of two minds when it came to rat hunting at the Front in 1916, or so it would seem: rats seem to have been fair game in the trenches, given the tough conditions and close quarters; on the other hand, rats in the open, along the roads, were let to live by many who thought that killing in battle was enough, and that a respect for other life–even rats– was an acknowledged necessity. In the scene below we see British soldiers going about the business of eradicating rats from the trenches–with bayonets. A terrier is let loose on one, while the soldier in the background displays his trophy above the fire line for the Germans across the killing fields to see, as no doubt the enemy had the same problem, and there was at least in this brief moment a common human contact.
[Source: the Illustrated London News, April 1, 1916.]