Leslie had previously served in the 1st Home Counties Field Ambulance, T.F. On the outbreak of the war he was working in Yorkshire but returned to Maidstone to re-join the R.A.M.C. He enlisted on 19th March 1915. He was 20 years and 8 months old; was a machine engineer by trade [having served his apprenticeship at the ‘Kent Messenger’ printing works]; and was living at 54 Wakefield Road, Sowerby Bridge, Halifax Yorks at the time. He was embodied into the 3/1st Home Counties Field Ambulance the same day. Having been transferred to the 2/1st Home Counties Field Ambulance he embarked at Southampton, with them, on 23rd January 1917, then disembarking the next day at Havre, entered the war in France on 24th January 1917. He received gas poisoning and a gun shot wound to his left foot, and was admitted into No 11 Stationary Hospital, Rouen. He died from his wounds at 10.00 a.m. the same day. He was the second son of Christiana Sutherland Thomas of 54 Wakefield Road, Sowerby Bridge, Yorks. *In a letter to a friend at Maidstone, a few days before he died, Leslie wrote:- “I am still among the living and in the best of health. It might interest you to know that we have been through the new offensive that started last month, and we are now out for a rest. Up to the present we have five military medalist in the unit, four of whom were on duty during this last push, so you can guess we have seen some of the real stuff. Dozens of our fellows get the ‘Kent Messenger’ every week, and look forward to its arrival. About a dozen of our fellows have been wounded and are now in hospital in Blighty; one died of wounds, and his photo appeared in the ‘Kent Messenger’ a short time ago. Any amount have been sent back to Blighty through illness, so that altogether some 60 or 70 of the original unit, that came out here last January, have left us.” [* and portrait photograph taken from an article in the ‘Kent Messenger’ on 17th November 1917. (kindly provided by Julie McLean)]