Tigers Under the Turf
A life disrupted
by the horrors of World War Two:
the struggle to survive and lead a normal life.
Bert Scorgie
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Tigers Under the Turf |
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UK price:
£9.00 US price:
$17.95 |
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“The life story of a very ordinary man, who didn’t
achieve much but also achieved a lot.” The author spent 3/4 years of his
prime employed as a Tunnel Miner working on the Hydro Schemes in the
Highlands of Scotland. The tunnels were under peat and various different
soils and clay. The miners went by the glamorous name of the Tunnel
Tigers, hence the title Tigers Under the Turf—but tunnel mining
was anything but glamorous!
Book Description
In this fascinating autobiography the Scottish author
shows how dogged hard work and true grit made him a survivor in a very
challenging and sometimes harsh world. The saga covers a period of
seventy years. First there were the pre-war years when the author and
his crofting family were forced to move repeatedly in search of work;
then came the hard times through the Second World War and surviving
various health scares. Perhaps the most absorbingly interesting part of
the book is the underground work that inspired the book’s title—Tigers
Under the Turf. It is traditional that men who work in dirty,
dangerous jobs building underground tunnels in hydro-electric projects
are often referred to as Tigers! The Tunnelers work in a terrible
environment, so they were given the exotic nom-de-plume of Tunnel
Tigers. However, exotic was definitely not the word to describe the type
of work, which was dangerous, dirty, unhealthy, strength sapping—not a
challenge for the faint hearted.
About the author
Bert
Scorgie was born into a family with strong military connections.
His Grandfather, Father, and both uncles were involved in both
World Wars. His father was one of the B.E.F 51st Highland
Division sacrificed at Dunkirk. “I look back and wonder what
for,” the author says, “but life for me had to go on.”
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