My dad was at Monte Cassino and as a result has always had the greatest of respect for the Sikhs and Poles. The Sikhs fought like devils in Malaya. Unlike some others, namely the Gurwhalis who were described as 'the galloping Gurwhalis'

As for wire crossings, we would blow them with a long length of pipe filled with dynamite and smoke pellets. As it blew you cossed where the smoke was