Lieutenant-Colonel Ted Day
Loyal Edmonton Regiment

I discussed Pte Crock’s difficulties with him at which time he told me that his nerves absolutely on edge and that he could not go forward to his Coy. position. I told him that I did not consider his reasons sound and said, “I am ordering you to join your Company if you do not go you will be guilty of an offence.” Pte Crock said, “I can’t do it Sir, I must refuse.” I then placed him under arrest.

(Day at FGCM of Pte. Crock, 12 Mar 1944)

Born in Toronto on 29 August 1901, Egerton Winnett (Ted) Day grew up in Daysland, Alberta where his father was founder and mayor. Having belonged to the Canadian Officers Training Corps at the University of Alberta, he joined the 19th Alberta Dragoons in 1924. He joined the Edmonton Regiment as a captain on mobilization in September 1939 and became second-in-command in the United Kingdom in December 1942.

With the field promotion of Lieutenant-Colonel Jim Jefferson to brigadier at the end of January 1944, Day assumed acting command of the battalion just as it recovered from the Battle of Ortona. One of his first duties involved dealing with battle exhausted soldiers. On the morning of 18 February, Day confronted two privates who claimed to no longer be able to carry on fighting. When he ordered them to rejoin their company, both refused and were arrested.

At his court martial a month later, Private John Crocker testified, “I knew that if I went up to the front I couldn’t stand it and would have to go back … I realized then and I realize now that it was wrong but my nerves were in such as state that I had to do it.” Although the defence counsel argued that the medical officer and Day gave the accused “little consideration for [their] troubles,” the court found both guilty and sentenced them to six month’s hard labour.

While the battalion fought to break through the Hitler Lines, in early May 1944, Day was replaced by Major Rowan Coleman, formerly second-in-command of the PPCLI. He reverted to major, served with a training centre at Avellino, and returned to Alberta in March 1945. “We had more weapons and better weapons,” he told the press on arrival home. “The boys waited a long time to get into action; now they’re in the thick of it and doing a tough job in a great manner.”

In May 1945, he appeared before an Officers Survey and Classification Board to assess his suitability for further service. The report described his characteristics: “Average height, stocky, solid physique, strong features, scrubby, a bit of a rough type in appearance and not a warm or pleasant personality. Moderate habits and a fair mixer.” The board concluded:

An officer of average general appearance who, after some consideration, has concluded he would prefer to return to civil life although he would be willing to continue serving if his services were urgently required. His value, which in the Board’s opinion is quite limited, is in adm work and in view of this and his own desire, it is recommended to be retired.

During demobilization, Day worked as a counsellor for the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) and assisted returning soldiers with civil reestablishment. Having studied law before the war, he was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 1947 and became department solicitor in the DVA in Ottawa

Day died on 8 October 1982 in Victoria, British Columbia.