Fiercely nationalistic, at times blatantly jingoistic and politically incorrect by modern-day standards, The Unwanted reflects the passions of a man who was determined to serve his country during the First World War in any capacity he could, regardless of rank or pay. When Major John McKendrick Hughes OC, C Company, 151 Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force and his unit reached Shorncliffe in late 1915, he and the other officers were bluntly informed by the British that they were 'unwanted' -- officers deemed 'surplus to establishment'. Determined to contribute to the war effort, John became one of three Corps Agricultural Officers (AO) with the British 2nd Army, charged with growing vegetables and other foodstuffs to feed the troops. This is John's personal story, based on letters sent to his wife. It is a story that has never been told, about soldiers who worked behind the lines to feed the forces in the trenches.