“Along this street are blocks of houses, with porches with stairs to the top. These porches provide good cover against light weapons. From one of these stairways we see the soldiers now and then rise above the quayside, they sneak in the direction of the railway. Suddenly a door opens behind us and a friendly smiling young man presents us steaming coffee in beautiful porcelain cups, with saucers underneath.

Despite the fact that we had been warned ten minutes before that we were not allowed to take any drinks or food, because Dutch SS men dressed as civilians had poisoned some soldiers in the first group who had come across the canal in the morning, you still get insecure. However, the boy's innocent look and the delicious smell of the coffee are irresistible. Since yesterday we have had nothing but undiluted rum.” In short, the coffee is more than welcome. But another officer notices.

Blackburn describes his reaction in detail. "Look there, shame, coffee for the bloody artillery, they always get the best of everything, look at that! The young Dutchman looks up startled and asks what is going on and what the soldiers across the street want. While you bring an exaggerated toast in the direction of the taunting soldiers, with your little finger up, you jokingly say dryly: they certainly want a cup of coffee. To your great surprise, the boy runs into the house and comes back with two other cups of coffee complete, then runs across the street to the bank of the canal and also gives the two soldiers in front their much-desired coffee and while the bullets of the Germans flying around, he waits very quietly on one knee, like a caretaker at a football game, until the soldiers have emptied the cups. (…)'