According to Hoyle we should be in midwinter, and though it is pretty cold, it does not look much like winter. I had a letter from 
I am writing this in a front line dug out and it’s pretty chilly. We can’t [next page] light a fire because Fritz on seeing it is liable to do as we do with him, drop a nice trench mortar or shell in the direction. On dull days we can keep one going, but when it is bright we have to go cold.
Tell Hester and Walter I shall write them soon, but I have been very busy, and whenever I get down to write something comes along which keeps me away for quite a while.
I sent you a German water bottle not long ago. I don’t know whether I told you before. On the 
I drank the coffee and [next page] kept the bottle. I carried it around a long time before I had an opportunity to get it home. It served a good many purposes since I got it. Mostly for rum, as you can probably tell by the odor. Not that I am such a confirmed toper as to carry the stuff around with me, or that it is often enough available for us to be able to, but [next page] it held rum for a good many fellows.France 27/1/17
Dear Pater,
Again I must own to being late in writing. I have three
parcels to acknowledge in order of receipt 26, 25 & 27. All were fine. Especially
the pencils. I’ll bet that was Pater’s idea. The prayer book is just right, and
I am very glad to have it. I can have little private services anytime now. I
can’t count on getting a service for Sunday [over] as I very seldom know when
it is Sunday. But any day does.
Today we got some beef which we roasted and had with spaghetti and walnuts.
But yesterday we had the best meal of all. We were in
supports [Note 1] for a while and the fields back of the trenches were thick
with grouse. So Pat and I marched out across the snow and had a grand hunt out
around where [over] our batteries were firing and incidentally Fritz was
returning the compliments. We had our rifles and got just seven grouse. They
were fat as pigs. We got a pan from the cooks and I roasted xxx grouse and such
a dinner never was.
We also had the pudding under very favourable circumstances.
Now is the time that your mitts and socks are coming in. It has been down to
about zero for nearly two weeks [over] with quite a strong wind. Just now we
are in a hut about 30 feet long, holding 72 men in 3 tiers of bunks. If they
were not so well ventilated all around, they would be stuffy, but as it is they
are anything but that.
I got the pipes, but one was broken, thank you very much
though.
I had a fine letter from Walter last night. I must try and
write him. [over]
Hart is well, and asks to be remembered.
I am enclosing a snap of our platoon. The officer is Lieut.
Ganong (of chocolate fame) [Note 2] on his right is Sgt Martin at present
acting CSM [note: Company Sergeant Major]. Bluethner comes next. I really know very few of the fellows, so
many are new. There are only 7 (including B & J) who were there when I came
last March. Three of those have been wounded and all of us pretty [over] well
shaken up. However we are still going strong.
I got a parcel from Ettie yesterday with a couple of books
& a cake.
Well I must close now and catch the mail.
Best love to all,
Your loving son
Car
Note 1: ‘Supports’ refer to being in the support trench line. The support trenches were located several hundred yards behind the front line trenches. These (with the reserve trenches several hundred yards behind the support trenches) provide defence in depth.
Note 2: Hardy Nelson Ganong (1890-1963) of St Stephen, New
Brunswick was a member of the family who founded Ganong Chocolates. He attested
into the 104th Battalion in August 1916, and saw service in France with 5CMR from
November 1916 until discharge in 1919. He subsequently served in the Second World
War, rising to the rank of Major General and commanding two Home Service
formations, the 6th and 8th Canadian Infantry Divisions.
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| Maj Gen H.N. Ganong CBE, VD (The Calton & York Regiment) |
Another long wait, I am afraid. This time I have not been quite responsible.
I can remember Hester saying the same thing one time when she was sick of [at?] 21/2/17
Mon Chere Pere,
I have
to begin that way because I am speaking French almost altogether these days. I
have parti the hospital
all O.K. and I am with the battalion again. We are back
for a rest in quite a large town, and billeted around with the people. And
really I never met a more hospitable bunch in my life. For instance, when ever
we come in or go out we must have a cup of coffee, and they do everything they
can [over] for us. It isn’t only one family, but it seems quite universal all
over the place. I had to laugh at one of the cooks. The billets are in long
blocks of houses, and his billet is quite a distance from his cook house. He
was quite worried over whether or not he could stand the pace, for every
warning when he went down to his cook house, every Madam as he passed asked him
in for a cup of coffee, and he like to refuse. One morning [over] he had eight
cups before he could get to the cook house.
Most of us have beds and a room is two or three of us.
Imagine beds!
I have a room with a chap by the name of McKenzie from
Halifax, also a corporal, and we have a bed, with springs and sheets.
This is my first time between sheets, and with my clothes off, for over ten
months. We surely appreciate it. Then there are nice baths in the town, and I
had a fine bath yesterday [over] and a change of clothes. My first for about
five weeks. And now I feel fine. I suppose it is natural to a certain extent,
that the people we meet up nearer the line are rather a poorer class of people
and harder to get on with. But they are so grasping and it is next to
impossible even to buy anything.
To a great extent they can compris my French and by
practice. I am getting accustomed to their style of speaking [over] and able to
catch what they say. The great difficulty is the moving around among different
accents and classes of French. This is pretty good French here. But it is very
funny sometime. I sit for a while and wrinkle my noble brow and think to beat
the band to catch what they are saying and I have to rack my brains pretty hard
to find the proper expression so consequently I almost think in French and then
to jump from that to English [over] suddenly gets me very mixed, and I get a
lot of French mixed with my English.
You are this is almost the first time I have been living in
the house with them and have to use it all the time. We must use it for
everything. Once before I was in a house with them for a while, but there were
a lot of other fellows there too, and we didn’t have to talk much to the
people.
Besides there were only town old [over] women. Here, there
are two men, two women, a girl, and several youngsters.
We are sitting in the living room with a big round table and
cloth, a lap and a fire. Mademoiselle is across from us writing, to her fiancée
in the trenches. In other words, c’est une bonne guerre ici.
You asked me if I was a sergeant as I was with them in the
picture. I am still a corporal but I lived with the sergeants as company clerk.
I lost that job through being in the hospital [over] but I expect another and
better one soon. At present I am back with the company, drilling. I am rather
likely to remain a corporal too, I expect, as I lost my nerve through a bit of
a shell shock on the Somme. If I get the job that the Captain is trying to get
for me, I won’t see much more of the trenches.
They may open a regimental canteen and if so, I shall be in
charge. I felt rather ashamed of myself for a while [over] but I see lots more
fellows around in the same predicament. The concussion of some of Fritz’s big
shells is rather shaking. I didn’t tell you about this before because I was a
bit afraid that I had “cold feet” merely, but I find that I am not afraid, just
lacking in nerve as a perfectly natural consequence of a bad jarring. I was
lucky all right, that that was all I got. The same shell killed four, wounded
three, shell shocked two and buried Bluethner and I. We were all [over] close
together in the trench we had just taken. Since then, I have had rather a
fierce time with myself whenever there has been anything doing up the line.
Bluethner evidently has stronger nerves than I, as though he
is also a bit shaken, he is still going strong, and was lately made a sergeant.
He always asks me to send his kindest wishes to you, but I don’t always
remember to do it. He was reproaching [over] himself yesterday for not having
written you for the parcels at Christmas. He and I opened them together and he
really appreciates them to the full, but I am rather in the same boat as he, I
have some Christmas letters till unwritten. Somehow or other it is beastly hard
to write letters over here. You get completely out of the habit. I see Mart
about every day, but I don’t bunk with him.
I met a fellow the other day from [over] “Squeak” Deacon’s
platoon, and he had a very glowing account of him. Any man, he said, would go
any place or through anything with him. He takes good care of all the men and
is altogether a fine fellow. I am glad to hear it, because he did seem rather
an inoffensive personage ne c’est pas.
I am very glad to hear about Will’s youngster. It is fine,
isn’t it?
I haven’t received you New Year [over] pictures yet, but I
expect to before long, as some of my mail got a bit mixed up with the hospital.
It was directed there and some had not arrived and then when I left, that would
have to be re-directed here.
The last letter I got was 28th Jan. and had the
$2 bill in it. You had evidently sent one before.
It is a fine xxx pater, if you don’t need it yourself. If
you do at any time, use it, by all means. And use all that you need. I can get
[over] on alright without it, but I can also use it quite easily. I get 20
francs a week here as regular pay. Thank you very much.
I don’t think I sent you one of those pictures that I
enclose. You have heard me speak of ‘Pat’ Powers the S.M.’s (Sergeant Major’s)
batman. This is he. We look powerfully dirty and tousled, and as a matter of
fact we are, but it isn’t so bad.
I must close now, more later.
Love to all
Your loving son
Car
N.B. This letter was written whilst the unit was resting behind the lines, close to Burbure (near Bethune) in the Somme sector.
France 7/3/17
MAR 29 1917 [Stamped]
22 days
Dear Pater,
I have several
things to acknowledge, two letters including $2, one parcel of magazines, and
parcel No. XXIX. This contained comb honey, in fine condition, spaghetti, cigarettes,
socks, chicken, pot of honey, etc. Everything was fine, except that the cigars
were broken a bit. The other cigars that you have sent, I forgot to say were
also broken, though with a bit of patching these are smokable. Thank you very
much for all the have had the honey a good many times and the spaghetti for tea
tonight. The socks are great. Parcel XXX of which you spoke [over] hasn’t
arrived, and there is a chance that it has gone astray awing to my being in
hospital where no parcels are forwarded. But the mail clerk says no parcel came
for me while I was away, so perhaps it will turn up. That was the one in which you
mention razor blades.
We are still in rest but I expect it is nearly finished.
Also our solitude is rather broken, we had just us two in the house, but
tonight three others came in. But we shall do pretty well, even so.
The weather here is quite cold and raw and standing around
is a bit cold, but drilling with the and company nothing turned up yet.
I think I told you that Martin has been made a sergeant
again, also he sends his kindest remembrances. I expect he will be getting his
commission before long, it is going in I believe.
I don’t’ think there is any more just now.
Things are very quiet here and daily doings are just drill.
Best love to all
Your loving son,
Car
France 4/4/17
APR 26 1917 [Stamped]
My dear Pater,
Just a line to let you know how things are faring.
I have 2 parcels, to acknowledge, I think. Two I don’t think
were numbered but the last was XXXIII with the sweater etc. The sweater is just
what I need and does great service. The weather is pretty cold and clothes come
in handy. The honey came through quite unbroken, and was very fine. The cigars
were slightly broken, but quite smokable.
Also, I received the populars [Note] and copy [next page] of
cartoons magazine.
The only parcel I seem to have missed is the one where you
mention razor blades and toilet articles. Someone must have taken that when I
was in hospital and now I am afraid they will get mixed again, for I am again
in hospital. I don’t just known what’s up, but certainly at all serious. Much
the same as I had before, minus the cold. But I am getting well treated and won’t
be in long.
I suppose you know that letters are censored from Canada
now. I haven’t received one since they started so [next page] I can’t tell if the
money will come through all right. I will tell you when I get one.
I must close now Pater, more later.
Best love to all
Your loving son
Car
Note: The reference ‘populars’ refers to popular magazines.
Uncle Car wrote this letter after being evacuated from the field with P.U.O. (see entry after 27 January 1917). He was with the 10th Canadian Field Ambulance and would be evacuated to the 10th General Hospital at Camiers on 7 April.
-------------------------------------
France 8/4/17
My Dear Pater,
Just a line to keep in touch. I am in one of the base hospitals
with the trouble I told you of some time ago, as a result of shell shock. Also
I am erasing over to Blighty in a few days. I don’t feel very sick just now but
the trouble is there and bothers me, so away I go.
Don’t worry a bit about me, Its only a case of a good long
rest and that seems to be forthcoming.
Best love to all
Your loving son
Car
Note: This letter was written after Uncle Car was evacuated to No. 4 General Hospital at Camiers on 7 April. He would subsequently be moved to England on Weds 11 April, before arriving at the Northampton War Hospital on 16 April.
With effect 11 April, he was taken off strength as a casualty from the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles, and taken on strength as an invalid (non-effective) with the 2nd Quebec Regimental Depot (Shoreham, Sussex, England). This was Car's military unit whilst he was at the Northampton Hospital.
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| Northampton War Hospital (courtesy eBay) |
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| Woodcote Park Camp circa 1915 |
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Canadian War Photographs© IWM (Art.IWM PST 13731)
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Note: Footage of the film 'The Battle of Arras' (1917) can be found here: BFI Screenonline and here: NFB.
