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I heard from Mrs Yalding, she & her husband had booked passages on steamer leaving 4th June, but after “Lusitania” affair decided to wait & see what reply Germany was going to make to Washington & if they intended to continue torpedoing Americans...
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S.S.A. No.3 Par Dijon France June 1st 1915 My Dear Mother Thanks for several Aust. Letters on & received yesterday & another sent on last evg. Which you mention having opened by mistake and also a letter from Ida to you from Ken. Square … Fancy my surprise to get the other from Alison S.. They will be in Paris in a day or two as they will get off at Marseilles. I suppose they will take a house in France somewhere & go to England later on in Autumn, splendid of them to come all this way & help with their bit! If they get a house in France, I may be able to get leave for a week on 8th Aug. & go & see them. I fancy I shall stay on til Nov.8th with this work. Winter here would be rather much, awful snow & cold. Many seem to think war will go on into next year, next Summer I suppose. I feel that after 9 months one will want a bit of a change from this work, one feels at times a longing to get right away from seeing sick & wounded & maimed soldiers & guns, & commanding & motors & war news & uniforms! |
Enclosed cutting may interest you. He tries to describe his escape while here. It was not in the evening after he had left, but the following morng. at 4-15 a.m. that they threw the bombs so near this house & just in front of his room.
I hear Killeen has gone out, I suppose with his regiment, 17th Lancers isn’t it. It was just a year ago I saw him at Downside a schoolboy & gave him 10/- ! It seems so extraordinary … It looks as tho’ conscription is coming soon. I heard from Mrs Yalding, she & her husband had booked passages on steamer leaving 4th June, but after “Lusitania” affair decided to wait & see what reply Germany was going to make to Washington & if they intended to continue torpedoing Americans; They were coming to France. I do see that at last U.S.A. are probably going to do something in Mexico, infact in our paper I saw that many Mexicans welcomed them interfering. I fancy it is fearful chaos there now & British subjects suffering a lot. I wonder if F’s uncle is there still. Frank Hargreaves & Roderick Wigan got back, 3 or 4 days ago, former is our Commandant now; … Best love A |
A side effect of the war, Arthur's mother employed a German maid... "It is very awkward for all Germans & all who employ them. One can hardly blame the English people for being hostile to all Teutons & I hope they will not let any of them back in the country."
The man and his dog are killed...
The man and his dog are killed...
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S.S.A. No.3
Par Dijon
France
June 7th 1915
My Dear Mother
…
My letters home seem to take longer & longer. They hold them in P.O. over here somewhere for 4 or 5 days I think before sending them on, it is to do away with necessity for censorship. Are any of my letters opened. They would not be by French, but may be by our own censors ...
Yesterday they celebrated the Fete Dieu ‘tho it was really last Thursday but it is not holiday of ???. like with us. They had a play day here for benefit of French refugees & all the young girls were selling little medals & flags of allies & rushing after one, not shy, of course they invaded our Villa different lots of them as fair game & I found the day had cost me 5f. Having several pinned about ones tunic was no safeguard however it is a good cause…
So you have £15 towards ambulance, not bad, after all so many calls on ones purse these times …
I don’t understand the postal arrangements here & why some letters arrive with 25c stamps & some not. We never put them on, all our letters go fine; it must be done by P.O. for some reason …
You are wise perhaps not to go over now, very unpleasant if not impossible with Lotta [German maid], but if you go later you may be able to arrange for a temporary maid & leave L. [Lotta] at home. I suppose they will not eat her at Celbridge, but probably might elsewhere, especially England. It is very awkward for all Germans & all who employ them. One can hardly blame the English people for being hostile to all Teutons & I hope they will not let any of them back in the country.
One of our officers, Ward, a very nice & rich man who lives in Paris & who joined us a month ago, has had an accident & damaged his knee badly while walking about near a village 15 miles or so from here…Very bad luck. Knee & leg in plaster of Paris always a long job.
I was very sorry to hear Friday that my nice friend, Macal Pelbtan [?], with whom I spent such an interesting two days in & around the trenches ten days ago, was killed by a shell that morning while walking round as we did together, & from what I can make out, in, or very near the same place as we had, while together, just missed a shell by a minute the week before.
He will be very much missed by all the men, he was so good to them & gave them tobacco & every sort of thing. He was quite a rich man & very well known in Charente. The dog was not killed, it followed him about everywhere. I’m not, I confess, surprised from what I saw of the casual way he strolled about & from what I now hear from some of the regiment of his utter & I fear foolish, disregard for danger.
I may consider I was lucky in seeing all I did without a scratch, as we certainly, as I now think of it, walked about almost asking for it; as to show it all to me we wandered about more, probably than he usually did & there happened to be more fighting going on that day than, as he said, there had been for 6 weeks or more. This fact of course made it all the more interesting, but also unsafe. He, poor man, gave me a big German shell to keep for him with one I picked up, & said he’d get it when he came down here again! I was told it was one of these very shells, 105mm, that killed him; they are great big heavy things & burst over a large area.
He was buried up there & after the war will be taken to his own home & re-interred. A very nice young Chasseur Lt. Of about 24 accompanied he & I into the trenches when we visited them, he, the Lt. spoke English very well & told me his mother was English.
Yesterday, or rather Saturday night, one of our cars brought him down wounded & he enquired for me, so they told me & I went yesterday to hospital close here ( a large hotel) to see him. He had been wounded in head, shoulder & back by a shell, bad enough I fancy, but trust he may pull through. He talked away & is very comfortable in officers ward at the hospital & nice nurses to look after him; one being a nice little girl I’ve met there & I see at Mass sometimes, evidently a sort of Nora, not fully fledged nurse, but helps a lot.
Just as I left him they were going to take him off to be X rayed to see if parts of shell had got into lung. I will, if I have time, go after dejeuner (visiting hours 2 to 4) & take him some English papers & ditto cigarettes, which Mrs Blake sent me out a lot the other day, 500, very good of her; I carry a box on car & give to the “blessés” [wounded]! If he is kept here for a bit I suppose his people will come & see him.
Some of our fellows go & bathe in lake of a morning, but I find my bath a very good substitute & lake near here, not too savoury I fancy. They row over to other side & go in …
My thin kaki coat & pants you sent me out are coming in well & thin vests etc.
Best love
Yr affect. son
Arthur
S.S.A. No.3
Par Dijon
France
June 7th 1915
My Dear Mother
…
My letters home seem to take longer & longer. They hold them in P.O. over here somewhere for 4 or 5 days I think before sending them on, it is to do away with necessity for censorship. Are any of my letters opened. They would not be by French, but may be by our own censors ...
Yesterday they celebrated the Fete Dieu ‘tho it was really last Thursday but it is not holiday of ???. like with us. They had a play day here for benefit of French refugees & all the young girls were selling little medals & flags of allies & rushing after one, not shy, of course they invaded our Villa different lots of them as fair game & I found the day had cost me 5f. Having several pinned about ones tunic was no safeguard however it is a good cause…
So you have £15 towards ambulance, not bad, after all so many calls on ones purse these times …
I don’t understand the postal arrangements here & why some letters arrive with 25c stamps & some not. We never put them on, all our letters go fine; it must be done by P.O. for some reason …
You are wise perhaps not to go over now, very unpleasant if not impossible with Lotta [German maid], but if you go later you may be able to arrange for a temporary maid & leave L. [Lotta] at home. I suppose they will not eat her at Celbridge, but probably might elsewhere, especially England. It is very awkward for all Germans & all who employ them. One can hardly blame the English people for being hostile to all Teutons & I hope they will not let any of them back in the country.
One of our officers, Ward, a very nice & rich man who lives in Paris & who joined us a month ago, has had an accident & damaged his knee badly while walking about near a village 15 miles or so from here…Very bad luck. Knee & leg in plaster of Paris always a long job.
I was very sorry to hear Friday that my nice friend, Macal Pelbtan [?], with whom I spent such an interesting two days in & around the trenches ten days ago, was killed by a shell that morning while walking round as we did together, & from what I can make out, in, or very near the same place as we had, while together, just missed a shell by a minute the week before.
He will be very much missed by all the men, he was so good to them & gave them tobacco & every sort of thing. He was quite a rich man & very well known in Charente. The dog was not killed, it followed him about everywhere. I’m not, I confess, surprised from what I saw of the casual way he strolled about & from what I now hear from some of the regiment of his utter & I fear foolish, disregard for danger.
I may consider I was lucky in seeing all I did without a scratch, as we certainly, as I now think of it, walked about almost asking for it; as to show it all to me we wandered about more, probably than he usually did & there happened to be more fighting going on that day than, as he said, there had been for 6 weeks or more. This fact of course made it all the more interesting, but also unsafe. He, poor man, gave me a big German shell to keep for him with one I picked up, & said he’d get it when he came down here again! I was told it was one of these very shells, 105mm, that killed him; they are great big heavy things & burst over a large area.
He was buried up there & after the war will be taken to his own home & re-interred. A very nice young Chasseur Lt. Of about 24 accompanied he & I into the trenches when we visited them, he, the Lt. spoke English very well & told me his mother was English.
Yesterday, or rather Saturday night, one of our cars brought him down wounded & he enquired for me, so they told me & I went yesterday to hospital close here ( a large hotel) to see him. He had been wounded in head, shoulder & back by a shell, bad enough I fancy, but trust he may pull through. He talked away & is very comfortable in officers ward at the hospital & nice nurses to look after him; one being a nice little girl I’ve met there & I see at Mass sometimes, evidently a sort of Nora, not fully fledged nurse, but helps a lot.
Just as I left him they were going to take him off to be X rayed to see if parts of shell had got into lung. I will, if I have time, go after dejeuner (visiting hours 2 to 4) & take him some English papers & ditto cigarettes, which Mrs Blake sent me out a lot the other day, 500, very good of her; I carry a box on car & give to the “blessés” [wounded]! If he is kept here for a bit I suppose his people will come & see him.
Some of our fellows go & bathe in lake of a morning, but I find my bath a very good substitute & lake near here, not too savoury I fancy. They row over to other side & go in …
My thin kaki coat & pants you sent me out are coming in well & thin vests etc.
Best love
Yr affect. son
Arthur
Arthur thinks of moving to Australia after the war, depressed at the continuance of the war, introduced to Lord Charles Beresford ...
Vosges
June 9th 1915
My Dear Mother,
Yrs of June 5th & enclosed p.c. from Evie to hand this morng. I had a letter from Will 2 days ago re Evie coming over, Will cannot afford to contribute, he has had various expenses including £37 for his roof! …
I think Australia will be a very good place to retire to after war for a couple of years until ones finances recover & ones dividends resumed. I fancy a great many people’s finances will suffer from war & a spell of strict economy will be necessary …
One gets rather depressed at times , we all do, about continuance of war; we seem to make no progress altho’ we were told in May things were going to move & now we are well on way to July & nothing happens or is there any sign of anything like an advance. I fancy all the nations (bar perhaps Italy who have only just started) are sick to death of the war already …
Enclosed is photo of Alsace side of pass we go over & shows bit of road through wood that we go down. Buildings you see have been knocked about badly by shells & they shell the bit of road you can see from time to time. No I don’t want the convoy reports sent, I saw ours & other one I shall probably see.
We were all introduced to Lord C Beresford, but I don’t suppose he caught any of our names.
Will says he seldom goes to Boulogne except at 6 a.m. to unload horses, but hopes to see ???? some time …
Best love
Yr. Affect. son
Arthur
June 9th 1915
My Dear Mother,
Yrs of June 5th & enclosed p.c. from Evie to hand this morng. I had a letter from Will 2 days ago re Evie coming over, Will cannot afford to contribute, he has had various expenses including £37 for his roof! …
I think Australia will be a very good place to retire to after war for a couple of years until ones finances recover & ones dividends resumed. I fancy a great many people’s finances will suffer from war & a spell of strict economy will be necessary …
One gets rather depressed at times , we all do, about continuance of war; we seem to make no progress altho’ we were told in May things were going to move & now we are well on way to July & nothing happens or is there any sign of anything like an advance. I fancy all the nations (bar perhaps Italy who have only just started) are sick to death of the war already …
Enclosed is photo of Alsace side of pass we go over & shows bit of road through wood that we go down. Buildings you see have been knocked about badly by shells & they shell the bit of road you can see from time to time. No I don’t want the convoy reports sent, I saw ours & other one I shall probably see.
We were all introduced to Lord C Beresford, but I don’t suppose he caught any of our names.
Will says he seldom goes to Boulogne except at 6 a.m. to unload horses, but hopes to see ???? some time …
Best love
Yr. Affect. son
Arthur
Arthur is very busy, artillery like a continual thunderstorm, German prisoners, the nerve-racking wait for news from loved ones, depressed over his work ...
An Example of the News Dreaded by Everyone. Click to enlarge. © IWM
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S.S.A. No.3
Par Dijon
France
June 19th 1915
My Dear Mother
Yrs. of 14th inst. To hand today with enclosures from E & Teresa. I also got box of brown shoe polish from stores. We have been very busy night & day, some nights never to bed at all, others for 2 hrs & then off again. Luckily a lull at the moment. It is tiring going night & day & much running in the dark. I enclose you copy of French Communiqué & have marked part which will explain why we have been so busy.We had to get 10 of our cars from Bruyères to help & they are still here, all came over at a moments notice & have not even a tooth brush amongst them. We have put a tent up alongside villa where they camp. It makes us 25 cars & 3 days ago we carried in the 24 hours over 1400 wounded so you can understand we have not had much time for sleep.
Artillery plays a great part & firing at times is like a continual thunderstorm. I fancy attack is to be continued. We have carried a certain number of German wounded. I brought down two last night on stretchers & 3 other Frenchmen in car, luckily they did not fly at one another, the Germans could not! As a matter of fact as a rule they don’t worry once they are wounded. We have a lot of prisoners.
The other morning coming down the pass we overtook 350 German prisoners being brought down surrounded by dragoons; we could not get by for a bit & then they divided them up on each side of road & let us through. They stared a goodeal at us, obviously English to most of them, look very sullen & many with no caps or coats, overcoats I should say. They are all in the barracks here close to our garage, so we meet them constantly surveying & cleaning & so on. Another lot we met evg. before last, about 40, another lot of 6 & so on. They gather a few in most days.
The officers they brought down in a motor lorry & this we happened to have to follow behind a short way & the officers glared rather surprised at us. Smart looking young fellows. I’ve fired off some of my feeble German at one or two wounded & ask them things. They have their hair shaved very close & I must say are, for the most part, an unattractive looking lot, however after life in trenches & with all their accoutrements taken from them, prisoners of war do not look their best. Italy seems to be going along slowly …
Feo [Ferdinando Leoni, Arthur's brother in law] is sure to be called on for on for some work, if not actually soldiering but sure to be a job of some sort, as so many men will have been called up. I should not think he would be strong enough for trenches, but there are as one sees over here, so many other jobs, guarding lines etc. Teresa M. appears to have enjoyed her visit to London & Campden, I was much interested by her letter. She loves Lords & Ladies, I suppose caught it from Johnny! She never mentions a meal with anyone but a Lord or Lady something. Is Johnny any better. What kind people the Tighes [?] must be, they ought to accept offer of Woodstock.
I do so hope Courtenay [Richard Courtenay Throckmorton] gets through all right. It will be rather trying for Uncle Willy at Coughton with Lilian [Courtenay's wife], every wire or post one is apt to expect an official communication. I always remember that time at Culmullen after poor Maurice was killed* but before they heard of it & had not heard from him for some time. So Dick Maxwell is off too this week. I am so glad Gerald is having a painting done of Maurice, I trust it will be good …
The Smiths have arrived safely in Paris & are seeing about a house somewhere. I fear I shall not be able to get away on 8th Aug. unless I give this job up altogether. I have not decided yet. There seems to be so much trouble about getting leave & then clothes. One is not allowed about in their clothes, must be in mufte if I go anywhere in France, means sending a suit out. I will see. I would like a week or so off, the continuous firing & liability to be called out night & day, Sunday or Monday the same is trying & one longs to get away from it for a little spell. I expect to certainly chuck it in Nov. most of these fellows go then. My special pal who is in room with me goes home on 8th Aug & does not return here. I might get job as orderly or something in a hospital, a stage better than seeing all these wounded & dying & dead poor fellows day after day, it would get on anybody’s nerves after 9 months or 6 for that matter, some of course don’t mind it.
Best love
A
* Lieutenant Maurice Dease killed in action 23rd August 1914 awarded first Victoria Cross in WW1, son of Edmund Dease, and was a 1st cousin once removed of Arthur.
S.S.A. No.3
Par Dijon
France
June 19th 1915
My Dear Mother
Yrs. of 14th inst. To hand today with enclosures from E & Teresa. I also got box of brown shoe polish from stores. We have been very busy night & day, some nights never to bed at all, others for 2 hrs & then off again. Luckily a lull at the moment. It is tiring going night & day & much running in the dark. I enclose you copy of French Communiqué & have marked part which will explain why we have been so busy.We had to get 10 of our cars from Bruyères to help & they are still here, all came over at a moments notice & have not even a tooth brush amongst them. We have put a tent up alongside villa where they camp. It makes us 25 cars & 3 days ago we carried in the 24 hours over 1400 wounded so you can understand we have not had much time for sleep.
Artillery plays a great part & firing at times is like a continual thunderstorm. I fancy attack is to be continued. We have carried a certain number of German wounded. I brought down two last night on stretchers & 3 other Frenchmen in car, luckily they did not fly at one another, the Germans could not! As a matter of fact as a rule they don’t worry once they are wounded. We have a lot of prisoners.
The other morning coming down the pass we overtook 350 German prisoners being brought down surrounded by dragoons; we could not get by for a bit & then they divided them up on each side of road & let us through. They stared a goodeal at us, obviously English to most of them, look very sullen & many with no caps or coats, overcoats I should say. They are all in the barracks here close to our garage, so we meet them constantly surveying & cleaning & so on. Another lot we met evg. before last, about 40, another lot of 6 & so on. They gather a few in most days.
The officers they brought down in a motor lorry & this we happened to have to follow behind a short way & the officers glared rather surprised at us. Smart looking young fellows. I’ve fired off some of my feeble German at one or two wounded & ask them things. They have their hair shaved very close & I must say are, for the most part, an unattractive looking lot, however after life in trenches & with all their accoutrements taken from them, prisoners of war do not look their best. Italy seems to be going along slowly …
Feo [Ferdinando Leoni, Arthur's brother in law] is sure to be called on for on for some work, if not actually soldiering but sure to be a job of some sort, as so many men will have been called up. I should not think he would be strong enough for trenches, but there are as one sees over here, so many other jobs, guarding lines etc. Teresa M. appears to have enjoyed her visit to London & Campden, I was much interested by her letter. She loves Lords & Ladies, I suppose caught it from Johnny! She never mentions a meal with anyone but a Lord or Lady something. Is Johnny any better. What kind people the Tighes [?] must be, they ought to accept offer of Woodstock.
I do so hope Courtenay [Richard Courtenay Throckmorton] gets through all right. It will be rather trying for Uncle Willy at Coughton with Lilian [Courtenay's wife], every wire or post one is apt to expect an official communication. I always remember that time at Culmullen after poor Maurice was killed* but before they heard of it & had not heard from him for some time. So Dick Maxwell is off too this week. I am so glad Gerald is having a painting done of Maurice, I trust it will be good …
The Smiths have arrived safely in Paris & are seeing about a house somewhere. I fear I shall not be able to get away on 8th Aug. unless I give this job up altogether. I have not decided yet. There seems to be so much trouble about getting leave & then clothes. One is not allowed about in their clothes, must be in mufte if I go anywhere in France, means sending a suit out. I will see. I would like a week or so off, the continuous firing & liability to be called out night & day, Sunday or Monday the same is trying & one longs to get away from it for a little spell. I expect to certainly chuck it in Nov. most of these fellows go then. My special pal who is in room with me goes home on 8th Aug & does not return here. I might get job as orderly or something in a hospital, a stage better than seeing all these wounded & dying & dead poor fellows day after day, it would get on anybody’s nerves after 9 months or 6 for that matter, some of course don’t mind it.
Best love
A
* Lieutenant Maurice Dease killed in action 23rd August 1914 awarded first Victoria Cross in WW1, son of Edmund Dease, and was a 1st cousin once removed of Arthur.
Counter attack by the "Bosche", The Vatican and WW1, money changes hands, worries about his mother's German maid ...
Vosges
June 26th 1915
My Dear Mother
…
I see Court [Richard Courtenay Throckmorton], has gone to Turkey, yes, a long way & I fear it will mean an anxious time for Lilian[wife of Richard Courtenay Throckmorton]. Quieter last 2 or 3 days here, a lot of firing last night & early this morng. a counter attack by Germans & I’ve just been bringing down some wounded, luckily all the ‘Bosche’ efforts were a failure. You never hear the word ‘Allemand’ always Bosches!
As you have a map of these parts & can follow the French communiqué by the names yes, Metzeral they burnt, a nice little place. I was looking at some quick firing guns & a trench mortar today that French captured there. I wonder if they will burn Münster if the French push on, it is a nice town of about 8,000, looks very pretty in valley, got a good view of it today. My letters seem to take longer & longer, I don’t know why.
I wrote to bank to pay £10 into your acct. on 1st July or as soon after as you get, or they get the letter. £5-11 is what I owe you, £6 with 1/6 income tax off it, next is to pay for odds & ends for me, 4/- of it I already owe you, it is over from the £10 before, you spent £10-4-0 for me. Yes I get Times now & again, Bunbury sends me a copy now & again.
I suppose the alleged interviews with the Pope are not true, or interviews, I can’t imagine he would allow himself to be interviewed. Vatican seems still to have Pro-German leanings, ???? might have been more successful & I suppose a man not so mixed up with Germany would have been better.
500 German prisoners were marched off from here yesterday, I just happened to run into them all while they were coming down past station, about 15 or 20 officers & ‘sous officers’ in front. I believe they are mostly Hanoverians. I wish they had kept them as they cleaned the barracks & our garage & did some badly needed road repairs close here. Must hope they will soon get some more. The French treat them well & they all seemed more or less content.
Do they want to lock up Lotta, I suppose as she has been with you so long they will not bother, but it is a nuisance having a German in ones employ now a days.
Souldern seems very happy, nice going over to Wroxton making friends with young Fitzgerald girls.
Will you please pay enclosed bill for me & keep receipt. It is for tobacco he has sent out to me since I left home. Enclosed photo is of a friend of mine, a Captain, now a stretcher- bearer, preaching on ‘Joan of Arc’ at an open air service at a camp on her fete day.
Best love
Yr affect. son
Arthur
June 26th 1915
My Dear Mother
…
I see Court [Richard Courtenay Throckmorton], has gone to Turkey, yes, a long way & I fear it will mean an anxious time for Lilian[wife of Richard Courtenay Throckmorton]. Quieter last 2 or 3 days here, a lot of firing last night & early this morng. a counter attack by Germans & I’ve just been bringing down some wounded, luckily all the ‘Bosche’ efforts were a failure. You never hear the word ‘Allemand’ always Bosches!
As you have a map of these parts & can follow the French communiqué by the names yes, Metzeral they burnt, a nice little place. I was looking at some quick firing guns & a trench mortar today that French captured there. I wonder if they will burn Münster if the French push on, it is a nice town of about 8,000, looks very pretty in valley, got a good view of it today. My letters seem to take longer & longer, I don’t know why.
I wrote to bank to pay £10 into your acct. on 1st July or as soon after as you get, or they get the letter. £5-11 is what I owe you, £6 with 1/6 income tax off it, next is to pay for odds & ends for me, 4/- of it I already owe you, it is over from the £10 before, you spent £10-4-0 for me. Yes I get Times now & again, Bunbury sends me a copy now & again.
I suppose the alleged interviews with the Pope are not true, or interviews, I can’t imagine he would allow himself to be interviewed. Vatican seems still to have Pro-German leanings, ???? might have been more successful & I suppose a man not so mixed up with Germany would have been better.
500 German prisoners were marched off from here yesterday, I just happened to run into them all while they were coming down past station, about 15 or 20 officers & ‘sous officers’ in front. I believe they are mostly Hanoverians. I wish they had kept them as they cleaned the barracks & our garage & did some badly needed road repairs close here. Must hope they will soon get some more. The French treat them well & they all seemed more or less content.
Do they want to lock up Lotta, I suppose as she has been with you so long they will not bother, but it is a nuisance having a German in ones employ now a days.
Souldern seems very happy, nice going over to Wroxton making friends with young Fitzgerald girls.
Will you please pay enclosed bill for me & keep receipt. It is for tobacco he has sent out to me since I left home. Enclosed photo is of a friend of mine, a Captain, now a stretcher- bearer, preaching on ‘Joan of Arc’ at an open air service at a camp on her fete day.
Best love
Yr affect. son
Arthur
Family money troubles, complaining about the Government's lack of preparation for the war "What muddlers we are, fancy only now discovering the fact we want shells to wage this war successfully"...
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S.S.A. No.3
Par Dijon
France
Sunday June 27th 1915
My Dear Mother
…
My letters seem to take Longer & longer to get home. I enclose 2 cuttings & a small photo of me & car & chauffeur on step taking out a wounded man to put into the Red Cross train here, it was taken by one of our fellows here.
… but if it is not a necessity this year & it seemingly is not, then I will keep my contribution as I can ill afford it now, my income has suffered from the war too & I have no £15 to spare & after all E & Co must in common with everyone else, suffer something on account of all this upheaval, we all have to & must try & make best of it. I did not realise your income had decreased by so much, Bank of Ireland paying lesser dividend & I suppose re investment of that Turb. (Turbotston) money 2 years ago produces less than it did while it was a 4% mortgage on Turbotston…
It is hard to see where this war will land us all financially, income tax will be so heavy. All right for a man with £10,000 a year, he can get on well on say £7000, but when one only has a few hundred a year it becomes a serious matter. Cost of everything has of course gone up, but after war should be reduced a bit, tho’ probably not to level of prices before the war …
What muddlers we are, fancy only now discovering the fact we want shells to wage this war successfully, after 9 months of it we find it out, Germany found it out before she ever started it. All this Russian reverse is, I presume, due to our hopeless Govt. not having things ready in the spring as they more or less promised, naturally Russia relied on our doing something after she had been battling along all this time to help us & now we just find we want shells. It is awful!!
I can’t understand Vatican, I wonder if it is all true, it seemed in any case a very foolish policy to allow himself to be interviewed at all!...
Best love
Yr affect son
Arthur
S.S.A. No.3
Par Dijon
France
Sunday June 27th 1915
My Dear Mother
…
My letters seem to take Longer & longer to get home. I enclose 2 cuttings & a small photo of me & car & chauffeur on step taking out a wounded man to put into the Red Cross train here, it was taken by one of our fellows here.
… but if it is not a necessity this year & it seemingly is not, then I will keep my contribution as I can ill afford it now, my income has suffered from the war too & I have no £15 to spare & after all E & Co must in common with everyone else, suffer something on account of all this upheaval, we all have to & must try & make best of it. I did not realise your income had decreased by so much, Bank of Ireland paying lesser dividend & I suppose re investment of that Turb. (Turbotston) money 2 years ago produces less than it did while it was a 4% mortgage on Turbotston…
It is hard to see where this war will land us all financially, income tax will be so heavy. All right for a man with £10,000 a year, he can get on well on say £7000, but when one only has a few hundred a year it becomes a serious matter. Cost of everything has of course gone up, but after war should be reduced a bit, tho’ probably not to level of prices before the war …
What muddlers we are, fancy only now discovering the fact we want shells to wage this war successfully, after 9 months of it we find it out, Germany found it out before she ever started it. All this Russian reverse is, I presume, due to our hopeless Govt. not having things ready in the spring as they more or less promised, naturally Russia relied on our doing something after she had been battling along all this time to help us & now we just find we want shells. It is awful!!
I can’t understand Vatican, I wonder if it is all true, it seemed in any case a very foolish policy to allow himself to be interviewed at all!...
Best love
Yr affect son
Arthur