I am writing this in great haste, as I am just off to the General's on
important business. I was most interested in reading various friends'
letters on my "mention." What it has really been in the way of being
shot at would cover a small campaign three times over, and I do not
doubt many of my officers and men have had even a worse time than
myself, and there is very much more hard work to come. The French Army
can always produce fresh troops for each fresh job, but our smaller
army has to send the same troops up to everything, and then when the
regiment is reduced to fragments, it is filled up with anyone from
anywhere, and to the authorities it is the same as the original good
regiment. Before I forget, and in case anything happens to me, I want
to tell you again that all my securities are at Cox; there is a list
of them in my despatch case, and you will find one lot of title deeds
that I had not as yet had time to look over in the Oak Room. I have
been so hustled ever since coming from India that it has been
impossible to attend to such things....
Yours with love....
G.B.L.
IN BILLETS.
_March 7th, 1915._
We have been very hard at work to-day. At 9.30 last night I received
an order to arrange with the priest in a certain village for service
the next morning. As my billets extend over a mile, you can imagine
that I was not too pleased! This was followed at 11.30 p.m. by another
order that we were to be on parade at 6 a.m. Getting home between 7
and 8 a.m., I had to hurry to early service, bolt some breakfast, and
present myself at the General's house at 9 o'clock for a conference.
Returning from that, I then had to hand in the men's winter kits. Next
came the orders to move into fresh billets to-night in the dark. This
with 1,000 men and 70 horses, whilst I must send a working party of
four hundred men to a place 5 or 6 miles off at 10.30 p.m. to-night.
How it is all to be done I have not been informed, but you can imagine
the chaos that can ensue. We have been comfortable for the last two or
three days. After our life in the trenches we can say that we have
been _very_ comfortable, because we have been able to wash daily and
have a tub every second day, which things count much. I sent my Sam
Browne belt, etc., home two days ago, as we are supposed to wear web
equipment now like the men; and our swords have also been despatched.
Mine has gone to Messrs. Cox's shipping agency through the Ordnance,
with three labels on it addressed to you; it is well greased, and will
not require overhauling, I trust, until I get back. We have had two
days of rain, and things are rather nasty. My saddle-bags are quite
useful on my second horse; they take a lot of my kit, including a pair
of waders, with boots to go with them too. When the weather dries up
a little, I shall return these and push other things in. I wish the
war was well over, but I expect the Germans hate it worse than we
do....
BILLETS.
_March 8th, 1915._
Our little march in the dark was accompanied with heavy rain squalls
and the weather turning bitterly cold. We missed our billeting party
in the darkness, for it was intense. I think the inside of a public
house was appealing to them at the time, so I halted my men, and by
sending mounted officers in every direction, with luck I caught some
of them. And here we are again, and very comfortable. Of course, we
still have our early rising to contend with, but otherwise for the
moment things are pretty straight. These Irishmen are most amusing
fellows; they can't be treated like the English soldier: one has to be
much more strict with them, and ride them at other times with a much
lighter hand. For the next few months, unless Germany collapses at
once, there will be _heavy fighting_ for us. I am glad to hear that
the Russians are driving these knaves back. What it really means is
that when the Germans fight a successful action, they lose a certain
number of men whom they cannot replace, and use up ammunition which
they cannot make in a hurry, and so the war gradually draws to its
conclusion, I trust.... I had to fly away just then to deal with my
many prisoners and my companies also. I am sorry you have had illness
in the house; I am so used to sickness that it hardly appals me when
it applies to other people. For instance, since I came out here, if
you multiply the number of my Father's town house in Porchester
Terrace by 10 [number invalided, 470] you will be below the numbers
who have been invalided from my Bn. since I came to France, and before
that there was Hursley Park, Winchester, and the voyage home from
India, when I lived amongst sick men for some unknown reason. The
weather is now varying between skiffs of snow and bright gleams of
sunshine, but very, very cold....
_March 9th, 1915._
Many thanks for your letter. My new puttees will be most useful, as my
old ones are full of holes. We have, during the last day or so, had a
strong wind, and the ground is drying up wonderfully, so it will not
be so hard on puttees for the future. As a rule, when one walks
across country, and struggles through muddy trenches without one's
horse, one wears puttees if one is not wearing long gum boots; these
latter keep the legs and feet drier, but the difficulty is that they
are too heavy to walk very far in them. I had a long letter from Meta,
which I enclose. I am sending two badges to the children from my old
coat. I thought they might like them. I look forward very much to the
cake you are sending, as the last parcel went astray. My new coat came
last night. It is made out of very thick cloth, and altogether loose
and useful. There always has been a battalion of the London Irish
Rifles (Volunteers), now a territorial corps. The War Office would not
allow them to belong to us, because Irish Regiments have no
territorial Bns. In S. Africa, that Bn. (London Irish Rifles) sent us
a company which was attached to our regiment throughout the war. I
leave the Irish visit in your hands at present. The only leave I shall
receive will be if I am wounded. There will be a lot of fighting of a
bad sort from now on. It would never be surprising if one were hit. I
have been mercifully preserved up to now; and, again, one must put
one's trust in Providence....