Thursday January 18/16[sic]

Whitley Camp

Surrey Eng.

Dear Mother Father + Carrie

               This is the first opportunity this week that I have had to write. We are brigade duty battalion this week and as we only have about 750 men it keeps us on duty most of the time. I received a letter from home and also one from Carrie and believe me I was glad to hear from home. Murray is still instructing musketry and is at present at Mitchet Ranges. I am in charge of the hut while he is away and have not had much time to be lonely although I miss him just the same.

               I expect to be made a blooming lance jack again soon and I am not very much elated over the idea as I considered myself lucky when I reverted to the ranks. On January 28^th I expect to go to Aldershoth for a week to take an advanced course in range finding. There has not been anything new or exciting happening here that my diary is a week behind again. The mail has been very irregular here lately, sometimes a week goes by and I do not get anym then again I get about a dozen in a bunch. I have not had any parcels lately but am expecting some soon, I do not know where I will be when I get an answer to this letter but fully expect to be here and I need some money, if you would just draw £5 for me I will be jake. I have enough money for general purposes but have not yet given up hopes of getting a pass to Scotland so if you will send it as soon as you get this it might come in handy. “Now for the diary”.

               Sunday January 14/16[sic]

Up as per usual. Church parade as usual. Murray left at 6:30 this is the fifth Sunday out of the last seven that Murray has had to work pretty tough luck. A bunch of us walked to Godalming in the afternoon. Ot was a dull cold day and no sun. We had our supper in Godalming and believe me I am beginning to like Godalming as much as I do the rest of it here. We came back early and went to bed.

               Monday January 15/17

Up as per physical drill + bayonet fighting from noon until 4:30. We had M.G. work. I had another class and we got a long fine at 5:30- I went on a quarantine guard and did not finish until 11PM and of course went to bed smartly.

               Tuesday January 16/17 up as per. We were issued with gas masks and taken down to the gas school. We went in a hut where we had a lecture on gases, masks, respirators etc. while we were there we had our first experience with weeping gas. The instructor put ½ tea spoonful on the stone and it was not very long before we were driven outside weeping. Ther German shells hold about 3 pts of this same stuff so you can see, but we are issued with goggles for this. The after effects are not serious but believe me it makes your eyes smart. We were then lined up in two files and told to inspect our gas helmets and believe me we did inspect them. We were then marched over to the trenches where we had to go through line gas. It was just as strong as the Germans use when we came out our buttons and all our brass was green. It was done I think to give us confidence in our helmets and it proved to me anyway that they were gas proof. In the afternoon we were on musketry and we had to fall in again at 5:30 for Pickett and believe me that is the most tiring job I have struck for a good many moons. We got in about 12 PM and again I was not very long crawling in.

               Wednesday January 17/17

Up as per and believe me these late hours are pretty hard when the same old bugle blows @ 6:30. WE had to fall in at 8AM, fatigue for Thursley Commons, tearing down trenches, slugging lumber etc. It was a hard day and when we got back to camp we were politely told we had to go on Pickett again @ 5:30, talk about sore. We were all sore but we had to go just the same, it was 11:30 when we got home and we were all so tired, we did not even read our mail and that is about the one bright spot in our line.

               Thursday January 18/16

We had to get up at the same time and right of the reel they gave us 2 hrs physical drill + bayonet fighting. I am afraid we pretty nearly broke, the instructors heard as everything was done sloppy. Answer “no life”. At 11:30 we paraded to the cook house where we were issued with meat, potatoes, carrots, onions + bread. We marched to Thursley commons to where we had to build files + cook our own dinner in our mess tins + believe me people I am some cook. It tasted all jake anyway and we had a pretty good time. We are warned for fatigue @ 7:30 AM to-morrow but are off to-night so I am making the best of it.

               Well dears I guess I will have to pull the pin now. I am feeling pretty good although tired and hope you are all well.

               Remember me to all

                              Bob