Trench life

"I only hope Providence spares us all to meet again. Then, won't there be happiness and contentment. You have no idea how I am looking forward to the time ahead when we all shall meet again. Give Mum and Dad my love..."

"We get fair food here under the circumstances - dam [sic] dangerous. These are items: army bread & biscuits, jam, ham, cheese, bully beef, army rations (consisting of tinned meat and vegetables), tea and stews. Healthy, but possessing the army ration virtue - invariably the same. At present we have no sport and snatch a little sleep whenever we can. We have to work hard doing navying and such work."

"We have been in the trenches for a week now (8 days) and have had a good sprinkling of war - otherwise Hell - the only suitable expression I can think of. I have been right up in the five trench all the time - only a matter of 150 yards from Fritz. We have had four gas alarms and have had to don our helmets - rotton [sic] things stinking like a mixtures of a dozen dentists' shops and 1/2 dozen latrines. his is indeed a sandbag town. Streets named, dugouts numbered and trenches named also. I named the one I am in charge of Beaconsfield Road. It is 20 feet long and contains 7 men and yours truly. We have had several casualties - one in my trench."