Dear Folks,
This is Sunday morning just before dinner. I have spent the morning cleaning up etc. for a rumoured inspection. There is no word of it coming off yet. My boots won't be any the worse for a good rub with Dubbin, however. There was no church parade today as our Chaplain has gone away to join another unit. I guess there is no preacher to take his place. Therefore church is "napoo".
Your letter with Rose's enclosed came to hand ok. I was sorry to learn of Orville's motor accident. It was lucky that it didn't turn out more seriously. He seems to have bad luck on his trips up home by motor. It would pay him to take the train.
There has been very little of interest since I wrote last time. We are out on a route march nearly every afternoon and our routine just now reminds one of what we went through in England at this time last year. It will soon be a year since we landed in France. We have been "moving in circles" as it were, ever since. We have been in nearly every town in this district, with scarcely a second visit to most of them. In that Trench Paper I sent home a few weeks ago, there is a good list of the principal places in this neighbourhood that we have been (i.e. Canadians). You want to keep it as a souvenir. I sent one to Floss and Gert as well as Toronto.
I had a letter from Bill day before yours came. He is in London now at the R.H.A., a cadet school. He likes it there. No doubt you will have heard from him before you get this so I'll not tell you what he says about it.
Say, when you write, tell me what Battalion Bruce is in. When his Battalion comes out, I may be able to see him. have not seen anyone from home for quite a while now. Hope your real hot spell has passed off before now. It has been rather showery for the last week here and a lot cooler.
There is so little to write about that I'll have to ring off. I am real well. Hope Orville is feeling better and everyone else too.
Lovingly,
Harold Skilling
Showing posts with label Orville Skilling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Orville Skilling. Show all posts
Friday, July 15, 2016
Saturday, July 9, 2016
15 or 16 August 1916 France
* Bolded text was blacked out by the censors
Dear folks,
This is Sat. night and I am up the line again writing this outside my dugout. There is a party of 50 up here from our unit making a big dugout to be used as a dressing station and to quarter the personnel of the medical units. We are working in 3 shifts of 8 hours each and mine is from midnight to 8 am. We have to extend a galley along a tunnel and it is a pretty tiresome job. There are several shafts bored in and some are not too bad to work in but the one where I am is pretty damp and there is a long narrow tunnel where we carry the earth out after we have shovelled it into sandbags, that has about an inch of water in it by morning after being cleaned out before we go on duty. We call it "Rheumatic Alley". The dugouts are good and deep and will be safe against shell fire if they are ever finished.
We are always pretty tired when we come off duty in the morning and pike it to bed just as soon as our breakfast is over. It is pretty hard to get a good sleep in the daytime for our bunks are in one of the tunnels that is still being worked and the men have to carry the sandbags along through the aisle between the rows of bunks so there is always more or less noise going on.
It is a good change to be up here after being so long at the D.R.S. but I don't think I would like this work all the time. it is the worst shift we are on too because it means an 8-hour shift without a break. All the other shifts have a meal at about half time but there is no such luck for us at 4 a.m.
I got your letter yesterday and was glad to know that everyone was well and having a good time during the holidays. It is too bad that Orville could not have stayed longer. Tell Mae I got her birthday parcel. It came on the right day alright and one from Bill on the next. Those strawberries sure were great. They had not leaked a bit. I was wishing it had have been a half gallon jar. We must be thankful for small mercies though. The maple butter and fudge was good too and all the other things came in handy too. Thanks ever so much.
I am having a fine time sitting here watching one side of an artillery duel. Fritz is trying to find one of our batteries but apparently can't do it for it for it still keeps sending a salvo for every one it gets. Shells from both batteries pass right over my head and occasionally a "weary willie" hums over labelled for some place away back behind the lines.
There is not much news to tell just now so I will ring off and get some more of the letters written. I want to write to Bill and Gert. Say, one of the letters enclosed in the letter you sent was one of my own. I guess you had intended sending it somewhere else and got it in the wrong envelope. There was nothing much in it anyway. It was dated May 28 I think.
Love to all,
Harold Skilling
Dear folks,
This is Sat. night and I am up the line again writing this outside my dugout. There is a party of 50 up here from our unit making a big dugout to be used as a dressing station and to quarter the personnel of the medical units. We are working in 3 shifts of 8 hours each and mine is from midnight to 8 am. We have to extend a galley along a tunnel and it is a pretty tiresome job. There are several shafts bored in and some are not too bad to work in but the one where I am is pretty damp and there is a long narrow tunnel where we carry the earth out after we have shovelled it into sandbags, that has about an inch of water in it by morning after being cleaned out before we go on duty. We call it "Rheumatic Alley". The dugouts are good and deep and will be safe against shell fire if they are ever finished.
We are always pretty tired when we come off duty in the morning and pike it to bed just as soon as our breakfast is over. It is pretty hard to get a good sleep in the daytime for our bunks are in one of the tunnels that is still being worked and the men have to carry the sandbags along through the aisle between the rows of bunks so there is always more or less noise going on.
It is a good change to be up here after being so long at the D.R.S. but I don't think I would like this work all the time. it is the worst shift we are on too because it means an 8-hour shift without a break. All the other shifts have a meal at about half time but there is no such luck for us at 4 a.m.
I got your letter yesterday and was glad to know that everyone was well and having a good time during the holidays. It is too bad that Orville could not have stayed longer. Tell Mae I got her birthday parcel. It came on the right day alright and one from Bill on the next. Those strawberries sure were great. They had not leaked a bit. I was wishing it had have been a half gallon jar. We must be thankful for small mercies though. The maple butter and fudge was good too and all the other things came in handy too. Thanks ever so much.
I am having a fine time sitting here watching one side of an artillery duel. Fritz is trying to find one of our batteries but apparently can't do it for it for it still keeps sending a salvo for every one it gets. Shells from both batteries pass right over my head and occasionally a "weary willie" hums over labelled for some place away back behind the lines.
There is not much news to tell just now so I will ring off and get some more of the letters written. I want to write to Bill and Gert. Say, one of the letters enclosed in the letter you sent was one of my own. I guess you had intended sending it somewhere else and got it in the wrong envelope. There was nothing much in it anyway. It was dated May 28 I think.
Love to all,
Harold Skilling
Monday, July 4, 2016
21 July 2016 France
Dear Mother,
Just a line to get this started . I have had no word from you this week yet but no doubt it will be here tomorrow as some Dan. mail came through today but not very much. I had a letter yesterday from Bill. He is billeted at Keble College Oxford and seems to think it is a pretty "Jake" place. he seems to think that they were turned down on this Canadian proposition and now he will go after Imperial Artillery hard (?). Possibly going to Sandhurst to complete his course.
I had a nice long letter from Orville. He says he is not quite so busy now and it is a good thing for he must surely need a rest after such a heavy spring and so much worry.
There has been nothing of note happen here since I wrote last except the events on the Somme. We have to depend on newspaper reports & the wireless bulletins for our news and do not get it any more fully that you do.
The weather has been ideal for aircraft observation and both sides have been taking advantage of it. this morning one of Fritz's came across here and of course our anti-aircraft shells were blazing away at him and he came right over our hospital. The fragments of the aircraft shells were buzzing all around and one piece of the fuse weighing about half a pound hit my tent and came through one section of the roof. As there was a double roof the second section stopped the piece. It was lucky for one of the patients was sitting directly under where it hit.
The only excitement we get now is football and our team played two games this week and won and lost. There is another one tomorrow.
What do the people in Canada think of the advance on the Somme? It looks good to us here and if it continues will no doubt make a very appreciable difference in the length of the war. There are 3 months of good weather yet and a terrible lot can be done in that time if we have the ammunition and the guns, which we undoubtedly have now ( and capturing a lot of "Heinies" every day in the bargain). Well, I'll not write any more at this until tomorrow and then I'll answer any letter that might come.
Saturday P.M.
Your letter came today and also one from Mae and I'll get right at them and get them answered so they will go in the next mail.
I don't know whether Mae intends me to forward her letter on from me to Bill or not. She may have taken carbon copies of it. If not it is better to send any letter like that to Bill first - as long as he is in Eng. Anyway, for them it will not have to be censored as it is going from here to him.
When is Orville coming up to Teeswater? You must be sure and go back with him. Has Father made up his mind about going out west yet? It will be winter again soon and he won't want to go then. What has Vern decided on? Well, say, there is not very much in your letter that requires answering and the news is absolutely "na poo" so I'll ring off and get this away.
Hope everyone is keeping in the best of health.
Lovingly,
Harold Skilling
Just a line to get this started . I have had no word from you this week yet but no doubt it will be here tomorrow as some Dan. mail came through today but not very much. I had a letter yesterday from Bill. He is billeted at Keble College Oxford and seems to think it is a pretty "Jake" place. he seems to think that they were turned down on this Canadian proposition and now he will go after Imperial Artillery hard (?). Possibly going to Sandhurst to complete his course.
I had a nice long letter from Orville. He says he is not quite so busy now and it is a good thing for he must surely need a rest after such a heavy spring and so much worry.
There has been nothing of note happen here since I wrote last except the events on the Somme. We have to depend on newspaper reports & the wireless bulletins for our news and do not get it any more fully that you do.
The weather has been ideal for aircraft observation and both sides have been taking advantage of it. this morning one of Fritz's came across here and of course our anti-aircraft shells were blazing away at him and he came right over our hospital. The fragments of the aircraft shells were buzzing all around and one piece of the fuse weighing about half a pound hit my tent and came through one section of the roof. As there was a double roof the second section stopped the piece. It was lucky for one of the patients was sitting directly under where it hit.
The only excitement we get now is football and our team played two games this week and won and lost. There is another one tomorrow.
What do the people in Canada think of the advance on the Somme? It looks good to us here and if it continues will no doubt make a very appreciable difference in the length of the war. There are 3 months of good weather yet and a terrible lot can be done in that time if we have the ammunition and the guns, which we undoubtedly have now ( and capturing a lot of "Heinies" every day in the bargain). Well, I'll not write any more at this until tomorrow and then I'll answer any letter that might come.
Saturday P.M.
Your letter came today and also one from Mae and I'll get right at them and get them answered so they will go in the next mail.
I don't know whether Mae intends me to forward her letter on from me to Bill or not. She may have taken carbon copies of it. If not it is better to send any letter like that to Bill first - as long as he is in Eng. Anyway, for them it will not have to be censored as it is going from here to him.
When is Orville coming up to Teeswater? You must be sure and go back with him. Has Father made up his mind about going out west yet? It will be winter again soon and he won't want to go then. What has Vern decided on? Well, say, there is not very much in your letter that requires answering and the news is absolutely "na poo" so I'll ring off and get this away.
Hope everyone is keeping in the best of health.
Lovingly,
Harold Skilling
Saturday, July 2, 2016
30 June 1916 Flanders
Dear Folks,
This is Friday and our section is running the main dressing station and are having it fairly easy just now. We expect to move to the D.?S. in about a week or perhaps less and in the ordinary run of events we will be there for a long while. But here's hoping that there will be an onward move before the end of another month.
We have two or three detachments up at several advanced posts and they seem to be having a fairly lively time, as during the last week there has been intermittent bombarding nearly every night and they are nearly always as bad just behind the line as in the trenches. One of our boys was wounded day before yesterday. A machine gun bullet grazed his scalp and it was a mighty close shave for him. He was one of our reinforcements.
We handle wounded here but do not keep them any length of time. Some we do not touch but send them right on to C.C.S. where they can be properly looked after and receive a permanent dressing or where an operation can be performed. Most of the wounded cases come in at night and as I am on the day trick (?) I do not see so many of them but we have our hands full in the morning with the sick parades. I have to look after the dispensing and am able to do most of it.without calling Compounder who is a qualified druggist.
I saw something the other day that is a very rare sight. There were two Taubes cruising over our lines and 3 of our planes gave chase and after several bursts of machine gun fire between them, one of ours put on speed and came up between the two Taubes. They began to blaze away at each other and all of a sudden our plane turned right over and began to fall. It was up about 3-4000 feet when it was hit.and after flopping down through the air the pilot regained control of his machine just before it reached the ground and managed to land right side up. We heard afterwards that neither the pilot nor the observer was killed but it is almost a miracle that they escaped.
I guess you will not be having Mae home for very long this summer. Are you going any place, Mother? Tell Norma to write and tell me about her exams. I was very sorry to learn that you were sick Mother. I believe you are working too hard and are worn out. Don't you think you should go away for a good rest now that you have got rid of the cow? You should not be so tied down.
I haven't heard from Bill since I wrote before but am looking for a letter any day now. Say, you all want to be careful when so much typhoid fever is around. Why don't they inoculate the people of the town? All we soldiers get it and typhoid is the most rare of all diseases of that nature and we are in a position to become infected with the disease if anyone is.
What sort of a time are you going to have tomorrow? Are they celebrating in any of the towns around home? There is no difference in the days out here. Same routine for seven days in the week regardless of the occasion. the only thing we have to relieve the monotony is a little bit of extra work.
Say, can you tell me what Bruce Neilson's (a cousin) Battalion is? They might be out here some of these times and I might possibly see him. One of the boys saw Jack McMeechan who used to work for Orville. He is in the 42nd, a kilty regiment. He was asking for me. He was through the Ypres battle and was o.k. after that although his Battalion got a terrible cutting up.
Well, the supper gong has gone so I'll ring off for now . Hoping this letter finds everyone well again.
Lovingly,
Harold
This is Friday and our section is running the main dressing station and are having it fairly easy just now. We expect to move to the D.?S. in about a week or perhaps less and in the ordinary run of events we will be there for a long while. But here's hoping that there will be an onward move before the end of another month.
We have two or three detachments up at several advanced posts and they seem to be having a fairly lively time, as during the last week there has been intermittent bombarding nearly every night and they are nearly always as bad just behind the line as in the trenches. One of our boys was wounded day before yesterday. A machine gun bullet grazed his scalp and it was a mighty close shave for him. He was one of our reinforcements.
We handle wounded here but do not keep them any length of time. Some we do not touch but send them right on to C.C.S. where they can be properly looked after and receive a permanent dressing or where an operation can be performed. Most of the wounded cases come in at night and as I am on the day trick (?) I do not see so many of them but we have our hands full in the morning with the sick parades. I have to look after the dispensing and am able to do most of it.without calling Compounder who is a qualified druggist.
I saw something the other day that is a very rare sight. There were two Taubes cruising over our lines and 3 of our planes gave chase and after several bursts of machine gun fire between them, one of ours put on speed and came up between the two Taubes. They began to blaze away at each other and all of a sudden our plane turned right over and began to fall. It was up about 3-4000 feet when it was hit.and after flopping down through the air the pilot regained control of his machine just before it reached the ground and managed to land right side up. We heard afterwards that neither the pilot nor the observer was killed but it is almost a miracle that they escaped.
I guess you will not be having Mae home for very long this summer. Are you going any place, Mother? Tell Norma to write and tell me about her exams. I was very sorry to learn that you were sick Mother. I believe you are working too hard and are worn out. Don't you think you should go away for a good rest now that you have got rid of the cow? You should not be so tied down.
I haven't heard from Bill since I wrote before but am looking for a letter any day now. Say, you all want to be careful when so much typhoid fever is around. Why don't they inoculate the people of the town? All we soldiers get it and typhoid is the most rare of all diseases of that nature and we are in a position to become infected with the disease if anyone is.
What sort of a time are you going to have tomorrow? Are they celebrating in any of the towns around home? There is no difference in the days out here. Same routine for seven days in the week regardless of the occasion. the only thing we have to relieve the monotony is a little bit of extra work.
Say, can you tell me what Bruce Neilson's (a cousin) Battalion is? They might be out here some of these times and I might possibly see him. One of the boys saw Jack McMeechan who used to work for Orville. He is in the 42nd, a kilty regiment. He was asking for me. He was through the Ypres battle and was o.k. after that although his Battalion got a terrible cutting up.
Well, the supper gong has gone so I'll ring off for now . Hoping this letter finds everyone well again.
Lovingly,
Harold
Friday, July 1, 2016
25 June 1916 Flanders
Dear Folks,
This is Sunday evening and I am back at the headquarters. We were sent back from the A.D.S. last Friday which made it a week exactly since we had gone up. None of us wanted to come back as all the boys are far more contented up there than back at headquarters. However we all have to take our turn and we will get ours again soon no doubt.Just got word a few minutes ago that one of our ambulance drivers had been hit. He was on his way to one of our A.D.S.s and got a nice cushy wound in the shoulder.
We had a pretty quiet time up the pike but a week ago today we had a little excitement. Fritz seems to favour Sunday to do his strafing and the last Sunday he sure lived up to his regular form. he lashed up over a hundred heavies into the town close by our dressing station and we were very fortunate in getting off as luckily as we did for a whole Battalion was billeted in the town and only 2 or 3 were killed and about half a dozen wounded. i helped carry one of the seriously wounded down to the surgery but he died shortly after reaching there. There were about 40 or 50 men eating their supper in a house when a shell burst right in the place. Most of the casualties occurred here. I can hardly see how any of them came out alive.
There has been no Canadian mail in for a long time and I have no letter to answer this week yet. I have had one from Bill (Skilling) though and he is haveing a pretty fair time. He was becoming anxious about me as three of my letters had gone astray and it was about 5 weeks since he had heard from me. After the heavy fighting at Ypres, he thought i must have cashed in.
It seems funny up around our A.D.S. to see all the gardens growing behind the wrecked houses. The civilians have all been ordered out and only come back occasionally to look after their gardens etc. Once in a while a .... roots a few potatoes but they have to take a chance on that. Some of the fields around the fighting are plugged full of duds (that is what shells are called that do not explode on striking the ground but just bury themselves). sometimes just a slight jar will detonate them and they are not disturbed at all as too many lives were lost at the beginning of the war by trying to dig them up. There will be some of these Belgians blown up after the war when they begin ploughing those fields.
The weather here is just typical June weather and is great for fighting. Apparently, the Russians are having similar weather for they are showing up the Austrian and German armies over on that (Eastern) front. Opinion over here seems to that the next month or two will see the climax of the war. We ought to make a good showing for we are about as well prepared as we can expect to be and are able to give Fritz as much or a little more than we get from him.
Well, I'll write again when I get your letter to answer. I am real well and hope everyone at home is the same. Hope Norma makes our o.k. in her exams and also Orville in his case with the lawyer.
Lovingly,
Harold
This is Sunday evening and I am back at the headquarters. We were sent back from the A.D.S. last Friday which made it a week exactly since we had gone up. None of us wanted to come back as all the boys are far more contented up there than back at headquarters. However we all have to take our turn and we will get ours again soon no doubt.Just got word a few minutes ago that one of our ambulance drivers had been hit. He was on his way to one of our A.D.S.s and got a nice cushy wound in the shoulder.
We had a pretty quiet time up the pike but a week ago today we had a little excitement. Fritz seems to favour Sunday to do his strafing and the last Sunday he sure lived up to his regular form. he lashed up over a hundred heavies into the town close by our dressing station and we were very fortunate in getting off as luckily as we did for a whole Battalion was billeted in the town and only 2 or 3 were killed and about half a dozen wounded. i helped carry one of the seriously wounded down to the surgery but he died shortly after reaching there. There were about 40 or 50 men eating their supper in a house when a shell burst right in the place. Most of the casualties occurred here. I can hardly see how any of them came out alive.
There has been no Canadian mail in for a long time and I have no letter to answer this week yet. I have had one from Bill (Skilling) though and he is haveing a pretty fair time. He was becoming anxious about me as three of my letters had gone astray and it was about 5 weeks since he had heard from me. After the heavy fighting at Ypres, he thought i must have cashed in.
It seems funny up around our A.D.S. to see all the gardens growing behind the wrecked houses. The civilians have all been ordered out and only come back occasionally to look after their gardens etc. Once in a while a .... roots a few potatoes but they have to take a chance on that. Some of the fields around the fighting are plugged full of duds (that is what shells are called that do not explode on striking the ground but just bury themselves). sometimes just a slight jar will detonate them and they are not disturbed at all as too many lives were lost at the beginning of the war by trying to dig them up. There will be some of these Belgians blown up after the war when they begin ploughing those fields.
The weather here is just typical June weather and is great for fighting. Apparently, the Russians are having similar weather for they are showing up the Austrian and German armies over on that (Eastern) front. Opinion over here seems to that the next month or two will see the climax of the war. We ought to make a good showing for we are about as well prepared as we can expect to be and are able to give Fritz as much or a little more than we get from him.
Well, I'll write again when I get your letter to answer. I am real well and hope everyone at home is the same. Hope Norma makes our o.k. in her exams and also Orville in his case with the lawyer.
Lovingly,
Harold
Sunday, October 27, 2013
9 June 1916 Flanders
Dear Folks,
Have handed the hospital over to 4th Ambulance and are now in a camp behind our old one. We were intended to go up to the Advanced work (our section) but as two of our Dr’s were posted to other units, it left our section short of officers and so we had to stay behind. We have since got some more and will be able to go up when our turn comes around in a few days.
Well since I wrote last there have been some pretty exciting times. On Sunday night we sent 100 stretcher-bearers up to help clear the wounded from the copse. Half of them came back the next day and the rest stayed for two days longer. They were “C” section as they had been there before and were a little bit acquainted with the country. They report having a very exciting time and I only wish I could have been there.There was only one casualty. He was wounded in the leg and arm and will likely get a permanent blighty. The patient on his squad was killed and one of the boys had his arm around the patient when he was hit. Pretty narrow escape eh? We all wear the new steel helmet now when we go up there. It certainly saves scores of lives. One of our boys got a big dent in his, as big as a fist. Certainly saved his life.
The boys got great praise from the authorities. They had been carrying wounded out of the front line which is only 25 – 30 yards from Fritz’s front line and in full view of him. Their flares were falling right around them and they were forced to go overland not having any communication trenches. Some of the poor fellows had been lying there for as long as five days and were in very bad shape. Gangrene had set in in a lot of cases and all were in bad condition from lack of food and medical attention.
The bombardment was exceptionally heavy and the enemy evidently thought that they would have a complete walkover but they soon found out that those who were alive were very much alive, and the number of Germans left on the field testified to that. We had one German in the hospital here. He was a young looking chap about 25 – 26 and a very good looking chap. He certainly didn’t look starved and was in good condition. He only stayed with us a short time and we didn’t get much of a chance to quiz him.
I was very much disappointed that I could not get up but I’ll try and get up next time. We were lucky to get off with only one casualty.
I am quartered in a hut here and I got to work yesterday and made a bed. It is a dandy affair and is just like a spring mattress. There are 6 of us in this hut together, a double bed in two corners and a single in the other two. We made a table and bench as well so we are pretty comfy. We will only be here for a few days though, but we are enjoying ourselves while we are here. The roof is thatched with straw and is quite waterproof.
It is too bad about Al Ryan but I guess he was pretty sick though. I was glad to know you got rid of Mrs. Orr. She should have more decency than to impose herself on people like that way.
I hope Orville doesn’t have any more trouble with that fellow. It has caused him enough worry now. I don’t see how they can hold him libel for the costs.
I got Mae’s letter and also the parcel from Rose. I was glad Mae succeeded in getting her choir into Massy Hall. But I guess she …. and she will be very glad when the strain is over. Is she taking a playground for the summer?
Well I must ring off and get to bed. Hope everyone is well.
Yours lovingly,
Harold
Have handed the hospital over to 4th Ambulance and are now in a camp behind our old one. We were intended to go up to the Advanced work (our section) but as two of our Dr’s were posted to other units, it left our section short of officers and so we had to stay behind. We have since got some more and will be able to go up when our turn comes around in a few days.
Well since I wrote last there have been some pretty exciting times. On Sunday night we sent 100 stretcher-bearers up to help clear the wounded from the copse. Half of them came back the next day and the rest stayed for two days longer. They were “C” section as they had been there before and were a little bit acquainted with the country. They report having a very exciting time and I only wish I could have been there.There was only one casualty. He was wounded in the leg and arm and will likely get a permanent blighty. The patient on his squad was killed and one of the boys had his arm around the patient when he was hit. Pretty narrow escape eh? We all wear the new steel helmet now when we go up there. It certainly saves scores of lives. One of our boys got a big dent in his, as big as a fist. Certainly saved his life.
The boys got great praise from the authorities. They had been carrying wounded out of the front line which is only 25 – 30 yards from Fritz’s front line and in full view of him. Their flares were falling right around them and they were forced to go overland not having any communication trenches. Some of the poor fellows had been lying there for as long as five days and were in very bad shape. Gangrene had set in in a lot of cases and all were in bad condition from lack of food and medical attention.
The bombardment was exceptionally heavy and the enemy evidently thought that they would have a complete walkover but they soon found out that those who were alive were very much alive, and the number of Germans left on the field testified to that. We had one German in the hospital here. He was a young looking chap about 25 – 26 and a very good looking chap. He certainly didn’t look starved and was in good condition. He only stayed with us a short time and we didn’t get much of a chance to quiz him.
I was very much disappointed that I could not get up but I’ll try and get up next time. We were lucky to get off with only one casualty.
I am quartered in a hut here and I got to work yesterday and made a bed. It is a dandy affair and is just like a spring mattress. There are 6 of us in this hut together, a double bed in two corners and a single in the other two. We made a table and bench as well so we are pretty comfy. We will only be here for a few days though, but we are enjoying ourselves while we are here. The roof is thatched with straw and is quite waterproof.
It is too bad about Al Ryan but I guess he was pretty sick though. I was glad to know you got rid of Mrs. Orr. She should have more decency than to impose herself on people like that way.
I hope Orville doesn’t have any more trouble with that fellow. It has caused him enough worry now. I don’t see how they can hold him libel for the costs.
I got Mae’s letter and also the parcel from Rose. I was glad Mae succeeded in getting her choir into Massy Hall. But I guess she …. and she will be very glad when the strain is over. Is she taking a playground for the summer?
Well I must ring off and get to bed. Hope everyone is well.
Yours lovingly,
Harold
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
3 April 1916 Somewhere in Flanders
Mr. John Skilling
Teeswater, Ont.
Canada
Dear Father:
Re: My assignment money that you were inquiring about:
I have left an assignment of $15.00 a month dating from April 1915 (inclusive) to O.R.Skilling, Toronto to be used by him as he sees fit and to be kept for me when I return or in the event of my not returning, to be given to Mother. $15.00 has been taken from the amount to buy Christmas presents. The remainder is still with Orville I believe.
The remainder of my pay which amounts to $18.00 for a 30 day month (at the rate of $1.10 a day) is accumulating at the Canadian Pay Office in London, Eng. with the exception of the 30 Francs a month that I draw out here and also an amount equal to my assignment ($15.00) which is always kept to my credit at the Pay Office. All other payments or stoppage etc. are duly recorded in my pay book which will be returned to you, in case anything happens to me.
I do not think my insurance would be affected by any transfer I might negotiate. The “City of Toronto” pays the premiums on the policy which is $1000.00 payable, in case of my death while on active service, to Mother. I have no written agreement or paper of any sort to show. I signed the agreement etc. which is something similar to the attestation papers signed by a new recruit.
There is nothing else that I know of that need to be put in a statement of this kind. All personal property of dead soldiers are always returned to the next of kin by the military authorities.
Your loving son,
Harold R. Skilling
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