Bramshott Camp, Hants, Eng.,
March 14, 1917

Dear Mother,

Just a line hoping this finds you all well and getting along fine. I sent you a card Sunday instead of a letter, so you'll be looking for a letter by this time. I'm looking forward to getting yours, but we got no Canadian mail this week. I had a letter from aunt Jessie and some eats. She wrote that she hadn't been very well, but the others are getting on all right. She said Freddie was to enlist on the 6th, but I haven't heard from Sheffield for a week or so. Well, mother, we got out of quarantine on the 6th, and got paid up in full. I think we had our share of it, as we were in from the last of December till March 1st. So this last week we've been exploring and making up for lost time. But there isn't much to see around here, although there is some pretty places, and we've three villages within half an hours walk out of camp. I don't often go down, as we have only from six till nine in the evening, and sometimes we don't get that, as we get lots of guards and pickets to do. It's not tin soldiering we get over in England, as they are a lot stricter in every way. But I guess they have to be, as it's nearer to active service conditions. But I get along all right, except for the leave; they keep putting it off, but I'm satisfied so long as we get off before we go. As the days are getting longer, I don't think they'll get us away for awhile yet, as we had practically not the right training in Canada. Everything is different over here. We learnt musketry with the Ross in Canada, but we get the Lee Enfield here, and it's the same with everything else. We took a gas course last week, and it's some smell, and if you've any close friends they won't stick to you long, I'll bet. We had the helmets and they put you in a gas chamber for 5 minutes to get used to it, but I don't want anything more of it than I can help.

Well mother, you'll have read of the shortage over here of potatoes and flour. It must be bad in the cities, but we don't get any less around here. We get all the food we want, and live good to what we did in Canada. The bread we get is pretty well mixed but it is all right, so don't get the idea that we don't get enough. Of course, there's exceptions. Sometimes that can't be helped. The weather we get here is a corker; it rains about every other day, and we get all the mud we don't want. We get our boots shined up every morning, and they get lots of looking at by the O.C.. But the shine don't last 5 minutes when we move off. Of course we get some nice days once in awhile. I guess you'll be getting some warmer weather when this reaches you, and Joe will be getting ready for seeding again. I'd like to be home to help him, as he'll be pretty busy. Don't forget to tell him to write about how things are going on. I like to get a letter more than anything else. Well, I'll have to close now, with love to you all from your loving son,

Frank.