Somewhere in France
Pte W R Gullen
No 772521
Feb 11th 1917
Dear Agnes & Fred

We marched here from the line this morning will be in this town for a few days training of some kind. I am about in have a large boil on my neck havent had any sleep while in this time between carrrieing sixty Ib things & boil my shoulders very lame it seems to take along time coming to a head, we came very fast my cloths are sticking to me & cold no need for it all. I though the one parcel of Mary's came from you it was mailed on the same day as yours did not know my last winter mits our mail may take longer to come now, but not over a day or so I received Freds letter of 7th Jan while in was very glad to get one in, we have never been over the top that is the time that gets you no use saying may come out if your nuts enough to go in, this thing is animal like & terrable exspensive but the most have got the bug will be a lesson for all time, you can live & die of old age in the ground if you do not go over, only one in a thousand make any (hits?) you mite say, which cost five dollars each Mary & I had longe talks over this while I was training she is very patriotic, but these people are all for themselves & money & I never did see them do much without the money & money covered these mistakes if there money got low they could not do anything the old saying big fish will eat little fish & that is where they got all the money. they have not did the people any good these ages you can see in the bigest city what they have done, Mary is to much affraid of public opinion if I had gone over to live with the boys, would have been more like it as H Davis did I saw Willie Rawzel to day while we were leaving the line he is in the second could not talk to him he said Geo is in England wounded I tried to find the fellow that used to work for Clare but didnt we have not had our dinner yet will get some tea sometime I have got a few cakes at the store did not spend any of the Francs before going in, excuse this letter my arms are very lame write often

Yours Roy