Seaforth Sussex
May 16th 1917

Dear Marion

I received your letter also one form Dorothy and Pearlie. I had quite a time reading Dorothys letter but I managed it at last I was very glad to hear from you all I bet that you all are such howling swells with your new sweaters that you would not speak to a poor soldier but would turn up your nose at me but never mind I will write to you just the same. You will have seen by Flossies letter that I am not going to France for a little while I do not know how long as we have got the mumps in the hut when your three get the mumps you get put in a nice warm comfortable bed and have all kinds of good things. But when we get them they take the one who has them away to the Hospital and put the rest of us away by ourselves and no one comes near us and we have to march with heavy packs on and drill just the same and can not get out at nights they took us out this morning with our packs on in the heavy rain and marched us over the hills among the wet grass and brought us back into a hut without t a fire. I think I shall have the mumps in the morning and go to a nice warm Hospital and have a nice nurse to kiss me every morning when I wake up. I suppose it will not be long until the Summer Holidays are here and you all will be swimming in the creek and going on picnics and picking black cherries and making pies and such like foolish things while I will be chasing Germans and Germans will be chasing me I do not know which however have the best time you can I would like to come creeping down the creek some summer day and give you a scare. I had a great old time when I was away on leave I was travelling nearly all the time There is a place for soldiers to eat free in all the large stations over here we can go in and have a little bun or pie and sandwhiches and coffee and sometimes when we have not time to get out the ladies bring it along the platform on a little cart I love all the ladies now they are so good (I had to quit this letter and go upon a route march about 8 miles with all our heavy equipment on and we were tired when we got back then I had to start in and clean all my things it took me over two hours and as we have to do it all in our own time it does not leave us much time to ourselves ive get up at half past five and keep going until supper time 5 oclock then by the time we clean up it is half pass seven and lights are out by quarter to ten Tell your mother that I wrote to Mrs Waterhouse to get Bobbies number and Mr Waterhouse wrote back giving me the number but he did not invite me to call upon them or I would have done so when I was in London as I had a whole day to spare however I spent a very nice day all by myself I went to the House of Parlament and Westminster Abbey and saw all the sights I went to the British Museum but it had been closed for 15 months so I had to come away again I met an old woman on the street and she told me I better cover up my knees and when I in Durham in some places the kids had never seen a kilt before and they were not sure wether I was a woman or not. I wonder if you got the photo I sent to you let me know if you did. The worst of being in Quarentine is that we will not get any pay until we get out and we have to send the guard who is at the door to get us any thing we want I sent a little parcel for you three and I had to leave it at the post office on Sunday night to be registered and I was to go back on the Monday and fix it up but we were left in on the Monday but I shall try and get someone to go down Saturday and do I was going to get MacIntyre to go but his hut is in Quarantine to and Ernest Pierce who used to live beside me in Lynn Valley comes over I shall send him. I have not received any mail this week & I do know wether there is any mail here and we can not get it owing to being shut up or if the boat has sunk or you all have missed the mail or you have not written. I wrote to your mother on the 14th and to Flossie on the 15th and one to you last week I do not expect you to get them all or I do nor expect to get all all yours but I do not want to miss one if I can help it. I want your mother to put down an address. The Canadian Pay and Record office Westminster House 4 Millbank London S.W as they have all the records of where all the Canadians are and if I happen to fall through a knot hole and get lost you can write to them and they will tell you if I turn up and let me know if you have done so. I can not say much about this place as I have only been once in it but the country all around is white chalk under the grass things are just beginning to bloom there is many hills around here covered with green grass with sheep grazing all about and when we get out a little way we can see the sea we can walk there in 15 minutes there are high white cliffs and they are as straight as if someone had cut them straight down with a knife. The apple blossoms are in full bloom and the hawthorne is coming out upon the hedges and the country looks lovely but I can see where it will look even nicer in a short time but with it all I would not change North Vancouver for the whole of England well Marion very soon I will be in bed dreaming of ham and eggs and beef steak and pie and other nice things because we are tired at nights here we work pretty hard I have had two letters from Bobbie and he has a better job then ever and is quite out of danger so you do not need to worry about him I have not had a letter from Miss [?] yet or George Howie but maybe another day or two will bring something I wrote to your Auntie Alice to day I hope she gets it. The houses do look funny here all built of stone and everything looks so heavy and clumsy the great big keys in the doors as if the doors were intended to keep out an army of soldiers well Marion I must close now I have just heard a report that some Canadian mail has gone down I hope that it is not true Well kiss Dorothy and Pearlie and Flossie for me and tell Daddie to be good to his cello and not make it squeak and tell your Mother to bake lots of pie and send the smell in a letter and look after Rags and Smokey I wish I had that dollars worth of Mac Donalds tobacco that is coming I have not had a good smoke since I have been here

Andy

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