Bramshott, Eng.
March 11/17
Dear Mither.
Sunday again, but it is not much like Sunday to me for I am on guard over the Bally klinks & I am sore as the duce at the army in general so don't be surprised if my letter is a little blue. The first stunt they pulled was sending us here without enough men so that I had to do an extra two hours duty. Then they sent us our dinner at 2 oclock. We may get our suppers sometime tomorrow if we are lucky. These boneheaded officers they possess in the British Army well if we pulled the same stunts I don't know what would happen us. I know they wouldn't work for the G.T.P. for very long. Not much wonder though when you consider the way in which officers are chosen. We have a returned man here who is wearing the M.C. & he has to take dirt from the likes of them. Oh! well I hope it is not for much longer It is almost a year now since I joined but I don't think we will see another year of the army. They don't seem to want us over in France for they never pick any for draft now days .
Oh say I saw Jim Smythe yesterday I was down town "to Haselmere" & met him on the street. I recognized him at once though he hardly knew me. We put in the afternoon together & he gave me numerous hints as to how to act in the trenches. He is looking well & back to drill again. He has no effects from the wounds & tells me he was not very bad at all.
He expects to go back to France again soon but is in no great rush as all other returned men are. I don't blame them. They have done their bit already.
We are in J G Rattrays Brigade here in camp. I expect he will be inspecting us one of these days, but I don't expect he will know me. Mr. Smeeton's Battn is in camp here too. I am going over some day if they ever give us a chance. They are absolutely crazy with drill over here now. Of course the guy that orders it does not have to do it. We work from 7-45 A.M. to 5 P.M. with 45 minutes at noon.
Gee this guard job is a tedious one but if it were not Sunday it would be far better than the parade. There are nine of us here besides one Sgt & l corp. to keep guard over 1 prisoner. Still we have to go out three at a time & walk up & down for 2 hrs at a stretch just the same.
Do you wonder we want to get to France where they say they do away with red tape.
Oh! say when you are reading the papers over there & come across any names in the casualty lists whose numbers begin with 910 or 911, make a note of it & send me the name & no. will you for we have no way else of hearing anything of the fellows of our company who are over there. I got your letter of Feb. 8th a couple of days ago but it is the only one I have had from Canada since we moved.
I don't know what has happened to the Canadian mails. They don't come here a bit regularly. Sometimes three weeks sometimes a month.
Well Mither I guess Id better quit this thing. Now there is nothing wrong with me at all except as I said before I am sore as the deuce at everything in General & the army in particular.
Love to all
Rae
I was only fooling about that locket picture. Rae
