271 Canadian Siege Battery
Siege Artillery C.E.F.
Evershott Camp, Surrey
October 26, 1916
Dear Marjorie,
I received your letter today so will answer it at once as I have plenty of time on my hands, it will be a good two weeks before this is received. We have moved since I wrote last. We have been in this camp about 2 weeks having come over from Witley. The work is not as hard as we thought it would be. This is a siege training camp but there are no modern guns here, only antiquated ones such as five and four inch howitzers used at Mons and Ypres. We follow the training though as carried out on the 6 inch guns of modern type. We marched down to Aldershot yesterday five miles distant for a few hours training on the new 6 inch guns there. They are ripping guns, German and English combined, they are the very latest model of that size. We would be satisfied if we had them, but I expect that we will get 9.2 inch guns, something larger. Our guns will be the last thing we get before going across. We are quartered in huts or shacks here also to keep dry. We get plenty of food so there is no danger of starving. Our huts are lighted with electricity and we have one small coal stove but our supply of coal is limited, however we have fine heavy army blankets to roll up in. The camp is 4 -5 miles from a town of any size consequently we do not roam around much. I haven't been out of camp for about a week now but am going to London on leave Saturday for about 6 days. At Witley camp our leave was cancelled on the day we were setting out as we were expecting to move but half the battery has been away all week they will return tonight though. There should be many interesting places to see so I expect to be able to put in the week OK, that is if the cash holds out. We have had quite a lot of rain here, some nice days lately but the nights are frosty. I suppose the Canadian fall has set in now. Would like to spend a few days hunting over at Little Lake but nothing like that will happen to me for a while yet. You certainly have your winter's work cut out for you, am glad you are getting along so well with your classes Marjorie. I suppose you will have a bunch of fine specimens of humanity by spring. We start in the day by having a � hour of P.T. every morning before breakfast so have a keen appetite. One day in the week is devoted to digging gun emplacements and trenches 7 feet deep or so, so am getting so that I can handle a pick and shovel fairly well. I hope the McGill Battery gets some of those stockings, what do they contain. I suppose Christmas will be here soon. If we are near a town I will do my best to get a real dinner with pudding etc. Some of the English over here have queer conceptions about Canada and Canadian life. One person had the impression it was about the size of London, another told me he had a cousin in Edmonton and seemed surprised that I should not know him, still another asked me if I intended to go back after the war � as if I would settle down here, not much, me for the first boat if possible after we are discharged. I received a letter from Clint today saying he had enlisted and was home on his last leave, expecting to come over soon. Am glad to hear that he has enlisted, he certainly is lucky to be able to come across this fall so soon after enlisting. Things don't seem to be going very good in Roumania. It's hard to say when the war will be over, the only way is to take things as they come and not look forward to the future. All the fellows are fine and well, Ashley H., Doug Abbott, Jack Nutter and the rest. Remember me to Grace and the rest. Write whenever you have time as I also will be waiting to hear from you, always look forward to getting your letters. We expect to move to Horsham in a few weeks as soon as there is room for us.
Your sincere friend as ever Gordon
