Hudddersfield War Hospital
Huddersfield

May 8, 1917

My Dear Sister Vera

Just a few lines to let you know how I am getting along.  Well Vera I am getting along pretty good my feet are better, but I have pains in my left side the cause of that is that the left is full of cold or flem but my right lung is alright.  I have been in bed now for a month and there is no sign of me getting up yet.  I   am sure getting  good rest now but I have done my bit in France out on working party until all hours of the night and now and then Fritz would firing on us but he never got one of us.

I shall never forget the morning we went to have a talk to old Fritz you all of seen our guns the way they work our artillery is wonderful there is no use talking, at half past five Monday April the 9th 1917 that the morning everything opened up, they blow up a mine that signal to the artillery that is all you can hear and see is our shells bursting in front of us about 100 yards of the front of Vimy we went over every inch of soil has been turn over and walked about a mile before I got hit on nothing but the land that Fritz held before half past 5 o’clock.  The 4 and 5 brigade went over before the 6 brigade went over, that is the brigade we are in the 6th brigade, and at 8 o’clock the 6 brigade went over all I remember seen nothing but shell holes and now and then there would be a dead Germans laying, killed by our over head shrapinal, of course he was putting some over but he did not know where they going.

We had two tanks following us up.  Well we got to our jumping off trench about 2 miles after crossing no mans land, and was walking up this and stop for a few minutes, and I just happened to look over the trench, and I could see two or three Germans walking around about  on top and  just thinking of firing on them, when I could hear machine gun bullets flying around me and  one of them hit me, I quit thinking of firing at Fritz.  I fell down and a man came up and dressed it for me he cut all the cloths of the left part of my shirt and he left me laying.  Well I got to and got on my hands and knees and crawled down the trench I came to a place where wounded officer was laying and so I went and lay along side  him.  Fritz started to throw the shell pretty close so I got out of there, this officer was dead when I got up to go away.  And got where a machine post was they held me down in one of Fritz dugout and they left me laying there from 10 o’clock Monday morning until 4 o’clock Tuesday afternoon and they had four Germans to pack me out it did not matter where you looked, you could see a Fritz we sure stole a lot of prisoners.

Well I got to Bourlone on Thursday morning.  There were I stay in a hospital for 12 days and then they sent me to England.  They sure feed you good in Bourlone for dinner I got chicken and what ever you want you can have and it is very good here too the nurses are very good to you.

I just got a letter from Allan this morning I sure was glad to hear from him he said that he’s not feeling very well, it is enough to make any man feel sick going over the top you stay over for three or four days and live on nothing but corn beef an biscuits and water and no sleep and the smell of ground and awful sight is enough to make any man sick I should send you the letter but I think to much of it and I guess you are getting letters from him.  Dear old Al I think a lot of him we sure have seen some awful days and nights together we were always glad to get six days rest out of the trenches.  I think I have wrote enough now so I will close with the best love

Ralph

706559
R.F. Greenard
Huddersfield War Hospital
Yorkshire

It is a long time since I got a letter from [?] and Frank C[?] getting along.  Tell them that I am along fine and hope to be with you all the read the letter of [?].  I hope you are still going to Sunday School Vera, and all.