LETTERS FROM MEN (IN ENGLAND)

Mr. Ed. Lacey, Camborne, has received the following letter from his nephew, Pte. Faustus Lacey, a former student at the Collegiate Institute here which we feel sure will be read with interest:

Dear Uncle:
Thank you for the letter which came to-day. It is the first Canadian mail I have had for three weeks. I got a letter from my mother to-day and a parcel from Aunt Jolliffe. You will see that we are away from Bramshott now and so I cannot call on Frank Davidson. This is a grand place for a camp. The weather is fine and England is like a garden. Last Sunday while I was on the lease at Folkestone, I saw the Hun birdman make a raid on Dover. We could see the shells bursting around the flying machines and could hear the bombs as they dropped exploding in the city. Many were killed and injured. One English airman chased the Germans thirty miles out to sea. He caught up to one of them and got so close that he killed him with his six shooter and the machine fell into the sea. Both were going about 80 miles an hour and were about a mile in the air at the time. We had to stay up all night that night with loaded rifles but no Huns came around. We have horses now and are learning sword drill. We are having a great time after being shut up with measles for 33 days. The Cobourg World has not come yet but thank you very much for sending it to me and also sending the socks. It is fine the enlisting that is going on all over Canada. We looked for the end to come inside of three months. (It took over 21/2 years to end.)The French are doing fine. VERDUN is certainly the greatest battle of the world. Sir Sam-is over here again raising the deuce. They say he is getting Canadian fish for us, but we have not seen them yet. We have just come off 24 hours guard at Moore Barracks Hospital. There are thousands of sick and wounded Canucks there. I will let you know when the papers and parcel comes.
With love and best wishes to all,
FAUSTUS LACEY,

C. Squad, R.C.D., Res. Canadian Cavalry Depot, Somerset Barracks, Shorncliffe Camp, Kent, England.