Monthly Archives: March 2016

March 31^st 1916.

Dear Mother

Thanks most awfully for your letter this week. The mail was rather late this week, and ours later than most people’s. I suppose they are still not sure of our exact whereabouts in the post office, and we still get letters for fellows who have left a long time ago or been transferred to other regiments etc. I got a nice pile of letters this mail, but I’ve been so fearfully busy this week I really have’nt had much time to answer them; and I’m not quite sure if the mail goes out today or tomorrow; if today I’m afraid I’ll have to leave some for next week.

I am writing this in the early early morning before parade. It’s lovely up here, especially at this time, though we want some rain to freshen things up a bit. How awful the snow seems to have been at home this year, much worse than it’s ever been for years I hear. And Reuters wires yesterday mentioned that awful blizzard, very vaguely “in England”, all communications interrupted, villages isolated, & railways damaged. How awful it must have been. I’m not awfully anxious to hear more news about it, the wires are so sketchy, and I do hope it did’nt affect the south of England too much, and I’m anxiously awaiting more news today.

We had a great wedding here yesterday, my friend Mr Rogers in the regiment was married to a girl he met up here; he only met her a few weeks ago, so has’nt been long about it. I have’nt met her yet, except just after the wedding for ½ a second, but I believe she’s charming; anyhow I suppose old Roger thinks so, so nothing else matters very much.

I had a letter from Dick, he tells me he is at Karachi, & the hospital seems to be a permanency there, but I imagine he is trying to get out of it somehow for some more active work. Yes was’nt it rotten about that exchange, everyone was awfully sick about it round our way, as the man behaved in a rotten way.

I hope they have’nt been having too much of this awful weather in France, but I expect they got their share of it. How awful it must have been, & I do hope old Topher managed to get some leave sometime, it’s quite time he had a bit of a rest. I’ll finish this after parade & breakfast.

Just finished breakfast, the main portion of which was a really nice ham, left over from yesterday’s wedding. Mr Roger & his bride did’nt get any leave, so they just walked away after the wedding breakfast, she in her wedding dress, and walked down to his house; somewhat unsatisfactory somehow.

Leave has’nt been opened yet for the men; I can’t think why, and we are still mobilised. Praps they have another job for us shortly. Meanwhile the back work accumulated during our absence is appalling, & I am at it hard all day, including parades, from 7 till 5 or 6 in the evening, & I hardly ever get away for lunch. It’s all such drudgery, how I hate it all, but it’s simply got to be done. One feels, one knows it does’nt help to finish the war one bit, but what can one do? Sometimes I get absolutely fed up & feel that another hour or two’s work will make practically no difference, so yesterday for instance I chucked it at 4.30 & went & had a round of golf with Dolly Lyell; ripping that was. Must fly off to office now & start again. Enclosed is an account which may interest you. Lots of love & I do hope this awful blizzard is all over now & none of you  are any the worse.

from your loving son

Ted.

Many thanks for cutting re I.A. promotions. I had seen it. But it does’nt affect me yet, I’ve only 11½ years’ service. In any case it’s a very very poor concession.

Image of Rogers’ wedding

http://www.flickr.com/photos/saffron_walden_snapper/3292650342/in/photostream/

Announcement in Times, 18/3

http://www.newspapers.com/newspage/33265129/

The bride’s mother

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_L._Barclay

Article on blizzard

http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=WDT19160330.2.30

March 30.

Karachi

My dear Mother. Many thanks for your letter (March 2^nd). That cable saying I had gone to Bombay arrived frightfully late. I sent it off on Feb 20^th! Fancy Monks turning up, he’s a nice man, & a great friend of mine in Assam, & of course you remember how I went to Northampton to see his sister Evelyn! Jane had written to me & told me he had been in to see them, & had been awfully kind to them. They seem quite comfortable in their shop. Dreda wrote to me too, & it was forwarded in from Alex.

There is tons of fighting now is’nt there, but we don’t get much news. I hope Topher has some leave & is having a good time at home. You do seem to have had tons of snow at home. I wonder if Rosamond will like the farm as much as London, has she tried it before. Many thanks for paying Curry & Paxtons’ bill, I suppose I shall get the eyeglasses sometime.

I am glad all the puppies have good homes now. June is very well, and quite happy, & very popular with everyone. I think you ought to show Susan at a show, I see there are some coming off in England, she might get a prize. I have’nt got the pills yet, or the boots. You never told me before Chubbie’s brother had a puppy, if you did ever get the letter, but I’m sure I’ve got all yours so far. You seem to have had a muddle over Aquascutum! Did you look up the advertisement in the end!

It gets hotter here every day, but we have now turned some big barracks into a hospital & are waiting patients. I have written to the authorities & told them this is not at all what I want, & I am now exactly in a similar position to what I was in before the war, only drawing less pay! Would they kindly transfer me to a sphere of a more active nature. We get lots of tennis in the evenings, but I can’t say I find the place very interesting. I suppose if I go anywhere it will be the Gulf but so far my attempts at a change have come to nil. I am thinking of buying a motor bike! At present I have hired an old push bike.

Last night some of us went to a most rotten entertainment, a one-man show at the club. Such rot & I was so bored & I could’nt come away, as we had some ladies with us. All the time is wrong here. We keep a sort of “standard time” & we get up at 7 & it’s really 6, & dine at 9 & it’s really 8. The writing paper has’nt arrived yet.

You’ll soon be writing direct here I expect, but it’s not worth while cabling as if the letters go to Bombay they come straight no here. Did you tell Evelyn I had gone to Bombay, she says she had a line about the other cable.

Best love to all

yr loving son

Richard

March 23

Karachi.

Dear Mother.

No mail this week, but I daresay a letter will come Saturday. We are getting settled down here more or less, but it’s warming up. I had a long letter from Jane, she seems to be enjoying her new job & is happy. I have sent that gold watch home by a man who is sailing shortly, can’t think why I ever brought it out. Hope it arrives safe.

No more now.

Yr loving son

Richard.

Tell Ben I have a dog-boy, & I have called him Dudley! He quite likes it

A dog-boy was a servant engaged to look after a dog, in this case June.

March 20^th 1916.

Lansdowne

Dear Mother

Thanks most awfully for 2 letters from you, which I got yesterday. The mail turned up 2 days ago as a matter of fact but they had done up all our letters in little packets, & everyone was so busy here that they were chucked on one side, thinking they were papers etc for the men, till somebody opened one & out fell a lot of mail letters! I got 15 altogether, including 5 from Nell. You see it’s a 3 weeks’ supply. I also got the pink papers all safely, thanks awfully for them.

I must tell you about our various receptions. We had a great one at Agra,  all the civil & military population crowded on to the station, & the men were all drawn up on the line & a great speech was made, extolling our exploits & generally laying it on pretty thick. We were there 2 or 3 hours & it was frightfully hot, so we were all quite ready to drive off to the club afterwards where a huge lunch was served. Nice cool drinks & general festivities.

The place was gaily decorated and bands playing an’ all made things very gay all round. You see Agra is the first city we come to in the U.P. so they saw fit to give us the welcome. I must say it was very gratifying & I think a good thing, as it showed the men that at anyrate their efforts & sacrifices were very much appreciated.

We then got into the train again & came on here. At the station where we got out we had another reception, more speech making by the big bugs of Garhwal, and a jolly good firework display in the evening. The people were very enthusiastic and gave us a right royal welcome.

The general gaiety was somewhat marred by one of the men who shot himself during the night. He had been flogged early in the war for sleeping on his post when a sentry, and he evidently could’nt or would’nt face his friends & relations on his return home, so chose to commit suicide.

We marched up to Lansdowne next day & got another reception! All the station turned out, bands, breakfasts & everything en route, & an address on arrival & a big lunch in our mess afterwards. There are quite a lot of people here really, considering, so they made quite a good show.

It’s very sad to think how few of those who started have come back, & I’m afraid there are some big gaps in the officers ranks. Only 6 of us here came back out of about 26 who started; not all killed of course, some have got jobs or gone sick, but the majority will never return I’m afraid. I suppose these things must be, and indeed the name Garhwalis have made has been dearly paid for, so we who are left have a special mission in life to see that their name, & the name & fame they helped to bring Garhwal are never forgotten.

We are all fearfully busy now, as of course everything is in a real good old muddle after 18 months war. How everything is going to be put straight I can’t imagine; I suppose some things will never be really settled, but most things will adjust themselves in time I suppose.

I am living in Lyell’s bungalow, where Ben & I lived in 1914, & everything is brought back very vividly to me in consequence. We did have good times then, & I realise more than ever now what a perfect blessing it was having old Ben out here, and what perfect times those were. I don’t think I ever ½ thanked her enough for all she was and did then.

It’s quite cold up here but very pleasant all the same. We have been divided up into two battalions again but whether they have anything up their sleeve for us to do I don’t quite know. I rather think they have; I can’t imagine they will leave us alone for very long. They may of course, it’s impossible to say.

Your letter was dated Feb 23, so it has been some time coming. I think it will be quite all right to address letters straight here now, as we shall be here for a bit anyhow.

You speak of snow; ugh, how cold it must be. It’s quite different up here, really quite cold after Egypt & our hot journey up from Bombay.

I haven’t heard from Dick at all; I wonder where he’s got to.

I must deal with some more correspondence now; I’m so busy all day I only have time to write in the evenings. I’m very fit & flourishing.

Lots of love to all

from your ever loving son

Ted

March 15- 1916

Dear Mother

Here we are safely back in India again- I sent you a letter from the ship, but we did’nt know then where we were to go to. However shortly after I had posted your letter we got orders to return to Lansdowne; we disembarked on Sunday last & got straight into a train & arrived here today. This is Kohdwara, the end of the railway & from here we have 2 marches to get to Lansdowne-

We have had tremendous receptions everywhere- at Agra the whole civil & military population turned out, bands playing and speech making galore. We did feel fools having so much butter laid on in public. We had a big lunch at the Club and then came on here- We have been three days in the train, & are pretty sick & tired of travelling as you may imagine- We had a tremendous reception here today too, on our return to Garhwal; more speeches, mostly native this time & we’ve just had a tremendous firework display & a very good one too- And now I hear Lansdowne is preparing a tremendous show for us! Awful is’nt it. I must say people are most awfully good and they seem to think we have done wonders. Of course the regiment has made a tremendous name, & one realises it even more now we are back in India. It is gratifying to feel one’s efforts have been so appreciated.

Sorry I can’t go into more detail but I’m so frightfully busy I can’t write much. But I will tell you more next week.

I wonder how long they will keep us in Lansdowne. I fancy they won’t employ us any more just yet. I wish they would, as I feel an awful slacker, while all the others are fighting etc. Really I do, I feel I ought to be doing something, but one simply has to do what you are told. Being adjutant I must stick to the regiment as there is such heaps of work to do after a Campaign like this. I am glad for one thing, & that is that you & all at home need not have any anxiety for me for the present at anyrate; I am grateful for that- otherwise I’d much rather be on some show somewhere-

We get to Lansdowne on the 17^th, so you can address letters there now. Bed time. I’m very fit and well. I’ve had no news for nearly 3 weeks of any of you, owing to the voyage etc. Hope everyone’s all right. I didn’t see Dick in Bombay, we were only there 4 hours. Lots of love to all

Yr loving son

Ted

Karachi

March 9.

Dear Mother

Arrived here yesterday. Hot as blazes. Very many thanks for your letter & 2 of Ben’s at Cox in Bombay. I got them after I posted those I sent when we arrived. I expect your next lot went to Suez after my cable. But I had arranged an exchange & was stopping on, when the blighter I had changed with cried off. I believe a mail goes tonight, more next week. Write me c/o Cox. Karachi

Best love to all

yr loving son

Richard.

All papers welcome.