… Now Mum I want you to go for a holiday to Melbourne or anywhere after harvest. Now you can take as much of that money as you like the more the better and have a good time. Now Mum when you write don’t say that you didn’t have a spell that’s no good mum I mean it and you must go. If you don’t I will be annoyed …
Percy wrote of his reservations, aware that his departure for France was imminent:
Friday 16/11/16
My Dear Mum & Dad
… Charlie is over here now, he landed this week, he is not here, we are going to see him tomorrow, he’s about sixteen miles from here. Young Cocking and Clauss were over last night, they look real well. Cocking has put ten months in the firing line he got wounded in France, and got sent to Belfast, he had a good time he was then sent to Fairfield a hospital near London and now he is in Rollestone about three miles from us, he has to go away tomorrow. Clauss is quite deaf he expects to go back, but I do not think he will. We are going away on Tuesday, all our kit bags have gone away, I am sorry when we go, it will take some time to shift the Division. We had four days leave, we went to London, and we had a good time, it was very foggy while we were there, It will be xmas soon, we will have a different time to last year. Well Mum it’s a good life soldiering, have a few reserves some times. I think I have told you all the news so I will close.
From Your Loving Son
Percy
Within a few days Percy had been reunited with Charlie. Percy then wrote to Jim describing his brother’s visit and, in contrast to his letter to his parents, he tells Jim that he hopes to be in France soon to break the monotony of life at Larkhill.
19 Nov
Dear Jim
Well Jim, just a few lines to let you know, we are still alive, well Jim we are having snow for the first time, it has been going a day and a night. The place just looks like what you see it in the pictures, there are snow fights every where, it hardly safe to move out side. Well Jim Charlie is over here, we went down to see him yesterday, he looks real well on it, he is a good way from here. There are a good few chaps from up that way with him, they will not be long before they are with the 38. We expect to go away soon, all the letters have to be censored, so I cannot tell you much about us. I am not sorry we are going away, it is monotonous here. Well Jim we had four days leave, we went to London it was very foggy while we were there, but we had a good time. We had a letter from Geordie he was saying that it was hot over there, he was well when he wrote young Charlie Wales is wounded, he went there with Charlie Fyffe. Joe Cocking and Clauss were here the other night. Cocking has had a long run in the trenches, he put ten months there. Hugh Martin is in the 38 now, he was in the second of the 38 and they were transferred to us, to make strength. Well Jim, you were asking about the girls, but I do not know anything about them, to shy to speak to them. You had some time at Jones by your letter, but Jim was it really Eva; hows the girl in Bendigo. I reckon you ought to get married, it near time you made a move Jim, because she cannot wait to soon. How’s Nelly and Bill getting on I hear they are doing well. You have had some rain Jim, it ought to do a lot of good. Well Jim I think I have told you all the news so I will close
From Your Loving Brother
Percy
Give all the girls my love Jim
… It will take some time to shift the Division across, they are always saying when is the 3rd Division going to declare war, you can bet it will give them a surprise when it gets to France, for most of the men are sick of here. Dave Glass is in this Division. Hugh Martin is in the 38 now, he came over in the 2nd reinforce 38 and they were transferred to make up strength …
Joe Cocking was 23 years old when he enlisted in January 1915. He originated from Castlemaine but worked at Pyramid Hill as a bootmaker. A member of the 21st Battalion, he was wounded on 26 August 1916 and, as Percy described, Joe was shipped to Belfast and then returned to recuperate at the camps near Salisbury. He rejoined his unit on 12 May 1917 and returned to Australia in August 1919.7
Charlie wrote:
Hurdcott Camp
Nov, 19th 1916
Dear Father, Mother & Brothers,
I am writing a few lines to let you know that I have shifted from Bovington Camp, Wool, to Hurdcott Camp Salisbury Plains we arrived here on Friday and I met Al and Percy on Saturday and I think they will be over today. I am 15 miles from where they are. I wrote about half a dozen letters and sent nearly as many wires before we could arrange to meet the O.C. of my company would not let me off so that made it worse and then we were shifting, I wrote to them as soon as we got to Wool but they were away on their 4 days leave, I arrived here about a week to late or they could have come to Bovington Camp anyhow I saw them yesterday they both look real well and are getting on alright I gave them 3 sovereigns and sent one with them for Geordie. I also saw Hughie Martin Bill Street Les Townsend Albert Brooks Hughie Martin is in the 38th now and they are going to France very soon and will train there for a while and then go into action. I got a letter from Ida Payne she gave me a great invitation to go up there when I get my 4 days leave which I think will be at the end of this week so I intend to go there we will have to go to London and then to Leicester. Al and Percy were up and saw them all, it has been very cold here this last few days it has been snowing here this last day or so, yesterday was the first snow that Al and Percy saw since they have been here. They have been issued with a new kind of boots and a new hat and all new underclothing. I wrote to Geordie when I came here first and expect an answer this week Al got a letter from him last week he is getting on alright, I am sending him a tin of cake and cigarettes etc. This is the third letter I have written to you since I have been in England, I saw Horris Wingfield yesterday he left about a week after me he is in the 6/60 Batt. Wilsie Townsend and Jack Sinclair and Jim Baker of the 5/60 are still at Bovington Camp and I think they will be going to the front very shortly. Everything here is very dear. Al says it is the same in London. When Albert comes over tell him to bring at least ₤10 and get a belt for his arm like mine and one for his waist, and tell him to be very careful of his money and things on the boat. When I was coming over a lot of fellows lost their money belts and things through carelessness. Well I hope you are all well as I am and hope you get all my letters. I will write again after I get my leave. I suppose you got my cable alright. Well I will say goodbye for the present
I am your loving son & brother
Charlie
AT SEA, NOVEMBER
As George and the latest contingent of Australian reinforcements were safely disembarking on the shores of England, Albert’s transport was just a few weeks behind. His journey was not as calm, comfortable or uneventful as that which Charlie had enjoyed:
At Sea
Nov 9th – 16
Dear Mum, Dad and Jim,
Just a few lines today before we call at port. All the letters have to be in by tonight, so we must be getting near land. It is 3 weeks tomorrow since we sailed. All the men are writing letters. We cant buy envelopes on board, and the Y.M.C.A. man only gives us a few. Well, we have had a good trip so far, and there is a little more fun now. There has been two real good fights this week. They fought till they dropped. We had a great concert here on Friday night. The sports were held yesterday and Tuesday. I was on guard from 8 am on Tuesday till 8am on Wednesday, and so I had to pull out of the sports, as I was too tired after being up all night. The potato race was not run till Wednesday. I got wet through when I was on guard, so did not fancy running in the sports. Our company won the tug-of-war. There was great excitement over it. The tucker on board is not too good (censored). We had sausages for breakfast this morning and they were lovely. I only ate five. But some days we get stew twice a day, and it is rubbish. We get hardly any jam or butter now. Plenty of bread but nothing to put on it. Everything at the canteen is terrible dear. I never buy anything there, as it’s a waste of money. It is pay day. We get a shilling a day on board and the other shilling when we get off the boat. We get paid every 10 days. I
will draw about ₤2.15 when we get over and I have ₤3 put by in reserve, so I have plenty of money. Besides there is the shilling a day we get on board. Well Mum I will write when we get to port …
Albert took the opportunity to write a lengthy letter frankly describing his experiences of life on board. He planned to beat the censor by posting his letter by civilian mail at Durban:
Letter No 4
Port Lincoln
At Sea
Friday 10th 16
Dear Mother, Father and Jim,
Just a few lines to tell you a little I couldn’t tell you in my other letters. We are supposed to call in at Durban tomorrow or Sunday, and if I get ashore I will post it there, so it wont have to be censored. Well to start with, we are the advance guard, yet they stuck us in the worst part of the ship, we are in the 3rd deck, and it is a buggar of a place. There is very little fresh air down here, and the first few days on board it smelt awful, and was enough to make anybody sick. The tucker at first wasn’t fit for pigs, but it is a lot better now, though some days it is not good at all. We get the stew twice a day sometimes, and it is rubbish. We hardly ever eat it. There are rumours about that we are going to be put off at Durban, but I don’t think there is any truth in it. There are 1200 men on board and a lot of them are kids. When we called at Fremantle, we put off 3 cases. One man fell down a ladder and broke his legs, so he was put off. Also two others that had diptheria. There are a few cases of measles on board now. We have got some rotters of men in our company and they are as dirty as pigs. We also have two officers in our company. The C.O. was terrible cut up that day we sailed from the pier. A lot of the men took it bad. They were all right till the band played “Auld Lang Syne”, then they cut up a treat. A few of the men out of our company are wanting to go back. I think there will be a few desert at Durban, and a good job if they do, as they are only a lot of wasters. I don’t know what they will be like when they get to the front. When we were going from North Melb to the boat, one fellow jumped out of the train, and I believe he was killed. Another chap tried to jump overboard when we were on the boat a few days. He threw his boots over, and was just going to jump over the rails when two chaps caught him. We haven’t got room on the boat to turn round hardly. We cant get notepaper or envelopes on board, and everything at the canteen is dear as hell except cigarettes and tobacco. It doesn’t pay to smoke on board as there are too many hummers [cadgers]. We have just had tea, and have got orders about going ashore, so we must be getting off right enough. The men are as excited as blazes over it. I will finish this letter when I get ashore. There is great fun after “lights out”. The men get yelling out like sheep, and you would think they were a big mob to hear them. After we pass Cape Town the boat will be in darkness and we will have to use our life belts as pillows. I don’t know if we will be calling at Cape Town but I think we will be. We are not allowed to say much in our other letters, so if I have anything special to say, I will write it in the envelope, so you always want to be careful opening them. Some say we will not be going to England, but I think we will be. It will be a long trip yet, as this boat only does 13 knots an hour. There is a terrible lot of gambling on board. I will number all my letters from this out, this is No 4, you will know then if you are getting all my letters. If you get my photos taken off don’t forget to give them to those I told you too. You can pay for them out of my allotment. I hope you are getting all my money alright. I am going to make a will on my paybook, you can make one that way; if I go out you will have no trouble to get my money then. Well Mum I am enjoying this life a treat, and don’t mind the tucker a treat, sometimes it is real good and other times it is rotten, but I don’t mind it at all. I am getting as fat as mud. I have got an enormous appetite, and am nearly always last at the table. There is a young Ross on the boat. He knows Allan well, he used to be a porter at Pyramid. I met him in the train that day I was going down to Bendigo to enlist. I had a yarn with him today. He is a bonza chap. I have got some decent mates on board. There is another porter on our table. He knows Uncle Jim Mahoney and Uncle Tom. Well Mum I will say goodbye for the present. Sunday morning – well we have had very rough weather yesterday, the roughest we ever had, a lot of the men got sick again, but I was all right. We slackened down to 2 knots an hour at yesterday dinnertime, and have been like that till this morning. We can see the land now, we are going at full speed now. I think we will be able to get in today. We could not get in yesterday as it was too rough –
Monday morning. Well Mum we arrived into Durban pier Sunday at about 12 noon. We were let off at 1 o’clock for a march, but we only went a few miles. We had to march in about 6 inches of sand. We came back to the boat at about 4.30, but were not let off. We are going to get off at 1 oclock this afternoon. There are dozens of niggers around the boat, selling fruit. It is very cheap here, and they are doing a great biz. It is a change to get a bit of fruit. The harbour here is very pretty, and there are a lot of boats in at present. There is a range of hills about 600 feet high running for miles around Durban. It is covered with scrub and flowers and looks very pretty. We had to march along at the foot of these hills and the niggers have poultry farms against the rocks. The niggers are busy coaling the boat now. I think we will be leaving here Tuesday morning. We might be calling at Cape Town. Well Mother I will write a town [letter] when I get in the town. We are allowed out till 10.30 tonight, this is all this time, so I will say goodbye, hoping all are well as I am at present.
I remain
Your Loving Son
Albert
Monday 13/11/16
Dear Mum,
Just a line to let you know I am well. We got leave off the boat at 1 oclock and have to be back at 10.30. I am having a look round Durban. It is a very pretty place. There are a mob of soldiers about. There is two transports in besides ours, also a hospital ship with 300 men going home. I had a great ride in the ricksha a while ago, the niggers can travel some
Goodbye
Albert
At Sea
Thursday Nov 16th 1916
Dear Mother, Jim and Dad,
Just a few lines to let you know I am on the ocean again. We left Durban at noon on Tuesday the 14th and are making towards Cape Town now, we expect to get there tonight or tomorrow. I think we will be getting off there, so I will be able to post it without it being censored. We had a good time at Durban, but not half long enough. I sent a few cards from there. I did not have time to get much, but outside it is lovely. We could ride free on the trams or trains, and we had free meals at the Y M C A. My mate and I went into a hotel for dinner, and the niggers were waiting on the tables. I had a feed of soup, then some rump steak, they are awful slow, but it was a flash place, all the same. We ordered pudding, but got tired of waiting, so we walked out and had a free dinner. Half of our fellows did not pay for their meals there. I had 3 lunches at the Y M C A. I had tomato sandwiches and it was free. The place was crowded. I forgot to say that we were anchored across the bay from the town, so all off the boat, went across to the town side on a barge. We were all lined up then and marched to the Town Hall. It is about 2 miles from the pier. We were then dismissed and it was about 2.30. We had to wait about 2 hours for the barge to take us across. I got a bit of a surprise in Durban, I thought we would be able to get fruit cheap there, but they were awful dear, grapes 1/-6 lb apples 3s each oranges 1 d each. At the pier the fruit was fairly cheap, but the people told us not to buy fruit off the niggers as they were “rooking” us. The Durban people are very nice, and the girls are respectable. I never saw a soldier with a girl. The last lot of soldiers that were there played up top-ropes, and at first the people would hardly look at us. They said that the name of Australia fairly stunk in their nostrils. There was no beer sold to soldiers and some of them were wild about it too. A few of them managed to get some and stopped all night in town. The M.P.’s went to get them next morning, and brought 3 of them back. They were half drunk, and just as they got on the boat, they jumped overboard. The boat was a
nchored in the bay, and they bought them over on a motor boat. The three men swam towards the motor boat, but the boat moved away from them. Then they waited till the three of them got exhausted and then picked them up. The guard had a hell of a job to lock them up. They are being tried today for desertion. Two of our company deserted at Durban, besides men from other companies. We left Durban at 12 noon on Tuesday and could see land all the way till this morning. There are also two boats near us now. One is a very big one and going to Cape Town. I think it is a troopship. There were 5000 Australian troops at Durban on Monday, also, a lot of Tommies and South African Inf. There were Tommies out of 29 different regiments. I was talking to some of the Essex Regiment. The Tommies are going to India and German East Africa. They are very quiet chaps, different to the Australians. It is rumoured that we will be at Cape Town for three days, I think we will be getting off there. Well I will finish this in time to post it at Cape Town if we get there. They got a newspaper called the “Port Lincoln Lyre” printed in Durban, it is all lies but it is a fit funny. I am sending you one. They gave us one each. Don’t lose it ______________
Friday
ANZAC Sons Page 25
