I sent you a cable about me getting my commission address 2nd Lieut A.S. Marlow
D Company 38th Batt 10th Inf Brigade AIF Abroad
Lieutenant Robert Gollan had written to the Marlows after Albert had been killed. Robert had sailed on the Runic with Allan and Percy and was a member of D Company. He had been wounded in the head on 7 June 1917 and his hearing had been affected. He was deemed fit to return to the 38th only to be shot at Passchendaele in the back and left leg. On 6 May 1918 he was back with the unit when he sustained his third head wound. He recovered to be wounded once more on 24 August 1918 as the Australians pushed the German troops from the villages on the Somme at Bray and Curlu. His medical records state that he was hit by a piece of aeroplane debris which pierced his right leg. Robert Gollan returned to Australia in July 1919. He never fully recovered his hearing.16
Allan wrote to Jim:
Belgium
24-11-17
Dear Jim,
… Well Jim we are out of trenches at present but we go up everyday on fatigue work. I was up there yesterday things were fairly quiet. We will be holding the line in a few days. I received your welcome letters last week. I got 35 last mail some answering today ah what. Well Jim poor old Geordie has died of wounds alright oh it is terrible. For godsake Jim don’t let poor old mum worry to much. Cheer her up as best you can. Well Jim I am a 2nd Lieutenant now I was promoted on the 3rd 11-17. That is not to bad for me is it. I hope to get another star within about 3 months. I cannot alter my allotment for a while yet but will let you know as soon as I do so. Well Jim the cold weather is setting in again and I am afraid it will be a pretty [severe] winter. I hope it wont be like the one we had last year. I suppose you will soon be on the old harvester now. I suppose you don’t want a bag sewer. I do hope you have a good harvest. Tell mum I received her lovely parcel. I also wrote M.G and your Eva. Things are not bad down in the vally where the blue birds sings. I don’t write to the girl in Δ [Pyramid Hill]. No pour fini. Well Jim old man I think the war will [end] this year, next year, sometime never. Honestly I don’t think it will end for another couple of years. I do hope they get conscription in. I would love to see some conscripts looking over the top. Well Jim I think I have told you all the news so will close with best love.
I remain
Your Loving Brother
Allan
Never publish any of my letters
Allan’s earlier optimism concerning an end to the war had been dampened as he implored Jim to do his best to ease their mother’s sorrow and reminded his brother once again that he should not publish any of his letters in the local newspaper. Percy wrote home on the same day. It is clear that they had yet to hear that Bill Street had died of his wounds.
In the field
Nov 24
My Dear Mother Father & Jim
Just a few lines to let you know we are all well. I received your ever welcome parcel it came while I was in the trenches and they kept it till we came out. The cake was lovely and the other things were very useful and I thank you very much for it I must write and thank Mollie Gamble for the tin. Well Mum, you would have heard the terrible sad news of poor Geordie it was such a sad thing for us all, especially for you I feel so sorry. I was at a Lewis Gun School went [when] the sad news came, and I wrote to you then. Charlie wrote when we got no word from him. We are writing now to find out where he is buried. Well Dear Mother we have just come out for eight days, but we are doing fatigues up the line, I am lucky being number one on the Lewis Gun, I have to stop home and clean the gun, it does me I will do my best to make it flash, I have done my share of fatigues. We have had a fairly quiet [time] in the trenches, sometimes it was a bit warm, the trenches were a bit muddy and wet, they are not very old trenches, it is ground that has not long been taken from Fritz so there is not many dugouts so we did not get too much sleep, the nights are terrible long, nearly 14 hours, especially when you have to sit up. You will be surprised to hear that Allan has a star he got it a week or two ago, he was lucky. We are in huts, they are very warm, it is too cold for tents now. I don’t think it will be as cold this winter as last. Last year at this time we had snow it has been very good up to yet. We have a canteen here in one of the huts and there is tables in it, so I am making use of them. I have received a lot of letters from you and Jim lately a lot came while I was at the school. I had twelve days at a Lewis Gun school, it was a good stunt. I came back in time to catch them going in the trenches. You have been having a lot of wet weather over there, it would make it bad for ploughing. Well Mum, you was asking about Les Townsend, he is in England on leave now, he was not badly wounded. We have not heard from Bill Street or Albert Brooks, Spuddy Kerr lost his leg, it was stiff luck for him. Well Mum, I will close now hoping all are well, and sharing with you the loss of our dear brother.
I remain
Your Loving Son
Percy
As Christmas approached each son sent home cards with messages of greeting and Christmas wishes. They hoped these cheery greetings would arrive in Mologa in time to help ease the burden of the first Christmas since the death of George and Albert.
Charlie wrote home after visiting Albert’s grave:
27th Nov 1917
My Dear Mother, Father and Jim
I am writing you a few lines tonight, at present we are out of the line, I wrote to you while I was in the trenches telling you what I could about Geordie, I got another letter from the Captain of the Trench Mortars but he was unable to tell me where Geordie is buried bar 3rd Canadian Casualty Clearing Station, so I have written to that place and hope to hear next week I will write and tell you as near as possible when I hear I have written a lot of letters inquiring about Geordie and have asked the Clearing Station for information, it is very sad indeed, being unable to find out anything about him makes it worse. Percy and I went to Albert’s grave on Saturday I was very pleased with the way it is looked after and kept so well, the grave is in perfect order and the cemetery is in a grand place and is already partly fenced in, it will be well cared for so you have no need to worry, the cross that I spoke about is not yet erected, I spoke to the Chaplain about it he said it would be done in time, at present there is a small cross with number name battalion etc. on a tin plate. Geordie grave will be similar as that Station mentioned above will be well back from the line … I am not in the Lewis Gun Section now, as I could not hold two stripes and be in it at the same time. Percy is the No 1 on the Gun it does not make any difference being out of it, I think you misunderstand the Lewis Gun for Machine Gun Company which is attached to the Brigade. I am in the same Platoon as Percy but attached to a different section. Well I will close for this time, I share with you the sad loss of our dear brothers which I feel sure you feel the same as I do. I will say goodbye with love and my sympathy, I am
Your Loving
Charlie
On 29 November the 38th Battalion was sent back to the front line in the Warneton sector. Unlike the previous stint just eight days prior, the line was now battered by artillery fire. The Allied response was to greet same with same. The pounding of the big guns was relentless. Holding the line as the winter approached became increasingly difficult and the men prayed that the winter would not be as severe as that of their first year on the Western Front, remembering the bitter cold of 1916.
THEATRES OF WAR
In France, Allied preparations for a surprise attack on the Hindenburg Line were underway. On 24 November at Cambrai, 80 kilometres north-east of Amiens, the Allies sent 324 tanks across a ten-kilometre front advancing on an unwary enemy. The use of tanks was generally scorned by the infantry who had witnessed their failings in previous battles.17 However, the employment of tanks on such a large scale had not been attempted to date. The tanks rapidly broke through the Hindenburg Line and were followed by infantry and cavalry. The attack was heralded a great success and celebrated across Britain. The elation was premature. Many tanks were hit and soon out of action and the Germans quickly brought
up reinforcements. By 7 December much of what had been gained was lost; a small section of the Hindenburg Line remained in Allied hands, but a sector of the Allied front had been lost. While Cambrai revealed that tanks could be successfully employed, the battle had ended in yet another stalemate.
To the east, Lenin’s Bolsheviks had taken over Petrograd on 7 November. Russian forces had collapsed. Lenin now sought an armistice with Germany and German troops fighting on the Russian front were rushed to France and Belgium. On the Italian front, in the northern mountain ranges, the two and a half year stalemate between the Italians and the attacking Austro-Hungarian forces had been broken with the use of highly trained German storm troopers on 24 October. The Battle of Caporetto saw 180,000 Italians captured along with 1500 guns. The remaining Italian forces, nearing collapse, retreated 100 kilometres to the Piave River near Venice and, remarkably, held off the attacking force.18
MOLOGA, DECEMBER
In Australia, a second conscription referendum was more convincingly defeated than the first. Australia was to remain the only Allied country that did not rely on conscription. The controversy continued to divide the country between those who believed that Australia had sent enough of its young men to the front and those who believed that the soldiers needed support and that others should do their bit. Catholic and Anglican divisions deepened as the rhetoric of Prime Minister Billy Hughes and that of his opponent, the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne, Daniel Mannix, resounded throughout communities across Australia. Australian soldiers abroad once again voted for conscription but by a narrow margin. Some wanted the ‘shirkers’ to have their turn, while others could not send others against their will into the hell that they were experiencing.
As social divisions deepened so did the fear of the ‘enemy within’. Many towns and geographical features that bore German names were renamed. Initially, those from countries with which Australia was at war were interned in camps which also held prisoners of war; these were mostly German sailors who had the misfortune to be in Australian ports when war was declared. As the war continued, the list of enemy aliens expanded to include those who had been born in enemy countries but had later become naturalised British subjects, along with Australian-born descendants of migrants from those countries. Many of those who were detained were later to be deported when the war finally reached its weary conclusion.
At Mologa, Charles Snr, Sarah and Jim were busy with the harvest. Their answer to the conscription question almost certainly will have been ‘Yes’ although, having lost two sons, I am not entirely convinced that Sarah would have voted for other sons to have been committed to the war. Anglican ministers generally encouraged their parishioners with patriotic fervour and their sons and brothers at the front all appear to have voted in favour. These were difficult times for Sarah who not only struggled to cope with the death of her two sons but also the passing of her father on 4 October. Cards and letters of condolence and this report from the Pyramid Hill Advertiser did little to ease her grief. Letters of congratulation on Allan’s promotion may have briefly provided some brighter moments.
CORPORAL GEORGE MARLOW
ROLL OF HONOR
Mologa
Mrs. Marlow, Mologa, has received the following letter from Capt. James D Johnston concerning the death of her son, Cpl. George Marlow.
Long before you receive this you will have heard of the death from wounds of your son No. 2748, Cpl. George Marlow, of this unit, but I know you will want to know something of the manner in which he met his death. We were making one of the biggest attacks of the year, and George was in charge of one of our teams. All went splendidly until he happened to be struck by a spare bullet. He was taken away immediately by the stretcher-bearers and we were confident that he would be quite safe. However, we were very sorry to hear that he had succumbed at one of the hospitals; at which one I do not myself yet know. No loss had been so much deplored by the boys in the battle as that of your son. He was one of the best N.C.O.s I ever had, and most popular. The men under him would go anywhere with him. The men have asked me to send you their sympathy, and asked me to say how much they deplore his loss. With the deepest sympathy of all the officers, N.C.O.s and men of the battery in your bereavement,
I am sincerely yours,
James D Johnston
Commander 2 A Light Trench Mortar Battery19
4 Comts
Parkhouse
Salisbury
England
Dec 1st 17
Dear Mrs Marlow,
I trust you will pardon me if I am doing wrong in writing to you. I saw in an Australian paper here AW Marlow had been killed in action, as I heard Albert had made the supreme sacrifice from one of our 4/38 Batt boys. I used to hear from Albert regularly & when no news came through I thought something was wrong. What I knew of him he was a good living boy, it takes something to play the game. I sincerely hope your sons have been spared to come through the heavy fighting of late. I was transferred to A.S.C. [Army Service Corps] having had a lot of sickness in the Infantry. My brother Aiken was killed in action on Oct 1st so I am left to represent one family. We are both single & I am thankful for it. We live near Bairnsdale-Vic. I do pity all you dear home folk it is not so bad for us here in England – We have not the worry you have at home but trust and pray the much talked end of the war will come to pass. Believe one to remain Dear Mrs Marlow
Yours fraternally
Harold Scott 239220
“The Lord giveth & the Lord taketh away”
P.S. Please do not bother replying
9-12-17
6 Hotham Grove
Elstenwick
Dear Mrs Marlow
We have twice written to you to express our sympathy with you in your bereavement, losing your two brave boys. Now, it is up to us to express our joy at seeing that your son Alan has won his commission. It is a grand thing for a young soldier to get especially as he has won it on the field. We are proud and delighted to be allowed to join in congratulating you on your boy’s promotion and hope that he will win much more and that the rest of the war will be to you a time free from trouble or fresh sorrow. May God bless & keep all your brave boys & send them safe home again.
Yours sincerely
A.W. Williams
Pyramid
Dec 10th 1917
I wish to convey to you my sincerest congratulations on the promotion of your brave son Allan. He was the only one of your noble sons I knew personally, but I do earnestly hope that at some future date we will have the pleasure & honour of welcoming Allan & his gallant Brothers home again. You have every reason to be proud of such fine sons & we Australians are proud of you in having reared such noble men who are willing to give their lives for their country.
With kindest regards from Mrs Wood my sisters and myself.
I remain yours sincerely
C.E. Wood
BELGIUM AND FRANCE, DECEMBER
The 38th remained in the Flanders region throughout December as Allied soldiers rotated through the line. On 6 December they were relieved and made their way to Hill 63 and ‘Red Lodge’, a site a few kilometres behind the front line at Messines where the troops were treated to the luxury of powered dugouts nestled in the side of a hill, complete with bunks. While out of the line, fatigue duty required frequent treks to the front and brought the weary troops back within range of the enemy artillery. Being out of the line did not always guarantee safety.
Soon after, the battalion moved to Aldershot Camp on Waterloo Road, a position behind Neuve Eglise and to the west of Warneton. Percy was promoted lance corporal and was now in charge of the Lewis gun team, his promotion long overdue in the opinion of his brothers. On 20 December the 38th moved further back to Hollebeke Farm (Jesus Farm) near Steinwerch close to the familiar Armentieres.21 They spent Christmas here and, judging from their accounts, enjoyed the offerings supplied by their battalion cooks. Charlie had additional cause to celebrate, as he was promoted to the rank of lance sergeant just three da
ys before Christmas. He now enjoyed the luxury of turkey for dinner on Christmas Day.
Early in December, as winter descended on the battlefields, Allan wrote to his neighbour Eva Jones as he had promised his mother, a letter Eva chose to keep (although the first page is missing).
… The second one was fought in the same sector but without a complete success, we suffered very heavily which was due to not enough artillery support on account of the lads not being able to get their guns forward on account of many different conditions. It was absolutely the worst time we have had yet. For slush and water also machine gun fire and shellfire we found it almost impossible to make good progress. Anyway we got out of that place with a few men. From there we went back a few miles for a spell of about 3 weeks, then we went up into the trenches again and at [present] we are out but will be returning in a couple of days. The weather is getting very cold again and I am afraid we are in for a severe winter but we will have to put up with it. I believe Charlie Fyffe has landed home. By jove he is lucky. We have been in France about 15 months now and they tell us we will be getting a long spell soon. I hope to be going over to Paris next month. I got leave to England about 3 months again [ago]. Well Eva I think I have told you all the news so will close with kind regards to all.
I remain your Loving Friend
Allan. S. M.
Many thanks for the parcel.
P.S. I forgot to tell you that I was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant last month. I will send you a photo one of these fine days. Eva I think the war will end this year, next year, sometime never. Tell them in Mologa to keep the old flag flying. ASM
Charlie wrote to his mother with sadness as he described Albert’s prediction when visiting his English relatives and of receiving word that Bill Street and Bill Crossman had died:
… When I was in England Auntie Payne told me about poor Albert saying that he would get knocked he said :- Auntie I will leave these things here for Charlie as I suppose I will get knocked, but he never at anytime was frightened he went all through the battle of Messines with us and took it as an every day occurrence, he never said anything to me about being knocked, he was very game. Harry Street has not heard much about Bill’s death, I saw in the paper where Bill Crossman had been killed …
ANZAC Sons Page 52
