Letters from William Rawson Leach to his family, 1918 - Part 9

Conflict:
First World War, 1914–18
Subject:
  • Documents and letters
Status:
Open to contributions
Accession number:
AWM2018.19.105
Difficulty:
4

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deep & when they get the word to hop into the Hun they do it with delight for they know I have seen the ravages he has worked in this country will not be satisfied until he has been brought to justice. I can quite imagine your flelings on Easter monderg when down at the SS cutting up the sundwickes & no doubt your thoughts would wander back to the days when we were all with you & impatient & eager to get away from home the moning of the pience. My thought were cast in that direction on Edster monday &I thought of you allar home & did not forget the s8 picie as I imagined you would be having at that time & under what different circumstances I was placed, we were face to face with the monster our wucks to the wall + he was attacking our sector we were covering our own boys & the gunes were betching out in defiance of his hordes which were coming on his mass fornation
3 & thank God we stopped him yesterday I went down for a swine to the river which is only a short distance from our battery & happened to run into a group ofr anitialian hnfanty & there was a bed playing, so on makin, enquires they lold as that Billy Hughe & Joe Cook would be along in a few minute so we waited & plosetly they appeared & addiened the gathern They assured us that you were allo waiting in Australia for us with open arms & that all eyes were on us from those quarters & also that we had never failed them yet in anythin, we had been asked to do. So when they return they will be telling you of hiw they visited the boys on the Western Front. Today they are celebratin American
Independence Day in all the alied countrie & we celetrated t in a very fitting manner. fince been up since 1Am thi morning & have given Iritz a good gruelling. I would like to tell you more only censorshy dibars ome but it was a ver successful operation about which you will no doubt read in the newspapers in a few days time rest assuted all well. There has been great aenial activity + whele our planes have been patroli the skic in hundreds there is not a Boche to be seen in the air. you will hardly beleive it when I tell you they are bringing up supplies by Aeroplanes. This morning two cases of small Arms Ammuntion landed quite close to our battery they we dropped from
5 a planc & steadied to the ground by means of a parachul Sattached to them. There is no doubt about it that the allies are masters of the air. I have just frished smaking a nice eigor which Mrs Baxendall& Cother sent me a box of also other useful articles. They are very good to me &write regularly & it makes one feel iever so much nearer home. I will have lots of funny & exciting experience to relate to you all when I get back for I ccould fill a book with them. one will be glad to get out of khake when the time arrives but he has a lot of humour & from in the army even though it does have its draw backs. I an sending you on some Thotos of the Battery which were taken last-fanwary while we were out having a dest
6 I expect you will be able to pick yours truly out of the crowd. Send one of them on to Elsie will you you ann keep the other two. Now Tathe I will have to close so good vye with loveto mother sey bull athoms your affton Kawetr MASTRN Wer Memorial 1044
France Iridar 18 July 19th Dear Mother I received your two wellom it letters dated april 30th & May I about a week ago. They were addressed direct to the battery I note your remarks resender them through a private address but I would propose that in future just send them to Aile dreds & address them to M K Cheach tu stuce of my tmber & rank. Uncle Fred alrays puts then in one by enoolope & stamps it afresh & the result is that Salwar get my letters a week earlier then of addressed to the bactery direct I dont mind waiting the week but if I should happen to get to hospital of the likes my mail in all probability would be chasing me for weeks where I condeasily kuep in touch with unil died & he can readdy
6 them to me &I would get them within a few days. You cansend my parcels & papers to the Battery for we have an unwritten law amongst ourselves that if any of our mates happen to be away in hospital or on leave we are at liberty to dispose of parce so that it cuts both ways only the other day we demolished one of our matts parcely who happened to be away in alighty wounder & four of up made it look very silly in a short while. we are still havin a good weather + they are just about to commence hawvesting here in France you never see any yourg fellows in the fields here all the work is done by the old men &the women folk the latter doing as much work as any man. I have seen some good crops in Australia butI have
never seen wheat crops similar to what they can grow here in France they are wonderful crops & any of them will go from 40 to or bishel pracre I sent you & alice some Icards a forteeght ago I hope you get them torign We had a very pleasan time there were while we ont for a rest. We had am gan knocked out of action about a week ago & for the pay five or sis duly than been down at the Ordrand work shops makin, the necessary refairs we fiished it last night & & am now waiting for the team to come & bring the gun will be off back to the line again to toox on with Fritz It has been quite a change & bit down here for once in bed at nyht time you are assured of a nights rest-without being disturbed wherea up at the gunr you are up all
hours of the night as that is the time we do most firing + we have always to be on the abeyt gust at day break as that is the time you can expect-sulz if he intends hoppin the bago, she quicker the artilleny get into activn against Tritys injantry the less effective is his attalk likely to be. all the mavried men seem to be enliding from Parkes now & had a letter from seartors the other day & they had heard tthat Edgar Holgalo had enlicted is that buil. Oh well good luck to them all they anusht realize they are calmi to a prenie, but so long as a fellow keeps his pecker bn Avesnt worry thing arent too bad then one doesa bit of swearing at linvs & weekes all sorts of vows but there's lots of fron & humour in the army
& you get that way thap it takes a lot to dampen your ardowr. We have a lot-of hard cases on our battery & they take no more notice of shell than if they were crean puffs, There no one of our fellows when he hears shells droppin he will start singin Where did that one go to Erbert yyou will see him pokiy his head out f a dugont or trench. Dity has started another Offensive on the French but has come a gutzer & we have had some bi very reasouring news this morning have just heard that the French tave captired 20,000 prisoners & 300 june. I think the durkest howss are over for us & that we are just about on the Chreshold of victory as much as we are all tied of the war the boys are all yearn to give Trity agood lashing & to return with vidon notthing bu

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