Correspondence between Herbert Vincent Reynolds and his family, 1917 - Part 3

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seeing nothing but ridges of redish brown, with
occasional patches of white, where excavations

into the white chalk have been in progress during
the past few months, all that marks the
site of villages now is scattered bricks & broken
scraps of iron etc, & trees well few still have

the slightest resemblance of trees, they have been

torn & shattered; In the woods, tree trunks lay

every where, shells have smashed them off at

different heights as clean as a whistle.

The country we have pushed into is just the

extreme to what I have described, it appears
as though it had been within the reach of civilization

at any rate, & although the vilages have been almost
destroyed, yet, the impression of desolation is
not so evident, as ^that which we have been used to seeing.

Green fields & in places cultivated ground, &
real natural trees, & hedges in good order, made
a great contrast to the smashed desolate belt of
country that we passed through.

A couple of miles from the town we got on to the

main road, & seen where it had been blown

up, in one place, a great hole about 30 or 40

ft across & perhaps the same depth was

 

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made in the centre of the road, but our

engrs had constructed a roadway around

it before many hours. Just after entering
the town we seen another huge crater in
the roadway, but it was being filled in
& traffic was then able to pass along the

street. I was in the town 5 or six days

after its capture, & the ruins were still
burning then. The huns removed everything

of any value, 7 set the ton on
fire before they left it. It would be
impossible to outdo the huns who had
the  xxxxxx   a hand in the wrecking xxx ^of the town, for

deliberate & extensive vandalism.  They
^even went as far as to cut down fruit trees

In the public square the granite base
of a statue remains, but what has
become of the statue is very hard to sa

When I was in the town the town hall

was standing with its tower holding its

head above the ruins of the once fine

town, at the enterence the latest daily

paper was on view & we had a look at the 

latest accounts of the huns awefullness, we

 

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would not have waited about there for long

had we known what was beneath that building

I am writing from the same place as I last wrote

from, we only completed one hut the other is
not being erected owing to the movement.

In your last letter you mentioned having

a bad finger. I hope it is allright by now

There is very little more to write, I cannot

write at all lately, so please excuse these

paltry letters xxxxx I'm so sick of
things that somehow I cannot write descriptive

letters about anything.

Tuesday Apr 3^rd

Well, it will just show you how 
little we take notice of the days over here, I wrote

the opening lines of this letter on April fools day &

practically the anniversary of our landing in France

& yet I was ignorant of the fact all day & then

got the days & dates mixed up.
Most of us put in the day & it never worrys us what

day or date it may be, every day is the same as the

one before & after it as far as we are concerned, &
Sundays are not known to us these days, we

could not be in a more out of the way place

 

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even if we were planted in some of the Arctic

regions. When any one asks the question "What

is the day or date"? the answer follows. I don't
know & whats more he don't very much care.

Our almanac is counted by the number of
days we are in or out for thats about the
only way that we keep count of the times.

We have had an extremely heavy fall of snow

over here, it began to fall at about 4.30 pm &
continued for several hours, the flakes were

extremely large, in fact I think the largest

that I have ever seen.
Well I was looking up my diary today & two

years ago today we were leaving Mena Camp
& twelve months ago we were on our way

through France, bound for the north.

I have neglected to write up this years

occurrences somehow I feel absolutely sick of

writing up these monotonous records & these
last few months here have just about got me

fed up right up to the neck, any how we're fit.

& determined, & we can put in months more of
it, its got to be done by someone, so we can't

complain. & we have proved that we are equal

to the conditions  best that can ever be put

 

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against us.  I have no right to boast, its the

infty mans privilege to do that, & his alone
but I'm real proud of the fact that I'm an

Australian.  At time I often feel that I

ought to be in one off the Battalions carrying

a rifle instead of in this unit, but I could

do no more with a rifle perhaps; than I have done

at this game, very often I have been going to
tell you my reason for changing into the Field

Ambulance from the infty ^well it was the outcome of

an argument in the tent a few days after going

into camp, when several mates were threshing

out an arguement, as to wether a married man or one

with dependants should be allowed to come away

to the war, I had nothing to say but it started

me thinking, & ^when a few days later, one of your letters

though not telling m asking me ^outright to come back

home & not go to the war, hinted as much, but

I had made up my mind, that, what ever camp

life happened to be, I would not draw out of

the Army, I remembered that resolution, but

somehow I kept continually thinking that I was

not being fair to you by going, &, I did not know

 

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what to do for the best, anyhow,

one of my mates came one day, with

the information they they were forming

a field ambulance in the camp, & were

wanting men ^from the infty to form it from the

infty, that gave me an opening of

remaining with the force & yet being

fair to you to a certain extent, & well next

day both of us went across & passed

the medical examination & were put on

the strength of the new unit.

Well Mum, things have been very

different to what I pictured them in those

days in camp, & this job has not been all

milk & honey as a large number think, but

I never regret coming away when I did & 

now I can safely say with truth, that I consider
I have done my bit, even though I have not

taken an active part in the fighting. My luck

has been exceptional, & let us hope it will

continue so right to the end for your sake

I am fit as ever I have been, & am contented

& so please do not worry about me, you can
trust me so do not worry. I had better say

aurevoir for the present yours very truly

Bert
 

 

aprils 1^st 1917

    "      3^rd   "

Mrs Reynolds

Albert St

Sebastopol

Ballarat

Victoria

Australia

[* Lt Robert Aspinall*]

 

[*(PS) Send the enclosed letter on to

Vi for me if you don't mind.*]

In the Field,

April 28^th 1917

Dear Mother

Well the mail for Australia closes

today, so I will have to be as brief as possible

with these few lines. We have been releived by

fresh troops & are now some distance back from the

line, our chaps had a rather better time during

their stay in the line, than they usually have

had, although we could not get through it without

casualties I did not go right up to the line this

time, but was stationed at the Main dressing station

for duty.

I received your parcel yesterday & was very

pleased with it; theres one thing though, the bad

weather is over now, & we do not need so many 
socks I have enough now to last me for more

than 3 months under ordinary circumstances.
I only wish they had all come along, when socks

were worth their weight in gold. If you sent me
a pair of socks every two months from now till about 
next August I will have sufficient, & if you start

sending socks in numbers about August, they would

come to hand over here when they are most needed.

 

Since last time of writing  I think 5 of your
letters have come along also the parcel

that Vi sent. Your last letter was numbered 44.

We celebrated the 2^nd aniversary of the

landing at Anzac by having a dinner

followed by a concert the dinner was
some class & was absolutely the best bill

of fare that we have sat down to since
being in France it consisted of 5 courses

soup, stewed rabit, mutton & vegetables, fruit pudding
& jellies to blxxx conclude. The concert was

fair though not exceptionally briliant.

The weather is very decent now the winter

seems to have gone for good & we are pleased

to see the last of it.
I have had no leave yet, its just about
the limit because a chap has been to England

once they seem to reckon others direct from

Australia with some where about the same

service in France have preference, well I'm

not worrying  I'm absolutely disgusted & have 

been so for longer than it would do to say.

Well I must close these few lines trusting you
are all quite well yours very truly Bert.

 

20 april 1917
Mrs Reynolds

Albert St

Sebastopol Ballarat

Victoria Australia
[* HV Reynolds*]