Correspondence between Herbert Vincent Reynolds and his family, 1917 - Part 8

Mrs. Reynolds,
Albert Street,
SEBASTOPOL, VIC. 

MELBOURNE, 14th Oct.,  1917.
Dear Madam,
I now beg to advise you that Private H. V. Reynolds,
has been reported was admitted to 1st Southern
General Hospital, on the 29/9/17, not 9/9/17 as stated in th my letter of
the 12th instant. 
Yours faithfully,

J. M. LEAN, Major,

Officer in Charge, Base Records.
LH

MRS. REYNOLDS,

ALBERT STREET, 
SEBASTOPOL. VIC.

B1 Ward
2/1^st Southern General Hospital 
Dudley Road
Birmingham
Oct 15^th 
Dear Mother
I have not received any
news from you since I left the unit,
it is time some reached me as I notified 
the Base PO that I had been
admitted to this hospital soon after I
arrived here.
Well things are going pretty 
well with me now, I mentioned in my
last letter that I was likely to get
transferred for further treatment, well it 
did not come off, I was transferred to
another ward, that was all. 

(2)
They took an Xray of my head, but
it did not shew any foreign body still
in the wound, they must have removed
it when they stitched the wound up 
at the 3^rd Canadian CCS in France,
or probably the piece of metal came
out on its own account, any how I’m 
extremely pleased that there is nothing
still in the wound.
There is a likelihood of me being 
transferred to Harefield to our own Austr
hospital, I will be jolly pleased to 
get down there, as it’s handy to London 
& I might see a few friends there, I have
seen no one here with the exception of 
one day when a Miss Thompson came in
for a few minutes, it gets on a chaps
nerves not seeing anyone from one weeks 
end to the other.

(3)
I am able to get out now, that is 
out of bed, & walk up & down the ward
its some stunt, like being behind
the bars, they won’t stand you going
out at all, & three weeks of this just
about feeds one up, I will be jolly
glad to get out or do something to
break the monotony.
I received a few lines from Mr
Key they are all I have got yet.
There is very little news to
send I am getting along fine, though
it will be some time before I am
quite right, of course I will always
be deaf in the left ear there is no
chance of it ever being any use to
me, don’t think it has been damaged 
on the outside, for it will not be noticeable 
when it has healed up properly. 

The ear was torn about a good deal on
the outside, but it was stitched up
& has healed up splendidly, though
perhaps there are a few marks that
will shew it has been damaged.
I think this is about all
the news this time so I must 
wish you Au revoir for the present
yours very sincerely 
Bert.

Mrs Reynolds [* Oct 15 1917*]
Albert St
Sebastopol
Ballarat
Victoria
Australia 

Back of Red Cross envelope - see original document

No 1 Australian Auxiliary Hospital 
Harefield Park
Middlesex England 
Oct 22^nd 1917.
Dear Mother
You will notice by the above address that I 
have moved from Birmingham, they seem to be clearing our
chaps out of all the hospitals up there to these places of our own.
I received a few lines from one of my mates
in France this morning, he was with me when I was knocked, he 
came through the affair safely, so you see its just a matter of luck 
I was with him when he was wounded in the leg at Bullecourt & there
I managed to see the thing through safely.
Ernie Browne died of his wounds, I cannot say that
I was surprised to hear it, but much regret to know that he did
not pull through allright, before I received my knock our officer
had seen him & was telling me that he did not expect to see him 
get over his wounds, but I knew that if it was possible for any one
to pull through in a like case Ernie would have done so, & I was
hopeing & trusting that he would pull through but his wounds must have been 
quite as bad as the doctors told us.
Well Mum I’m afraid our lot got the worst  

lot of casualties that they have had in any action in the
affair at Ypres, according to my mates letter, they were in &
out several times, & at the time of writing, he said they
were having a spell, two of our officers Major Hunt & Capt
Davies were killed after I left them & the total casualties
were 53  15 killed & 38 wounded.
I have received no news from you yet, but 
its absurd to expect any yet, it generaly takes the military postal
lot about six months to locate anyone.
You might let anyone who write to me, there
are a few, know about addressing my letters to Mr Key, its about
the only way of me ever getting the letters, I think.
I'm getting on pretty well still, the wound
is still discharging a lot but that is only natural, I have
fairly severe pains in the side of the head at times but nothing
exceptional.
I seen nothing of Birmingham while I was
there except in the motor going to the station the day I came
away I like this place much better than up at the other place

though this is all huts here, but every thing here is much
more homelike more Australian, pictures of Australia are every where in the dining room, writing room & all the wards, there
is a bosker little picture of a bunch of golden wattle hanging
over my bed, thats better than a plain brick wall to look at all
day.
Who do you think I met the day I left Birmingham? He came down here
on the train with me. I had better tell you you would not guess right.