Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his wife, 1914 - Part 1

S.S. Horatio
18.10.14
Dearest Katie
We are off - out in the Bay but
5 men we left out at Broadmeadows
to finish handing over our Camp
Kits & Bedding have yet to join us.
There are several of Colonel
Semmens men also to join
so we cannot leave the
Bay just yet. But I believe
we are to go right away then
so very likely you letter will
not reach me with the ribbons
until we reach Albany after
all. Wasn't it bad luck I lost
my ribbon bar just at the very
last. It may have tumbled off in
the Car. If so Mr Wood may
find it & send it on. I rang up
Mr Roberts & if we have Pay
those rates I told him to
apply to you & you would
give him a cheque. But he
thinks he can beat them on a
legal point. Goodbye now my
own old darling 'love & my xxxxxxxlist'
xxxxxxx. 'Give a big hug kiss' to each
of my darling bairns & a big big hug [[from]]
didda.Remenber me to
Baaby  dont forget to write

often & often even when

you don't hear from me

Again (Daddy) because will be lonely

for news of his loved ones
(* and we will go very slow so your letter by mail boats will catch us up  long before

we reach Albany and the other ports en route*)

 

Mrs  H E.  Elliott
Dalriada
Darebin Road
Northcote

 

S. S. Horatio
Off  Queencliff
Monday 19/10/14

My Dearest Ket,
We have the Pilot aboard &
am making off through the heads. Our
first port of call is Albany. This will go
ashore at the heads with the Pilot at 11 . am
this morning. It is simply glorious
weather not a ripple or a move or the
sky. I have a lovely fine cabin right on
the upper deck. I have pale blue silk
curtain all round my cot & all the way
down to the deck from the bed there are
drawers. So I have unpacked all my
trunks & put the clothes in the
drawers & sent the trunks to the hold
Major Mc Nichol he is in the cabin with
me but as it was only a one berth cabin
he sleeps on a settee on the other side
but there is plenty of room & he has
a similar chest of draws at the head 
of our  beds so we are very comfy comfortable

The men are very crowded but are
very happy.  We have the two bands

^ (*6th Bn*) aboard  & they play most of the

time.  We passed the mail boats  this

morning the Moldavia and the Omrah

coming in
[*I will try and write after an write a few lines each
day so you will get a ^ long letter from
Albany Two of our men who got on the Spree on Saturday

we took two other men in their places.  The drunks came
aboard by a launch early in the  morning but I clapped

both into cells & they go back with the pilot &

Queenscliff, I 
hope they are seconded for their pains*]

hugs now & [[Millair?]]
kisses dear wife [[?]]
[[?]] with love and kisses to Bairns
& Baeby & Nanna
from Dadda

Mrs  H E.  Elliott
Dalriada
Darebin Road
Northcote
 

Tuesday
Dear xxxxx
Here we are somewhere off Adelaide
We are having simply glorious weather Still
Hardly a single man is  seasick  & everyone
seems as happy as possible  Tell Katie Lyn
I made Ken  a L/Corpl, today. He will
do all right well I think. I hope you are
not feeling too lonely  now  'old lady that
I have gone. You must try not to think of father
[*me*] being away but just of our two dear wee

bairnies.
Wednesday

Another Glorious day and every thing
is going well. We caught some of the
Ships cooks  sneaking  stealing the  flour
issued to them to make Bread & selling
the Bread to the troops afterwards &
the captain sorted  them. Colonel
Semmens is ill & I am in
charge of both  Regiments now  o.
xxx xxx xxx xxx  There
was a lot of gambling going on
but I gave a couple of our men
four days in the cells &
confiscated the apparatus used
& I think that has  squashed it for good
The officers of both regiments
 

Mrs  H. E.  Elliott
Dalriada
Darebin Road
Northcote
 
 

a
are now getting to know each other & are up to
all sorts of xxx jokes. They caught everyone
whose hair was long to cut fancy fiqures
in it with clippers so that they had to
get their hair cut skin close. & everyone
who had a moustache had to get it off
Only Colonel Sommons & Major McNichol
have moustaches left & these two &
myself are the only ones who have not
had a Pentridge crop of their hair.
A few of the men are still a bit seasick

but this is mainly due to  fact that they
are very crowded & it gets very close
& stuffy in the hold at night.
Thursday Morn
It looks  xxx like a change today. It is
rather cloudy & colder but the sea is very smooth
still. I am thinking of you xxxxxx a lot but
there is so much to do &   think about that
I am not feeling lonely yet.  I am glad
we had such  a long camp. It  got me
accustomed to being away from you, I hope
you are not missing me ^ too much.  God bless 
you & keep you my sweeties
Friday
Still Glorious weather except for a
little shower of rain this afternoon
P.T.O.
 

but not a ripple on the Sea since
we left. Col Semmens is still unwell
but is  mending. I am arranging for
lectures to the officers every day to keep
them busy but as we are so very crowded
it is only possible to give the troops 35 minute
exercise every day so the will mainly
be physical culture to keep them fit.
The food is all very good & the men 
are all happy.

 Saturday
Another Bright & calm day. There
are a couple of measles cases about
but we have them isolated so  they
wont do any harm
Sunday
Here we are in Albany harbour
there are only about a dozen Ships 
here yet. We expect to be here
a day or two. I think that is
about all the News. Ken Walker
is  looking happy 'Now dearie' There is a mail
going to close in a few minutes so
I will close. Here we are a week
away.  I suppose my dear old Girl
is lonely for me - no camp today
I would like to see  the our dear sweet peas bairnies - 
today Goodbye dearest! & million
kisses to you all from
Didda

 

S.S. "Horatio"
11th November 1914
My dearest  sweetest wife
we were told yesterday
that we could write closed letters for
home to be posted at Colombo but that
they would be delayed 3 or four weeks before
transmission. We could however send
open letters or postcards which would
be censored & forwarded straight away
if they did not contain any allusion
to ships names cts or places of call So
I will send - you've one P Card saying
all well & this ^ letter will come along later
I was delighted to got your
letter at Albany & am looking forward
to a letter at Colombo & perhaps two xxxx
xxxx Well we got to Albany all
right, on the Sunday after we left Melbourne
Glorious  weather all through In Albany
Harbour we lost one man Color Sergt O' Mera
who disappeared one night. We can  xx only think
that he fell overboard during the night. The
matter is so very mysterious & I
dont suppose it will ever be cleared
up. We stayed in Albany Harbour
just a week and on the Sunday
again we frst put off for Colombo in
glorious weather . It was a
 

-2-
fine sight to see all the ships going
out in one long line xxxx Outside

they formed up in three lines one of nine
and the other two having 10  ships
Then behind there are the 10 New
Zealand Ships. In front When
we started was the Cruiser Minatour
& a Japanese Cruiser on the right
was  another Jap the Melbourne  but
off Fremantle when the last two
ships joined us her place was
taken by another Japanese
Cruiser a fine boat & the Melbourne
went to the rear & the Sydney
sent away, over on the left Flank
We got on all right with fine weather  
throught but getting rather hot. On the
5th December the Mail Steamer Osterley
passed us.  She was  crowded & there
was great cheering as she passed
along One the 7th we got ^ a wire advising that
there was an enemy Cruiser about
& all lights had to be  screened at
night but nothing definate.
On the 8th we had Church Service & on
the Euripides  the leading ship of our
line there was a funeral of a man who 
had died aboard & they pulled out of the line.