Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his family, July - October 1916 - Part 4

France
31/7/16
My dearest Katie
I was delighted to get a dear
loving long letter from you this morning. It was dated
the 2^nd June so has been quite a long while upon the
way. My old collar bone is all quite healed up dearie
pet so you need not worry about me any more
you dear old loving pet. Wouldn't I just like
this old war to be over & ^be coming back to that wee house     
to my wifie pet & my two wee pet bairnies. Wouldnt I
be just counting off the days till I had them both
in my arms together. I am so glad to hear
Finlayson & his wife are well. Please give my
love to them both when you next see them. Poor
Lyn too I hope she is better. It would be sad if
anything happened to her or her wee little one. I was glad
to hear of George Angus again. I expect his wife
would find it very hard to get on with things
so dear & all if George joined as a private.
You dear old saving sweetheart. You deserve to have
a separate kiss & love for every penny you save
for your old man. Aren't I just the luckiest
man in all the world to have a wife like you
instead of one that would be just having a lovely
time while she could. I expect things will
be dreadfully hard after the war & how we are
 

-2-
going to pay off our awful load of debt in
the Commonwealth I am sure I don't know.
Well be taxed to the bone if they dont ^have to confiscate
all property they can get hold of as some
of the Labor party wish to do. Isn't it
funny how sometimes your letters go astray.
This one is older than the one I got nearly a week
ago from Baaby & in hers she said you
were writing as of course you would by the same
mail & yet it has not arrived here yet.
We have had a very quiet time ever
since our fight though of course just as
on the peninsula not a day goes by without
some poor fellow being hit. The weather
is extremely pleasant too. General Plumer
came to see me yesterday. He asked me
to let all the boys know he was delighted
with the way they fought & is certain
we will break right through next time as
we would have done this time with a little
more artillery support & a few fresh troops
to press on after we got tired out
I hear that our old Divisions has been
fighting very bravely at Pozieres & has suffered
 

-3-
heavy casualties & that now the 2^nd Division ^are fighting heavily
which means of course that Bob Smith
& Jacky Boy are into it again. But I
have heard no news from any of them.
I expect they do not know where we
are or anything about us. General 
McCay said he was very pleased with
the 15^th Brigade work & with me & my
staff for all the arrangements we made
for our battle. Not a single thing I am
proud to say went wrong with our
arrangements - you wont think I am skiting
will you dearie - and you need not tell
anyone but I would have been broken
hearted if I had neglected anything
that would have helped my boys. For
instance in the 14^th Brigade they sent up
a whole lot of hand grenades to the front
line & when their poor boys opened the
boxes they found no fuses in them. I
had thought of this & had a dump
where all the grenades were examined
a mile behind the front line & all the
ones without fuses were taken out & I had
an officer who understood the whole thing
 

-4-
& some men under him putting the fuses &
detonators in before they were taken near
the firing line. This caused a lot of loss to the
14^th as they might as well have been given
stones to throw at the enemy. The Brigadier
of that Brigade has been sacked it is said
because he got drunk after the battle. He
was very broken up as he well might be &
next day Genl McCay went to see him &
found him dead drunk. They have a new
man there now an Englishman. I think
I told you that the English troops on my
right did not advance & that let the
German machine guns get round my flank
& caused most of our dreadful losses. He
has been sacked also I hear. Before the
Battle I saw him & he told me he was
going to take his men out through narrow
openings or Sally ports & then extend outside
I told him from my experience on Gallipoli
that would be hopeless that the first few men
killed or wounded would block the whole of the
narrow passages. Oh he said we will try it anyway
& if it turns out that you are right we will send
the men over the top of the parapet (as I wanted him
 

-5-
to do & as we did). But is is impossible to
change one plan for another in the middle of
a fight for a lot of his officers were shot
trying to lead the men through these passages &
the result was that he never got his men
out at all. I hear he has been sacked
also which is only right. So you must
pray good & hard that Dida I wont make
such mistakes which are very easy
to make you know dearie pet & then
he can I could expect the sack too & would
be glad to go too for he I wouldn't be fit for
this any job. But there is much to learn
for Dida. Every day I am learning. Well
Katie darling love I must stop now.
But first I must tell you I love you just
millions & millions - my own dear sweet loving
old girlie. God bless & keep you safe
always- you & your two wee sweet dear
wee bairnies. I didn't much like the photo you
sent me at first but I have set it up on my
mantelpiece & I can see it is my dear old
Sunshine lady sure enough smiling at me &
the dear wee rogue of a laddie looking so 'portant & the
little frightened wee lady. God bless you all again - you are just the dearest pets in all the world Millions of love & kisses fr
Dida Don
 

(1)
France
6/8/16
My dear Katie,
I have no news much for you
but enclose a newspaper cutting to show
you what the German's thought of our
boys the first time they met us.
He is a pretty liar of course as we not
only got across into their trenches but
captured nearly 200 prisoners & killed
a lot more & if they were not frightened
some of them are pretty good actors &
the way the got down on their knees
& squalled for mercy when the boys
got at them with the Bayonet would
indicate that if they are not frightened
of the Australian they have a wholesome
respect for his Bayonet. His account
shows to why we had such dreadful
casualties amongst the officers all their
best marksmen being told off to shoot our
officers. We are still having a very quiet
time. I had a letter from Janie. She
speaks of their boys being out with the Light
Horse. Do you know what relatives she
has serving? I have had no news from
 

Jack or Bob Smith yet & don't know
how they have got on at all. Their names
at least have not appeared in any
casualty lists.
Well dear old darling Katie We are
having most delightful weather & a very
quiet time but every day some poor chap
is hit. The Germans a doing a
tremendous lot of work on their lines opposite
us. I think they must have got a big
fright & are determined not to be caught
again. Oh Katie I do wish it was all over
& I was back with you all again. It would
be lovely to be having a play about with the
wee pets in the Dining Room again. I suppose
they are quite brave in the Dark now
especially the laddie. Janie's letter was
very nice & she said you & the Bairnee's are
looking well & healthy. So naturally
I was very pleased. I have answered her letter
millions of love & tishes for you &
the wee pets my dear old darling love from
your own Dida Don

 

France
1/8/16
Dearest Katie,
I haven't much news to
tell you. No letter yet from Jacky
boy. I hope he is all right. Bob Smith
name has been published in orders as having
done bravely. I hope he gets something for
it. We are still having a fairly quiet time
but our little cemeteries are filling fast. The
one where poor Geoff is buried will have to
be extended soon it is so full. I see
Hughes is threatening to bring in Conscription
in Australia if he doesn't get more recruits
in a month. He also says he will
conscript wealth whatever he means by
that. I suppose his idea is to take all
money away from people who have any
I wonder what good he expects to get
from that. If he took the property of those
who wont enlist there might be some sense
in it. But I suppose he is being pushed
into it by the people who dont want
conscription at any price & hope to
frighten others off by threatening to take
all money & property as well. It is a lovely
thing for us who are out here fighting to
have the prospect of what money we have
being confiscated by a lot of blighters who
have stopped boshe to vote. I have had
no news from Violet for some time. No
news from Johny Avery. No news of nuffin
at all except this silly old war. Now
that Romania has come in surely the
 

2
old Bosches will begin to wilt up somewhere
But he shows no sign of this here so far.
He is working like fury night & day to make
his position stronger than ever. We do
lead him a dogs life break his parapets
& raid his trenches day & night. He
bombards plenty but seldom tries a raid.
The only one he tried on us he got chased
out & had one of his men left dead in
our lines. I had a letter from Capt
Finlayson. It appears that he knows
Miss Stewart. You didn't tell me that
did you? It has been raining Heavens
Hard here & the trenches are full of
mud & water. Terrible for these poor boys
of ours isn't it with not a dry stitch
to put on & hardly any wood to dry them
themselves with. There will be many a one
crippled with rheumatism in days to
come from their experiences here. We are
not getting nearly as many recruits as
I hoped. Goodness knows what has become
of them all. I have not had more than 600
or so since the fight. The other poor fellows
have to work twice as hard to keep things
going. Today it so finer again but very
cloudy & threatening.
Do you love me Katie? surprise me? Heap lonely
for you darling pet. I've got £50 lovely
quidlets saved up now for you dearie. So
you won't think I'm cheating if I send you
and Baaby your black hilts after all & a nice
 

3
scarf for Xmas. I only wish I knew what likes
me to get. If you dont tell me soon enough
I will try & get a knitted one like the
Khaki lids one buys here. They seem
nice but I dont know what color
they have them in or indeed if they have
them at all. Our interpreter now
has a sister in Raies & I will get her
to choose them ^a scarf for you maybe. I'd like to
see them things myself. I am afraid
though that would not be possible. I
could ask Mrs Milne to choose some
in Egypt for me but it is a such a bother
forwarding money. Here we get paid all
in notes which are no good out of France
or I would send them. & I don't know
enough of Banks here to get a draft even if
I had a chance to get any from the 
trenches which at present I have not.
I am delighted that poor old Nana liked
her bit of silk. That was lovely. Let I am glad
she is pleased with me.