Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his family, July - October 1916 - Part 10

Conflict:
First World War, 1914–18
Subject:
  • Documents and letters
Status:
Open to contributions
Accession number:
AWM2018.19.71
Difficulty:

Page 1 / 10

had ther ban dragged in to their parapet. I went dosen to the trenches thi morning at oclock to ree our truch Mortar play or the memis pacapet& lehad it. It must lav been very unconfutall ther. At one time I paid about 12 feet of Tranlinefly at 100 feet in the air & go whirling roud like a ferther with the ficey the cuplorion. We are much better up date or ned mortars than the enemy is & there is tome port of new thing that I heard has taken part a the last days fighting or the Sorme. It is a porty remoured Dractin Egine that will crant ovr trerches Barted were or any of the ther obstacly it meet at a good jast pace. It has acann 10 pouder connon is it & uercial nachine guns & proved a great necess particularly on the Village fighting prenouly the Brche uned tget int allo odng out & pelt wachere gions ping done every ingle street & it water ausl burmners & get ther out. Mn faet
Poyieres & other villages then had simpe the blown to aboons before a successpie attack could be node upon then but then things rattled away by the street full of me pertecty itited against machire gete fire + going to fast that the dernon artillery could not his them & to serman left then machive guns & ron for the live for they knew it wss all u y this poider started to fire int then at about ter yards harge. It seem me it is distirctly the most proming emploment of uae we lare yet mente & efore get a bg lead in their constrution we ought I have thold serman well licked lipe be car get ther tupe, to us with Birt all this is ruther counting our chickens before they are hatched for no full a ccount of their fighting far ye. are fee published. Wat of we lovely if the C bg meces as they prmirs ell tear da lady love I don't the I lave any mor dews at present thy dark no 9 mut stop it is gi on
France 18/9/16 my desiest Katic Still feeling lnely for my simshine lady & no letters comme dreadful along. W is net a diepfl we masery of a day & on my goodners the send. We carried out a raid a the enemys truches last night + killed a number of Sermans. We lost on officer a young fellow from seclong & your nan, killid and 5 other wourded I regrudge then very much. The retult reen so inadagnate for tholgns of these fine boys but or the other raid a shill box landed in a patct of 10 boys who had come to get their bleakfast at the looks fire & eight of then out of the 12 were wounded all at once one seriously Two of my old boys came over to ie me yesterday. Capts Bartin. Patco. Bott lave year doing ppledid work & dates wp was recommended for thet.O. got a D.S.O. So thes are plying i the Record of throlk.
both look splended & it was They oplended seing & having a calk with them. They are splended boys. They rode nearly 60 miles to see me & the return half had the done after 5 oclock last mghy Wespitct dark & very wee too Did mas Bastin call and ree you yet.2. No more news of Veolitor Back boy, I am posting you a paper with ow or tiro funny pictures in it. The one by Barnsfalter is the centre th peture paper will make you lange I think. He is the rame that drew the Fragments from Fravce: Another me where the yeoranry war get his horse all tred up & want & knowwhy the ell I didn't I you the Infantry- is a lovely one too. Well wasting theres not a bby more news t tell you cept one I love who polemnly said thowar would be m on August of this year are nowpaying it must mrely be ver by next agart
That is what poor dd Lord Ketchener said & he will be just about right again. I wve can marage t keep pegging array or Gernany all this next year I thenk she will tave lad enough. But its a creary weary while to wait cont is dailling with all thloring times we might be faving together b that vlly ad Larse Kll ro cheaterg er of ne ring to each otherthar ins oer sao cnre hom because io fare all therewaited years to make up. We more Jerdens for anything at all dear old tender screet lore. Oh I have made some irgainies about this old Order of some. I hear it is not a bad order to have at all Something like our P.M.G. Perleg Anhow it will be rowething for the people at home I know that at last I am being considered worth a little notice sone of tho ther Generals in our Divisior lare received anything at all yet bnt I enpect old oe lan in shoing up tomething better for Then Well darling met dear old dailing
France 20/9/16 Dearold Kntie This is just a wer speenk of a letter to rett you I love you good The weather was not few too good The days an fairly your but every might a drizzling roin o mut sht ir waking the roods & trunches horrid hoppy meres for the next day I am enclosing a letter from General Bermod which came yesterday I am moe pleased with it thas with the Secoration itselfa. It shows he has y with me over got over being any y the sgyptletterd nthim not one bit of news eare I tolitt you because I wrote a long letter just the before yesterday. But I love you day. & Dat lonedy for you & my pets & Imuis just tilly st I think I ought to get a letterfrom you wos because got ipon Mr Roberts dated 8th Hery in which he mentioned that pook Geoff Mncbro lad heer killed the therefor knew we were in France. Your
last ne was a week before that so I m hoping one will come along today or tomorrow. Ire just her inspecting some of obd Bert Layho Buttalin & foind them very dity sunharer t hey cam outs of the trerches the wight before last stad all doyy yesterday tget clear is I'm senderg a not told Bert that will make him sneeze Igivers. The going llighter toe ben off down the tow laving a good o Evosie time himself instead after his mer Enstant reper is necessary they thomer u to the sandard. One cannot yort to let a dry go by asthom checking any plackners. I had a letter yoo Mr Sonker yesterday Fva is somene to England he said + the will see you on the way while in Meltourner. His won broke his lego ankle w egypt while we were there. is now being sont to England for convalereince 2 Mustharebeen as it is gutt weak. I a bad break.l dearold
meetheart lovey pet Ill just put the letter aside for a day to reof anything trrn if Milkion of les & becoefor yount I case I fge Tell Mrs Robert that after a lot of bother Stett got her nephee who was in the 8 Brigad under sevey transfied to my Brygade He was a knot swe have wes fxed him up with a comminsion. He home is stillman & reeme a nice boy. He is with Col. Duigan Hewns Blightly wounded in galy Battle but is betternow though he is still rather then & pale. Ene Walker is doing incellently Col Dungar is very pleased withhim. Tell me does too fove me by heap willon little nusture 22/2/16 Saity heaust ofa girl. Ive just received two letters one dated the 5 August with a t little wittle bloron in it, and a little August Arent toyone dated theI. you o darlen to wets iofter hope you are guting it letters all right now I write just as ofter as I can as I know you must be anxious pr new
You will have heard about young Hertiry by now He was very have gust at he was crovoing your parapet the was shot in the throat Ifell back We would bardly wait until they tied by hiis wound before he rushed out to get ahead of his mer & lead them on. Wher nearly across to the te German Kencher is for as we can leare & leadinghng mer or in the most gallant way a bg stell seen to burst right upo him and he was oen no more. He was putdom a missing simply because his boddy was not recovered but as a the care of Ray warley as I ito you long ago I feel poritently certain he is Aldd. I sent his hawe in to the General telling what he had done & just recently he was giv the military Pross on the hope that he was still alive to enjoy this Honor but they had nothing to go upon lecept my report. I think allow letter are now delayed in the post as in can we give any news likely tobe of use to the epemy, I am very pleased wil that the we laddie is is nice tpor old Mr Trowbridge. I am very he is so poorly. Please remember me to him Thank you for the littleflower. Meo a meet as you my sunshere lady love M Webber never gave me Mr Trowbudga letter. I am sori t hear of his death. I did not get lany lable about Sterling from a ladly but gunmg Borrownt one of my old officers who lost his arm at Lone Pine called to me about him an Capt Plownor. I replied by cable
Well dear old Katwlose your lettersan a great comfort & me just as you were yourself evr since I knew you. God bless and ken you alwrays you dear old neet lose Give my kind regards to Is & Mo Charler Lowe I lave not forgotter then nor their Bahes Ginmg lose toldsick Corter fevr he rings you up. I am pitven pleand with m officers & my boy Io is almost as e as seerg within old & Boys now. First a lot of tholae boys want to ome over & serve with me Hourld Banker Lyn's Cousin has askedt come. He was with mea the 7t Alrs Capt twifh arother curdor boy want to come tood. Well now darling what moe can I telt you It is getting wilt + colder even day here now If will be winter soon with all theircd mow o makes oe mirerable btunk of But we me diging five deed dug out right under all the mid & water don into dry llock rocky clay wil sape from well & tair. The Beibrot Emeen lave lew here two reprs & then mere inflerng dreadfully & they never thought of this until our engineers put doswloses & sowed then that it could be done. We had alme a doye generals down to see ours the other day the colonel of our pginers calls my 15t Brigade tea the thow drea because my boys have done suct a lot of work ton the Arony General hn Herbeet Plune med there is in place in his gun

-6-
had then been dragged in to their     
parapet. I went down to the trenches
this morning at 7 o'clock to see our
trench Mortar play in the enemies
parapet & behind it. It must have
been very uncomfortable there. At one time
I saw about 12 feet of Tramline fly
up 100 feet in the air & go whirling
round like a feather with the force of
the explosion. We are much better up to

date in Trench Mortars than the

enemy is & there is some sort of new

thing that I heard has taken part in
the last few days fighting on the Somme
it is a shot of armoured tractor
engine that will crawl over trenches
& barbed wire or any of the other obstacles
it meets at a good fast pace. It has
an cannon 18 pounder cannon in it &
several machine guns. It proved a great
success particularly in the village fighting
Previously the Boche used to get into cellars
& dug outs & put machine guns firing
down every single street & it was an
awful business to get  them out . In fact
 

 


-7-
Pozières & other villages then had simply
to be blown to atoms before a successful
attack could be made upon them
but these things [[ scuttled?]] away up the
street full of  men perfectly protected 
against machine gun fire going so 
fast that the German artillery could 
not hit them & the Germans left their
machine guns & ran for their lives
for they knew it was all up if the 18
pounder started to fire out then at 
about ten yards range, It seems to 
one it is definitely the most promising
implement of war we have yet invented
and if we get a big lead in their construction
we ought to have the old Germans well
licked before he can get [[their supply 
at us with?]] But all this is rather counting
our chickens before they are hatched for
no full account of their fighting has yet
been published. Wont it be lovely if the are as a a 
big success as the promise.
Well dear old lady love I don't think 
I have any more news at present & 
it is getting dark so I must stop
[*Oh Hades I nearly forgot to say my [[?]] deary but K answered 
all right with some nice paper & envelopes. I dont think
you need seen any more of [[?]]. It is quite easy for me to
buy them here. Katie darling & you must save your money up
But you are a dear darling old pet love [[?]] love Harry*]

 

 


                                                France
                                                  18/9/16
 

My dearest Katie,
Still feeling lonely for my
sunshine lady & no letter's coming
along. It is so much a dreadful dreadful event
[[?]] of a day & oh my goodness
the sound. We carried out a raid on
the enemys trenches last night &
killed a number of Germans. We 
lost one officer a young fellow from
Geelong & four men killed and
5 others wounded. I begrudge them

very much the results seem so
inadaquate for the loss of these five
boys but on this I then heard a shell 
had landed in a patch of 10 boys who 
had come to get their breakfast at the 
cooks fire & eight of them out of the 10
were wounded all at once one seriously
Two of my old boys come over to 
see me yesterday. Capts Barton & 
Oates. Both are [[?]] doing splendid 
work & Oates who was recommended
for the V.C. got a D.S.O  so they are 
keeping up the record of the old 7th
 

 

 

They both look splendid & it was 
splendid seeing & having a talk with
them. They are splendid boys. They
rode nearly 60 miles to see me & the return
had to be done after 8 o'clock last night 
it was pitch dark & very wet too.
Did [[?]] Barton call and see you
yet..? No more news of Violet or Jacky 
boy. I am posting you a paper with
one or two funny pictures in it. The
one by "Barnsfather" in the centre of
the picture paper will make you laugh
I think.  He is the same that drew the
"Fragments from France."  Another one
where this Yeomanry man gets his horses
all tied up & wants to know "why the 
'ell I didn't  I join the infantry." is a lovely
one too. Well darling theres not a lot
more news to tell you 'cept one 'I love


who solemnly said this war would be over
In August of this year are now saying
it must surely be over by next August
 

 

 

That is what poor old Lord Kitchener said &
he will be just about right again. If we
can manage to keep pegging away at
Germany all this next year I think
she will have had enough. But its
a weary weary while to wait isn't it
darling. Isn't it all the loving times we
might be having together & that silly 
old Kaiser Bill is cheating us of.  We
                                  ring & each other than
                                  come home because we
have all these wasted years to make up. No
more [[?]] for anything at all dear
old tender dearest love. Oh I have made
some enquiries about the old "Order of St
Anne" I hear it is not a bad order 
to have at all. Something like our P.M.G.
Perhaps Anyhow it will be something for 
the people at home to know that at last
I am being considered worth a little notice
None of the other Gernerals in our divisions have
received anything at all yet but I expect
old McCay is saving up something [[?]] for
them. Well darling sweet dear old darling
[*Lovey dearest [[?]]. Give all my love & kisses to [[?]]
friends & your own dear self. from [[?]]
God bless & keep you [[?]]*]

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





 

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Andrew FraserAndrew Fraser
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