Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his family June 1918 - October 1918 - Part 4

3
Janie Cruickshank wrote me
a very nice letter. She seems to
be quite pleased with our
wee bairnies. I shall be very
pleased to get the new snaps
of the bairnies. It is lovely to get
them. I should like to see one
of wee Rosemary but she will
be too wee to see much of her
You’d be making your old man
very swelled headed if you could
with all your skite you dear old
sweet loving darling pet lady.
I had a long letter from Mr
Lowe but have not heard from Begg
We are back in the line again
& have had a few Casualties
but none that you Know. Layh
& Denehy are back having a
little rest. I expect I will
get some leave soon & Layh
can carry on here. 
 

4
I shall be very glad to go
on leave. It is now over 7 months
since I was in England and it
has been a very anxious Trying
time  I am very sorry about
Bob Smith. If I see Henry
Bennett out too I will be
satisfied. He started with me
& is one of the few left going
strong of the old originals
There is very little news.
Col Scanlan did a very nice
little raid for me got 8 Huns
without any casualties & everyone
fell on his neck. We got a machine
gun also.
Bye now dear old Katie love.
I hope you are packing up all
ready to come to me. darling
for Tristmas. Oh won't it be
just the loveliest thing to See you Kit.
Bye & Millions of loves & Kisses from
your Very own Dida Don. 
 

France
28/6/18
My darling Katie,
There is
nothing doing here except
a few raids & shelling. Dont
Know what the Bosche will be
at next though. There are
rumors of another big attack
preparing against us.
but whether it will come
to anything goodness
only Knows. I am hoping
to get a months leave very
soon now. It is over 7 months
since I was out of France
& though I have thrown off
the Influenza it has left me
feeling distinctly stale. If
I get a months leave this
time I must sure enough
get up for a few days to
Ullapool and then I'll be
able to write to Nana about
it all. I am enclosing
you a few letters I got
about my C.B.. Old M^cEvoy
must be raring to talk
about me getting the V.C. for 
 

Villers Bretonneux. It was
a good Scrap but I had no
personal part in it at all.
but as I have everything
else pretty well they had to get
up some yarn like that I
suppose. Nevertheless I am
glad my reputation is spreading
outside my own boys. It will
be another knock in the eye
for old Birdwood who has always
Kept me back. There is another
letter from little Mademoiselle
Brunet. The Bosche came &
dropped Bombs on them & broke
all their back windows so
they are now refugees at a
place called Seques between
St Omer & Aire which is about
10 miles away from their home.
They are sending all their furniture
away down into Central France.
Her father & mother are still
Staying at Steenbecque but
often go to sleep at Lynde
where they feel safer. It 
is further away from the Bosche 
 

She says the Village they are
living in is a pretty little one
Very wooded & very "hills &
hollows". If they were there for
a picnic they would be very
happy but it is sad to have
no home of your own. She has
heard no more ^news of her brother who
was Killed. A lot of the Steenbecque
people have gone from there
including Madame Vaisreux
who had the "pub" in the Square.
This was the old lady who made
rude jokes to Capt Legge. about my fatness.
It is very sad for them all
isn't it. She mentions a lot of
other things about various people I
met up there. It is a nice little
letter isnt it..?
Well Katie darling I think
this is all.. All the people you
Know are well. Bertie Layh has
been buying some very expensive
scent to "square" M^rs Layh. So I'm getting
a teeny tiny bottle for Dhusach
as well. It is "Attar of Roses"
& if the little wooden Box in which 
 

the Vial is Kept is put in a
drawer with hankey's etc it will
scent them nicely. It is too
strong to put much on at once
Col Marshall is away on
leave. He had a touch of the "flue"
when he left. Camp. Stewart is
the very picture of health. He
is delighted at having a Brigade
now I think & it has helped
to Buck him up. Also he
has improved the Brigade a
lot & so Genl Hobbs is pleased
with him. I am very glad
they gave him a chance. In my
mind if they gave old Tivey
six months holiday to Australia
& gave Bert Layh the Brigade
things would be wonderfully
improved all round. Genl
Hobbs has been far from well & at
times ^is threatened with a nervous
Breakdown. If this should happen
& I got the Division I would be very
pleased - not at poor old Hobbs
illness but because I would
still have my Brigade
[*under me.. If Bert Layh got Tivey's Brigade this would leave Denehy
with mine. Things would be very well with me then. Yours very sincerely
H.E. Elliott.*] 
 

[*July 1918*]
Mrs H.E. Elliott
"Nirvana"
Parkside Street
ELSTERNWICK
VICTORIA
Australia
H.E. Elliott 
 

France
6/78/18
Darling Katie love.
I was recalled to France
on the 3^rd Inst a week before my leave
was up. I cannot tell you about it
now. Though I was sorry to miss a
part of my leave I was glad that I
got back in time to be with my boys
at this time. Things are going
well for us just at present but
people should not build too
much on it as the Bosche will
certainly hold us up for a long
time at his old prepared
positions in the Hindenberg line
which he will have made
stronger than ever by now &
we will have to fight the Winter
through in the Same old mud
of that we thought we had done
with for ever. We are being
promised a long spell when
this show is over & the boys
truly need it for they have been
nearly six months fighting
without any real rest
al all.
One cannot ever count
upon that for from what I
hear the Italians are in a very
bad state & if the last attack
on them had come to anything I
believe they would have made peace
but it would not surprise me at
all if they do not make a - separate
peace. Mrs Edwards son is there & he
says that the Italian Soldiers except the
Alpine are very rotten & hate the British
& Americans sent to help them. They say
if it hadn’t been for them
[* they would be all safe at home and at peace again They dont mind
being licked at all apparantly. They are nice lot of fainthearts.
I must stop now darling - Millions of love & Tishes for you and the wee pets from
your Very own Dida Don *] 
 

Postcard - see original document
 

Postcard - see original document