Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his family June 1918 - October 1918 - Part 8

& Von Layh's Prussian Guards are
just behind. Another time some one
called out to them as they marched by in
the dark 'What are you ?" "I'm b-----y
tired" was the only answer. So they've
learned the lesson pretty well
When I was in Newcastle I spoke to
my Aunt about buying some real
linen table cloths for you. She is a very
good judge I hear. Well she said good linen
is almost impossible to buy now in
England as all the men who worked
in them practically have been conscripted
& other restrictions placed on its manufacture
owing to the war. She was however going to
write to a firm that she thought might have 
some in stock & let me Know the prices
But she hasn't written yet. I must ask her
soon. Looking back over the big batch of letters
I got some days ago that I had not
time to properly answer I see that there
is one dated the 16^th June our wee Laddies
birthday when he got his new suit. Is
he getting anyway good looking now dearie 
 

[* 2 previous pages omitted. *]
I saw Cam Stewart today. He is looking very well. His
^brigade did wonderful work with my boys in and
around a city which we took. There is a
little jealousy between the 58^th ^and one of 
Norman Marshalls new Batts eaching
claiming to have done something that the other
says they did. I don’t Know about Geordie
& Lyn not getting on well together. Perhaps she
would by always putting forth her best efforts to be
nice to him ^& have ^to become nice for always &
so improved out of all recognition in a few
years. I think association with you & a
desire to please you always by doing that
which I Knew you would like me to do
has helped me a lot don’t you ? Oh about
old Stafford. Would you mind it very much
if I asked you to give the old chap one of
the Gallipoli Turk's shells. & one of the
Brass Cartridge cases. I have a number of
others in England if I ever can get them
safe back to you. I Know the poor
old chap would be delighted to get
one. He took such pains to get them for 
me & to pack them so carefully for me
Another letter is a teeny tiny one dated
17^th June. telling me about Mr & Mrs Tonkin
& Mr & Mrs Innis at Weeroona. 
 

Another is the 9^th June – telling me about Hugh
Morrow coming to see you. I am so glad he got
home safely. I hear he has become engaged
to be married since his return home. Have
you heard of it ? I did not get Hugh's cable
yet. Oh in Dhusach's letter she said Uncle
Rory wanted them to go up to Toke for their
next holidays. You didn't tell me that.
If it is the winter time I hope you will go
The laddie would have a lovely time with 
all the animals. Dont Know how Mrs Rory
would manage with the extra work though.
In that letter too you tell me about your
Cousin forrom Tassy. I remember perfectly well
how scared you were she’d take a fit while
you were even at her house. You poor little
thing. I hope she wont have fit at your
house. It would scare the Kiddies terribly.
Oh Katie don't smile Big. But our little
Sperriky General when congratulating some
of my boys yesterday on the "Scrap" they
put up here said he was convinced
there was no better General than myself
at the present time in the France. Don't
Know whether he was pulling my leg 
 

or not or only trying to flatter me
& put me in a good humor again.
Did I tell you that whilst the Big attacks
were on I was right up & saw it all.
Then an order came through to make
another attack which would have
meant a sort of Light Brigade Charge
for myself ^my own & some of Cam Stewart’s
men. So I rang up our Sperrik ^General &
told him that I would do it if he
ordered me but that ^as it was such ^stark
madness I would resign my Command
rather than serve under him again.
So he cancelled the order. Later he
admitted I was quite right & this
little speech was I think intended
to smoothe my feathers down a bit
But it is a pretty big compliment even
then dearie. But I Don’t think I will
get swelled head. I Know just what I am
& whatever their opinion may be I never
change mine but go along indifferent
to anyone’s thoughts except ^yours those of
my darling wifelet. Katie dearie I
think your prayers are being answered
I dont feel half as scared now as I used 
 

to be in the beginning of^my responsibility shells & things
& I seem to have as much judgement as
most of the “Generals around so Keep on
praying darling ^though that I may always have
wisdom & courage worthy of my station
Another letter from you is dated the 18^th 
June. I had a Cable from Lt Seward. He
is Leo Seward’s brother you Know – who
used to play for ’varsity. He says he is
passed fit so I have asked for him
back. Lt Moon is back. I am helping
him to his Captaincy soon. Capt Aram
was Killed whilst advancing to the attack on
Polygon Wood. He is one of Cam Stewarts
men. He was Killed just on the edge of
the Glencorse wood an awful place
for shelling. There was a bit of a mystery
about his burial. A party went up after
we were relieved to get Capt Dickenson & 
Capt Aram’s bodies & bury them at
Dickebooche Cemetery alongside of Geordie
They found Dickenson but could not find
Aram. Cam Stewart told me he thought
some of the other troops must have
buried the body. I never heard that
it had been blown to pieces but that is possible 
 

I can only say that he was Killed instantly
by a shell whilst advancing through
Glencorse wood (just near where Geordie
was Killed a few hours later) at the
head of his Company. Poor wee Laddie
Isn’t it strange that he thought differently
of Mr Trowbridge’s death than of his
Uncles. He is older now I suppose & realizes
better that he will never see them again when
the go like this. Tell Dear I got both the Sperriky ^little letter
& the 5^th page of the Same edition by the Same mail
Dear wee sweet Katie will you be truly & really
well enough to make love to me real good when I come
home. But what a weary wait – Fancy two
long years after the war ends dearie. Well be
thinking of our graves then I think. Yet
we’ll be in love still wont we sweetheart
pet lady.
I had a very wee little letter from Mrs Ronald
Dickson. Her man is now coming back to us
I hope he doesn’t get hit – She seems to think
the world of him.
We have had very hot weather & very dusty
roads till today but real winter seems
to have set in today. It is pouring rain
& quite cold too. – I suppose we must prepare
[* to sit down in the mud & slush for another winter
as all advancing will soon become out of the question
Millions of love & Kisses darling for you & the wee laddie & Dhusach
from your very own Dida *] 
 

France
12/9/18
My darling Katie,
I haven’t a scrap more
news to tell you. We are still
resting. It was Norman Marshalls
new Bn in the 14^th Brigade that
took all the [[n?]] part of  ----- 
the town I told you of and did
Splendidly. He got the famous
old citadel and all the
Southern Ramparts. My boys
took the Northern Ramparts
and after a long & difficult
struggle got the Railway ^Station &
the Eastern & Southern Suburbs.
Cam Stewart was a bit snake
headed for a bit about it. He
reckoned that his boys took
it or would have taken it all
only my boys chipped in. Now
however he is coming round to
admit that his boys ^were exhausted and would
have probably been licked
or at any rate have lost 
[* P.S. I believe old Birdwood 
is breaking up weak
to get the A.I.F. back under
hes our Command
and General Rawlinson
who has us now event
give us up. I am delighted
& broke old Birdie E  *]
 

very heavily trying to take the
lot. & in any case the
Division had ordered us to
do what we did and that
should be the end of it. I think
it will be all right now but
people are queer. I have
helped both Stewart & Norman
Marshall on a lot & would
be the last to injure them &
yet at the first difficulty
Cam Stewart turned Snake
headed  He is ^was always very touchy I
think ^Know about his command. However I hope it
will be all right again.
Anyhow tell his people which
is quite Correct that Cam
Stewarts Brigade fought
Splendidly & Norman Marshalls
people that his Bn took the
town & Citadel of -         - the City
^I mentioned in my last letter as being in “Quentin Durward”
& you will probably guess its
name & that both are 
 

looking the picture of health.
At the same time my boys had an
even more difficult task for
our attack had to be made not
over the open but across Bridges ^which ran across
a wide river & marsh ^& had been destroyed
by explosives as far as possible – but
whose broken beams still gave
a precarious foothold & that These
ruins were under machine gun
^& artillery fire & my boys took them & repaired
them under fire &^sufficiently to crossed &
finished the job of Stewarts Brigade
as Division ^had ordered us to do
& we got very great credit for
it and this I think made
Stewart a bit jealous as he
felt that they had taken at least
2/3rds of the place & were not given 
so much credit as they should
have been. Certainly my boys
feat was the most sensational 
 

and spectacular & I had to do
it all at about a moments
notice & nearly galloped my
poor old black horse to death
to get the boys going in time
Certainly they behaved splendidly
& deserved all the Credit they
got though Stewart probably
got less than he deserved merely
because ours seemed to overshadow
it. I hear Billy Hughes is to
Come & see us tomorrow.
If he turns up I’ll tell you all
about it later on. I am enclosing
a letter I got from Mrs Ronald
Dickson also the latest one
from Jessie Campbell. I thought
what she says about “the Sacraments”
would interest your mother. It seems
very like the Boers festival of
the Nachmaal. & is probably
similar in Origin. I enclose
also a letter I got some time back from
General White. which you can just
[* Keep form me Millions of love & Kisses from
yours very sincerely own Dida Don
D *]