Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his sister-in-law, January 1917 - April 1919 - Part 7

France
24/8/17
My dear Baaby,
Heaps of thanks for your
little letter of the 2^nd June which
was drowned but came alive again
and so had better luck than the fat one
which must have been drowned
altogether or perhaps it was one
of those that I got so long ago. Anyhow
it seemed about a million years
since I got one. People tell me
that they have got letters up to some time
in July because they were sent
Via America. I hope some of yours
will take that route as I hear the
Germans have sunk another boat
coming from Australia the other
way. I am delighted to hear of Nana
& mum & the bairns being so very
much better. It is splendid. I agree
with you that it was better to give up
the new house in spite of its prettiness.
I haven’t a Scrap of news. The
Bosches come over each night & try &
drop bombs on our houses but so
far they haven’t hurt any of my boys
The people living here are very scared
& would like us to get a move on
I think. Don’t Know how soon we will
be going but I hear that the mud is
 

perfectly scandalous up at the front
about where. they are doing the main
push just now. I Know about Mrs
Coleman’s son. wh He is not [[ ^very ]] well
educated & I cannot do much to help him
but she has a nephew named Freeman
who is a Solicitor at Geelong. He is a
Very smart boy a Major under Colonel
Denehy 58^th Bn. He is at present in
England doing a Class to fit him for
Colonel.
Jacky boy is back with his Brigade &
Geordie is looking well. Eric Walker
is trying to get a job into the Flying Corps
He had to go to some place to be examined
but I don’t Know yet – whether he got it
or not.
I wish this silly old war was over
a person [[ ^man ]] is only a flat to join up unless
there is conscription to compel everyone
to do his share
I never thought it could have lasted
anything like 3 years & no end in
sight yet. & but for America things [[ ^{would be} ]]
looking worse than ever. – the French
have hardly any men left – Goodness
Knows whether the Russians will ever
buck up & fight again. In any case
the Germans just as I feared are
 

sending thousands of troops across
from the Russian Front to stop
our advance here feeling they are
quite safe on that side for the time
being. With the crops they are getting from
Roumania & their own lands there seems
absolutely no chance of starving
them out. True their men are not fighting
nearly so well as in the beginning but
neither are the British. Seeing
the way recruiting has died out
in Australia I don’t see how we
can expect to get any sufficient
number of recruits to fill up the
gaps in the next battle. Here we
have been out of the line going on
4 months costing the Country
Millions all for [[ ^doing ]] nothing at all –
because they Know if we are put in
the line once we would be no good
to them again for months & months
& so they prefer to Keep us out of it
altogether for some special occasion
It may be all right for us but it will
never win the war. I wonder how much
longer old Hughes is going to humbug
about Conscription. Heaps of Pogues
Yours ever
Dida.
 

France
31/8/17
My dear Baaby,
Two letters from you
this week & three from Katie – So you
can guess I am all smiles. So I suppose
you reckon you are carrying out the advice
of the soldier man to write pages & pages to
us. Well if you have made a start maybe
you will be able to do better in the future. Oh
I wonder if you got the photo – I Knew you’d
be wanting one so I sent you [[ won ? ]] one as
soon as possible but I’m feared the fishes
have got them. Elliott & Fry wrote on the 15^th
May that they had all been despatched by
that date but I’m in fear & trembling
lest they went by the Mongolia & all
got drowned. There were some for
Lyn & Ickie Auntie & Lyn [[ ^{Violet too} ]] – It will be sad
indeed if they are truly & really drowned. I
am glad the [[ ^my ]] old lady was pleased with
them. Its lovely that she & the Bairnies &
Nana are so much better at Surrey Hills. Do
you think they’d be as well at Malvern
Fancy that little rubbish of a Dhurach being
able to criticize your writing. It is just
wonderful how the little sperrik [[ ^thing ]] is progressing in
mind & body. She’ll be sorting me next [[ ^{for my writing} ]] I
suppose. I quite agree with you about
the Recruiting. It has become a complete
farce. We have been loafing about for
nearly 4 months now & not a fight
 

all the time. It may be very nice for us but
it isn’t war & it wont win. What we
should be doing is pegging away at the
old Bosche for all we are worth night
& day. Our offensive has come completely
to a standstill for the time being.
I am glad you tell me all the wee peoples
saying you can rememeber. You should have
a pencil & notebook & write them all down &
then when you write to me you wouldn’t forget
any of them. Can they read writing yet
at all. The letters that would get drowned
in the Mongolia were those which dealt
so far as I can make out with the
fighting at Bullecourt where my 58^th
Boys did so well – & Col Denehy won
his D.S.O. & Moon his V.C.  Dawson
Anderson & [[ Knackey ? ]] M.C’s & a number
of the Men got D.C M’s & Military Medals
It was a fine fight. I sent copies of
Denehy’s report which was very interesting
out in the letter & wrote to Mrs Marshall
at the same time & sent her a copy. It is
too bad. If it had only happened about
a fortnight later it wouldnt have mattered
a bit because we were all out of the 
line then & nothing interesting to
write about at all. If there was a
mail which closed about the 20^th [[ ^May ]] it will
be all right but if there was none between the
 

15^th & the 31^st May then they are settled.
I will Keep the address you send
of Mrs Rhoderick Campbell – but I don’t think
I will be in Manchester at all.
I have talked to the laddie in my letters &
[[ ^{asked him} ]] not to tease Gagy [[ ^Dhurach ]]. Do you think it has any
effect? I expect the little rascal forgets pretty soon.
Tell me Baaby is Gagy the one with you still
or do you like the laddie just as well. Katie
told me about the laddie being drefful broke up [[ ^{very sad} ]]
when he found you hadn’t come back from the
Warnambool trip when he expected you had. He
seems a loving wee chap & I’m hopeful that will
cure his mischief in the end. He won’t like to
worry people when he is old enough to Know.
Are the little people shy now with Strangers.
Its a wonder Mrs Roberts didn’t write in
time to catch that mail. She mostly
does when she has been over. She Knows
I like to hear of the Bairnies. I didn’t
Know old Peggy at all except from hearing
you speak of her. I am sorry poor Mrs
Carmichael is ill. You don’t mention
Henry Trowbridge this letter. I suppose you
hadn’t heard how he was getting on.
Please give him my Kindest regards if
& when you see him again & say I hope
to see him well enough to meet me
on the pier when I come home. Oh 
 

about Major Swift. I got his photo the other
day. He is in England studying to pass
an Exam for Colonel.
He is only a youngster still though
a great big fellow. I dont think he
can be more than 22 or so & was
only a youngster when he left so there
couldn’t have been much of an
engagement about it. They ought
both to have been well smacked if they
were. He is a good boy as boys go
& a fine soldier very plucky & the men
like him – not as well educated as
I like my officers to be but smart
enough all the same. I just wish I
Knew what was going to happen after the
war. I’don’t Know whether there will be
any jobs for anybody the Govt will be scandalous [[ ^very ]]
hard up I think
That Boy Head is much to young to come
over if he is only 17. Genl Birdwood has
given strict orders that boys like that are
not to be taken into the firing line but given
jobs at the Rear, but this is only waste
of good Government money & those who
take them on ought to be sacked. I have
about 40 of them amongst them two not
16 yet. It is no manner of use fooling round
with Conscription on these lines. It
is doing our best to defeat ourselves that is all 
 

His [[ ^{Young Head’s} ]] brother was a fine boy. I am wondering
what Grandma was doing up at Tocumwal
again. The first letter Katie wrote about that
must have got drowned or something. I
wondered if there was a family starting but
Geordie said he heard there was no news
of that so far. I was led to think of the
bairnies by your remark about all the
babies & all the big people being together which just
follows the news of Grandma being at Toke. I had
a very nice postcard with Judith & [[ Dindi ? ]] on
it. Judith looks the dearest little pet [[ ^thing ]]. Do you
remember a snap shot you [[ ^I ]] took of Dhurach you took [[ ^I ]]
at Ballarat when she would stick her little foot
out. Judith just looks like Violet did then in
my recollection of her., Jack [[ ^{then Geordie} ]] had a nice picture card
photo of his little imp. She looked just as
bright & bonny as anyone could wish. I am
waiting patiently for you to get some [[ ^taken ]] of the
little people for me. The Y.M.C.A. have got a
good idea now. If a man wants a snap shot
of his babies & wife he sends their address
to the Y.M.C.A. & the latter sends some enthusiastic
person along to snap them & send the
photo up photos across. Its a splendid
idea for the men who havent got a “Baaby”
to take snaps of their wee people. But I’d
like a studio picture too. It will be
3 years very soon since they were last
taken. I like that one of you but not 
 

the one of Katie on the postcard & the Bairnies
havent come at all yet. I dont Know who
took the photo of Violets babies. It has no
name on it at all.
It has been pouring rain the most of
this week. On Wednesday we had a 
Review by Sir Douglas Haig. He said
he was well pleased by [[ ^with ]] the appearance [[ ^{of my boys} ]] &
the manoevres we did before him. May
be he will give us a job soon. The rain held
up for the inspection but we all got a
wetting [[ ^drenching ]] going home
This is just about all the news
Baaby dear. Geordie is to go on leave
to England on Sunday I think – today
is Friday – I could have gone too but
I am feeling pretty well & I want to
send the [[ ^my ]] old lady another £ £ 50 quidlets
before December so I didn’t go for you
never saw such a place as London to make your
money disappear. I hope to get to
Ullapool when next I go over. I believe
things are cheaper there & the scenery
lovely but I expect it will be near
Xmas before I get there & it will be
cold & bleak enough. One of my officers
has just come back from up north
there. He was the first Australian officer
to go up that way & all the girls chased him
so he says – Dancing every night etc etc.
Well Bye Baaby dear & heaps of pogues yours very sincerely
H E Elliott 
 

Belgium
19/9/17
My dear Baaby,
I Got a fright [[ ^start ]] just now
Was writing a letter to Katie when
some sperrik [[ ^one ]] rang up & told us we
had to be prepared to march any
minute. So I closed up my letter
pretty quick & then later on news
came that we would not be going
up before 7.30 am tomorrow at
the very earliest & maybe not for
several days..
So thats that. I thought you’d have
to wait until the fight was over
before you got an answer to your
letter. However here I am. Maybe its
lucky you are too because from
what I can see its going to be “some”
fight that we’re going into & if I
hadn’t got time to write an answer
I’d have been owing it all my life
maybe. And if my luck is out – I Know
you’ll do your best to help the old lady
& the wee people over the stiles till
they better are able to look after you