Letters from Kenneth Jack Young to his family, 1918 - Part 1

New Years Day, 1918.
Wishing you aLL, & Happy & Peaceful Year,
Next year, at this time, we wiLL aLL
Be Home.
K Young “Prophets”
Dear May,
I have not written to you for some wee time, have I. so must
try and scratch you two or 3 lines just now, but the cold is very
severe this morning, so you must excuse the scratch, my Hands are so
Cold, 100, snowing last Night, like an ice-chest outside in the wind.
As this is New Years Day, we have the Day off, we are able to go
out within a 5 miles radius, far enough for me these times.
there are plenty of wee villages, dozens in fact within this area.
WeLL May I am so pleased to have your Photo you look
OK & so does Connie, TeLL Mum & Dad to go & have theirs taken
I’d be satisfied then, I like the New Photos fine, of course I’ve
managed to stick to the other ones you sent me. some time
ago, you even seem to look much Younger, 12 mths difference.
of course. My word it's cold Lizzie, I bet you don’t know just
how cold my “old” Hands are, I wrote to Mum & Dad a Day
or two back, & gave them most of the News of my wee trip
London, & of the good times I Had there, I’ve Quite settled
Down after it again. You with see I am writing this in the
Yank YM Paper am sending a sheet of it for you to keep.
I Know you will like anything like this, I only wish the Americans
Had a greater number on Active Service, They have many
now of course. WeLL - 1918. I am Quite sure wiLL Bring us
Peace surely it wiLL eh? This time Next Year I Hope to be in
Australia, in the warm sunshine, its wiLL be red Hot there
now no doubt, even if at this time it is nightime, there.
I’m enclosing with this a Photo taken of the chaps in our
hut when in isolation, you wiLL be able to pick the cut
No doubt, on the left top corner, our Hats, you wiLL notice, are
turned down, & badge in Front this, has been the order of the
3^rd Div for 15 mths but yesterday the order came for our hats
 

to be tuned Down, or I should say worn as usual. We are aLL glad
too of course. I've not received any Ausie maiL for 3 weeks now,
but that is nothing is it, I am receiving most of my maiL though
& always on the look out for more-more-more.
Before I forget, tell Mum, I have sent Mrs Sugars, the £5, I Know I
didn't tell Her before, & Mum was always asking, I told Mrs Sugars
that I was in London, I thought at first I would not say anything 

about my leave, but of course she wouldn't mind me
not going down to Worthing, if I didn't feeLlike it.
The Canteen just opened so had a good Hot cup of Cocoa, & a
Couple of Wee Bun, (Afternoon Tea Buns) when on leave I had mostly
Coffee, Tea. can only be served between certain hours now, coffee
so much less a shortage, than tea, we do not get much sugar now either
anywhere. They were expecting an air Raid on London Xmas time at night
I notice the people in London, looking up into the sky, but no raids then
I reckon Fritz is too afraid now, I was speaking to severaL men of the
RoyaL Flying Corps, they aLL reckon London is weLL Defended now, he was
on the Defence of London, Bombs have dropped aLL round
'BuckingHam' Palace, they have a cover over the palace now, & are
putting another one on top of that now, men working Hard at it
so they mean to protect George, I think the Germans are nearly "Napoo"
They have been showing very weak Signs the last few weeks, not
much Longer to wait Lizzie, Clair Ray, & aLL of us with be home before many months before the end of 1918, I bet, that wiLL be long
enough, it wiLL take some time to get us aLL Home.
WeLL May I must conclude, I am feeling weLL only very
Cold. so must Stop.
Very Much Love, to you aLL, and Heaps to self.
I am writing to Connie when I "warm up".
See Mum goes for that holiday, Lizzie, always Do what you
Can. Yrs Ever
Billy xxx
 

Miss May A. Young.
Princes Street
Alberton
Adelaide
South Australia
 

Rear of envelop ~ see Original

I Jan 18

(115) 

6/1/18 Fovant.
Dear Mum & Dad.
Again a few Lines, I Have received 3
more letters 2 from You and 1 from May.
so you will see I am receiving my maiL
Ok now! I am pleased to see everything
was A1- to Date; Hope it continues -
I received the wee Photo of you Mum, I
thought you looked rather worried;
But perhaps it is just the wee PHotos fault.
wee Photos are always the same, of course
I'm delighted to have them, as you know.
Well Mum & Dad (pen no good)
I am getting on OK still, everything
A1. I wrote to May Last Tuesday
New Years Day, my word it was
 

2
cold that day, in the afternoon we

went for a stroll into a village,

5 miles from Here, nice working out

Today it is wet. & pretty cold

I received a very nice letter

from Mrs Sugars a day or two Back
she was glad I had a nice time

in London, & hoped I would be

able to go down to Worthing Soon.

I sent the money some time back

Mum. You always wonder if I
received the £7 alright. Last

maiL I sent a photo of the Boys of

My Hut, & also a wee book or two

Hope you receive them alright.
I am pleased you Have received

most of my letters, I think I've sent

one of those photos of me in Hosp

Rig I've sent so many Different

Cards etc, but I am sure one of these

wiLL be amongst them. Could
you send some Views of Australia
 

3
Adelaide & Melbourne etc, I'd like

two or 3 of each City & State
just to show to anyone interested
I often wish I had some of these.
Has P. Tonkin left yet, & what

is he in? perhaps wiLL strike Him
Next Saturday I may go into
Salisbury, it's about 12 miles or so
from Here, so will Hire a Bike.
I've never been inside the Cathedral
there its one of the finest in England
so I am told, so I must see it.
Salisbury to very old fashioned I know
But I like places like that.
We Hear, or rather See by papers
that they are not enlisting in
Australia. Of course they won't now.
 we Hear aLL Sorts of things about
 

our Divisions, Goodness Knows what
they will Do with them Now, some
of them 1 or 2 anyway are Down at
Boulogne, don't Know what they are
doing their, just a spell I expect.
The 3rd Div in the line No doubt
there wiLL Be great alterations soon.
Yes, any maiL addressed C/o Miss N.

wiLL be sent on to me Mum aLL
my maiL comes through the

London Base, (first to France) & the
Base sends them to Miss N, & so on.
that is the best way I know of, then
I am not getting papers, & so far the
short Bread has not turned up, Did
I tell you that Miss Young sent
me a lovely parcel from Scotland.
Scotch - Short Bread, Cake Socks, my
word wasn't I pleased too, the
Bread, Cake etc was lovely, of course
I wrote and thanked them, I received
this just before Xmas, so it was A1.
 

Some reinforcements arrived - reaLLy
men from Tasmania, some look
pretty sick on it, of course not fit.
Fancy Young Sinclair KiLLed
what a crowd of chaps KiLLed we
Know, aren't there? Yet our "crowd"
seem to stick it Clair will be OK

I'm sure, poor old chap.
Are you stiLL in the aLL British

League? we were speaking about this

League this morning, so the soldiers.
voted for Conscription this time - but
not a very Big majority 700 odd.
I was thinking if the civil population
had even Done as weLL - It would
have been OK, it's stiLL aLL the
talk in this camp.
I expect to be in England for
several more weeks Yet, of course
We never know these times Quite what
may come next to light.
You were asking me if Mrs
 

Plant was anything like Mrs Ronald
Yes very much Mum, but a strange
thing she doesn't speak Nearly so
Broad as Mrs Ronald, very nice people.
I will go and see Mrs Robertson
Mother some time when I'm in London
Well Dear Mum & Dad, I think I
must Conclude, nothing much to
write about is there
WeLL Good Bye, Hoping you
are all OK I am tip top A1 - OK
Very much Love to You Both
Yrs Ever
William xxxxxxx
Remember me to Miss Dach?