Cecil Mills Collection - Wallet 3 - Part 3 of 17

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working, but as per usual nothing happened.
Was up in two Artillery Observation Posts this
morning & had a lovely look over the German trenches
& far beyond as well. Also had a yarn to Major
Joe Shellshear of the Artillery, last time I saw
him he was a big lump of a snowy headed kid at
Goulburn going to Kings College. Always meeting
someone or other over here that I knew previously.
Loud Cheers, The mail has got as far as Brigadier
so we should get the commencement of it tomorrow.
The parcel with the tin of tobacco, sox thanks came
along today. Very many thanks old Girlee they are
all jolly useful, & it will be good to have a smoke of
Lucy Hindon again. The 3rd PC was also there and I
really believe I like it better even than the other two
But they are all lovely, each one is so wonderfully
natural.  I love them all. Have got to check myself
of the habit of hauling out Johns Pocket Book &
showing them to people. It would be awful to
become a bore on the subject wouldn't it. Pay Day
today & they made me take 130 Francs, about ₤4/10p
I had about that much, beforehand and I also have
about ₤10 in my Pay Book so I'm fairly wealthy.
No more now, Dinner is ready & I'm going to
bed immediately afterwards, ready for my 4.30am
joke in the morning ∼ Letters tomorrow
perhaps, Loud Cheers!!
 

Sunday Morn
Yesterday was a disastrous day, shortly
after we started on our 5 1/2 mile walk, it
commenced to rain, & none of us had coats as
it did not look like rain when we started. We
all got sopping wet However we knocked off
work a bit early, at 10 o'clock and got home
about 11.30. I went straight to bed and stayed
there until tea time, while my Batman got my
Clothes dry. It is rather awkward getting wet
when one only has 1 rigout. Felt very tired,
turned in again at 8 o'clock & stayed there, until
8 this morning our Battalion did not have to
send a party today and I was glad to get a spell I
can tell you. The OC informed me this morning
that he has put me in for a spell. Next Wednesday
I am to go away to a Special Bombing School.
Don't know where it is to be yet but hope it will be
in some decent town. There will be plenty of work, but
that does not matter as long as one has regular
sleep at night time. Am glad now that I drew
some pay. May be able so buy some more clothes.
Can't buy anything about here. My bally boots
are almost worn through and I can't get them
mended without leaving them for 2 days and when
I've only got 1 pair that is impossible. I often
silently curse Foley for getting drunk and losing all
my spare Kit.
 

5

Got a note from Gordon & Gotch yesterday, can't
quite make it out, so am sending it to you. Did
you pay them the money £1:12:0 to send me the
Argus or are they suggesting I should send
them the money, so that they will send it to me? I
never get any. Have not had an Argus for months.
If you, have subscribed for me, will you get them
To cut out 6th Reinforcements and put D Coy instead.
If you have not done it I would not bother, as
lots of chaps get papers, particularly the Australian
that gives all the news of importance. The mail
started so drift in yesterday, so I'm looking for some
from you this afternoon old girl. I sent you
a Cable during the week, as it only cost me 9p 
a word guess it would go week end, so you should
get it tomorrow or Tuesday. We can send Cables
through our Quarter Master. He gets them away
through our Army Post Office. We've been out now for 2
weeks & most of the men are anxious to get back
to the Trenches for a "Spell". They reckon it is
harder work, out than in, and for the Chaps that have
struck the Trench Digging, they are about right.
Wet miserable day today, and its good not to have to
go out.  There is Hot Roast Beef for dinner today, so
with a 6p jug of Beer that is like bewitched water
we will have a real Christmas Dinner. The Beer is
brown, that's how we know it is Beer.
 

6
Not much more old Gerber in this
one, but I expect to start another tonight
in answer to about 6 I'll get from you
this afternoon. So Aurevoir for the time
being. With Heaps of love old Bettie to
my Bestest.
Your ever loving old man
Cecil
 

THE WORLD PRESS AGENCY

GORDON & GOTCH
123 PITT STREET,
SYDNEY LTD

8th March 1916

Dear Sir,
We beg to notify you that your subscriptions to
the undermentioned Periodicals are about to expire.
All subscriptions are payable in advance, and we
shall be pleased to receive your instructions in accordance
with the particulars appearing below, in time to
ensure an unbroken supply.
Yours faithfully
CORDON & GOTCH (Sydney) LTD.

0. A. S
Abroad

Mrs. CB. Mills
c/- Dr A Burne
"Kinellan"
Dalley Street
Waverley
New South Wales
Australia
 

France
14:5:16
Dearest, continuing our little talk of this
morning, 2 dear old letters came along this
afternoon, also the parcel with the sox,
cigarettes and most useful paper. Thanks muchly
old Dear. Am well supplied with socks again
now, but there are plenty of chaps who are
very hard up for these.  The machine knitted
ones supplied by the Army are not to be compared
with the hand, knitted ones. Had a bit of luck
this afternoon. Was telling you in this mornings
letter about my boots being worn out, Met one of
our Officers this afternoon who had indented
for a pair of trench boots through the British
Ordnance. They are beautiful boots, come right
to the knee (almost) & are quite watertight.
They cost £1.16.9. The boots did not quite fit
this other chap so I bought them from him, so
am quite Ok again now. The little French girls
effort seems to be very attractive, only wish I could
pass my "expert" opinion upon the skirt & coat,
but they will not be worn out before I return so
my chance will come. Was so sorry old Pettie to
know you were down over your old man.
The war is a cursed thing, we are merely unfortunate
that it came in our time, but I'd much sooner
have it now than 20 years later when Johnnie would

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have to come. The bally thing will end up one
of these days and then everything will be all
joy and brightness again, so keep your pecker
up old Darling and remember Peter Doodys old
Motto "Always Merry & Bright". But it must be
admitted that it is well over the odds not to have
your husband handy, when the leg wants rubbing
with the furniture polish.  All these things however
will be attended to in due course.  Fancy poor
old Johnnie boy getting double teeth, its grand to
know he is keeping so well in spite of the teeth. He is
over 14 months old now, surely you are not nursing
him any longer. Don't you be taking too much out
of yourself old girl. All the time I've been on this
trench digging business have been down near the
20st Batt. They were the ones that got a gruelling
about 10 days ago. The Huns gave part of their
line an awful doing with Artillery, concentrated
on about 250 yards of the parapets and poured in
between 15,000 and 20,000 shells in an hour and 1/4.
There were about 100 casualties, not many killed
hope S. Bond was not among them. He gave rather
a good a/c of the evacuation of Gallipoli. My OC.
was left in charge of Lone Pine with 80 men. That
was rasher an important job!  I forgot to tell you
the letters were numbered 31. 32 & as the mail
left a week after the previous one, and it is two weeks
today since we had any, that means there is another
mail due now, so there may be something doing again
any day. Gee Whizz but I'll be swell with a pair of

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socks made out of Brown + Red Wool, Pity that
socks do not show outside Puttees, could put
all the other blighters in the shade then, having
Battalion colours on my legs as well as on my
Arms. The old dad did write a nice letter. Is
Annie Dangar coming to the conclusion that
there is more in Commercial life than there is in
art. I really believe that Boyd system Shorthand
is quite up to what they reckon it is, & a great
improvement on the old style, owing to the rapidity
in which a certain amount of proficiency can be
attained. Wrote to old CW Wren today, rather
spread myself & wrote quite a decent letter. Hope
he does not appoint Williams permanently to Ascot
Vale, as I want to go back there with you for a
while. No more tonight old Pettie. Next
mail closes with us on 18th, so I may get another
off before then. With more love to my Bestest
Ever
Your ever & always loving husband
Cecil