Letters relating to William George Blaskett, 1916-1919 - Part 1










France 18.6.16
My dearest Mother/
I dont think there has been
any time since I left home, when I have written
to you in more pleasant surroundings. I am
writing this, lying on my stomach in the corner
of the field at the back of the farmhouse in which
we are billeted; it is 7.30pm but the sun has
not yet set, and the big guns havent started
their night's work, so all is peaceful. It seems
impossible that the greatest war of all the ages
is raging within a few short miles of us. But as
I write, there comes a sound that recalls me to
the fact that there is a war. Without looking
up I know what it is. A British aeroplane
is passing overhead towards the German lines.
That means the concert is about to start; for the
Huns are sure to fire at her, and she will
probably drop some bombs.
The weather has taken a change for the better
during the last few days & is really summery
now: the first 3 days were very wet and cold.
(Hello, there's 2 more 'planes! Something's going to happen).
I have never received that birthday parcel.
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It's a terrible shame, the way our mail is mismanaged.
Dont send any more parcels or papers; its wasting
money. Aunt Jane has sent me 2 lots of papers
since I got to France. She is good isnt she? I
write to her as often as I can.
While I was in hospital, someone or other, pinched
some of my gear, including my scarf and cap
comforter, & several other small things, so I wrote
to Emmie last Wednesday & asked her to buy send me
a woollen cap of some sort & 2 or 3 handkerchiefs.
I hadnt any money at the time, as I had drawn
no pay for about 6 or 7 weeks, so told her the state
of my finances & said I would send in 2 or 3 days
when we were paid. We were paid today, so I'm
sending her 10/- xx. I think thats enough dont you?
There doesnt seem much chance of leave to
England for ^some time yet, but hope to get there sooner
or later.
I trust you are all well at home. Am
pleased to say my hand is splendid now, though I
still have a bit of bandage round it, to keep
out the cold, for its still rather cool at nights.
The Australian boys were very much surprised
when we first got here to find that it
was light till nearly 11 oclock at night and
got bright again just after 2 in the morning.
They couldnt understand twilight at all.
Now I close, for there's no news to tell you,
at least any I could tell after signing the
certificate on the envelope. The privilege of not
having your letters censored is too good to be
abused.
My fondest love to your dear self, dad & Modge
from your loving son
Will.
I signed a form yesterday increasing my
allotment to you (or the Bank, rather) to 6/-
per day from 1st June. They should get
notice of the change about 2 or 3 weeks after
you get this letter. I was pleased to hear
the account was mounting up, but please
mother, dont stint yourselves just for the sake of
the money. You know you're welcome to all of
it. I have allotted myself 2/6 per day. I
think that will be ample.
PTO
I was counting up my deferred pay today. It is
mounting up.
Theres from Oct 27 to Mar8 (114 days) @ 1/- per day = 5. 14. 0
Mar 9 to April 13 (whilst corporal) (36 days) @ 1/6 " " = 2. 14. 0
April 14 to June 18 ( " sergt) (66 days) @ 2/- " " = 6. 12. 0
15. 0. 0
Just £15 today. dont forget to claim
it if any thing happens to me. Did you ever
get that Will I made in Mitcham. I dont
remember you mentioning in any letter, though
I suppose it's alright. Anyway, in case it isnt
I'm making another in my paybook in exactly
the same terms.
Goodbye, for the present.
Keep smiling, we're going to win, whatever
it costs.
W
A Coy
48 Battn
12th Brigade
26-6-16
My dearest Mother,
You will remember me telling
you that a bundle of letters was sent to the
Hospital for me, which I did not receive. Fortunately,
it came to hand last night. It contained your
letters dated 4th, 9th, and 18th April, dad's dated 16-4-16
and Charlie's of same date. I had a glorious
read last night. They will keep me going for
some time now for I always read my home
mail over and over again. I was very pleased
with The Young Pretender's letter. It was a great
improvement on his usual efforts. I hope he will
keep it up. I am very sorry to hear goor old
Reg Gould was disappointed about coming away.
It's very hard luck. Still, "Its better to have joined
and lost, than never to have joined at all."
He has the satisfaction of knowing he was willing
to do his bit, which is more than a good
many have. Am glad to hear you are getting
so much better and stronger. Let's hope the
illness has done you good and that your
2
health will improve. We have had a few more
wet days just lately, but the boys don't mind
much. It's dry in the barns, & when it rains we
dont have to drill so, its quite alright, as far
as they are concerned. Most of us had colds
at first, but the majority have got rid of them
now, and the effect of this glorious climate is
making itself apparent. Two days ago, I
received a parcel from Emmie, containing
handkerchiefs & a scarf, so I'm quite equipped
again. Its is very nice to get the English papers
herex. I buy my old friend The Daily Chronicle
nearly every morning. On Monday, we get Saturdays
issue, on Tuesday, Monday's & so on. It's a
change after Egypts, especially after being in the
Canal Zone, where we never saw a paper except an
occasional Egyptian Mail or Times of Egypt which
contained absolutely no news whatever. I'm pleased
to tell ^you my hand is quite right again. I dont
even wear a bandage now.
According to the papers the Russians again
are doing splendidly; at the same time in spite
of their victories & the fact that we are more than
3
holding our own, along the Western front. I think the
end of the war is a long way ahead yet. I think be
the Bosches would jump at the chance of making
peace now, but it couldnt be anything but very
unsatisfactory to us at present. We must beat
them so much that it will many many years
before they can fight again, if they ever can. I, for
one, would rather have 2 or 3 years more now, than
in a few years time, have to start again, & I
should say that's the general feeling amongst the
fighting men. I saw in the Chronicle casualty
lost a few days ago the announcement of the death
of J C Blackett, Aust. Inf. & wondered if it was
Joe Blackett, son ^of the Revd. Blackett.
I am sending Aunt Jane a small silk
handkerchief, with the Allied flags, very nicely
embroidered on it & the word "Greetings from France".
I think she will like it. Hope so, anyway.
Of course, I can't tell you anything about
where we are or what we are doing, but all
the time you get letters from me you can guess
I'm pretty right.
I remain with fondest love to all
Your loving son
Will
PTO
PS I forgot to mention I received your parcel
containing 2 prs socks safely for which many
thanks. Bill was short & I have quite a
number, so I gave him the dark pair, which
were the bigger of the two. He sends his kind
regards & thanks.
I think we shall be able to do with
plenty of warm socks here, especially later
in the year.
If I run out at any time will send
to Emmie. The scarf she sent me belonged
to either Ernie or Percy, & they left it behind
I'm glad she didn't have to buy it as
now she will have the 10/- for the kiddies.
I knew she wouldn't accept the money
for the scarf, so said "if there is any over, buy
something for the kids" It's the only way to
get here to accept anything. She's as proud as
the rest of the family, which is saying something.
She told me in her letter she had received your
parcel & the kids were fearful swells, now
A Coy
48 Bn
26-6-16
Dear old dad/
Many thanks for your letter of 16-4-16
and paper cuttings. Am glad to hear business
is good. As long as that's so, I dont worry. As
I told mother in my previous letter, I have
increased my allotment to the Bank to 6/- a
day so things should be alright now. You
say you would like me to be home by next
April 18. No one would like it more than I
should; all the same, I dont see much chance
of it happening. You say you think I'm
getting bloodthirsty. If you heard just a few
of the things I have heard in France, you would
be bloodthirsty yourself. The Germans were
all through this district in Oct 1914, & some of
them slept in the loft I sleep in, & where I'm
writing this. (No wonder the place is lousy)
In the churchyard of the village church
are buried a few Britishers, killed in action.
It also ^contains (what is, I think, a splendid piece of
Christianity) a simple wooden cross with the
words "Un Allemand" (a German). These things
make you realise there is a war. But what
stirs you is a tombstone like this.
A la memoire de Henri -
age 19, massacre par Les
Allemands, October 1914.
Charlie can translate it for you. It isnt the
only one either & some of the victims aren't
anywhere near 19. The church itself, with
its broken windows, and shrapnel-spitted
roof, xxxxxx its broken altars &
choir stalls, full of gaping holes, bears eloquent
testimony to the barbarism of the enemy, &
calls for revenge. While one is thinking these
thoughts, there comes the boom of the big
guns just three or four miles away or a
terrific explosion ^from some land mine or bomb telling that Britain has still
got her teeth in the enemy's neck & will
choke ^him gradually, but surely.
Mr Hughes seems to be intent on making
a fool of himself aided and abetted by the
newspapers. That's the beauty of Australian
Laborism. It's all for the people. But the

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