Diary of Second Lieutenant Harold Gordon Cornell- 1916-1917- Part 2

Wed Jan 17th.
Another cold day, although the frost is over,
& most of the snow has disappeared.
Progressed a little today with buzzer, but
must arrange for special instruction.
Squadron drill this afternoon from 3-4 p.m.
No letters have yet arrived from Lincoln
Am staying in tonight to write.
Thurs Jan 18th Weather still cold, but warmer
than yesterday : progress on buzzer very
slow, sergeant has promised me an
hours special practice tomorrow. Squadron
drill this afternoon 3-4, was horrible
failure; sergeants apparently knew less
about the work than the men. Walked 
into Farnboro tonight, bought a few
supplies; could not find a shop to
develop my films : had supper at the 
S&S club, & walked home.
Friday Jan 19th. The sergeant was as good
as his word this morning & after giving
me a start himself, he detailed a young
R.F.C. chap to send to me at my own pace.
Results were pretty fair. This afternoon 
we had our first technical exam, on
elementary electrical work. It was
absurdly simple. Received our first
mail (2 letters) sent in from Lincoln
I am stopping in tonight to write.
Sat. Jan 20th This morning our party
were taken to the outstation, &
set to work digging a drainage
trench round the guard & store room. I
don't think anyone overworked on the job.
At 11 am we started back, & had a 
(so-called) medical inspection before dinner.
About 2p.m. Hayles & I, with a couple 
of others, took a risk & started for
Aldershot, which is about 30 minutes
walk from our barracks. The town
seems to be swarming with soldiers,
a civilian being quite a rarity.

One met officers every few paces
till the job of saluting became
monotonous; thereafter we "saw" very
few officers. Many of the Tommies mistook
us in our B.W's for officers, & we were
saluted quite frequently, much to 
our amusement. I left my films as
Boots', the chemists for development.
We visited the Y.M.C.A. Soldiers & Sailors Club
& two or three other institutes. Had tea
at the "Good Luck" cafe, where we had
the experience (scarcely a pleasant one)
of paying 3/4, for two eggs on a slice of
toast, bread & butter & a cup of tea.
No more "Good Luck" cafe's for me
at 5.30 we joined the queue outside the
Hippodrome. (Early love Pit 9^d & 2^d tax)

The show was not bad, Sugar & Spice,
& certainly spicy. We were out by 7.30.
& shortly  after set off home.
Sunday Jan 21st. This morning we hoped
for a route march, but were
detailed off again for gardening,
under the charge of a 2/A.M. We
at once proclaimed a strike, & sought
to be paraded to the O.O. However it
turned out there was no O.O. in the 
camp, & the S.M. pleaded that he
was acting under orders & could
not help us. So we went back to
work (?) & put in the time till 12 am
mostly running races, & talking to
the some of the Tommies.
Monday Jan 22nd. Visited town tonight
& collected the washing, returning home
again early. Received a note today from Ted.
Tuesday Jan 23. Received letter from bank,
today; credit can be renewed by cabling, cost
£1-4 : will wait. Weather very cold today.
still progressing slowly on the buzzer. Extra
guards have been placed round the
barracks to prevent men breaking isolation
but Hayles and I got through safely & visited
Farnbro' for bread & sugar. The latter

is getting very scare indeed, & we were
only able to secure 1/2 a pound, & probably 
will not be able to get that next time.
Wed. Jan 24th
Colder than ever today, but no snow.
This evening after tea, we were lined
up before the orderly room & paid, by
Mr Ross, who had come down from Lincoln.
I had only about 2/- due, but was paid 25/-
so I am about 3 weeks overdrawn; the 
others were paid up to date. This
evening received a letter from F.A.Allen
of L'pool Y.M.C.A. telling me that his son
is here in barracks. Located him in
Block A.4 & had a yarn with him; he
seems a very nice chap, age 19, is to leave
for France almost immediately.
Thursday Jan 25 No news worth mentioning
Friday Jan 26. The 2nd exam took place
this afternoon, work still on elementary
Elec & Mag. The dinner & concert for
Australia day takes place tonight. Allen
Is coming with me.
Sat Jan 27. The dinner yesterday was
a great success. The W.O. had superintended
all arrangements, & the cooks of the
sergeants mess had prepared a great 
meal for us & the concert went with
a good swing all through. Most of 
the sergeants were present & also
several of the R.F.C chaps, invited by
their friends. I took Alf Allen  with
me. We closed up just before 11 p.m.
by which time several present had
rather more whiskey than was
good for them. I think the social
will do much towards putting me
in better times with the N.C.O's ; though
certainly they have always treated
us very well.
Sunday Jan 28th. Yesterday morning, most
of us were sleepy; I was out in time
for the 1st breakfast at 8-30, but a

good number, missed breakfast altogether.
During the morning nothing was done: we

paraded at 8, & were dismissed shortly
after till 9-30, when we fell in again
in marching order, minus packs. After
about 10 minutes practice of marching
& halting in the approved R.F.C. style, we
were again dismissed til 11 a.m., when 
we paraded for inspection in full
marching order. The W.O. commented 
on the soiled appearance of our packs
& havusacks & dismissed us at once.
The we waited in the barrack room
for a medical inspection which did
not come off & then had dinner.
About 3.30 in the afternoon, after 
refreshments in out room, Hayles, Henssler
& myself started for Aldershot, & reached
it safely. Met one of our sergeants in
the street but he either did not see 
us or took no notice. We also met a
corporal in the Y.M.C.A. where we
had tea but beyond warning us of the
risks we ran, he said nothing. I
got my films & prints from the chemists
but they were disappointingly not a decent
film among the lot. We visited the
Hippodrome, & got a place well up in
the queue; it meant rather a long wait
in the cold, but we got a good seat for it
The show (vaudeville) was very good,
& we were all well satisfied. Got
out about 7-30, bought 4 loaves of bread
& a couple of pounds of butter, for our
private mess & walked back, getting in
without mishap.
xxx This morning we rose late; I woke
first at 6-30, but some did not turn
out till 7-30 & so missed breakfast. After
parade, we we tacked on to Squad 1
& taken on a route march, which we
all welcomed. We made a circuit
round Farnbrough of about 8 miles,
& in spite of the cold, we soon warmed

up. The wind was very sharp & ice was
everywhere, all streams & pools being

frozen. However the weather was fine &

we found the march very enjoyable, it 
being our first since Durbar. Some of us
including myself, were rather footsore at
the finish, but that is because the cold

of the last five weeks has made our feet
very tender. While we were absent,
one of our airmen came to grief; he
was looping the loop, when one of the 

planes collapsed, & the machine fell

500-1000 ft. to the ground; the pilot was
killed.

Monday Jan 29th After tea last night

Hayles & I walked into Farnbro &

attended the Meth. Church; it was quite

full, the majority being men in khaki;
the preacher, a military chaplain, gave a
very good sermon, but the warm atmosphere
made me very dreary, so I missed a good

deal. An R.F.C. man behind us
warned us that Lieut Cook & some of 
the sergeants were in the building, but

we saw nothing of them.
Today we had quite a series of lectures
& only one hour on the buzzer for the

day.  The afternoon we spent at the

dugouts, receiving Area Calls. The outing
was not a great success, & the weather

was bitterly cold, we were neatly frozen

by knock-off time.

Tuesday Jan 30th  Today was the coldest
we have yet experienced, dry nut with

a bitterly cold wind.  We were down
at the dugouts again in the afternoon,

& my cold is considerably worse in
consequence.

Wed. Jan 31.  We had a fall  of snow
last night & some during the day, but

the cold was nothing to the previous

day. We were again at the dugouts,

but I do not appreciate the experience
as I need buzzer practice more
 

 

at present than outstation work. My
cold is no better tonight. Two in 

the next hut, Oqui & Words, have

been kin bed a couple of days & today
Curtain is down with appendicitis &
is to go to hospital.  An Australian

mail arrived today, but it brought

sad news to two of our lads,

Jackson in the next room & Bailey

in this, both received news of their

mother's death ! It was a remarkable
coincidence.  NO letters have yet

arrived for me. but  I expect one or

two tomorrow. In A letter from Ted
tonight, he tells me that he is down

with the old complaint, which seized 
him in Lincoln, & consequently is

having rather a bad time. I walked

into Farnbro' tonight with Hales. The
shops were closed, but after some

trouble we found a bread-shop, which

supplied our needs.

Thursday Feb1 Today I did not join the 

outparty but put the whole day in at

Buzzer practice, with good results.  In

the evening went to F. with Hayles, for supplies.

2 letters arrived from Millie (9) & 10, previous 
letter was 5.

Friday Feb  3rd Exam held this

afternoon, again very simple; two more
letters from Mill tonight, this time 7 & 8.

walked into F. alone tonight for washing,
also bought bread & sausages , so H & I

mean to have a feed.  Received advice

from _^LT.  Knox in Lincoln yesterday advising

me not to claim sep. allowance till the
matter of promotions has been permanently

settled after our return to Lincoln.

Saturday Feb 3 .  Volunteered this morning

for room fatigue & got work cleaning
up the floor.  The water was jolly col,

but I soon got warm on the job, &

thoroughly enjoyed it. About 4-30

Hayles, Hensler, & I started for
 

Aldershot, where we put the evening in
at the Hippodrome, seeing Goldman Ltd.

It was not a bad performance, though

not equal to either of the previous two.
Hayles managed to buy some sugar after,
& after getting our usual bread & butter
we made for home.
Sunday Feb 4 . The morning was fine & we
had another route march, without coats.
Spent all afternoon & evening writing letters
withoy bothering to go into town.

Monday Feb. 5th  Snow fell continuously

last night & lay several inches deep
everywhere this morning.  It was the
heaviest fall we  have yet had & presented
a beautiful spectacle in th eearly hours.
I took one photo only.  The day has not been

over cold, & the sun was out most of the 

morning, but the thaw has been very slight
indeed.  I did not go out with the out-party
today, but stayed in with Campbell for

buzzer practice.  Put on some good work.
Tuesday Feb 6th  Tackled buzzer practice again

this afternoon, with Campbell, but was not

very fresh, and gave up at 4 p.m.

Remained by the fire all evening reading "The

Sunday

Man in the Iron Mask." Have done no writing since _^Sunday.

Sunday Feb11th.   Nothing of importance

happened during the week.  The frost

continued until Saturday, when there was 
a slight thaw & today most of the snow
leeft was changed to ice, so the roads
are slippery enough. My buzzer work
improved during the week & in the test on
Friday morning I managed I pretty well.
Visited the outstations on Thursday, but

with poor results.  On Saturday, Hayles & I

with Lyons, Hensler, & Tenill, made the usual
trip into Aldershot to the Hippodrome.
The programme was very good indeed.

The morning was put in fooling about

in the snow, making a pretence of
 

 clearing the paths.  This morning, after

parade we were marched to the Town Hall

Farnborough for supposedly for buzzer

practice, but there apparently was no 
current available, & after  we had waited

an hour or so, the sergeant marched us

back & dismissed us. We were in barracks

by 10-30, & at 12, we set out for Aldershot

(Hayles, Lyon, & self); there we waited for

the 1 p.m bus. to Guildford, for which 
a great crowd was waiting. In the rush

Lyon failed to get in & was left behind.

T The run took just 55 minutes to G. which
we found a somewhat bigger town than
Aldershot though very quiet. It is not
however so large as Lincoln & has no

trams.  We wandered round for a couple

of hours without seeing much of interest

beyond a few old buildings, ct including
a grammar school founded by Edward VI

dated 1552, & a hotel dating from 1533.
We caught a return bus at 4 p m.
had a light tea at the S.O. Soldiers' Home
in Aldershot- then walked home, where
I found a parcel of eatables from Manchester

awaiting me.  We also found that

about 15 Tommies had been moved 
into each room, & were encamped

all down one side; however they were
very decent fellows & except that we

are somewhat crowded, we have no

complaint to make.

Monday Feb 12th.  This morning we spent
at the town hall, on interference work
chiefly. In the afternoon all marched
to the outstation, where the officer in
charge, Lieut Cook, informed us that

we were to return to Lincoln, the

following day & so would be given 
a test on tuning-in & receiving a

shoot.  Most of us tuned in in 
3 mins, though about 3, managed in 

2 ( Ross, Smith, Golder) & a couple took
4. After tea, Hayles & I paid a

visit to the W.C. & asked for late

leave passes.  We were sent to Sgt. Hawkins,

but that N.C.O, apparently could not be
bothered with us, so we took French

leave.  Four of us visited the Hippodrome

& saw the 2nd performance, (8-10 pm);

but it was a poor show. We walked
home smartly & were in barracks 
by 10-30, dodging the guards safely.

Lights out had gone long before, but we

had not been missed by the Ord,Serg.

There was a bright fire burning & we

were all hungry, so we set to & made

tea & toast before turning in; so ended

our last evening in Blenheim Barracks

Tuesday Feb 13th.  We turned out on

7-30 parade as usual, & were then
dismissed to make ready till 8-45.

The noys presented a pair of pipes to

Sgt McLeod, & then chaired him along

the road, We were genuinely sorry to
be leaving each other.  "Jumbo'

(Sgt Pearce) came in & shook hands with
us all, & wished us luck,  After

falling in, we were marched to the

depôt near the aerodrome, where we 
idled about till midday. At last
we were marched off in charge of a 

sergeant; to the station, our kits

going ahead on a tender. We caught
the 1-9 p.m. train to Waterloo, went

thence at once by tube to King's

Cross, where our train was waiting. .
aft retrieving our luggage we had
about 20 mins for refreshment. Left.

London at 4 p.m. changed at Grantham,
& were in Lincoln about 7-45. Two

lorries were waiting to convey us

to lincoln  S. Carlton, & we were quickly

there. For once there was no muddle.

We received our mail on arrival, were
issued with blankets, & had tea.

There were five letters for me, including

No 1 from Millie;  Goodness only knows

where it had been.

 

We heard on arrival that Sgt. Hansell

had died from meningitis that day:

he had been in Edinburgh with the

fitters & was taken ill after his 

return.

Wednesday 14th We spent rather a cold

night, having 4 blankets instead of 6 &

no mattresses, on our bed boards. Parade
at 7 a.m., & as it happened the x C.O

Major Blake appeared, & in a devilish

bad temper.  Parade was late & the

Ord Sgt (Corp Cameron) fell in over that.
The C.O. took charge & bullied us for

about ¾  of an hour, though a number

of movements. Then dismissed us &

I hear stopped all leave for 3 days

on account of the late parade. the I

visited  the "C." Flight office after breakfast

& collected over a dozen papers & 3

parcels, quite an armful. A little

later, the wireless were marched down

to the Hangars & set to work

unloading, spreading, & laying
& rolling asphalt. What a change.

we returned to the job in the afternoon

but early were marched  back to the 

office for pay. No pay was due to me,

but ( as I thought) but I was

surprised to find 25/- extra duty

pay waiting for me, this being the

amount earned from disembarkation

till my reversion. All allotments

ceased from the time we left the

boat.  The surprise was very welcome.

The rest of the afternoon, I put in at

the "C" Flight Office, where Cranford

gave me a description of the course

of work at Edinburgh.  It appears

he, Taylor  & [[?Sedy]] are to be the

3 Flight Sergeants, as they came highest

in the work at E. Cranford appeared

anxious to have me with him as a

fitter, as there seems to be a

shortage of capable men. I quite

believe I should have been wiser