Letters from Charles Edwin Gatliff to his family and a condolence letter, June 1916 - c. September 1918 - Part 16

2   3   23.9.17 
Today the church parade was a memorial
service for the officers & men we lost

during the recent fighting, Frank's name
being amongst those mentioned. They
sang "Nearer my God to Thee" & the trumpeters

played the "Last Post" — a good few of us

felt "a lump in our throats" — mine was 
a mighty big one & I was relieved
when the service was over. The oil
has given out in my lamp so, as I
cannot see to write, I will finish
this in the morning. — I have just
found a candle so will continue the 
"good work". I see Hal every day - he
is quite 'fit' - his trip to London did
him the world of good. I also am in
good health — altho' I do a lot of walking
& standing about my legs are not
troubling me in the slightest. We
have  just heard good news, the Australians,
South Africans, & Scotties with some
other troops have just taken the 

important ridge which the British
troops failed to capture a little while

ago when our artillery lost so heavily.
Another step nearer to Berlin! — but
there's a mighty long way to go yet.
I have got my own horses again, "Snip"
& "Piache" & have been for several

3      3    23.9.17
on Snip. He is a very comfortable horse
to ride altho' a bit snakey" — however I
am used to all his tricks now so he
never upsets me. I also ride a bike
whenever I go to see Hal, whose billet
is about a mile away, or to Hdqrs.

This house is situated on the bank of

the canal & the people here own a 
boat so I can go for a row whenever
I like so you see I get plenty of

exercise in pleasure as well as in work.

The people about here are all Flemish
peasants — I wish they were French as
then this would be a good opportunity

to learn the language. We do not

know when we will be going back
to the line altho' Dame Rumour hath it
that it will be soon. The weather is
still keeping gloriously fine & both

men & horses are benefitting greatly
by their spell. Hal received a 
letter from Pater which he gave me to
read. I let him read several I 

had received from Em. I hope all

are well. Fond love to all

Your loving son
Charlie
[*CGatliff*]

Flanders 3
27.9.17
Dear Father & Mother,
The Major & 3 subalterns came
back to the battery yesterday, but tomorrow
I will be in command with only 1 officer.
The Major went reconnoitring today Lt  Black
went to arrange billets. Lt Taylor stays
behind to attend a school  & Lt  McMullin
moves with me. You will receive the usual
whizz bang & will then know that I
am unable to write you. I hope to
soon see that Frank's grave is in order.
I have just come back from seeing Hal -
he is quite O.K. — he is acting as brigade
commander as the Colonel & the 2 senior
majors are away. The weather is still
keeping fine & the moon is nearing its
full which is very fortunate for us
for doing the work ahead of us. Our
division went over the top yesterday
morning & I believe have continued the
advance made by the other Australian
divisions a few mornings ago, We have
reveille at 4 a.m. tomorrow & it is now
11 P.M. & as I have had a busy evening
I will now turn in
Fond love to all
Your loving son
Charlie 

Belgium 4
30.9.17
Dear Father & Mother
We have arrived at the WAR On
the last days trek I was the only officer
left to bring the whole of the brigade along
all the other officers having gone forward to
reconnoitre the gun positions & wagon lines
I also had to draw guns from ordnance  work-shops
en route & on arrival as A.C. brigade

wagon lines had to issue orders about

getting the guns up all B.C.s & the C O

being at the gun positions. Several Gotha
planes came over last night & dropped
a few bombs. We managed to get our

searchlights on to one of them & it
was a very pretty sight to see the bright
plane against the dark sky with the

Archies bursting all round it — unfortunately 

we did not bring it down
Now that the moon is at its full we
can expect the Gothas over every night

"laying eggs". The guns are not in too
healthy a position but there is good
protection for the gunners close by in 

"pillboxes" (German concrete dugouts). Hal
is O.K. & as soon as things are going
well here I will take a run up to the 
gun posts to see how he is situated.
Franks's grave is not far from here 

2 
30.9.17
& I will go & see it as soon as possible
Today I received a letter from each of
you dated as follows Mater 17.7.17 Pater 14.7.17
Lil 17.7.17 & Em 14.7. 7 - all addressed
to 115^th How Bty. How they came to give you
that as my address is beyond my comprehension 
as the 115^th How Bty. was wiped out of existence 

when our Artillery was reorganized
The main thing however is that I got the
letters alright There is another mail in
which left about 26.7.17 so I hope to
receive some more of your letters in a few days
I sent the brigade on when I was picking up
the guns so when I arrived here I had to
find out exactly where each battery's wagon
line was. I asked some infantry & their
officer came over to me Lt Reynolds he was one
of my 4 LH cpls — another of their officers
then came over & asked me if I knew whether
Frank Gatliff was still with the 14^th F A Pde
He went to school with Jack & Frank I don't
know his name. Am very busy so will
now conclude
Fond love to all
Your loving son

Charlie 

1

N^o 13¹ Belgium 4
^2.10.17

Dear Father & Mother
As Fritz seems to be torpedoing a

lot of mail boats I think to try & ensure
some one of the three of you getting a copy of
each of my letters which ^from now on ought to be 
to be full of interest to you & most likely
written every couple of days I will mix
them up a bit so as to try & get copies of
the same letters sent by different mails

I will also number them starting this
with Lil's serial number 13 (of the third

hundred — I have written a few letters

since I have been away — but you must

remember that you folk are my only

correspondents). In a letter of Lil's just

received for ^she mentioned having received
the one in which I wrote about premonitions

If I remember rightly I mentioned three
chums one of whom had a premonition that
he was going to be killed & he was The 

second I told you was also killed and

today I have just heard that the third
who transferred to the infantry, just
before I left the battery on the Somme, &

received a commission was killed in 
the hop over the sandbags a few days ago
Lt McDonald of Hal's battery was
slightly wounded the day before yesterday

2

No 13   4     2.10.17
We had gunner killed the first day —
it was his first time in action. I saw
him buried in a military cemetery near

here yesterday. I wont let myself think
of Frank's death but yesterday at the
cemetery his loss was brought home to me
all too vividly so I cannot bear another
burial. Lt Cowlishaw of my old battery 5:
was slightly wounded yesterday at the
gunpits  & we have heard that he got
wounded again on his way to the dressing
station. When we arrived here we put
up temporary horse lines until the battery
we were relieving moved out on the 30^th we
moved into our proper lines about 4 PM

at 8 PM a Gotha came over & dropped
a bomb right between where two of our
horse lines had been. It was lucky that

we had shifted as otherwise we would
have had heavy casualties amongst the

horses. I happened to be riding back
from D A H Q & was only about 30 yards
from the spot when the bomb fell. I 
can tell you it made my heart jump
I mentioned before in one of my letters
that what I dislike most is anything
coming from up in the air — you don't
know where they are going to fall even
if you hear them coming. All that night

3

No 13          4          2.10.17

the Gothas kept coming over dropping their

load of bombs & going back for more. Whenever
we heard one we used to count until we

had heard eight bombs (their load) explode

& then we would breathe a sigh of relief.
We can easily tell the sound of Fritzs
planes, it seems to be louder & more laboured

than ours. We have since learnt that it

was an organised attack with bombs on our

wagon lines & back areas — some day I 
will tell you some of its results Last

night he came over again close to us. I
got up & had a look. I had to laugh
when I heard a voice roar out in
the distance "GO home, you —" it
was what we were all saying to ourselves
We are having bright moonlight nights

which are admirably suited for bombing
attacks. I used to at one time think

that moonlight nights were made for

lovers — now I know they are made

for murderers. I wish the moon would

stop shining until "apres la guerre". The

picture & saying of Bairnsfather's "That 
— moon will be the death of me" is
truer than ever now. Fond love to all
Your loving son
Charlie

 1
No 14       Belgium 4.

3.10:17
Dear Father & Mother
I rode up to the gunpits last night
to see Hal & to see how things were at
the battery as I had received very little
information from them. I had just passed
thro' our heavy guns (& there are hundreds of
them) when a S. O. S. went up. They opened
fire & for a while got on my nerves as it is
over three months since I have heard gunfire.
Fritz did not reply until about 10 minutes
latter. I had visited Hals gunpits & found
no one there & was at the next battery
position when Fritz started throwing lead
& iron about. I had left my horses back
on the track so I can tell you I lost no
time in wriggling into a shell hole. There
are no dugouts at the gunpits — the gunners
take shelter during bombardments in some
of Fritz's pillboxes (cement — I don't know what
to call them rooms) which are scattered
about amongst the shell torn country so
I decided to stay where I was in the shell
hole instead of looking around for better
cover. I don't mind admitting that Fritz
has got me bluffed & the bravest of our
men are willing to admit the same — any
man, Fritz or Australian, would be a liar
who said he wasn't "windy" in the 

2

No 14      4   3. 10. 17
terrific bombardments both sides put up
in the region where a push is taking place
I used to fancy myself a bit of a hero but
I can now run or duck into a shell-hole
with the best (or worst) of them. One thing
I have learnt, — always to stay where you are
if shells are falling in your vicinity I have
seen too many case of men running right
into bursting shells, or else getting tangled
up in barbed wire, or falling into shellholes
which may be 10 or 12 feet ^deep with plenty
of water (& dead Fritzes) in them. All the
ammunition is taken up by pack horses
for one thing that way is quicker & for another

the ammunition wagons couldn’t get to the
battery positions over all the shell holes — it
is a big enough contract getting the guns
into position. We had 500 pioneers making
a track for us this time — I had been in
my shell hole for a few minutes — it seemed
an eternity for I felt so lonely & friendless

& far from home & I had no idea where
anybody was as it was my first trip

up there — when I heard voices & found

that 3 drivers with their horses (2 each)

had brought ammunition to the position
right through the heavy shell fire. As
it was a regular inferno the road they
had come along I kept them with me — &