Lieutenant Colonel William McKenzie, MC, OBE - letters - 1915 - Part 5

 

4^th Battalion

Egypt

March 11^th 1915
My Dear son Colin

I was glad to get your

letter yesterday & to hear that you

were having grand times down in

Melbourne with so many things to

see. Motor Buses to ride in & seaside

to visit & friends to come to see you

with only 2 minutes walk to school

& a short distance from the Army

Hall & a seperate Boys school to

attend at which place you are now

making a chair. I hope it is a good

strong one that will be serviceable

from Mother. You evidently like your

new school & I hope you will get

on well there in the 8^th Grade

You will need to work hard &

do your lessons very thoroughly

& Keep ahead; I know you will try

& work to become a real good

scholar; what a fine chance you

have to do so. I guess you'll grasp

it. I suppose you'll be in the

school football team, you must

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learn to kick hard & play

well always try to do everything well

I suppose you'll be eating alot of

tomatoes now at Galb

I am sorry there is no band at

Camberwell Corps, but I guess you'll

soon get one going. Make a start

with six Instruments & you must

learn to play well. Gordon could

also learn to play a tenor horn

& you could learn to play the 'Eupho'

later on. I am glad you had a

great time with Brigdr Sharp and

Major Simmonds & 2 women got

saved on Sunday night. This is

very good. I hope a lot get saved soon.

I sent some stamps for you in

some previous letters also a lot

of postcards. I hope you got them

all safely, if so you'll have a lot

of postcards. I am sending you

a 5 penny stamp from India

in this. It is a beauty too. Don't

forget to write me regularly

& be careful of the correct

spelling of every word & try

to improve in your writing.

 

Colin

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I went to the Zoo on Monday. It is

a fine place containing nice

gardens some fine water ponds

& lakes & a great collection of

birds & animals also reptiles.

There are a great number of monkeys

more than 200 - big & little - Some

with fancy colours too, some very

small & some very big, the monster

Baboon. It was funny to see them

jumping about & throwing sticks

around. There were Jackals, Hyenas

leopards, Tigers, Lions & some young

cubs too. I had them roaring and

this frightened some native women 

Bears, wild pigs, Deers of many sorts

Zebras, Wild Bulls, sheep - more

than 12 giraffes, some reaching up 20

feet high, Elephants, Camels, Dromaderies,

a Hippopotamus - a big fellow too

& a Rhinoseros. Many lovely birds

& Doves & some big ugly vultures

It is very fine Zoo & I spent a 

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happy 3 hours in it & got very

tired walking around. I wish you

could have seen all the beasts

& beautiful birds here. There

were a lot of porcupines with

long quills on them, wild cats,

lynx & other furry animals. Then

what a lot of fine ostriches also

some black & white & others

light grey colour & some brown.

They look much like big emus, one

of our regiments presented a

big Kangaroo to them, the only

one they possess.

There is a fine Bull here also that

was a regimental pet for 6

years & he went to two wars.

Our regiment as a Billy Goat for

a mascot - we call him "Buller"

he is a knowing cunning chap.

We brought him from Aust.

I must close with much love

to all. God Bless you abundantly

Always Your Father

W^m McKenzie

 

4^th Battalion

Mena Egypt

March 11^th 1915
My Darling Wife

It is now friday

morning, & I once more sit in my

dusty tent to pen you a few lines

informing you of my doings out

here. We had a fearful 'Sordaco'

(sand storm) yesterday & everything

is smothered with dust to day &

now the wind is going again.

It looks as if we were going to have 

a repeat of the same. I hope not.

We are still here in Egypt awaiting

final instructions for going.

We were up at 3-30 a.m. yesterday

morning & off into the Desert

trench digging. I had 4 rounds

of it 20 minutes a time & I'm

very stiff & sore this morning. 

I set the pace that Kills & none

could or would Keep up to it

they think I'm a Tartar to work

this gives me a great hold of the

boys & they dub me a fine sport. 

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You can hardly imagine how popular

I am with the men & this helps me much.

We go out at 5 pm this even & sleep in

the trenches all night at least we

occupy them (we wont sleep) & 

come in at 7 am. on Satdy morng.

You will be glad to know that I

had a great Sunday formeeting.

In addition to our usual crowd

in the morning some 2000, we had

the Brigdr & HQ staff some nurses

& lady visitors. A good time with

the A.M.C. at night. 6 pm & at 7 pm.

another fine meeting in which

28 surrendered & one fine young

Irishman came into my tent at

10 pm & got saved after a big

struggle his prayer was very

humble & most affecting. These

experiences makes the work

worth while & gives one much

satisfaction. The longer I'm at the

work the better I like it. It has the

sad & glad sides & also spice to

the shame of life.

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I got your letter yesterday morning
dated the 9^th of Feby. Im sorry you do
not like your house I was hoping
you would be very comfortable. Then
the Corps is small but I think it will
grow to some purpose & you'll help it
to do so, as also the Boys. They'll get a
band too within this year. I have great
faith in Capt'n M^c Illvear, I think he
has gone to Camberwell Is this so?
You'll have a good time also, with
the W.H. League I think 12 is good
for a start, & you'll soon have it up
to 25. If you tackle it in your usual
thorough way & go at it, as I know
you will. & that in a cheerful expectant

mood too. Dont get pessimistic
either about me Your work or your
future. All is in the hands of God.
I'm sorry the mails dont get delivered
regularly to you each week but
you must remember that there
is only a fortnightly service to
& from Aust at present. We only

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get letters every fortnight here
You'll be getting a great bunch of them
together- They were addressed to Bendigo
up to Jany and then to 69 Bourke St. As
stated before have written you each
week & frequently twice a week besides

writing to some of the children and
sending postcards so surely you
should get one in [[?]]. It hurts
me to think you worry about me so
much as it is really mistrusting God &
refusing to cheerfully accept His dispensation.
All things work together for good to them
that love God & whatever happens is all
for our good & His glory. I well know
my darling that this war is much more
wearing & trying to your spirit than mine
It is harder for those wives that stay at home
than for the husbands that go

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but His grace is all sufficient. So please
my darling dont get despondent & fretful
Be the brave, self reliant, trustful soul
you can be. May God help you in this.
You are never out of my thoughts day or
night when awake & my prayers for you
are constant as is my love for you
Yet I must say I am more than glad to be
able to take part in this war. It is
epoch making & its effects will conclude
with a reign of reightousness though
brought about by suffering & sorrow.
But you will remember this was how

Salvation & Redemption was brought to this
world. It was expedient that Jesus must
die & so it is again today- many must die
to redeem the human race again
from [[pleasure]] frivolity & viciousness &
give a new outlook to life & this
war is doing it.

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I note that unemployment is growing in
Melbourne & that living is high . Bread being
9^d a 4lb loaf & wheat 9/- a Bushel however
it will go down by June when Russian wheat
is released by the Dardanelles'
I am glad the children like their schools. I hope
Donald will tackle his schooling in dead earnest
& do something worthwhile, surely he will now.
Then Colin should do all right in the 8^th Grade
& no doubt Gordon will hang on & Mavis will
distinguish herself & do her mother credit.
Wouldn't I just like to hear her sing now.
I hope by the time you get this letter you all
will be feeling more at home in your home
&  Corps & having among the brightest times of
your life. I think the war should be fixed about Sept
or October next & we should be home for
Xmas or new Year but hope sincerly that it
will be 3 months before this prediction
& that we'll be happy at home by Sept
I must close with fondest love, hugs & kisses
to you all & kindest regards to all comrades
from Father