Letters of Athol Cluny McPherson, January to March 1915 - Part 4

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the tin of chocolate home yesterday & hope it 
reaches you safely. We dont know when we
will be leaving here & never get a hint where
we are going. I dont fancy we will shift
before the winter is over & dont wish to
either. I dont think Austria will stick
to the war for long, I dont fancy their
heads are such a fools a Emperor Bill is
I think that they will soon "toss" it in
but Bill might carry on for some time
although he must know that it can only have
the one end. It was grand to get all
the letters from home this week. I'm going
down to the 8th this afternoon & have a yarn
to the Horsham fellows. I saw Harold Smith
this morning at Church, but never got a chance
to speak to him, he always has a lot to
tell about the Wimmera. Sunday evening I got
as far as this & knocked off to go down to
the 8th BAt Harold Smith was up at the Pyramids
so I didn't see him, I saw Rebble Wallace
& George Godfrey, Young G. got 14 days
in the detention tent, so he got off
very lucky, there couldn't have been
sufficient evidence to prove the stealing
 

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case against him, he must have been
a bit lucky, he was a Lce Corporal but
of course that was taken away from
him. I'm glad they dont censure the
letters from here as a person might
just as well be shut in gaol as not
to be able to write a litter & I know
how rotten it would be at home if
you never got letters from me. Well
Mother Dear I cant think of any more
news so will close, but must not
do so, before wishing you very many
Happy returns of the 20th & hope that
this year may be a more happy
& prosperous one to all than
The one just closed & I hope that
we are all spared to be home
on your next birthday. Please
give my kind Regards to the Bevs Gray
Grays & the Rennisons With heaps
of love to all at home, Again
wishing you very Many Happy Returns
of the day I remain aways yr love son
Athol
 

Ciaro
Egypt 28th.
My Dearest Mother
As she mail closes again tonight I
must send you a few lives to let you know that
I am well & hope you are all the same.
This is an awful day here, the dust is flying
like the Wimmera the year of the big drought
we wont be sorry when we get out of here,
the heat is getting a list solid as well, but
we are lucky we have spent most of the
winter here, I can stand heat but the
cold gets me down. In glad you are having
such a wet summer at home, it will be a great
saving to have feed for the horses in the
paddocks. Four of us had a great
day last Mo Thursday, we went into Ciaro &
hired a donkey a piece for the afternoon
we went out to the Citadel (Napoleons old fort)
& had a look round it, we saw some Indian
Troops that were wounded on the Canal.
We also went through one of the mosques
there were two temples inside & they are
beautiful ones, its marvelleous the quantity
of money that must have been spent on them.
 

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There is a great amount of silver & even gold
about there, there is a well at at the Citadel
said to be the oldest one in Egypt, it is three
hundred feet deep, it is called Josephs well.
We also went & had another look at the
dead city, there are tombs inside nearly all
the houses, according to a book it dates back
2000 B.C. at that time Cholera broke out in
the City & the people were buried where they
died, it must have made a clean sweep as
every house has a tomb or two inside, the
walls of the houses are as good as the day
that they were put up, but the roof is gone
off most of them. I dont know how old 'Old
Ciaro must be, as it seems to be all buried
they are excavating all through it, there is a big
stone wall that seems to separate it from the
dead City, the wall must be eight feet thick
& about twelve or fourteen feet hgh high.
Im anciously looking out for the next mail to
see how Russ & Alley got on at Murtoa, we
dont get a mail tomorrow, it only comes once
a week fortnight now, but every letter that you send
seems to arrive safely, as Ive got a letter
from you every mail, that has come to carry.
 

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I dont believe now that the letter writing
will be stopped altogether, as there is a Chap
(Russell) in our tent that has a brother
at the front & he had a letter from him
yesterday, of course it had on it "Passed the Censor"
he never said where he was, but gave him
some of his experiences, a piece of shell hit his
water bottle, which must have been near enough.
Well Mother Dear this is about all I have to
say as I wrote to Father & couple of days ago &
the letter should go by the same mail as this.
I was sorry to hear about Darry McClean
being drowned in New Zealand. Was glad
to hear Harry was playing cricket, he must be in pretty
good form with the ball. Must close now with
heaps of love to all at home, including Marion, Kind
Regards to the Bevs, Grays & McMillins & Rennisons
& Billy & Mrs Raby, with heaps of love
I remain Always
yr loving son
Athol C McPherson
 

Mena Camp
Ciaro Jan 31
My Dear Harry,
I was so pleased to get your letter this
week telling me all the news about the crops etc. I
always like so hear how thing's are going at home
although you might think I dont take much
interest in farming at the present time I always
like to hear about it as much as ever I did. I thought
when I read about "old Bolley" wishing I would
be back by next harvest to help him that he was
making a mistake, where I read that you
were going to put 500 acres in this year I only
hope to be back to help you off with it. I'm
certain the war will be over by then & only
hope I have the good luck to pull through it
all, it would be lovely to be back at Horsham again
especially if it is a good season. & everything is
prospering. What a huge army "Bill" will have
to face if those other three Powers come in
I doubt if they will take us to Europe
if they come in, I wish they would send us
up to meet the Turks, we certainly want to see
a bit of fighting before we go back.
 

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we certainly never came out to be made tin
soldiers of. I rather like marching now &
when we get back to Australia will always
be wanting to walk wherever we go. Im
glad Jook & Alley have got such a lot of Chickens
& hope they do well out of them. Horses must
have come down a bit for you so have sold
those two for 35 notes, it would have been a
good year to get a decent horse & if I were
back in Australia now would get one.
This is very rich country, you should see
the maize growing, they get three crops
a year off the land here & the soil is very black
They grow lovely tomatoes, infact all sorts of
vegetables, including mothers pet vegetable Jerusalem
Artichokes, they have huge patches of them, it takes
the cake to see them watering the Crop, they have
a patent affair (like we used to kill the sheep
on at Wonwondal) to lift water out of the nile
it has a weight on one end, to weigh the water
up, they use the old wooden plough & wooden
scoop & when they tip it, they tip handles &
all, they are a fixture, it looks a bit funny
to see them working. I was down at
 

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the water taps just now & saw Ted Ellis, we, the
Horsham lot were going to have our photo taken
at the Pyramids today, but this guard knocked
it on the head, as we cant leave the camp when
on guard. He told me that his Father lost about
$1000 of over that fire in Horsham besides about
a months rent, it must be pretty hard on him
I am glad "Jook" told me about Sheppard
I'll hunt him us as soon as I get time.
If we happen to drop across the second & third
contingents from Australia I'll look out for
Old Mac. & the Chestnut Colt, I'd know Mac always
but would be doubtful about the Colt. One of
our fellows "the little Rag" Jook will remember
him, I think I pointed him out to her when
she was at our tent, well, he was over at
a News Agents that is at the Camp & was looking
at some English illustrated paper & on the
outside of a Sketch, hanged if he didnt spot
the photo of his own brother in the trenches at the
front, he has been out since the first English
Expt. force left England & after being in the
trenches four months, has gone away for a spell
there were only two shown in the Photo, he
 

knew the other one as well, wasnt at dead
funny. Well Harry old man I dont think I
have anything else to say. Please thank
Alley for his letter & tell him I will answer
it most likely by next mail. I havent had
a line from Dick yet but expect he is very busy
& gets a bet sick of letter writing. Ive written
to Mother by the same mail as this. With heaps
of love to all at home, & hoping this well be
a good year with you all
I remain
yr loving Brother
Athol. C. McPherson
 

Mena Camp
Egypt
Jan 31st 15.
My Dearest Mother
Sunday is round once again so I must
send you the usual weekly letter. I was very
pleased to receive letters from you, Jook, Harry, & Alley
by the last mail & to hear all the Horsham news. I
always like to hear all about Horsham & the district
We (the Horsham fellows) were all going to have
our photos taken at the Pyramids but Herbie Lloyd
& I are both on guard, to it will fall through
We have been kept going very solid lately marching
over sand & very often at night, we ought to be as
hard as nails, the way that they are training us
it should take some of the condition off us.
I wish they would send us to have a cut at
the Turks, it would be alright to get trained over
there at first & let the weather get a bit cool
before we go to France. What a "smash up"
there will be in Germany as soon as the winter
is over the Country will just about be covered
in troops especially if, Italy, Romania & Bulgaria,
are in if Italy has a fairly big army, I expect