Letters from Wilbert Berg to his family, 1915-1918 - Part 12

was a big explosion in a munitions factory just
near London last Friday & by what we can hear
there has been terrible loss of life & considerable
damage to property. It must have been something
similar to the one at Bradford. I see by the papers
that there is another raider getting about the Atlantic
& doing a lot of damage but I don't think that her
reign will be long, She will be keeping the others
company at the bottom soon. I have a bad cold in
my eye, it was every painful last night, but I put
hot bandages on it & it is a lot better to-day.
I sent in to Horseferry Road to get Lyndsay's Wood
address but so far I have not heard from them
I suppose he is up on Salisbury Plains somewhere
The time soon slips by over here, it seems only the
other day since I was wounded but it is nearly six
months now oh this soldiering game is not too
bad six bob a day tourists eh what ! Well Dad
& Mum this is about all the news I have for this
week so I will have to close now so with heaps
of love & kisses etc. I am xxxxx
Your loving Son xx
xx Will xxxx
Remember me Kindly 
to all old friends. xxxxxxx 

Wareham
Dorset 28/1/17
My Dear Dad Mum & Sister,
Have you forgotten me altogether
or what is the matter because I have not had
a letter from you for ages. I hope that you are
all quite well, I am first class only for the cold,
It makes a man feel inclined to get an aeroplane
& fly back to sunny New South, every bit of
water about here has about three feet of ice on
it & sometimes you cannot get any water out of the
taps to have a wash. I was talking to a chap
to-day that has just come over from France &
he said that it has been snowing over there
for the last ten days but he said that it was  
not as cold as over here, & now the windy weather
has just set in & it is h- That was a
terrible explosion at the munitions factory last
week the casualties are about 500, the people's
houses for yards around were blown to pieces
it was an awful thing alright. I saw by the
papers that there is some very heavy fighting
going on, on the Eastern front, but all the other 

fronts seem to be very quiet. What did you
think of the little snapshots? One of the boys
sent one of the group to the "Sydney Mail" so keep
your eye open for it. I could not find out Lyndsays
Woods address, they could not give it to me at
Hdqrs.  I had a couple of letters during the week
from Mart he is still well & going strong, expects
to be over here on leave about the end of next
month. I have not heard when I am likely to
be going back. News is very scarce these times
over here & it takes me all my time to find
enough news to fill up two pages. How are things
looking out on the old Glebe now, I saw Bert Grays
photo in a Sydney Mail during the week, I have
not come across my photo in the Mail yet. One
of our boys was run over & killed by a motor car
a couple of days ago, it was hard luck for him
because he was at the landing at Gallipoli & stopped
right up to the evacuation & then right through France
up till a couple of months ago when he was [[d?]]
so he had hard luck. News has run out now so 
I will have to close so with heaps of love and
kisses xx I am xxxx
xxxx your loving son xxxx 
xxxxx Will xxxxx  
Remember me kindly
to all. 

Wareham
Dorset 3/2/17
My Dear Dad Mum & Sister,
I am still without any
letters from you again this week I cannot make
it out at all because all the other boys seem to
get their letters alright, Anyhow I suppose they will
come along some time or other. We are having nice
weather over here now but all the water around
the camp is frozen & the boys &  civilians  go skating
on it & they have some great fun, several mornings
we had to go without any wash as all the water
in the taps were frozen, but I always managed
to slip into the hot showers to have a wash. I
went down to Dorchester last Sunday afternoon
with a couple of mates & we had a real good
time, we took the camera with us & took a
couple of snaps so if they turn out any good I
will send you some along. Dorchester is a very
nice little place & there is a big German prison
camp there. What did you think of those people
trying to poison Lloyd George, I think that they
must be Germans, it is a good job they caught 

them before they did any damage, they will have
to pay the penalty now, & what do you think of
the new German U boat policy to sink all ships
at sight including Hospital ships, I think that
they are only going to do that so then can get
the whole world to go against them so they can
end the war with the excuse that the could not
fight the whole world. Things are getting pretty
lively on the Eastern & Western fronts & things
seem to be going good for us. I had a couple of
letters from Mart yesterday he is still quite well
& going strong & waiting for the time when he will
the able to come over here on leave, I hope that he
will soon come across so I will be able to have
a couple of days with him. Did you get that letter
from him asking you to send ₤20 to the Com. Bank
in London, he sent you the letter a good while ago.
I have not see any one I know lately only some
boys out of the Batt. but you do not know them.
Well I think that my little stock of news has
just about run out for this mail now so I
will have to close now so with tons of love &
kisses xx I am xxxx
xxx Your loving son x
xxxx Will. xxxxx                 

Remember me kindly
to all old friends.

Wargner Camp
Wareham
Dorset 18/2/17
My Dear Dad Mum & Sister,
Just a few more lines
to let you know that I am still keeping quite
well & I sincerely hope that you all are the
same. I have not heard from Mart since writing
to you last so I cannot say how he is. The wet
weather has set in again over this side, but
would rather have the rain than the
cold. Things have started to get lively on all the
fronts again especially the Western every day
we look at the paper we see that the British
have made an advance & you can bet that as
soon as the weather clears up they will be
into it as fast as they can go. I had the
pleasure of seeing one of the famous tanks last
Saturday, they were sending a lot away, they
are funny looking things & they are quite capable
of doing the damage they are said to do.  I am
enclosing a couple of little snapshots that
were taken on our way to Dorchester one
week end. I am in my Company Orderly Room
now so I am on the Staff. So that means 

that I will have a longer stay over this side
working your Runt did you say! The Victory
War Loan was a great success but we do
not know yet how much they got in, but it is
a very large sum. How are all old friends etc
back in sunny South quite well & I hope, I
suppose I am the black books for not writing
but really I hate writing, I only write to you
& Millie now. We have all been issued with a
new style of paybook over here & I am showing
a credit of £30 in my new book so that is
not too bad. Well Dad & Mum news has just
about got me beaten again so I will have to
close now so with heaps of love & kisses  xxx
xxx I am xxxx
xx Your loving Son xx
xxxx Will xxxxx
Remember me kindly to all old friends
Cheer  Oh.!

Wareham
Dorset 25/2/17
My Dear Dad Mum & Sister,
Just a few more lines to
let you know that I am still keeping O.K. & I
sincerely hope that you are all the same. I had
a letter from Mart to-day & he is still quite well
& going strong, he told me that his money has
arrived O.K. so he will be able to have a good
time of it when the comes over this side, Although
he said that all leave from France was suspended
so he does not know when he is likely to be
over. The boys here in camp had a bit of a riot
during the week, they had a couple of grievences
viz. no leave no train travelling & Military Police
it started last Thursday with a free fight against
the MP's & ended up with the boys getting the
upper hand & going around the Guard Rooms &
letting all the prisoners escape then they went to
the A.P.M.'s office smashed it up & burnt all the
crime sheets but they were not satisfied to stop
at that, they broke into the canteens drank
all the beer & took everything out of the dry 

canteens so that means that we have to go right
down town now for a packet of smokes. The
Officers could not do anything with the men & they
sent away & got two Generals down from London
& when they came they put a stop to things, but
through the riot it will give the Australians a
bad name over here. We have fairly good weather
over here lately, just a little bit of rain. They
got a good lot of money in for the War Loan
but we do not know the final figures yet
I saw a tank the other day for the first time
they are vicious looking things & I am glad
that they are on our side. How are all old
friends ? Quite well I hope. Kindly remember
me to them all. I saw Father Murphy the other
day in camp here, he used to be on the Peninsula
with us I did not have time to speak to him
Well Dad & Mum this is about all the news I
have for you for this mail so I will have
to close now so with heaps of love & kisses
xxxxxx
I am xxxx
Your loving Son xx
Will xxxx 

Wareham
Dorset 4/3/17
My Dear Dad Mum & Sister,
Just a few more lines to
let you know that I am still alive & well over in
this part of the world but one would never
think so as I never get any letters. Things seem
its be going real good on the Western front also
on the Mesopatamia front, the Germans are retreating
on the Western front I cannot see their idea
yet but we will soon know. I have not heard from
Mart this week so I cannot say how he is. The
German U boat policy was an utter failure like all
their things Zeppo etc. The riot is all over now &
things as quiet as ever, they caught nearly all
the ringleaders & I think that they will all do a
few years for it. Serves them right they will play
up. Don't you think that I am working my Runt
well stopping over here so long but I am quite
content to stay over here till the duration not
a bad game this soldiering. Do you remember Mart
& I talking about a chap named Roger Willis when
we were in camp? He is in camp here with two