Letters from John Wesley Hetherington to his Family, 1916-1918 - Part 4

have got a bit tired of it.
'Tis greatly refreshing to see the war babies" of the 3^rd
Divn stepping it out along the roads but when they
begin to talk of the 40^th Regt  etc well a chap
feels considerably older. You ought to see the old dame
where we billet here, she must be about 111 years old
She gabbles away in Flemish & we can only look
sympathetic. She keep rabbits, so she's in her second
childhood. The village near where we are is a quiet
sleepy old place like Allendale Town, and at first
sight you wouldn't think they knew much about the
War but they can tell you how the Bosches bayonetted
A youth of 19 yrs before the women and how when a
women tried to save him a Hun dashed her teeth out
with his fist In the Cemetery isa monument to this
youth with the inscription "Massacred by the Allemands"
3 Oct 1914, and opposite his grave are six or seven
others, with small wood crosses two of them have
this inscription "To an unknown British soldier who
fell in action 14th Oct 1914" So retribution was
following quick on the heel of these cowards who could
do such infamous deeds in this quiet sleepy place. And
that also illtreated the nuns at the convent near here
and put machine guns on the church tower a few yards
from where I am now. Ah; yes they do know something
about the war though, and when you hear the women
tell their stories - well it makes a chap feel satisfied to
be in Khaki after all. We are well back from the line

here but we can see the flares at night and hear the
guns quite easily I shall be sorry if they break up my
small party as they are a happy lot and real
funny in their remarks concerning the French & the war
We get on with the French people O,K but we are not
so sweet on the Flemish. We had a Fritzy machine
gun on this week captured by some Queenslanders and
probably you will hear of it Coming out your way,
as I believe they intend sending it to Australia
I havent been able to get my parcel away to you yet
but still try without delay as we may have to move
in light order next times. Perhaps you had better
keep addressing my letters to the 2^nd for fear we have
to rejoin. I didn't see Hannah again before we
left up there. I hope he pulls through trench life
allright. There is an excellent Store Canteen here,
and we can buy almost anything we want. It is
run by the Imperial Army, and is a small edition
of Anthony Horderns. There are also heaps of cherries
on the trees in the field next door, so we don't do too
bad. I do not know for sure when I will be able to
write you again don't be uneasy if the letters are slow
things are moving about here, and I hope Fritzy will
get his knock out soon
Thanking you all for you great kindness
Yours with love to Mother & all
Wes/.
Remember me to all friends
Greatly interested in news of
Gail Hetherington
 

[*39*]
Somme where in France
Augt. 4/ 1916
Dear folks at home
After more wandering over the face of the Earth and more hiking though France
I am making an endeavour to pen some impressions.
I am back with the Battn for the present as I may have written you previously
and I yearn for the Old Divisional job. We didn't shift about there so much
and had much more comfortable billets. However, when we become soldiers
we can't sling one job in just when it suits as, and one has got to grin and
bear it. We have travelled come miles since writing you last, and I've seen
some wonderful sights round about the vicinity of the "big push"
Our men relieved some of the Northumberlands and Lyneside Scottish, and I had
lots of crack with some of them. I used to talk to them, awhile in best
Colonial and then break in suddenly with a bit of old Lyneside. That
made their jaws open. I had a trip over the trenches near Albert, where
the "push" commenced and it made me feel a bit queer to see the
simple crosses marked 34^th Bde 3 T.S. No name or anything else
to indicate as to who the hero were buried in the shallow graves.
I can't attempt to give a description of the battlefield thereabouts, Such
a sight I don't care to see again. Some graves didn't even have
a cross but two broken rifles laid in that form showed someone was
buried under the mound, I went right through the old German dugouts
to La Boiselle and near to Orilliers, and I know now what a battlefield
looks like. Another armourier & myself spent the best part of a day
exploring the dugouts and trenches while the boys where battling for
Pozieres. We were left behind in the town of Albert as Armourers are
only in the way in such a "stunt" as that, and I can tell you I had
no desire to be further up dodging "Jack Johnsons" Guns, guns, and
still more guns. The Old British Bulldog showed a full set of
teeth on the Somme, and, as I have said one feels utterly at a
loss to describe the effect of these tremendous artillery attacks.
The general opinion here among the old hands, is that it was
far and away the toughest bit of a scrap those been in a 
 

(2)
It appears to have tried to the utmost the most seasoned soldiers.
among them. Very few of the original 2^nd Battn are with us now,
between 60 and 70 in all I believe, and many o old friends have "gone
West", in this last offensive. I really do think they ought to give the remnants
of the 1^st Division a Good spell where they would find a change, a real change.
I mean, not take them back somewhere to do "Hope arms & form Fours"
alongside the latest reinforcts To morrow in the anniversary of Lone Pine
and some of the old hands are letting their memories go back to that
hard fight. They are agreed that Lone Pine will live long in their recollection.
The Peninsula lighting was of a different character to what is met with
here, but it was strenuous nevertheless. The longer spells in the trenches
there, the want of water & other comforts tested the men severely at times
We lost some fine chaps among the old non-coms in this last fight,
And they will be hard to replace.
One of the very latest reinfts was telling us this week what a terrible lot
of walking they did before joining up with us here. I reminded him
very quietly that we had two years start of him nearly, and we had
been walking since Oct 1914. That made him use his soft pedaled
bit. I'm fed up with travelling now tell Mother, and if I were only
back to Burwood, it would take something to tempt me "on the
road again." I can live on the smell of a biscuit tin, clothe myself.
with rags belonging to anyone, sleep in any old bug-walk and
make myself at home amid the most uncongenial surroundings, but
I utter up a fervent prayer that Kaiser Bill and his crew may meet
one of our "12" Shells and drop dead in their tracks, and I
do sincerely hope that it may happen QUICK.
Mind you I've one of the picked regimental jobs with nothing much
to do and weeks to do it in. I'm practically my own officer, and
don't have to render account to anyone in particular.
I can do my present job "on my head" and have as good a
chance as any of getting through. Of course I'm about as far
 

6
up the ladder of promotion as I can get Staff Sergt, and
I can't look for further steps so long as I remain an Armourer
as you see we are only attached to regiments. The Advance don't
bother about us and the Regts regard us as necessary evils,
whom they cannot order about and therefore of small consequence
to them so we remain. We are in the Regt but not of it.
It'll do me anyway and perhaps after this Mobile stunt is over
we may get settled down in a Divnl Shop again Lord grant
it may be so. When all our labours & trials are o'er
And I am safe on the beautiful shore of Parramatta
I wish could let you see our Airmen here, they're just glorious. I may
have said so before but everyday increases my respect and
admiration for them. When we pass an aerodrome the mechanics
push out to see our souvenirs and they admire and pay great attention
to the tales of the boys but our chaps would give something to be able to tell
the Airmen just what they think of them. We used to worship the Navy
now we worship the Airmen, and they're worth it.
I passed Jimmy Hannahs battn on the road coming back from
Albert, but couldn't hear tell of him by casual Enquiry. They will
have been in action by now I suppose. We are resting in a dead alive
place behind the front, we can just hear the guns booming at times.
Albert was a town worth seeing, though terribly knocked about
The church is a wonderful spectacle. The large monument of the
Virgin & child hanging head downwards from the steeple of the
church is worth going a long way to see. There are not very
many people left in the town now owing to the bombardments
even the "estimand's or parlour pubs" being closed.
It is almost an impossibility to get alcoholic liquors in Albert
beer whiskey seems to be prohibited by the Authorities, and the
soldiers in the vicinity of the Big Push all sober soldiers.
 

I got a few souvenirs in the old trenchs, but there io so
much difficulty in getting them away that we don't bang
on to them much. There were heaps of helmets (Fritzy)
believe but our chaps had all their work cut out to get away
alive. I got a Good German rifle, and one or two other
things but they're an awful trouble to hump about when we
are travelling light as we are at present, and we chuck them
away sadly, as we know you would be interested in them.
If I get myself home, I'll not make a bad souvenir.
Very pleased Fred enclosed the 6 o'clock figures and highly
delighted with them. Tell Messrs No Licence & Co, no the
persons of John Strongman, Francis Wilson and all the others
that I admire the extraordinary spirit they've put into it
I hope to write them when we've finished this wandering Jew
Act. Glad to be took that Cottage I can make a
further allowance ward it if the Authorities will sanction
it.. Staff Sergt get  12/- a day now, but they're restricting the
dispatch of money and alterations in allotments.
If it comes to Compulsion in Aust, Wal would do well in the A.S.C.
Fred in the engineers of A.M. C, Will Rice, Engineers , I hope it
won't come, all the same but one never knows. Keep off the Infantry
they do the hardest work always, to join A.M.C Ambulance training
to Necessary. I've done enough soldiering of a kind for the lot and one
fool in the family etc. However I'm glad in  away that I did take it on,
Had a letter from Sid Mellor this mail. Getting all newspapers regularly
now. Havant heard from Joe for a while.
Yours with love to Mother & all
Wes/.
Sent you a cable last week
just to compensate for delay in writing.
and they're so easy to send you know, they ought to call them
"Lazy Men's letters".

[*40*]
Flanders
Sep 2/16
Dear Ones at Home
After considerably more trekking around the country
we my once more settled down for a few days, perhaps a
fortnight at most, after that - (?). I was often of the
opinion that it would be awfully nice to have nothing to
do but travel about, that was in days gone by. And now
well now I've sampled it and I can tell you I'm ready
to squat down in day place barring a Colliery village for
a good long while to come. What a lot of village and towns
we've been in this last 3months or so. And now we are up
North farther up than we're ever been before, some French
villages are nice and clean others give you a headache to
look at them. I like England better than France after all
Of course the country is at war and that alters things everywhere.
I haven't been fortunate enough to get any leave yet
they say it will be started again shortly though, and I may
be one of the first. I ought to be as there are very very few of
the originals left now. I see they are agitated in the Austn
and one of the English papers to give the 1^st Divn a long
spell and I tell you they need it, especially some of the
officers who have been right through and some of the men.
Things are fairly lively where our men are now, plenty
of gas alarms though and one often receives a rude
awakening, when the alarm is sounded. We sleep with
our gas helmet ready to slip on, and the peculiar
 

part of these alarms is that they usually occur when
you feel you want to sleep most sound, just as used
to happen when one had to get up at Home years past at
5-30 am when you waited a "quarter". You can't afford
to take "quarters" with gas hanging about though, and I'm
only too glad to be "knocked up" as it doesn't give you much
time travelling faster than a galloping horse. We are well back
from the line at present but Fritzy lines run well
round on each side so we are in a "salient" as it is
called. We haven't had many casualties in this part as yet and
a good job too. It wouldn't do to have a Pozieres attack every
part of line. I am back with the Q.M. store in a good
little camp. We "took over" from a Highland regiment. We
They formed part of the "contemptible little Army" in 1914,
and it is interesting to hear them tell of the fight around YPRES
in the early days. I have a good big tent to myself and am
more comfortable than for some time past. I even had a bath
yesterday and my shirts washed, Goodness knows what the "Chats"
thought of the birthday I gave them. Anyway they've "lived on me" for
some time past now, so they shouldn't be ungrateful. The "chats"
take as much watching as the Germans, and they often find work
for one idle hands to do, - killing them. The weather is very
unsettled, doesn't know whether to rain or not. It spoils the
Airmens work too. Airmen are like flies here. I saw
 

eighteen of our planes together this morning, and I have
seen as many as 25 together just like a flock of monster
birds. I hope to be able see YPRES some day soon.
Well, we are pretty well catered for  round here plenty of good
dry canteens, Salvation Army Rest Houses, Y.M.CAs, etc.
We can always buy good tinned fruits, biscuits, and good
cigars also when I fancy them. There are lots of Canadians
here though most of them come from England, originally. "Pommies"
you know. I got one or two spoons at one town we were in.
You can give one to Meg, one to Win & one for yourselves.
I think they are good silvers, though one can never tell, and the
French hall mark is different to the English.
I will do my best to see Wals's people should I get any leave
I've plenty of everything at present, and I'm in the best of health
I received papers dated JUNE 30th to day. Ask Fred to number
or date them on the address side so that I can read them consecutively
Joe writes me that he is shifting again though he doesn't know where yet
as they have trouble to get a house.
Best love to you all, give my best respects to Mjors Thayman, Wilson
& Co. I hope Mother likes her new home & keeps well.
I intend to get my money, allotment etc, fixed up in London, when
get leave
Yours ever
Wes/.
 

[*41*]
Flanders
Sep 11/16
Dear Bro Fred
Received one of yours this week, and was highly entertained
and somewhat Indignant to hear your shipmate's opinions
as to Austns showing the Tommies how to fight.
As a matter of fact, the Tommies are showing us. Ever since
we came to France parties of men have been leaving the regiments
to go to schools, run by the Imperials where they could learn
how to use a bayonet properly, how to snipe, how to use trench
mortars and bombs, and various other things very necessary
to know on this front When the first advance was made on
the Somme, when the Bosches were pushed out of their strongest
works there wasn't an Aust "within two or three days travel.
Regiments tike the Northumberlanders, Scottish Regts, and many other
units including South Africans, New Foundlanders, made the
first push, and if you could only see the places they got
them out of. Well the Tommies will do me every time.
And moreover the Tommies don't skite about what they do
On the way back from the Somme last time we passed the Guards
Divn Grenadiers, Coldstream, Scots, etc and I tell you they made
our chaps stare. Our men have never had the good fortune to be
thrown up against the Real soldier. Usually they have had to
relieve some Territorial regt or Welsh Bantams or something.
We took over from a real Highland regt last move we had
and they're soldiers. Our men are entitled to their share of
credit, but this continually short for limelight on the Anzacs is
causing hearthburnings among the brave men who have weathered