Letters from John Wesley Hetherington to his Family, 1916-1918 - Part 11

be lucky enough to see the great City.
Four days leave are given to W.Os and senior
NCO's. My billet companion the RSM
goes on his second Blighty leave tomorrow, I
wish it was my turn again.
I wonder when the Aust^ns leave starts.
I am sending Mr Wilsons organ souvenir
this mail also a piece of music of Bapaume
church organ. There are also some bits of
velvet from the same church vestments for
Elsie or the kiddies of the younger generation
at Megs or Wins. I have one or two things still
to send and hope to get a souvenir for Mother
in Paris. That parcel is still missing and I
am now writing to the Base about it. To think
it was within reach of me and then to miss it
riles me. It will walk here some of these days.
Doing well in A.1. health.
Love to Mother & you all
Wes.
Hope all the men have plenty of work.
Are Fred & Will working regularly.
(over)
 

Address
R.Q.M.S. Hetherington J W
2nd Battⁿ 1^st Brigade.
Austn. Forces
Overseas
 

Still Somewhere in France
8/7/17
56
Dear Folks at Home
I'm lazier than ever over this letter writing and you
must be thinking me forgetful of you all. I can
assure you that you are constantly in mind
and I only wish I could be finished with putting
my thoughts on paper, and could sit down & have
a long yarn instead instead in good old Sydney Town.
There hasn't been anything exciting to write
about lately, the boys are still out training
and resting. Quite the longest spell they have
had in Sunny France  (it is sunny at present). Of
course they don't train & rest troops for nothing
so before long I suppose there will be somethings
doing on the Old Western front.
I'm not quite sure whether I wrote & told you I had
had the great privilege of 4 or 5 days in Paris.
They have only recently allowed leave for Paris,
and I was one of the first to score a chance. It is
a bonza city, talk about Sydney, not in it.
The streets are beautifully clean, no dirt [[anywhere]]
and the buildings very fine. I saw [[Napoleons]]
resting place and other items of interest of
that great man. Of course I prefer Old Blighty
 

when it is all said because everyone can
speak the language we know, though a great
many speak English in Paris. I came a cropper
on speaking to one gentleman in a bit of second-
hand French. He replied in excellent English
and on my enquiring as to whether he had a knowledge
of our language he said "Oh yes." I was a teacher
of languages at Sandhurst College Eng^d for 15 yrs.
Guess I felt small.
Paris is full of all sorts of soldiers on leave,
French, Russians, Belgians, Canadians, Australians,
Cossaks, French Black troops, very few English, and
various other sorts I don't know.
There are Officers to burn, spare generals etc,
also Belgian refugees who are not loved by
the real French people.
I forgot to mention I saw some of the first YANKS
also, I don't think they will put them in
the line near our chaps. It would be too
great a strain on our men to refrain from
telling the YANKS off in their beautifully [[picturesque]]
language. Paris is all right but one
wants to have plenty of cash to do it
 

properly. It is easier to get about after you
get the lay of the city, but a t first you
sometimes think you're lost and hire a taxi
—  to take you to perhaps the next street.
The ladies are nicely dressed. Parisian women
know how to dress, and some of the soldiers
had fine uniforms, the Russian Cossack officers
especially, and they wear medals and ribbons
galore. I should like to see it in peace
time as many of the sights are closed up at
present, such places as the Louvre, Eiffel Tower,
were closed. What amused us there was the
difficulty we had to get a decent breakfast
like a pub counter lunch. A cup of coffee &
a biscuit. Dinner in the evening was their
principal meal so far as I could see. I was
lucky to find a good English restaurant
and had a good feed for about 3/-.
Reading a French menu is like studying a map
You've got to be a good scholar for it.
However 4 days soon passed, and I journeyed
back in a carriage full of French soldiers
 

on leave, and they're not bad company
especially if you can patter a bit of their
lingo. Since returning we have been away
in the countryside, beautiful scenery, just
near enough to the line to hear the sound
of the guns. The French held the ground
near here after the Tommie push started.
I like it well, just like Tynedale.
We move again shortly and I expect it
will be for fresh fields & pastures new.
we have had a good spell out of the line
and the men are vey fit.
I don't like moving, there is too much to do,
attending to this & that. Rations & ammunition
bombs, flares, wire cutters, & countless odds & ends.
Still it isn't too bad while the days are fine
& long & I usually get a horse or a wagon
or motor lorry to carry me about, so I might
be worse. off. I don't want for anything
at present, plenty of shirts, socks & tucker,
trust an R.Q.M.S. for making himself comfortable.
I havent heard from you for weeks, get a little
news of you from Jos, but he doesnt write

too often. Still I have no room to talk of
anyone not writing. I feel many prickings
of conscience. I must really write Mr Strongman
Ed Diery, & one or two others.
I am arranging to get Fred a photo I thought
I had laid one out for him, regret very much 
if I missed him, but quite unintentional. I wish
I could send myself to Australia.
When is that relief for the originals coming along?
We're not half waiting for it.
Well I hope you are all as fit as I am,
must congratulate Meg & Will on the arrival
of another recruit. Just heard of it today from
you, & I hear they will call him John. I shall
have to remember that. He may be in time
to relieve the 1^st Divn, if this blessed war
doesnt finish soon. I suppose Mother felt
the death of Aunt & Uncle at Darlington. I hope

she is well & bears up under such sad news.
With love to Mother, best wishes to Meg & the stranger
AWRES) and good health to you all.
R.Q.M.S. HETHERINGTON  J W. Wes/.  )over)
Rest as usual

I have forwarded a few nic-nacks
lately hope you get then O.K.
glad you go the shell cases. 
Wes/.
 

[*59*]
St Swithens Day Sunday
Somewhere in France.
Dear Bro Fred
It is quite up to me to write you I
have received a p/c or two from Elsie and another letter from
Gladys. Might say I received Aunts parcel all right
before I left Blighty. I regret to say I have yet to
write them that letter in acknowledgement. It will be 
done sometime soon all being well. Also had a parcel from
Cousin Polly in Canada lately. People are ever so good to
a poor soldier. I might say here that I am 
in first rate health & condition never felt so well
for a long while, eating like a horse, and sleeping as
well as can be expected up among such gentle
disturbing factors as guns, bombs, and night alarms.
Today it is raining & we don't care if it does rain
for 7 weeks. Fritz deserves it this Year. We've had
our issue of wet weather in previous years. We
are within easy walk of Hazelbrouck thats as near as 
I can say and if Fritz comes now he will have to 
dig his way through. It is a great pity to see all
the dear household furniture of the people driven
away. hanging about all over the place. I even saw
an iron bedstead being used to rest cooking

 

dixies on with the fire under the bedstead.. Counterpanes
blankets, chairs table curtains all sorts of things are
being salvaged and we returned no less than a ton of
old books to Salvage as waste paper this week. Some of
these books were quite historical dating back as far as
1700. I suppose Else will think I had a birthday among
them, well, they were too catholic for me. 
One brigade has had a great week "salvaging" Germans.
this week. Some patrol got one or two in daylight, and 
passed the word to others and soon they were all doing
their best to rake in as many "shell holes" as possible.
Something was wrong with Fritz that day. I am busy

sending Bn trophies away to the War Museum today.
We have about 6 M. Guns and various rifles etc captured
by our men while they've been up here. They certainly do
keep Fritz wide awake. I am picking up a few of the 
usual trifles to try to send to you. The aeroplanes give Fritz
a bad time and we scarcely ever see one over in the 
day time. he makes up for it during the moonlight
nights though and then he keeps us awake.
There are a good few Yanks about at tiseis and