Letters from Robert Edmund Antill to his Parents, 1914-1915 -Part 15

1/ 
Galipoli Peninsula 
August 1st  1915 
Sunday evening  
  
Dear Mother & Father, 
I dont think I can thank  
you enough for that parcel you sent me 
for my birthday, it was a proper prize 
packet, there was I hauling them out one 
after the other, sardines, chocolate, ect, ect, 
of course out came the cake first, it looked 
just splinded, but it tasted better, you 
could just see me picking on the almonds 
out of the top, it seemed to me a shame 
to cut it, any way I did not wait long 
in went the knife & by jove we had such 
a feed at tea time  the best we have had 
since we have been on this Peninsula. 
I had the sardines for breakfast the 
next morning & I had the tin to my self 
rather greedy dont you think, but as you 
know it would not of been enough to share 
round so to save all arguments I got 
them down my self & werent they tastie 
why I fancy I can taste them now but

2. 
but when I was eating them it was more 
than fancy it was reliasition & what 
a change they were & what a toff I was 
tinned fish on the battle field not too 
bad eh. Now lets see whats next of that 
tin of toffee I am eating a bit now & its 
just grand but as I look into the tin I 
see that there is only 2 pieces left but 
still never mind  I had my wack, & then 
the chocolate from Dolly & Elsie it was 
very nice but the sun had got to it a bit 
& changed the flavor some what, & then 
the cigarettes from. Jack & the pipe liter 
from Dad  I can tell you they come in very 
handy especialy the pipe liter when we 
are in the trenches, one thing I was very 
pleased to see in the box was the little 
book with the Sexton Blake yarn in 
it & as you may gess we are very 
hard up for books here & I can tell you 
that book has gone the rounds 2 or 3 
times & I would be very pleased if you 
would send some more out with the 
papers you are sending. There was one 
thing I was looking forward in the

3. 
box & that was some condensed milk 
but it wasent there but still it may 
be on the road a least I hope so. You 
know with a drop of milk tea goes 
down so much better & you can make 
so many different little things with it. 
I recieved two letters from Mother about 
4 days ago & they were posted on the 9 
July, in it you seem rather doutful about 
my address well the way you are addressing 
my letters now is correct  just Dardenelles. 
I have not recieved that parcel with the 
powder in it for the live stock & I dont 
surpose I shall for it should of been 
here a long while ago, but still I got the 
prinsable one. What a surprise Carter gone 
long with his up to date manager Wotten 
& the smart Morley, well all I can say 
is I wish Dad & Mr Barnes the best of 
luck & I only hope their start together will 
be a smal success which I have know 
dought it will & wont it be a knock to 
Carter by jove I only wish I was back with 
you & giving you a hand to get along 
with the buisness which I may have the

4. 
luck to some day. Well now & how are 
things goin on at home oh by the way last 
night I was dreaming I was home & that it 
was Friday night & that I had just had  
a hot bath which I could do with & I was 
sitting down the to a good big plate of 
hot fried fish & potatoes by jove I only 
wish it was true, but still we never 
know our luck do we. You know that 
writing paper you sent me in the parcel 
well when I recieved it was all spoile 
I tell you how it happened the cake 
you sent was very rich & of course on 
the way out some of the richness came 
out &  that was the end of the paper. I 
havent recieved a letter from Roley & Effie 
for a long time or Lallie eather I have 
wrote to them both & I surpose a letter 
from them is on the way. About a fort- 
night ago I recieved a letter from West- 
Cliff & Uncle Jim reconed I had done 
quite right by joining the army & he also 
thought that Roley should of joined 
but he said "Instead of that he goes 
& gets married" by jove I like him to say

5. 
a thing about me like that I afriad I 
might tell him some thing he would 
not like, he also said "Ralph has joined 
the A . S . C .  (a non fighting corp) & Jim the 
Terrors & I myself a special constable 
so I think we are doing our bit." I 
can tell you I would like to have him 
in these trenches for a few hours with 
some of these bombs behind his tail 
I think it would quiten him a bit. I dont 
think I have much more to say only 
that I hope there are some eatables on 
the way out & some milk so I think I 
will now close hoping one & all are 
well at home as I am myself 
I remain 
Your loving son 
Bob . 
P. S. When you send again will you 
please send some writing paper.

Alexandria. 
August 15th 1915 
Sunday Morning 
  
Dear Mother & Father, 
I suppose you wonder what 
has happened to me, well when one comes 
to think of it it is a wonder that I am 
able to write this letter to you, as of 
course you have heard that I am wounded 
& there is one thing I am pleased to say 
that its not too bad. Its a funny thing 
that on the 19 May (Jack's birthday) I put in 
one of the warmest days of my life & I can 
tell you that I dont want to put in another 
like it & on the 7 August (Lallies birthday) 
I go & get wounded but still as I have 
said to myself before I must consider 
myself very lucky as I look round this 
ward at other fellows a dozen times worse 
off than myself. I dont know weather you 
know the nature of my wound well its about in 
the middle of my right thigh, its a bullet 
wound it entered from the out side of 
my leg & came through on the inside & wear it came

out there is a hole about two inches big 
I think it must of been a dum dum 
bullet. I arrived in this hospitial last 
night after a weeks bumping about from 
one place to another, the day I was wounded 
I got it about 2 in the afternoon & had to 
lay till 9 at night be in the same place 
as I fell in, as it was absloutly onside for 
any stretcher bearer to atempt to get any 
wear near me & so I layed there till it 
got dark & then they got me down safely 
but I can tell you that I never put in 
such a rotten after noon on Aug 7 in all 
my life the burning sun nearly drove  
me mad & as before luck was with me  
again for my water bottle was more than  
half full which was an absloute blessing. 
Well I have just about used all my paper 
& I have a lot to tell you but I am afraid you  
will have to wait till next time, I think  
it will be just as well to send my letters  
to the same address & they will send them  
on to me well I will now close hoping one 
& all are well at home & you are not to worry as I am goin  
on grand 
I remain 
Your loving son 
Bob