Letters from John Simpson Kirkpatrick to his Mother, 1912, Part 1 of 4

7.1.12  
SS Kooringa 
Melbourne 
  
Dear Mother 
Just a few lines  
to let you know that  
we arrived at Melbourne  
today from Bunbury  
W. A.  I recieved a  
letter from you and  
2 from Annie and  
three papers.  Now  
Mother I see in the  
letter that you and  
Annie both recieved  
what I sent you  
for your Xmas Eve
I am sorry to hear 
that you both spent  
a very queit Xmas  
but you could not  
have spent such  
queit Xmas as I spent   
for we left Kembla  
N.S.W. about Xmas  
Eve for the West  
of course we had  
a good dinner We  
had goose and Plum  
Pudding & Brandy  
Sause of and off course  
we drunk each others  
health quite a number  
of times until each  
man thought he  
was Jack Johnson  
champion of the world  

then my mate  
suggested going over  
and having a fight  
with the sailers  
of course that was  
hailed as a noble  
idea and as the  
sailers feeling a  
bit lively themselves  
from sampling the  
bottle to mush  
things went pretty  
lively for the next  
halfhour you couldnt  
see enything for  
blood and snots  
flying about untill 
Mates and Engineers  
came along it and  
threatened to log  
all hands forard
We all had trophies  
of the fray someone  
bunged one of my  
eyes right up and  
and by the look of  
of my beak I think  
someone must have  
jumped on it in a  
mistake when I  
was on the floor but  
as they say alls  
well that ends well  
so I suppose it must  
be for both my eyes  
& my nose are all  

right now so that  
is the way I spent Xmas
Now Mother I hope that  
you and Annie are keeping  
all th right for I am 
keeping pretty good myself  
seeing that the Weather is  
so hot I has been a 112  
degrees of heat in Melbourne  
today it was pretty warm   
I can tell you and we  
had a very hot passage 
from the west the whole  
12 days we we just about  
cooked after doing four  
hours in the stoke hole  
for she has a pretty  
hot stoke hole at the best 

of cool weather.  Now  
Mother I am sending  
you my Photo it is not  
a good one but it was  
only taken by an amateur  
We happened th to be coming  
along the wharf just as  
we knocked off in the  
engine room that night  
at 5 oclock we we going  
along the wharf for a  
swim swim before we  
had tea and he asked  
to stand for him so  
we did but the sun  
was right in our  
eyes and I wanted  
a haircut badly so

10.1.12 
SS Cooringa 
Fremantle 
W.A. 

Dear Mother 
Just a line to let  
you know that we  
arrived here this  
morning from Kembla  
N.S.W.  We called  
at Melbourne coming  
across and I got three  
letters and two Xmas  
Cards. One from you  
and one from Anne.  
Now Mother I expect  
that you and Annie  
have received what  
I sent you for your  
Xmas Eves before  
now I and I hope that  
you have both spent  
a very pleasant Xmas  
and New Year  I had  
both Xmas and New  
Year at sea for we  
left Port Kembla  
on Christmas Eve and  
We lay off Melbourne  
for abbout 2 hours  
on boxing day we  
had to call there  
to pick up and old  
three masted Barque  
that they used in  
Melbourne for keeping  
coal in and as they  
were sending her  
to Fremantle for 

our company we had  
to tow her round  
to Fremantle and  
it made it pretty  
heavy for us chaps  
down below for she  
is heavy enough for  
us to Fire without  
having a great big  
hulk to tow and  
at the very hottest  
time of the year.  
We have been working  
with as far as 135  
degrees of heat in  
the Stokehole there  
is none of sorry to  
get a spell for four 
day & then we  
will be off agian  
for another 15 days  
run East Now Mother  
I am sending you two  
pound in this letter  
this makes the last  
for December 1911  
Now if you se reckon  
up you will have  
received 25 pound  
from me since I  
joined the Cooringa  
I sent you 1 pound  
in January and two  
pound each month  
since except November  
When I sent I four. 
pound a pound Extra for  
your Xmas Box 

so you can reckon it  
up by the time you  
get this letter and  
you can let me  
know whether you  
have received it all  
or not Off course  
this two pounds counts  
in for 1911 as we  
were at sea for the  
1^st of 1912 and did  
not get paid till  
now Now Mother  
I will be giveing 
in getting my Photo  
taking when I get  
my next new suit  
and I will send it  

on to you Now  
Mother I think I  
will now conclude  
So Give my love  
to Annie and with  
love to Yourselve 
I remain 
Your Loving Son
Jack