Collection of material relating to Stephen Charles Allen and Robert Beattie Allen, 1916-1944 - Part 1

Date 3/3/16 LG Siling Lieut-Col. 
Authority N.Z.A. Div. C.O., 13th Battalion, 
18/1209 4th Aust. Inf. Bde. 

Bearer No. 3002 Pte Allen S.C. A.Coy 13th Battalion, 
4th Aust. Inf. Brigade has leave to proceed from Tel-el-Kebir 
to Cairo from 0600 to 2225 on 4/3/16

No. 98 
Regiment 13th BATTALION M.E.F. 
PASS 
No. 3002 (Rank) Pte. (Name) Allen. S.C. 
has permission to be absent from his quarters, from 
1800 23.4.1916 to 2200 24.4.16 
for the purpose of proceeding to Cairo 
(Station) [[Siniap?]] LG Siling 
(Date) 23.4.16 Lt.-Col., 
C.O. 13th Bttn. A.I.F. 
Commanding

In My little dugout somewhere in France

Dear Mother 8/7/16 
Just a few lines to let you know that I am quite well and I 
hope you are also quite well. I received your welcome letter today and was 
glad to hear from you and to know that you were quite well also Mine 
Flo Will Mother at last we have got to the "front" and are not far away from 
the German frontline most of the lads are in the firing line but the Platoon I 
am in are out in reserve behind the first line our job is guard and fatigue 
work so up to the present time have not had a shot at the beggars but we 
get plenty of bullets and shells over us you ought to see us duck when 
we hear them coming we are doing some ducking at the present as 
fritz is sending a few shrapnel and high explosives shell in but 
we are getting quite used to them now we are going out for a spell in a 
few days time we have been here now ten days and are doing fine 
up till now a couple of the lads have been killed and wounded one of the 
men of the 10 rifls as been killed A WILD his photo is in the group which you 
have Bob is not yet Back with the Battalion but I had a letter from 
him to say that he is well and that he is somewhere in france Dear 
Mother a couple of days ago I was with a fatigue party we were digging 
a sap just behind the firing line there were six of us and a couple of 
engineers we had been working from 6-15 in the morning and at about 
11-30 it began to rain and 12 oclock was knock off time well when it 
began to rain we where beginning to think it was time to buzz off

so we started to git our things together when old fritz put a Bomb over 
it struck the ground about fifteen yards away from us it did not go off 
for a about a few seconds after landing but when it did go off it through 
the mud about abroads you should of seen us brave soldiers do a get as 
when one comes over you can bet your sweet life that it is not an orphan 
but has a lot of mates to follow so we got back to our little dugouts 
and spent a quite afternoon there and had a good sleep we do not get 
to much sleep of a night time if our lads are not putting a few shells 
into fritz will he puts a few into us and then our lads get a move 
on and between the pair of them they make a deuce of a row 
while they are at it the poor unfortunate infantry have to do a bit 
of ducking or lay full length at the bottom of the trench. We are having 
nice weather over here at present a mixture of rain and sunshine 
much better than Egypt I have seen Jim Bryce since I came to 
France but have not seen C Harnett or any of the Manly boys 
Dear Mother the letter I received from you was dated 13^th May 
I have a letter from you and also one from Bert for Bob as soon 
as I see him again. With best love 
I remain 
Your Loving Son 
Stephen

9/7/16 
Dear Min 
Just a few lines to let you know that I am quite well 
and I hope you are also quite well. I received your welcome letter yesterday and 
was glad to hear from you and to know that you are alright it is the first 
letter I have received from you while in the trenches I had one from Bob 
a few day ago he was quite well at the time of writing he is now somewhere 
in France Mother says in her letter she is sorry for the boys going to 
france as they will feel the cold she is quite forgetting that the boys 
including myself felt the heat while in Egypt and also the sand 
and was really dying a slow but sure death by staying there and 
I think that every one of us are glad to leave Egypt to the niggers 
and chance the cold weather of France we have very long days here 
it is still light at 10PM and gets light before 3 oclock in the morning 
so we do not have many hours of darkness I would not like 
to work for a cocky over here if they were anything like the South 
coasters start before and finish at dark a fellow would have 
a pretty rough time of it Dear Min Regus was pretty diff 
being sent up to Dubbo from Sydney some of the late 
reinforcements that came over to Egypt were very stiff 
when they arrived they were sent to a camp out on the 
desert away from Cairo so all they seen of Egypt was the 
sand of the desert and the niggers and they are not

worth looking at greasy dirty looking beggars the 
women of the well to do lot look alright but you can 
only see their eyes as they wear a veil so what is the 
good of that anyhow it is good to be out of it and france 
will do me although a fellow stands a chance of getting hurt 
with lead and iron rations flying about Dear Min if 
ever I get to the old dart I will go to places that you 
mention in your letter and make inquiries and find out 
as much as I can Dear Min I started writing to Mother 
last night while I was writing there were shells flying around 
now as I am writing to you there are some more flying round 
and when I am writing to Flo there will be some more so you will 
all be able to say that when this letter was handwritten there 
was lead and iron flying about over in france Dear Min 
I have no more news this time so I will close with best 
love I remain 
Your Loving Brother 
Stephen 
Dear Min 
I am enclosing a poppy flower which I got 
growing in one of the saps 
Steve

France 9/7/16 
Dear Flo Turn over 
Just a few lines to let you know that I received 
your welcome letter yesterday and was glad to hear from 
you we are having a fairly good time here in france but 
Judging by the row that the guns make and the hum of 
shells and bullets I am beginning to realise that there is a 
war on somewhere about here and if they do not stop 
throwing bits of lead about and small Iron foundries 
at one another I really think somebody will surely get 
hurt your letter found me in my little dugout in the 
trench we are having a good time and have plenty of 
company expesially of a night time the rats come and 
kiss us good night and run about over us just as 
though we were a public roadway here for their 
especial benefit to play with while a guard one night 
I passed a bit of the time away trying to Bayonet them 
but could not get any of them they were to quick for 
me also to cunning I have not received the parcel 
that you sent yet I will let you know as soon as I get 
it Bob is not back yet but will be with the Batt 
in a couple of weeks time I had a letter from him 
a few days ago and he said that he is with the 
first Batch to reinforce so I hope to see him

10/7/16 
Dear Flo 
I have just received a letter from Bob dated 
2/7/16 He is quite well and said that he was writing 
home the same day before I left Egypt I had some letters 
for him and one of the lads from the Batt was being sent to 
the camp where Bob was so I gave him the letters to give 
to Bob and in his note he mentioned that he received 
them 
good luck 
Steve 
[*PS Give My Best 
Wishes to all 
Friends*] 

within the next week or so 
Everything in the Garden is lovely 
or at least I hope so now I must close 
as news is scarce and I know you will 
read Mother's and also Minnies Note 
So with best Love 
I remain 
Your Loving 
Brother Steve 

RC10181 
 

France 
1.3.17 
Dear Mrs Allen, 
As I have been 
away in England wounded 
I only received Miss Allen's 
letter yesterday so please 
excuse my delay in replying 
I am extremely sorry that 
I am unable to give you 
much hope as regards 
your two sons. On the night 
of August 14th the 13th 
Battalion in conjunction 
with other regiments made 
an attack on that 
famous German stronghold 
Mouquet Farm. It was 
one of the most glorious 
charges in which the 
Australians have participated 
as the machine gun fire which 
they were called upon to face 
was terrific. Our lads got 
right across but their 
losses were very heavy