Somewhere in France

November 2nd

Dear Mother and Father

I just received a big parcel from you and two Saturday Even Post and I am very thankful to you for them.  The butter was fine and it certainly did go good and the cake was fresh and the best I have had for a long time a regular birthday cake and I will be looking forward to another one soon.  I put the chest protector on right away as it is very damp and mud to your knees were we sleep and I sure it must be good preventure for a cold and the cough tablets are great for a sore throat and it was very thoughtful of you to send them as everything in the parcel was most useful to me and I cannot tell you how I appreciate the Velvet tobacco and cigarettes.  We get an issue of tobacco and cigarettes every week and you ask my father what he thought of Flags, and Arf a Mo and they are getting pretty scarce too.

I didn’t understand the postcard that was in the parcel and who is Trevor Jones Birkenhead I never heard of him before.  The ship must be at Vancouver lately and she is a new boat, just built I believe. 

Well the weather here is not too bad just now rain occasionally and very muddy and as you see by all the papers there we fighting under severe weather conditions.  The men in the trenches are indistinguishable from the mud and there is a great danger of being drowned in shell holes and the shellfire is simply awful  But the harder it is the better we like it.  They can’t make us cry for help.

I sure my father has arrived home by this time I havent had a letter from you for 10 weeks except for a big bunch of old ones some hospital ones and some you sent to the reserve, and I am looking forward to some of the latest news.  I did not know Mc Gall the 64th book.  Did he come to France the same time as the Battalion.  I hear Stellins has got a safe job down at the base, shoemaker, but I did not know he was there when I came through and I was very sorry about it.  [?] Daniels is in the 16th Reserve in England now and you remember the section that I was in the train when we left Van. well there is not one of them left.  eight of them killed and one lost his arm and the others all seriously wounded.  There is only two of the 67th there also. Well Mam bach best love to every body and especially to Mam. 

Ta ta.  From your loving son

Willie

P.S. Best love to Auntie and Alan and Alivena and Father