Active Service
Somewhere in France (near Neuve Eglise, Belgium]
3 Jun 1917
My dear mother:
We have sufficient food here. Really an
improvement over what was received in England. Weather is ideal. Plenty cool
enough at nights to rest well.
Getting used to camp life. It is not half
bad. Only afraid I'll forget what a chair is made for and try and sit on the
floor.
With love to you and father.
As always, Errol
On Active Service
14 Jun 1917
Mother dear:
Have had the good fortune to get on our
survey party which affords an excellent opportunity of seeing many sights of
interest. The British made a grand advance [Messines]
recently.
A victory in which every branch of the service comes in for praise. Marvelous
revelation of modern ingenuity.
Received the papers regular of late.
Rather warm to-day. Wish I was at the
beach. Would not lose anytime in getting down to the surf. Many people down for
season?
Received a letter from Alex in which he
stated he had joined up. Hope I get to see him.
With love to you and father, Errol
[The “grand advance” Errol is referring to
was The Battle of Messines and the capture of Wytschaete (English spelling),
which the British Second Army conducted under the command of General Sir
Herbert Plumer. Preparation for this battle involved tunneling underneath the
German lines and laying 22 mines, 19 were detonated. The mine explosions
combined with the infantry advancement resulted in a victory which boosted
morale.
These photos are several which Errol
brought home with him. The inscription on the back of the top photo above says
“Warneton.” The photo at the bottom is inscribed Messines. I do not have dates for these photos, so they could have been taken later on in the war. We don’t believe that Errol took
the photos, but probably acquired them from another soldier.]
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