Apl 10^th 1916.

Dear Alan,

Thanks for your letter which I have lost and cannot refer to in my reply.  I am having a great time – got right up against the second in command and enjoying the consequent warfare thoroughly.  He is a shit of the first order – one of those fearfully conscientious, T.T., non smoker individuals whom any normal man has a longing to kick from Lands End to John o’ Groats.

Hope to get a few days in Blighty next week if leave does not stop; however say nothing about it at home because I am fully expecting leave to stop any day.

Got a damned fine C.O. in the person of Capt Gorden who used to command my old company.  Of course he ought to have at battalion and would have one if he did not consistently refuse to bum-suck.  He is a Dalton-in-Furness man but seems to have spent most of his life in the wild parts of the earth.  We get on very well together – he has a fine taste in whisky.

I hope that leave of mine does come off – there is a hell of a lot I want to do this time – only one thing I am thoroughly funked of strolling about Kendal in officers-rig out.  I really think I shall have to change into civvies when I go up home.  The Mumford who was wounded was my friend from M/C, curiously enough I had just before heard from his wife, whom by the way you met in the lab that day as Miss Cliffe, a few days before it happened.  Our lab boy of these days in somewhere in this corps but I am unable to trace him having forgotten both his name and appearance.

Got a splendid company mess in these days – I have the honour of running it – it costs us about 23 bob per week per head but I feed and drink ‘em jolly well for that.  Really living is much cheaper out here than it is at home.

Nothing more to write about.

Yours

Dick

P.S.  Just heard that Oldham, Hall, Cooper and others of my Manchester pals are all out here somewhere.  I rather fancy they will be with the third army so have not much chance of running across them at present. RMB