France

August 27^th 1916

Sunday.

My dear Harry,

Your letter of last Sunday arrived on Friday, probably owing to our having moved, and I have not been able to reply before.  We left our good old barn, had an eight hours train journey, marched (this includes many rests) about four hours and arrived at a beautiful little village.  This time we are billeted in a school-room and it is very nice.  Our village possesses a beautiful modern church, a chateau (a much nicer establishment would have been built in England for the money), several very nice houses, whitewashes cottages, two shops, apple trees and a very big pond.  I very much doubt whether the pond is not the most important of the whole lot.  It is used for all sorts of things (the water is filthy and we have to wash in it) and its banks are the gossiping depots for the village ladies.  It is a pretty pond as on two sides there are trees & behind the trees the church.  The country round-about is slightly hilly & the land is mostly devoted to raising crops.  When we are out on a march we can see hundreds of little patches in the distance, triangular & square, with all sorts of colours.  Our village looks very pretty too in the midst of plenty of trees.  The only other trees are those at the road-side – every road is an avenue unless it is only three or four yards wide.  They have no hedges at the road-side (nor wire &c) nor between the crop fields, only where they are necessary, as round grazing fields.  We are not in the land of estaminets now.  They are called “cafes”.  The country people are very clean & are out in all their Sunday glory today.  All sorts of funny drinks can be obtained at the cafes & cottages.  Many new drinks have been discovered by our fellows, sampled and approved of.  We do a short parade before breakfast, a long one in the morning, and another in the afternoon, for drills, route marches, physical training and so on.  We are delighted to have the evenings free & a full night’s sleep – they are appreciated now.  Being a reserve machine-gunner (lately appointed with no extra salary) I have to spend my afternoons with the machine gun people & find the work very interesting & the names of the sixty-four parts very difficult to remember.  Today we had a late breakfast, a route march in loose dress with the object of having a swim this morning, and a church parade about six (which beautifully wrecks the evening) this evening.  Before we went for the swim they asked “How many couldn’t swim”.  Half way there was some talk of having the best swimmers out, so we anticipated a beautiful place.  We arrived & discovered a stream a few yards wide & not more than two feet deep.  We were all very tickled but enjoyed the humour of the affair.  The water was fine and clear & the spot was magnificent so it was worth the stunt.  I don’t know what is my trouble lately.  Both Bernard and you tell me the censor has been busy with my letters.  I can’t understand it as I have not suddenly become mad.  I don’t like the tea tablets at all.

I hope your work is not giving you too much trouble and that the house question will soon be settled to your satisfaction.  You say my letters turn up regularly on Mondays.  I am afraid this one won’t, but the moving hither is responsible.  I had a letter from Bernard yesterday & he is quite all right.  Mother told me you gave her a stamp issued by the Irish rebels for me.  Thank you very much.  They are very scarce indeed.

Well I had better close.  Remember me to Ethel and tell her I will write in a day or two and tell her all about a very big cathedral town two or three miles away.  We are absolutely safe here (except from Zeps I suppose)

            Yours

                        Alan.

On Active Service envelope addressed to Harry R King, Esq., c/o The Surveyor of Taxes, The Avenue, The Cross, Worcester.  Ans^d 3/9/16.

Postmarked FIELD POST OFFICE 124 28 AU 16. Hexagonal Passed Field Censor 3274 cachet.  Signed WJ Shaw