Category Archives: 1915

George Ryan’s letter home dated 15 Oct 1915

George Ryan’s letter home dated 15 Oct 1915

On headed notepaper with regimental crest 9th Middlesex Regt.
Dum-dum.
India.
15 Oct 1915

Dear M & F,

Thanks for your letter of Sept 23rd. We still get newspapers alright. I don’t see how they could stop them.

Yes I wish I could come home & look after my sisters. Apparently they want a little looking after. But I don’t think you will see me home till 3 or 4 months after peace has been declared.

R. Bales had a serious illness I think a few months ago but I should think he’s alright again now. Have E & C Clark joined anything?

Our paper says this morning that there’s been another Zeppelin raid over London, but they did no damage to Public Buildings. I hope it wasn’t in your district. It’s time they found some means of stopping them. I notice Bottomley put rather a “puzzler” in his article in the Sun. Pictorial a few weeks ago when he asked how it was they never raided Paris now.

You asked me last week if there was anything you could send me. There are one or two odd things you might send next time you are sending anything. I’m pretty well off in clothing as after we got that £3= a little while ago I got some vests & khaki shirts & I’m going to get some thin socks & Pyjamas when I go to Calcutta to-morrow; they are quite cheap there. In my top left hand draw I think you’ll find a couple of hexagon shaped pencils, with protectors & rubber; you might send me those, also my “Shorthand Instructor”, my watch wrist strap – if it’s still knocking about – & some grey darning wool & a yard of ¼ “ elastic. And I should like you to get me a couple of tooth brushes, (shaped), a bottle of Brilliantine & a pipe. I can’t get any decent darning wool or tooth-brushes. I’ve paid 12a for the latter & I’ve paid 4a but neither are much good. You know the size bottle of Brilliantine I used to have. Don’t pay more than 9d for it. I don’t think you can get it locally but I expect Dad passes a barber’s. I’ve drawn the pipe I should like on the back of this sheet. Get a good one, a “Brumfit” or “Civic” or something of that sort. Pipes are not up to much here unless you pay a lot for them. The one I’ve got now I paid 2s/6d for in Calcutta but it isn’t a very good one, although it’s English make. (Peterson’s)

I only paid 3d insurance on Dad’s cigars so if your rates are no dearer its worth while insuring parcels. The rate goes with what you value the contents at. I think ours is 3d up to £1=.

By the way I hope you have not kept any of my under clothing – shirts, vests, pants, ties collars – what Dad can’t wear, put in the Rag-bag.

We are still arguing among ourselves as to whether we are going to Dinapore so answer this to Dum-dum. I suppose if we do move we shall only be given a few hours notice, as usual.

Hoping you are all well.
A touch of Prickly Heat now & again is the only trifle troubling me.
Love to all, from
Yr affec son
George

George Ryan’s letter home dated 24 Sept 1915

George Ryan’s letter home dated 24 Sept 1915

On headed notepaper with regimental crest 9th Middlesex Regt.
Dum-dum.
India.
24 Sept 1915

Dear M & F,

Many thanks for your letter of Sep 2 with the piece of heather enclosed. Also for the Sunday Pictorials, which I generally receive sooner or later. The P.O. does have a fine game with newspapers. I had none last week, so I’ve got 2 this week. Another fellow that hasn’t had any for 3 weeks has just got them all together this week.

I suppose I shall get that letter of May’s next week as it will be the 3rd week from when you first mentioned it. What happens all day on Sundays now; out chin-wagging (to use her own expression) I suppose? Many years ago, about Dec 1914 I believe it was, she said she would write every other week, so I was going to write to you one week & to her the next but I reckon you get 4 or 5 to her one. But it’s such a long time ago she said it, perhaps she has forgotten.

I hope you told Mrs Jones I don’t look so smart as I ought in that photograph as my clothes were not done up properly.
Sorry to hear your marmalade is going begging. It wouldn’t if I was at home. I should enjoy some now, after the stuff we get here. (C & B’s in 1 lb tins – 7d).

Its very late now but I’ll wish Dad many happy returns of Oct 1. I meant to have done so a fortnight ago, but it slipped my memory when I was writing.
I was going to try & get your silk this week but I am at Cossipore, so will see if I can get it next week. I shall get it up at Calcutta as I don’t think it’s up to much what they sell at our Bazaar.

I’m practically clear of Prickly Heat at present but there’s something here at Cossipore that makes you itch, I don’t know what it is. It’s a good thing we get extra grub here as there’s nowhere where we can get anything & we get so jolly hungry. The only thing we like coming here for is the grub. Although we pay 1r/6a (1s/10d) for the week we are really in pocket as we spend more than that in barracks on grub.

We have had some rain down this last week. It’s rather upset our Platoon sports as the ground is half under water. But we’ve had it quite light here compared with other parts of the country. Up in the Lucknow district they are flooded out. Thousands of natives homeless.

Well we’ve heard no more about moving so continue to write to Dum-dum.
Have not heard from Bert again this week. I suppose he’s alright.
Hoping you are all well,
Love to all from,
Yr loving son
George

Gerald Benham’s notes from diaries 17 September 1915

Gerald Benham’s notes from diaries

17 September 1915 At crack of dawn Col Dumbell came to me & cancelled
reserve order.
We were to attack & Col & I went to reconnoitre the ground. All well & area was clearly defined. On way back to my Coy H.Q. in Holnon Wood I was badly wounded by a shell which appeared to explode very near me. By stretcher to advanced dressing station & then to Casualty Clearing Hospital at Peronne. Cleaned up there.

George Ryan’s letter home dated 17 Sept 1915

George Ryan’s letter home dated 17 Sept 1915

On headed notepaper with regimental crest 9th Middlesex Regt.
Dum-dum.
India.
17 Sept 1915

Dear M & F,

Thanks for your letter of Aug 26 but I’ve had none from May.

I had a ¼ lb of Tobacco from Mr Harvey this week. (Manager of my old office.)

We are having a lot of sport here now as the Platoons are competing for a cup. Football, cricket, hockey & running. I expect you’ll think it funny playing such games as Football & Hockey out here but taking plenty of exercise is the only way of keeping fit. I played in our Platoon’s Hockey team last Sat against No 14 Platoon. (By the way our No is 13!). The result was a draw, we had hard luck in not winning.

Enclosed are 4 photos taken by one of our chaps. One is of the church, another of a native village near here, the 3rd is the Dhobie’s bungalow & pond & the other is the Dhobie “on the job”. No doubt you’ll think it a funny method of washing clothes. He swings the article round & catches it on a piece of wood or stone & as he does so he groans or shouts each time.

When the photos have “gone the round” please put them face to face & put them in one of my books upstairs.

Well we’ve heard nothing about moving & nothing about where we are going.

Hope you are all well.
Love to all from,
Yr loving son
George

Letter to Dick-Cunyngham dated 11 Sept 1915

Letter to Dick-Cunyngham dated 11 Sept 1915
11th Sept 1915

Dear Dick-Cunyngham,

I was very sorry indeed to find that you had departed before I returned from leave but I am very glad you have been promoted and I hope you will like your new job.

Personally I shall miss your help very much indeed and I am very grateful to you for all you have done for me since I took over the Brigade. it has been a great thing for me – a friendly Regimental Officer – having your staff training to point out the right way of doing things.

Phillips has been confirmed a B.M. and will, I am sure, do the work well.

Marin comes as Staff Captain. We shall have to muzzle his pen a bit or the Battns will revolt.

I had a topping time at home but found it rather more dangerous than Suzanne on account of the Zeps.

All luck
Yours ever
C.W. Compton

On the back Another Chit

George Ryan’s letter home dated 10 Sep 1915

George Ryan’s letter home dated 10 Sep 1915

On headed notepaper with regimental crest 9th Middlesex Regt.
Dum-dum.
India.
10 Sept 1915

Dear M & F,

Thanks very much for your letter of Aug 19. I also received a note from Cousin Ellen in an envelope addressed by you.

I suppose Peg will have gone home by the time you receive this so next time you write there thank her for her letter, for me. I hope Horace is alright again now.

Well it seems pretty certain we are going to shift somewhere very shortly. This week’s rumour is that we are going across the other side of India somewhere near Bombay. We’ve given in our old Khaki serge & we are going to draw some new stuff to-morrow. Serge is never worn down on the plains so we might be going to a hill station. We shall not move for another month yet I don’t think as I overheard the Captain say he didn’t want to move for another 5 or 6 weeks as if we went before that it would mean leaving too many men behind in hospital.

Very few chaps stamp their letters home, they just write “On Active Service” so I’m going to start the same dodge. It’s only a penny a week, still I might as well have it as this awful Post Office out here. If you do have to pay anything of course let me know, but I don’t think you will.

Hope you are all well.
Yr loving son
George

George Ryan’s letter home dated 3 Sep 1915

George Ryan’s letter home dated 3 Sep 1915

On headed notepaper with regimental crest 9th Middlesex Regt.
Dum-dum.
India.
3 Sept 1915

Dear May,

Many thanks for your nice long letter of 12 Aug. Wherever did you find the time to write it?

So the girls behind the counter have not been quite a success; I thought they would not be.

I’m sorry to say I never got that parcel of cigarettes. I don’t suppose they will turn up now. Parcels of cigarettes or Tobacco very often do go astray. It’s a good idea to label the parcel as something else “shirts” or “papers” or something like that. As I’ve said before it’s a rag-time Post Office out here.

What wonderful eye-sight you & Bert must have to be able to see the Crystal Palace from Dollis Hill. Why you can’t see far across London let alone some few miles the other side of it. You might have seen the Alexandra Palace. That’s the one you mean I expect. I suggested to Bert in my letter this week it might have been the Bus Garage that you saw; that’s got a glass roof, you know.

We have to parade nearly every morning now for a dose of Quinine, as this is considered rather a dangerous month out here. They used to have it 3 times a week before we came but they knocked it off during July & Aug.

Edie can send me her Shorthand Weekly now & again – say once a month – & I’ll see if I can do a bit now & again. It’s too hot to do much study out here. Reading or playing cards are as much as we feel up to, as a rule.

Well there’s very little news again this week. A lot of chaps still believe the rumours that we shall leave for home next month but I think they will be disappointed. I think if we leave in Oct or Nov next year we shall be lucky as the war looks like running well into next year.

Heaps of love & kisses from
Yr loving brother
George