Glenbow Archives (M-742-7) Harold McGill's First World War letters, January 8-December 6, 1917
France, Jan 8, 1917.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
A few minutes ago I was standing in my dugout with my back to the fire thinking very hard things of you, I really was. I was just about to sit down and send you a red hot letter in spite of the chilly atmosphere of the dugout, for it must be nearly a month since you wrote to me previous to your letter just received. As I remarked I was just making your ears burn when an orderly came in with your very nice and flattering letter. Of course we all like a little flattery and yours was so nicely given that I could not feel otherwise that pleased.
Many thanks for your congratulations. I am afraid the people at home attach too much importance to these decorations. Sometimes they are awarded to the deserving ones and sometimes ------. Gen. Byng our corps commander held a battalion inspection the day after Christmas and presented the ribbons to those awarded decorations.
Just at present we are in support trenches but it will soon come our turn for the front line again. The weather is atrocious, cold with high wind and rain nearly every day.
We had a much better Christmas this season than last. Fortunately we were out of the trenches in reserve and billeted in huts. The weather was fairly well behaved although we had some rain. All the men had a good Christmas dinner including turkey, plum pudding, beer, nuts, candy, etc. We had previously ordered 500 kilos of turkey. We made a contract for them and the dealer shipped them from Normandy. I must say that the French know how to raise good turkeys. The tables were set in the YMCA hut and we hired dishes from the French civilians. We had to divide the dinner into four sections, one for each company. Two were held on Christmas day and two the day after. The band rendered musical programs during the dinners and each night put on a minstrel show which was really not at all bad. We had a good dinner in Bn. Hq. Mess but most of our pleasure was derived from seeing the men have a good feed and enjoy themselves for once.
It is very good of you to send my sister the magazines. I am afraid she sometimes becomes a little homesick and lonely. She has just returned from having leave in England. She reached her unit Christmas night after spending nearly all day on the train from Calais. She should have crossed over from England on Dec 23 but there was a terrible storm that day and the Channel boats were held up.
Please accept my thanks for the papers and magazines you so often send. Everything you send is new to me except the Saturday Evening Post. I get this regularly every week. A friend of mine at Johns Hopkins University subscribed for it on my behalf. We are always pleased to see the Calgary papers although some of the things they print about the war are certainly very wide of the mark.
I expect to go on leave again about the end of this month. This will likely be my last leave for a time for the dust will be flying rather lively when Spring opens. Please excuse this short letter and do try to write more often.
Sincerely yours,
Harold W McGill
France Jan. 26, 1917.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
Your letter of Jan 2 reached me 3 or 4 days ago and the next day the box of stationary and good eats arrived. Thank you ever so much. The nuts and raisins were fine, so good in fact that they are all eaten up already. I put them on the table at Bn. Hq. mess a few minutes after they came and the gradual disappearance set in almost at once. We had a bottle of Burgundy for dinner that evening, and this with the contents of your parcel made us think of home again. You will probably recognize this paper.
We are having real Winter weather now, colder than anything we experienced last year. There has been quite a depth of snow lying for the past 10 days and the ground is frozen hard. The temperature could not have been much above zero this morning which is very cold for this country. Fortunately we are not in the trenches but in billets in a village behind the lines. It is none too comfortable in billets but I hate to think of what it must be like in the trenches. The day the snow started we marched 10 miles in a thick storm. A very hard wind was blowing and the storm at times looked almost like a blizzard. The roads are now covered with ice and frozen slush. This mess makes very bad going for horses.
I have sick parade now at 6:30 AM and this means my getting up at 5:30. My washing water is frozen in the room every morning. I used to think that Canada was a cold country. Our men are sleeping in barns without fires. The most of them are keeping in very good health in spite of the severity of the weather.
The guns are growling away every night and day but we are just now pretty well out of the area of shelling. The shells should detonate well on the frozen ground. You have read I presume about the raids the Canadians have been carrying out. These raids must keep Fritz feeling very uncomfortable.
A short time ago I thought I should get away on leave before the end of this month but it doesn’t look that way now. I hope though to get away before the end of February for all leave will likely be cancelled when big offensive operations re-open.
I heartily sympathize with you in your desire to come out to the war and sincerely hope that I may soon have the pleasure of seeing you in some hospital on this side of the water.
Sincerely yours,
Harold W McGill
France, Feb 2, 1917.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
Please accept my sincere thanks for the parcel of cake, nuts, etc. which came to hand 3 or 4 days ago. We had the cake for dinner last night and it was a most welcome addition to our mess. Did you make it yourself? I am really very anxious to know. The nuts we gobbled up immediately the box was opened, after the manner of our kind. The apple I am sorry to say was frozen solid, and was still as hard as iron when the parcel reached me. I was going to say that our weather at present reminded one of Alberta but it is really more like Manitoba weather. Everything is still frozen up tight but the winds the past few days have not been so bitter and we get a little sunshine at times.
Since writing to you last we have made a days march and are now billeted in another village. I have derived some benefit from the change as there is a stove in the room in my new billet. The people of the village are a kindly lot and are very good to our men in the great majority of cases. One thing I notice about the inhabitants in this part of the country is that they go in for pets to quite an extent especially small dogs. Up in Belgium where we were last winter we never saw a pet dog. Any dog that couldn’t at least earn his living by drawing a cart or working a treadmill wasn’t kept in Belgium. I think it is more or less a sign of good nature in people for them to keep pets. Up in Belgium the people scarcely ever gave our soldiers a pleasant look unless they were trying to sell them something and not often even then.
Do you ever see Miss Levick who used to be at the C.G.H.? I ran across her brother the other day in our battalion. Just at present he is laid up with herpes zoster but is not bad enough to go into hospital. Tell Miss Levick if you should happen to see her that if her brother should meet with illness or wounds I shall not forget whose brother he is.
No word of leave yet. I thought a short time ago that I would likely be in England at this time but leave has been almost entirely cut off for present. After another month big happenings are liable to begin at any moment and then goodbye to leave until Summer is over.
Goodbye for present.
Harold W McGill
France, March 1, 1917.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
It was very kind of you to send me this stationary but I do wish you would send me some with writing on it once in a while. It is quite some time since I have heard from you and I am beginning to fear that you had made a start for the war zone and met with a submarine en route. Possibly though some of your letters may have had a swim.
There is not very much that I can write you. The things that might be interesting we are not allowed to speak about. Of course the censor lets remarks on the weather pass and I shall tell you something about it. When we took over our trenches everything was frozen up hard and there was dry footing. After a few days a thaw set in and by the time we were relieved the mud and water were becoming quite troublesome. Then a week of rain set in and the mud for a time was a fright but we were fortunately out of the trenches for the worst of it. Just now we are getting very nice weather indeed and the ground is beginning to get dry.
A year ago to morrow the British retook the “Bluff” and “International trench” and we were treated to the spectacle of a tremendous bombardment, the most terrible that any of us had seen up to that time. We held these positions for a few days back in July and had a chance to see the effects of the artillery fire to which they had been subjected some months before.
Leave has been cut off again and I am afraid that I am out of luck and shall not have a chance to see London again before Spring operations begin. I should like to get a few days rest before the big show gets under way again for it is not going to be any Sunday school picnic. In fact I have an idea that it will be distinctly rough in spots.
Capt D. Dunlop is now M.O. to one of the battalions over here but I have not had a chance to see him. I saw Major Hazard looking very fit about a month ago. Major Moshier had dinner with us one evening last week. Capt Bob Pearson is attached to our brigade now with the YMCA. He was wounded last Sept. on the Somme. Let me hear from you when you have time to write.
Sincerely yours
Harold W McGill
France, March 25, ’17.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
Your two letters of Feb. 11 & 26 respectively came to hand yesterday and I was delighted to hear from you, especially as your seeming neglect I now know to have been due to faulty mail service. This is really not a letter just a note in acknowledgement of yours. We are in the trenches and conditions are not conducive to careful correspondence for particular people. You will please excuse me writing from the pages of my field message book.
It has been a clear bright day and good for the artillery. Since early morning it has been a case of “Bombard Beaucoup”. So far to day we have been very lucky but I hasten to touch wood. An hour ago the Boche’s shells were falling short of our dugout and now they are overshooting us about 100 yards. I hope they do not try to strike an average range. Just at present they are planting them between me and Bn. Hq. I hope they are through before it is time for me to go down to dinner. By the way, there are five of us at Bn. Hq. mess. Thank you.
Please write once a week as you promised. Good bye for present.
Sincerely yours,
Harold W McGill
France, April 7, 1917.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
I wrote you last from the trenches and have not since heard from you. As this may be the last chance I may have of writing for some time I shall scribble off what may at least pass muster as an excuse for a letter.
We had quite a strenuous trip in the line. The guns kept roaring almost continuously and at times Fritz would become annoyed and send us back a shower of shells. We had to get out of the dugout in which we were when I wrote. The locality became too hot. The sentry next door was killed the day after we vacated the premises. We moved to a fine new dugout that the engineers had just completed for an aid post. It was quite roomy for a dugout and had racks for twelve stretcher patients. It was dug well down in the chalk and had two entrances. Fritz got one direct hit on the roof with a 10.5 cm shell while we were in it but the roof stood up in fine shape. The shock put out our lights and made our heads buzz for a while but no one was hurt. The Hun gave us 3 regular hates every day but just got the one direct hit. I hear that since we came out he has smashed in one of the doorways.
We are now out of the line for a short rest. The day we came out seemed like Sunday, the absence of noise was so marked after the infernal uproar to which we had been subjected for days. Also it was one of the few sunny days we have had during the past two months. It rains or snows 3 days out of 4, and freezes nearly every night. I used to think that Canada was a cold country. To day was fine but a high cold wind was blowing. However the mud dried a little. We have the same mud with us that we had last October and ever since except when it was frozen.
I went over to a field ambulance yesterday to hear a lecture on gas poisoning. While there I saw several Calgary M.O.s, including Major J. N. Gunn and Capt. Daniel Dunlop, also of course Major H. H. Moshier.
Somebody sent our mess a big box of Wrigley’s chewing gum. Although gum chewing is a habit I detest I am at present masticating a wad in honour of the latest of our Allies in the fight for freedom.
Sincerely yours
Harold W McGill
P.S. No, I have not been promoted to the rank of Major. HWMcG.
France, April 13, 1917.
Dear Birdie;-
I have your two letters of Feb 25 and March 10 respectively. And the night before last just after we came out of the big battle you have read about your parcel arrived. It could not have come at a more opportune time. We were all tired and hungry. My orderlies had had nothing to eat since the night before and I was just trying to rustle them some rations when your box arrived. I hope you will approve of my procedure when I tell you that I took nearly all the delicious eats with which the box was stuffed and added them to rations that the transport brought up for my boys. The cheese I kept for to put in my haversack for our next fight, but the sardines, chocolate, wafers & chewing gum I took over to my orderlies who were in a dugout a couple of hundred yards away. It was snowing hard and the night was as black as a wolf’s mouth. It would have done you good to have heard the remarks the boys made and to have seen their faces when they saw the feed that was brought them. They had been working for 3 days and nights almost without any sleep and with wet feet all the time. I gave the socks to one of the orderlies whose own were soaking wet and who had his boots on his bare feet. You need have no fears that your parcel was not appreciated. The cigarettes I smoked myself and am busy on the box of tobacco. It came in very handy as I had lost my tobacco pouch and contents during the engagement. Thank you ever so much Birdie.
It was a wonderful battle, the best show I have been in. Our men trimmed the Boche in fine shape and our losses were not heavy. It was a wonderful sight when our artillery opened the show at 5:30 A.M. The guns all opened at the same moment with a roar like a terrible peal of thunder and for miles along the German trenches there was the most wonderful display of fireworks caused by our bursting shells and Fritz’s S.O.S. signals going up. Our troops advanced as cool and steady as when they had previously practised the attack on ground behind the lines a few weeks ago. For of course we have been preparing for this attack for some time. After we got past the old German front line we reached some high ground and had a wonderful view of the battle. For miles we could see the artillery barrage sweeping like a blizzard across the German position and the whole country behind seemingly covered with our advancing troops. The sight must have struck a chill into the German hearts for the sight gave one the impression of irresistible power.
Our weather is of the most atrocious kind. It snows nearly every day and freezes every night. The mud is as bad as anything I have seen.
Give my kind regards to Aunt Stacey.
Your cousin
Harold W McGill
France, April 23, 1917.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
I have your letter of April 15 and am delighted to know that you are safely on this side of the Atlantic. Did you sleep with a life preserver on when you were crossing? Your letter reached me the night we came out of the line and the day following that splendid box of chocolates arrived. We are all busy eating them up and I simply do not know how to thank you enough. You have put me everlastingly in your debt by the very many kindnesses you have done me since I came to France. Although I may be crude in the expression of my gratitude it is none the less deep and sincere.
Your last Calgary letter reached me in the trenches a few days only before the one announcing your arrival. I had not expected to hear from you in England for some time. I wrote to you just before the big battle but it will be a long time before you receive the letter for I addressed the letter to Calgary.
I am very pleased that you met Major Hewgill. He is one of the best and a fine soldier. His is one of those sunny natures that, as Oliver Wendell Holmes puts it, slopes to the South. He is very popular in the battalion and we would all be very pleased to see him back.
The past month has been a very strenuous one for all of us. You would read all about the big show in the newspapers. The enemy is now “over the hills and far away” and we are at present in tents on a site where it was unsafe to show one’s nose above ground 2 weeks ago. It was by all odds the most spectacular battle I have seen. One of our officers remarked that a show manager would require to charge 10 dollars a seat to put on as good an exhibition. We moved into our assembly trenches during the night before and there waited for morning. It was a moonlight night but partially cloudy. We were shelled on our way in but nobody was hit. We had some breakfast at 4:30 A.M. and afterwards waited for zero hour which was 5:30 A.M. It began to drizzle rain just before the fateful hour. Promptly on the minute the whole sky behind us lit up with a sheet of flame from hundreds of guns, and our barrage opened with a noise like a terrible peal of thunder. There was a wonderful display of fireworks for miles along the German trenches caused by the bursting of our shells and Fritz’s frantic S.O.S. signals. It looked as though the sky were raining fire. It was still too dark for us to see our boys going over the wall.
Our brigade had to wait until the first two lines of German trenches were taken and then push through the first attacking lines to reach the most advanced objective. We had to wait for over 2 hours in the trenches. When the time came the whole battalion got out of the trenches and advanced overland. We sustained some casualties going through the German barrage but not many. After we got over into the captured territory we came up on some high ground and could see for miles to the right. It was a splendid sight. Our barrage was sweeping over the country like a blizzard and close behind it we could see our troops advancing in thousands. The whole country seemed crawling with them and the sight must have put the fear of retribution into the German hearts. My first R.A.P. was a wrecked German concrete machine gun emplacement. I soon afterwards got into an unfinished dugout. When our troops took the village they were attacking I moved up and took over the German aid post. There was one wounded German in it and all sorts of dressings and supplies. We had boiled German potatoes for dinner and they tasted just as good as though they had been obtained through the ordinary channels of commerce. We found a good stove, coke, and in fact all the comforts of home in Fritz’s dugout. His blankets came in very useful for the night of the battle was bitterly cold with quite a fall of snow. We had quite a few German wounded through our hands and I am becoming quite used to being addressed as Kamerad.
We had wretched weather for our last tour of duty in the line. It rained nearly all the time and was cold enough for January. Personally I did not suffer much discomfort for I was in comfortable quarters in a cellar recently taken over from Fritz. We had a kitchen range with a small stove in nearly every room into which the cellar had been divided, also easy chairs. The Germans certainly knew how to make themselves comfortable but of course they simply stole anything they wanted from the civilian population. We shall not be able to work this system until we get into Germany.
During our last tour in the line the battalion scout officer and an N.C.O. went out and captured a German patrol consisting of one officer and a man. They wounded the officer in the arm and put a bullet through the man’s cap before they surrendered. The officer had been in British Columbia and could speak good English. He belonged to the 5th Prussian Guard. He said, “It iss a long time since I haf seen ze maple leaf.” I told him his men were getting a good chance to become acquainted with it these days. He was not a bad sort of a chap though for a Prussian officer.
Give my love to all the Calgary nurses in your party.
Yours ever,
Harold W McGill
France, April 26, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
I did not have any letter from you to-day but yours of April 18 arrived yesterday. I fully intended answering it yesterday but was enticed into a game of bridge just as I was about to begin. Then in the evening I went off to a concert given by the Corps entertainment company. This is a poor excuse I fully realize but it is the best at present available. You see I cannot truthfully tell you that I am too busy to write and you know how I hate a lie. Canadian mail was in yesterday but I didn’t day even a newspaper. By the way many thanks for the copies of “Life” which are much enjoyed by all the members of the mess. I haven’t written to Miss Taylor yet but shall do so one of these days.
Am very anxious to know the result of your proposition regarding returning to work. I am afraid you will have small chance of coming to France but we shall hope for the best. It will be quite alright either way, provided you contract for the privilege of getting off when I do get leave. In case I can go to England on leave and if you come to France we can spend our leave here.
Please excuse this short note – I am writing under difficulties as a strenuous bridge game is in progress right at my elbow. I shall try to write you again to-morrow.
Yours with fondest love
Harold W McGill
France, 12/5/17.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
Your letter of May 5 came to hand yesterday and I was much pleased to know that you are enjoying life and not worked too hard. Two years ago to day we left Calgary for the war. By “We” I mean the battalion; there are now not very many left of the crowd that pulled out of the C.N.R. station that fine morning. It seems ages ago to look back for the two years have been very eventful ones. Sometimes I feel that I have never known any other life than this of campaigning with its associations of blood and sudden death.
Just now we are out in a rest camp for a few days and are surely enjoying the change. We are sleeping under canvas and taking all the advantages of the prevailing fine weather. The coming of warm weather was a wonderful relief to us; I had begun to fear that I might never be warm and comfortable again. We had a strenuous time of it during our last tour in and went through some hellish fighting. This last is not a mere figure of speech but is literally correct. I did not have my clothes off for 15 days. It was like a taste of paradise to get back to a camp where one could have a wash and change of clothing.
It has been very hot to day. Capt Bob Pearson of Calgary now with the Y.M.C.A. put on a concert for our boys this afternoon and most of us attended. The concert took place in the big Y.M.C.A. tent. We have also got our old gramophone going and enjoying hearing the records ground out for perhaps the hundredth time. It has a most restful effect to hear the old machine grinding out the canned music when we first come back out of the line. Music does not have to be real high class to satisfy us. Our band is now in good shape and its performances when we are in camp also give much pleasure. Most primitive means of recreation such as pitching horse shoes give much soul satisfying amusement in a rest camp.
The papers and magazines you are sending me so often are very highly appreciated and I do not know how to thank you enough. Have you heard any more about coming over to France? No leave is in sight for us here yet but I shall make a desperate effort to get over to England before you leave for this side. I have not seen my sister since a year ago last February.
I lost my fountain pen and am using the Paymaster’s which is nearly out of ink.
Sincerely yours
Harold W McGill
France, 28/5/17.
Dear Miss Griffis;-
Your letter of May 17 is to hand. Please excuse my writing in pencil; I lost my fountain pen during our last tour.
We are now out in reserve under canvas again Dieu merci. Our periods of rest have been mighty short and those of duty very long for past two months or more. Our last trip was a long trying one but fortunately our casualties were light. The weather though was fine all the time except for one days rain. When the battalion was in the front line I used to stay up all night and sleep during the day. The early mornings were beautiful. Some times I could see & hear 3 or 4 skylarks at once and other sing birds were plentiful. The screaming of the shells didn’t seem to disturb their singing at all. The first morning after we took over the Hun put on a vigourous straafe with 15 cm shells around our premises. He first blew in our aid post and shortly afterwards smashed in our sleeping dugout. Fortunately I had retreated in each case with my orderlies before the direct hits were landed. None of my men were injured although one had a very narrow margin. A man of another battalion was killed at the door of the dugout. It was lucky we had no wounded on hand when the hate started to come over. It took us 3 hours to dig our belongings out of the wreckage after the storm was over. Our rations were at the bottom of the dugout and we could not have any breakfast until we recovered them.
The records arrived this afternoon. I really do not know how to express my thanks. Somebody has made off with our gramophone but I have a search party out to locate it so that we may have some fresh music. The gramophone sounds like voices from home when we come out of the trenches.
I note your remarks re Major Hewgill. The Major is a very fascinating personality and I am going to make a stab for some leave in order that I may go over to England and see what he is up to. I hear that he has command of a reserve unit over there. No one could deserve it more.
I had the pleasure of dressing a badly wounded Hun last tour, a compound fracture of the right humerus. He was under 19 years of age and had been in the army over a year. He had been a student at Munich University and could speak a little English. He told us that their colonel had warned them all against the Canadians. The colonel had told them that the English were not so bad but that Canadians were a rough cruel lot who would use prisoners very badly. When he told me he was a university student I asked him where were the dueling scars on his face. In reply he gave a wan smile and pointed to the wound in his arm. After I put his arm up in splints he said “I thank you very much for your kindness to me.” I told him it was not our habit to make war on wounded prisoners. He wanted to know if I was acquainted with Philadelphia. One cannot help having compassion on wounded enemies but the sight of a dead Boche does not excite any sympathy in me. No body invited them here. I have just read of the recent air raid on England. Do you ever see Capt. Geo. Johnson? I saw his name in the casualty list as wounded some time ago, but have not heard from him and do not where he is or how he is progressing. Neither have I seen Haszard for months. Major Gunn is still out here but I hear that Dunlop has been evacuated sick.
Let me hear from you again soon.
Sincerely yours
Harold W McGill
France, June 17/17
Dear Miss Griffis;-
Your very nice letter of June 12 reached me yesterday having made excellent time for these disturbed days. The stationary came along a few days earlier and I wish to most heartily thank you for your kindness in sending it. I have still on hand a considerable quantity left over from what you have previously sent but I presume that you thought from the few letters that I have been writing that my supply had run out.
Be careful of yourself working around those lungers. It will do your patients no benefit, you know, for you to contract the disease. I have a mortal terror of Tb. It is more deadly than Fritz’s trench mortars.
We are now having the best time we have had since landing in France, no Fritz shells or airplane bombs to worry us. The weather is delightful, rather hot but very acceptable after all the cold wet Spring we had to endure. The battalion is billeted in a very nice village prettily situated and we are again able to enjoy a few of the ordinary comforts if not the luxuries of life. The French people are very friendly to-wards us and our boys and the civilians get along splendidly. The battalion is doing training while out in rest but there is no forced pace and the boys are being encouraged to go in for sports and recreations. We had a battalion sports day last week, races football etc. An invitation was issued to civilians to attend and they responded very well especially the school children. There were special foot races for the boys & girls and every one of them seemed to enter for each event. The maire and town doctor were on the grounds. The doctor could talk English. He introduced me to Monsieur le Maire. As the maire had no knowledge of English and I had none of French we were unable to carry on a very animated conversation. The doctor was much interested to learn that I had been in Vimy as he knew the medical man that had been there. I gathered from the remarks of my friend that his Vimy confrere’s practice had been all shot to pieces. Some of our men dressed up and performed as clowns, to the wonderment & delight of the children. The program ended up with a concert in the evening. A pleasant time was had.
Yesterday was Brigade sports day and the program lasted all day. It was blistering hot but everything went off well. Our unit won a number of events including 1st & 2nd in the mule race. I rode to and from the village where the sports were held.
This morning after church parade a few of us got our horses and rode off to our swimming pool which is about 3 kilometres away. The pool is an old disused quarry filled with water. It is about 500 feet long, half as wide and very deep. It makes an ideal place for swimming although I must confess that I shouldn’t mind having a chance to take a dip in the sea again. However we all enjoyed both our ride and swim. The day is too hot for walking. I noticed some children out picking wild strawberries. It made me think of strawberry shortcake. Lord! It seems to me to be years & years since I have seen or eaten a piece of strawberry shortcake.
My sister Margaret has been bombarding me with letters regarding making an application for special leave. She has done so and thinks she might get away towards the end of the month. We are not getting any regular leave in the battalion now but I am making an attempt to get special leave. I should like very much to spend 10 days in England now. The further back a man is from the firing line the better chance he has of obtaining leave. Margaret expects to get posted to a C.C.S. soon. I wish to Heaven she would get away from Le Trefort. The place is completely off the beaten track and very difficult to reach. I have not seen Margaret for a year & a half. If she were up at a clearing station or even in England we might get a chance to meet occasionally.
Did you know that Mr. Fleetham was dead? Dr Follett wrote me that the old gentleman had gone to California to recuperate after his attack of pneumonia and had died quite suddenly down there. He was a fine old man and I shall miss him very much when I return.
We were all greatly interested in the big fight at Messines & Wytschaete for we were up in that country for nearly a year. I know the geography of the Ypres salient better than I know the country around Calgary. It did not matter in what part of the salient one happened to be, he had only to look around to see the Wytschaete hill. The hill dominated the whole salient, and Fritz could see us from the time we left our billets to move towards the front. It would have been good business to have spent 50,000 casualties to take that ridge at any time during the war, i.e. provided it could have been held as it is now. The capture of the ridge will certainly make a big difference in our toll of casualties. I should have liked to have been standing on Kemmel Hill when those 19 mines went up. The engineers were driving the saps for the mines when we were at Kemmel over a year ago.
Let me hear from you again soon. Give my kind regards to Major Hewgill and ask him if he would like some stamps sent.
Sincerely yours
Harold W McGill
France July 12/17. 11:20 P.M.
My dear Emma;-
I have just arrived at the aid post of the battalion which is in the front line. The aid post is in the cellar of a chateau that has been wrecked by shell fire.
We had a lovely crossing and arrived in Boulogne about 2 P.M. My train left early the next morning and the girls were good enough to get up before daylight to see me off. Their train was to go some hours later. I did not want them to get up so early but was pleased nevertheless that they did. At the railhead I was lively enough to run across a divisional motor car which landed me right at our horse lines. Later on I came up into the line and reported for duty. You will see that I did not lose much time in getting into harness again.
My leave seemed almost too good to be true especially when you told me you liked me and gave me the promise I so longed to receive. I was prepared to have that taxi drive around London until the petrol gave out or I knew my fate. But do not think dear girl that I do not realize what a terrible responsibility I took when I asked you for that promise and the trust in me that it involves. The knowledge that you love me is very sweet and before long I hope we may be able to begin our lives afresh together. In the meantime we must both “Carry on”. I think though that quite soon our immediate relatives and those near to us should know of our engagement. However I shall leave the decision in this entirely to you; I did not tell my sister Margaret but shall by letter do so when we have come to a decision as to our general course of action. If any mishap should be my lot here I should like my brother & sisters to know that I had left behind one who is very dear to me. Can you tell me what size of a ring you will wear for me? I wish to send you one as soon as possible.
When I next get leave I shall ask for a month and we can be quietly married and spend it together. The change you have brought into my life has caused me to give up the idea of trying for leave to Canada in the autumn. Goodbye for present and please excuse this short letter.
Yours lovingly,
Harold W McGill
France, July 20, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
I have your letter of July 13 and was pleased to know that you were having a good time in London. I wrote you from the trenches and addressed the letter to 133 Oxford St London. I hope it reached you safely.
We are at present out in reserve, billeted in a ruined village. It used to be just behind the line but is now some distance back since the Huns have been moved along. The civilians are already coming back and starting in to rebuild their shell destroyed homes. It makes one savage to see the terrible destruction the Germans have left behind them. In the line we now hold there are pianos in a number of dugouts. These the Germans had looted from the towns they occupied. When we hustled them out they gutted and destroyed practically all the beautiful French homes. Of course in the smaller villages there was very little fine material to destroy but in the larger towns and cities the destruction has been wicked. I hope to live to see some of the fine German towns laid flat in ruins. Their people will then not be at all anxious to go to war again.
The records arrived to day but we have no gramophone as it was left up at the horse lines. One of our officers going on leave intends to bring a new machine back with him.
My correspondence is in a frightful state of neglect. I have a pile of unanswered letters in front of me that I can scarcely see over. I had a letter the other day from Mrs. Clarke of Calgary whom you will remember. She had not been very well. The Clarkes were always extremely kind to me. I had my room at their house for over four years.
How is your ankle? I am glad to know that you will not have to go back nursing those lungers for some time at least. Do you think you will apply for service in France? I wish you could get up with a C.C.S. but I presume that will not be possible until you have put in a certain period of nursing in a base hospital. And before too long a time elapses I hope we may be able to map out an entirely new program. Are there not such a lot of things we should have talked over? I should have had that taxi go out to Richmond and back. I shall look forward to my next leave with a particular interest and pleasure and if the war should be over then so much the better. Do you know anything about weddings? They are entirely outside the range of my experience; I was never at one in my life, not even as a spectator. With best of love I am
Yours ever
Harold W McGill
France, July 22, 1917.
My dearest Emma;-
I have your letter of July 16 containing your gentle reproach for me because of my tardiness in writing. I wrote you a few minutes after reaching my dugout on the night of July 12. I was kept fairly well hustled up until that time. I am afraid though that it was some time before you received the letter if indeed it reached you at all.
You ask me why I did not give you a hint of what I was thinking – when I thought. I do not exactly get your meaning but I have thought of you every day since I first came to the war, and surely my dear girl you know I cared for you before I told you so. No, I am grieved to say my dear mother is not alive, and I think it was perfectly lovely of you to ask me about her. I have a brother older than myself and two sisters younger. Our father and mother both died within 10 days of each other many years ago. Margaret was 15 years of age at the time. Ever since the four of us have always maintained a strong family relationship although we have been much scattered most of the time. We are indeed I am afraid inclined to be “clannish”. My brother who has been married for years hardly ever lets a week go by without writing to me, and his wife has been a third sister. They have 3 children.
We don’t know much about each other’s family relationships do we? But I know that you are a good lovely girl with a keen sense of humour. Did you ever think what a terrible thing it would be for two people, neither with the sense of humour, to live together? Small jolts would de detonated into mine explosions. As for myself – a few unimportant particulars. I was born in Peterborough County, Ont. on the twenty first day of December 1879 A.D. So you see I am no longer in the first flush of youth. During the past few years indeed I have been alarmed and discouraged at the speed with which the old gentleman with the scythe has been tearing down the road. So far as I know, apart from the hazards of my present occupation, I am a first class risk for a life insurance company, I have never served a term in prison, and my religious belief is very unorthodox. And lastly as I think I warned you I do not belong to the class of predatory rich.
We got our gramophone going yesterday but before it came the Colonel went off to take temporary charge of the brigade and he did not get a chance to hear “When Irish Eyes are Smiling”. I hope you are enjoying your ankle’s recovery. It was a most lucky sprain that, for me. Had it not happened you probably could not have come up to London while I was there and I noticed that the cars at Liphook have no tops on them. Be careful of the Tb cases when you get back.
We are going back to do another tour in the line shortly. Write as often as you conveniently can. Have you a small sized photo of yourself that you could send me? I still have the other one and look at it every day. Certainly write to Mr Grant; why should you give up your friends?
Yours lovingly
Harold W McGill
France July 27/17
Dearest Emma;-
Haven’t heard from you for nearly a week. We are now in the line having a fairly strenuous time of it, and I am sure you will excuse me writing to you on stationary from my note book. It is just beginning to grow dark and our guns have been bellowing all afternoon, sending streams of shells over to Fritz. Life cannot be one grand sweet song on his side of the line. We are usually busy all night and my batman has just been in to tell me I am wanted. I do my sleeping in the day time.
There are some lovely gardens and orchards where we now are. The strawberries and raspberries are all done but there are still plenty of currants and gooseberries. We had some of the latter for dinner to-night. I saw some pear trees the other day loaded down with green fruit. I am afraid we shall be away from here before they are ripe. To judge by the symptoms of some of the men coming sick I should say that they have been sampling the green apples and pears. This is not a letter, l--- or other wise, but just a note to say Hello! to you.
Yours lovingly
Harold W McGill
France, July 31, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
You have been doing splendidly as a letter writer but your letters have been reaching me in a very irregular manner. That of July 22 came three days ago while those of July 21 & 23 respectively arrived to day. I was having a very busy time of it when I got the letter of July 22. When ever I had a few minutes to spare through the night I would dive into my dugout and read your letter over once again. I confess that some of the contents left me puzzled & uneasy. Why do you still doubt the sincerity of my purpose? Your remarks seem to imply that you have an idea that I acted on the impulse of the moment and that I would now begin to regret my action. My dear lovely girl, that jab hurts like a needle going in. I know I am clownish in my manners and especially when I am somewhat excited but really you must not think that I had not given the matter some previous consideration. When I went on leave I had made up my mind before I should return that I would find out from you whether or not you cared for me as I wished. You will acknowledge that my opportunities of a confidential i.e. – very confidential – interview were not of the best, and whenever the chance did come my courage would ooze away. Do you remember the evening we went home from the Savoy and we rode together from the Kingsley to the R. Palace? I very nearly made my declaration that night but my courage failed me at the last moment. Do you know the particular reason for my grabbing off that extra day?
When I told you that I had been hoping to wait until the war was over before speaking to you I was telling you the plain truth. These war time engagements to my mind are not the best arrangement and I hope we may terminate ours by getting married before very long. Waiting until after the war does not appeal to me at all and means the possibility of too much tragedy. I cannot help thinking of poor Capt. Pinkham and the cruel end of what his dreams must have been.
Why did you not send me all of the letter you had written? You have made me anxiously wonder what it could have possibly been that you wrote and then did not care to have me know. Now do not think I am trying to scold you for your lack of faith in me. I do not blame you a bit and your profession has taught you what a lot of unhappiness there is in the world through ill advised marriages. Personally I have always deeply sympathized with the “Old Man” in the novel in his strenuous objection to the penniless hero running off with the heroine his only daughter. Now I shall tell you the old familiar lie, but in my case the absolute truth. You are the first and only woman I have ever asked to marry me and while I may have been remiss in the past I hope in the future to prove to you the depth of my affection for you.
Now you will notice that this letter is very mixed in form as well as in substance. This is caused by my mistaking two sheets of paper for one.
You have given me permission to tell my relatives of our engagement but I have not told a soul yet. Have you? I wished permission only to tell my immediate relatives as it is only fair to them for to be so informed, and the same applies to your brothers and sisters. As for others I do not care whether they know or not i.e. until such time as we may choose to tell them. However I shall not tell any of my people until I hear from you again after you get this letter. I want to make sure that you have got rid of that chilly feeling of doubt in your heart.
I am afraid this is a rambling incoherent letter but I shall try to write you something better when we get back to reserve billets again. Except for a few days I have been with the battalion either in the front line or support ever since I returned on the night of July 12. I got some sleep that night the one you inquired about. Quite a few casualties came through but those not serious my corporal looked after without requiring to get me up. The corporal worked like a beaver all night to make it unnecessary for me to get up as he knew I was tired. I slept very much better with the guns roaring all around than I did the last night in London. I was too excited to get much sleep that night.
Now please forgive me for my poor mixed up letter. I am enclosing you a note Col. Fotheringham, now General Fotheringham, wrote me on the occasion of my decoration. I wish you to keep it for me.
Yours lovingly but somewhat anxiously
Harold W McGill
France, Aug. 2, 1917.
Dear Sweetheart;-
Your letter of July 26 came two days ago. The weather for the past 3 days has been most miserable raining almost steadily and very depressing. However your letter cheered me up wonderfully, for it made me think that after all you do believe in my honesty of purpose and that you were not altogether sincere yourself in some of the things you said in your other letters.
Yes, Dear, I knew that you had lost your mother & father. I remember or at least I think I remember of your father dying shortly after I went to Calgary and before I knew you very well. I think I know why you are so fond of your younger sisters and I am sure they all must look to you for love & guidance.
You mention the morning our battalion left Calgary. I remember the morning very well and how forlorn and miserable I felt down at the station. Everybody else had friends down to see them off but there none of mine there i.e. no one who had come especially to see me, and I felt that nobody cared a damn whether I went or stayed. Did you really care for me enough at that time to feel very sorry that I was going away? My love for you will have only one bad effect on me from a military point of view. I am afraid of becoming a coward, for I do so want to live to try to make you happy and also of course for the perfectly selfish reason that I wish you to make me happy, as you have already done. I do not blame you in the slightest for being troubled with doubts. Usually when a man asks a woman for the privilege of making her everlastingly happy what he really wants is for her to make him happy and worship him as a tin god. What would I not give now for a couple of hours nice quiet talk with you with nobody near to bother us? Are there not such a great many things that we could and should talk over and discuss. How did you ever come to accept me? You know I do not dance nor have I any of the social graces. I have about as much tact as a baby giraffe and when it comes to music, that tamer of savage breasts, I am simply non est. I cannot play any instrument and I have never even tried to learn. I feel my lack of musical perception as one of my great failings. One might better be born color blind. However I am very fond of music and am pleased that you can play for you will be able to give me many pleasant hours in the years to come (Selfishness again you see). I am afraid I am one of those that Shakspeare spoke of being fit for treasons strategems and spoils. You must take me in hand early and see what you can do for me.
Many thanks for your promise of the photo. I should love to have it. That is a lovely one I have and I have kept it a treasure ever since I received it in England 2 years ago. If you are the plainest of your family I shall look forward with great pleasure to meeting the other members. You have a lovely face & expression and take a splendid photograph.
I do not know what advice to give you about coming to France if you are called but I am inclined to advise you to come. Should you get with No 1 Canadian General Hospital I might be able to run down and see you once in a while. Do not go to No 2 at Le Trefort if you can help it for it is away off the beaten track both from Le Havre & Boulogne. It would be nice for you to have the medal that will be given for service in France. It is hard to say when I shall be able to get leave but after the active campaigning season is over, probably in October, I shall ask for a month and I want you to be prepared to marry me then. I have not thought of what your best course had better be from then until the end of the war. I intend to stick it on this side until the end for I do not wish to forfeit at least part of your love and respect by quitting and seeking a bomb proof. After we are married I can make better provision for your future should anything happen to me.
I hope you do not mind my burning your letters. I should love to keep them but on active service there are difficulties in the way. Please excuse my stinginess in note paper. This is some you sent me. I have plenty in the horse lines but did not bring much in with me. You will also please overlook the blot on the first page.
Do you ever hear from Calgary? I think I told you that I had a letter from Mrs. Clarke but since you came over here my Calgary news budget is rather skimp. Dr Follett sent me a tin of tobacco which I received yesterday. I shall try to find you some souvenirs if you really care for any.
Good bye for present I shall try to write you a real loving letter when we get out of the line. With best of love.
Yours ever
Harold W McGill
P.S. They tell me the censors are opening a big percentage of letters now. Have I your permission to announce the glad tidings to my people? No one else. HWMcG.
France, Aug 5, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
I think I made a promise to write you a nice letter when we came out of the line but am afraid I am hardly in form to day. I have your letter of July 28 and am very pleased to know that you are away from the Tb. patients. I had been worried ever since you first told me you were detailed for that duty. Yes, that was a very satisfactory ankle – to me. I only wish we could have been together longer but I was very thankful to be able to obtain so much of your society as I did.
The horrible rain seems to have relented a little and it is fine to day. I walked out to the village where we are billeted early this morning with Lt. Irwin of Calgary. It was a fine moonlight night but rather warm for walking in full kit. A team of six mules on a G.S. wagon caught up to us and we were not too proud to ride behind the lowly but useful mules. We reached our billets about 1:30 A.M. and had a cup of tea and something to eat before going to bed. I drew a very nice billet with the most comfortable bed I have seen in France. My batman had a bath ready for me and it was certainly a luxury to have a wash and get into clean sheets. I hadn’t had my clothes off for 13 days. I trust we have no more rain for a time.
I got the gramophone going right after breakfast (which by the way was not very early) this morning and ran over a lot of our old records. One of our officers now on leave is getting a new instrument. Did I tell you that Col. Bell did not have a chance to hear “Irish Eyes”? The day we had the gramophone brought up from the horse lines the Colonel went off to take temporary command of the brigade and has not been back since.
Your information concerning weddings covered all I had previously known and a little more. I did not know anything about a short service, but if there is one we shall have it, the shorter the better. We shall also indulge in the luxury of a special license. The idea of some low brow curate getting up on three successive Sundays, or whatever the number of times it is, and yapping out our intentions to a crowd of people that never heard of us and don’t give a damn does not appeal to me. Are you in favor of as quiet a wedding as possible? I hope so. Have you told anybody of our engagement yet? I’ll bet you’ve told Reid and several others, in each case as a dead secret. I have not told a soul yet but am anxiously waiting your unqualified permission to give the glad tidings to my immediate relatives.
Yours lovingly
Harold W McGill
France, Aug 6, 1917.
My very dear & only girl;-
I hung around the orderly room this afternoon waiting for a letter and I fortunate enough to pull down two, one written on July 30 and the other on Aug 1. You are a lovely letter writer and when I get one from you I’m “Frightfully bucked up dontcher know.” I love you all the more when you chide me about my tardiness in writing, but please remember, dear, that it is not always very easy for me to get off a letter. I have written to you every day since the unit came out of the line; that’s pretty fair isn’t it?
We have been doing our voting here to-day. I picked the same two candidates that you did and trust that they may be elected. It will be nice, will it not, if our tastes always coincide so accurately? It was quite hot this morning and I spent an hour looking around for our divisional A.D.M.S. in a neighboring village. Afterwards I found his office about a couple of hundred yards from our Bn. Hq. The A.D.M.S. wants me to transfer to a field ambulance and offers to make me senior captain in it so that I would be first in line for promotion. He says that I have done my share of front line work and the D.A.D.M.S. says that if I keep going up often enough I’ll get myself killed. Of course I am not in favor of that at all, I mean getting killed. Of course a field ambulance position is not a bomb proof by any means but it is much less hazzardous and less strenuous than that of an infantry battn. M.O. Do you think I had better make the change? I shall not decide until I hear from you.
The Canadian mail is in to day and I received several letters. Only one is from a lady and she is married with a family of four children. She and her husband are old friends of mine and are living in California. I had not heard from them for years.
I hope your dance came off successfully. Do you realize that I do not dance a little bit? My sisters made several attempts to teach me but the results never justified the effort. In the future years when we go to dances together you will be enjoying your self dancing while I sit off in a corner and glower. My lack of the social graces will be a constant source of chagrin and embarresment to you. I shall be like Old Jiggs in the Bringing up Father pictures. I am sure though that you will be able to sweeten my disposition somewhat if you take me well in hand.
If I transfer to the field ambulance I may have some difficulty in getting that month of leave in the winter. I know Col. Bell would get it for me if I stayed with the battalion but of course I shall be out of his jurisdiction if I make the change. Let me know what you think of it.
Yours very fondly
Harold W McGill
France, Aug 9, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Your letter enclosing one from your sister Enid came to hand a few minutes ago, 5 days from England. Some of my letters must be going astray for in one or two of them I have asked questions to which you never refer in your letters. Your sister’s letter interested me very much. Is Enid the girl I met in Calgary the time Margaret was there 3 years ago? By the way Margaret has been moving about considerably since we left England and was up to a C.C.S. in time for the big battle in Flanders. I shall enclose a letter from her which I received to day.
It is raining again and the visability is low. The weather man is certainly out to do all he can for the Hun. The first thing we know it will be Winter with us again and mud everlasting. We need fine weather in the business of smashing the Boche.
Well I have decided to do it, that is to say, make for a bomb proof or rather semi bomb proof job. I told the A.D.M.C. to day that I would accept his offer and go to 5th Canadian Field Ambulance. The transfer will not take place at once and I shall probably have at least one more trip in the line. So don’t worry any more concerning my safety, Dear Girl. Have you been really worried very much about me? Isn’t it a symptom of frightful selfishness on my part to feel pleased that you should be anxious? At the same time the knowledge increases, if that were possible the tenderness I feel for you. As a matter of fact I am in practically no danger and it would be an accident if I should get hit, I shall feel sorry in many ways to leave the old battalion and the friends I have in it with whom I have gone through so much. However it is probably in both my own interest and that of the service that I should make the change. Our dear old colonel was very nice to me when I told him of my coming departure but he very strongly advised me to make the change. The only worry I have over my change of unit is the question of that months leave. Col. Bell would have put it through for me but it may not be easy to get from the field ambulance. I want to marry you as soon as possible and the ordinary 10 days leave would not be enough time, would it? I had had dreams for the past two years of rushing home to Calgary “after the war” and looking you up at once. Now you have come to the war but the end still looks far off.
Please excuse this very short letter, the muse is on strike.
Yours lovingly
Harold W McGill
France, Aug 14, 1917.
Dear Girlie;-
I was wonderfully pleased to get your letter of Aug 6, the first I have had from you for 5 days. Your letter did not reach me until 1 A.M. this morning having been over seven days on the road. I wonder what delays the English mail. My sister’s letters sometimes reach me in two days but of course we are within a couple of hours motor ride from each other.
As I remarked I was greatly pleased with your letter and have read it over and over again, just eating up the flattery it contained as I would sugar plums. Of course all men are greatly pleased with flattery even they know in the bottom of their hearts that they are entitled to a particle of the praise so liberally bestowed. I am afraid you must be somewhat of a diplomatist or you would never bring yourself to say all the very very nice, although alas untrue, things your letter contained.
I have just finished a letter to my dear little sister telling her all about it. I shall anxiously await her reply. I do hope she is pleased but of course one can never tell; she may have had altogether other plans for me; you will know what sisters are. I am in hopes that her unit may be moved up behind our sector for in that case I can call and talk things over with her.
I am indulging in a lot of pipe dreams these days but such very pleasant pastime does not lead to any very definite results in regard to our future plans and prospects. You see I cannot tell when I shall be able to get away on leave again or for how long the leave may be granted. My change to the Field Ambulance makes the situation still more obscure. As I told you before I could feel practically certain of obtaining the month’s leave from the battalion, in fact Col. Bell offered to recommend me for it just after the Vimy Ridge show. It may not be so easy to get after I transfer and it may be some months before I can get leave of any kind, six or eight months I mean. I wish we could as you say have a quiet little heart to heart talk on the subject. In the meantime I think you had better just “Carry on”. After we are married I should like a nice little home in England as a refuge from the storms of war when I go over on leave. What you would do with yourself in the long intervals is the question that is troubling me. Officers’ wives are not allowed to take on war work in France, i.e. in any regular military establishment.
I am almost ashamed to send this measley short letter in reply to your lovely long one. Must close now and get to work.
With best of love and affection I am
Yours for ever
Harold W McGill
France, Aug 16, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Just a few lines to assure you of my perfect safety. Your letter of Aug 9 came last night. As you will notice it was six days on the way. Your letters are lovely and I am on the look out for one every night after the transport comes in with the rations. I wish I could do nearly half as well in the way of letter writing.
As you will see by the newspapers we are having a somewhat lively time just at present. Our battalion was in reserve during yesterdays action and all I had to do was to sit by the side of the trench and watch the prisoners march down the road. We all had to “stand to” before daybreak and obtained a fine view of the fireworks when our barrage was put down. The weather was very threatening the night before last but although yesterday was a little showery it was not at all bad for military operations. To day is fine but there is a high wind blowing which is somewhat cool.
Now in regard to my future, do you wish me to transfer to England now or when my next leave comes around? Please know my dear one that the sweetest thing in the world to me is the prospect of living with you always, but we must remember that we are both soldiers and our personal inclinations must always have a secondary place. As I said in another letter my proposed transfer to a field ambulance may make it more difficult for me to obtain long leave, but whether it be a long or short time in coming, and no matter what the duration of it is we must get married when I next go to England. It will then be time enough to discuss the advisability of my remaining there. Many things may happen in the meantime that would affect our decision. I know how you feel about the matter and it makes me most anxious to know what is the best thing for me to do.
You will begin to wonder why I have not sent you the ring I mentioned. I have to make all arrangements by post - all of which takes time, but I have not forgotten it. I have alas been trying to get some war souvenirs for you but have not been able to obtain anything nice enough to send.
Major Horby our adjutant is going over to the 21st Reserve Battn. You will probably meet him over there. He is a good soldier and a first class fellow. I saw your friend Grant yesterday. He is in the best of health and spirits.
I am hurried and must ask you again to forgive me my poor efforts in letter writing. How I wish I were going on leave to morrow!
Always your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Aug 19, 1917
Dear Love;-
I have your two letters of Aug 10 & 12 respectively. Please forgive me writing to you on military stationary but all the note paper I brought in with me has been used up although I have lots more back at the horse lines. I also owe you another apology for failing to thank you for the magazines you sent. They were very much enjoyed by myself and also the other Bn Hq officers. The dugout we had for Hq. mess was so small that we had to take our table out and heave it up over the side of trench when we wanted to get a sleep. We had the pioneers make the table for the purpose. I shall not forget to thank you for the lovely box of dainties which arrived last night although I did not see it until this morning. The bovril and chocolate are most useful in the trenches and the almonds are a real treat. Please do not bother to send sugar though for we get more than we can use in our rations. The army rations are the best now that they have ever been.
I had a good sleep last night. Went to bed about 1 A.M. and slept until 8 except for one interruption when I got up to see a wounded man. Only one other wounded came in and his wound was so slight that the orderly looked after him. The night before was a very poor one for sleep for Fritz was counter attacking our front and our artillery was making the earth shake. You will see by the papers that Fritz had no success with his counter attacks and there will be a lot more widows in Germany as the result. There have been a good few German prisoners taken here and nearly all of them are hungry. They will pick pieces of bread and biscuits off of the ground and eat it up in a ravenous manner. They say they have had no potatoes for some time. I saw one chap being brought in yesterday with a piece of bread one of our boys had given him still tightly clutched in his hand. He was making sure of having his rations with him no matter what happened. Our boys are splendid. Before they go “Over the wall” they all swear by all that’s high & holy that they will kill every sausage eater they come across. Yet a few hours afterwards you may see them handing out their rations and cigarettes to the prisoners.
On the average we are now getting much better weather than we did a couple of weeks ago. We had a very heavy rain storm last night but it cleared up beautifully afterwards. In the evening the air was clearer I think than I ever saw before in this country. The conditions were those of high visibility as the artillery men say. Did you see in the news that we had captured the weather expert of one of the German divisions? Our improved weather may be due to this.
Have seen your friend several times lately but can hardly say I really know him yet. He seems a very nice chap and his company commander Capt. Tucker of Calgary has a high opinion of his ability as a soldier.
Please do not be anxious if you do not hear from me for a few days. I shall be thinking of you be sure of that even if I do not get a chance to write.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Aug 25, 1917.
My dearest Emma;-
I hope you have not been worrying any about me when you read about the heavy fighting in which the Canadian troops have been engaged. I have now 3 of your unanswered letters on hand, the latest dated Aug 19. This reached me to day at noon. Please do not adopt a policy of reprisals and quit writing because of my repeated failures to write. When I wrote you last I warned you that you might not hear from me for some days for I knew that we were going into a heavy action and as it turned out there was very scanty opportunity for writing while the show was on. I am always so pleased to hear from you and fear that you may not write because of my shortcomings in that respect.
We are now out of the line and just settling down into our billets. It is a most welcome change to be away for a time from the never ending roar of artillery. During the period of one month from July 22 to Aug. 22 I slept out of my clothes only five times. We are being favoured with the most delightful brand of weather. I think I told you that we captured the weather expert of one of the German divisions on Aug 15. He must have had control of conditions for the weather has been splendid since we got hold of him.
I have not yet changed over to the field ambulance but shall probably do so before the battalion goes into action again. On the other hand if I wait until Sept 18 I shall have completed 2 full years service with the battalion in the war zone. The reason I have not made the change before this is that the A.D.M S. did not wish me to leave the battalion until this late show was over. I shall let you know just as soon as the transfer is made.
Now what of our future? I confess the more I consider the matter the more puzzled I become. Leave from the front is such an uncertain thing and when we do get it often have only a few hours notice. Then if I do get leave at a certain date how can we be sure that you can get away on short notice? If we could be sure of dates we could go ahead and make all arrangements without much danger of a hitch; I mean without danger of our plans breaking down. Where shall we be married? The choice of time, place & padre must of course be yours. Then there is the question of announcements for to send to our friends, etc. It would seem that there are almost as many things to be considered as there were when the attack on Hill 70 was worked out. One thing I have made up my mind to though is that my objective must be reached soon no matter what the difficulties in the way.
With best of love I am
Yours always
Harold W McGill
France Aug 28, 1917.
My dear sweetheart;-
Your letter of Aug 21 reached me yesterday. I had expected another to day as you said something in your letter about writing the day following. I am awfully pleased to have your letters but have no just cause for complaint if you miss a day now and then.
Have not changed over to the field ambulance yet but intend going down to see the A.D.M.S. to morrow. I should rather like to wait until Sept 18 to complete my full 2 years with the battalion in France.
We had the honour of being inspected by the C. in C. Field Marshall Sir Douglas Haig yesterday. It rained dogs & cats the night before and we all had visions of standing out in the rain as we did for Sam Hughes one day in England 2 years and more ago. We were very fortunate though in having a fine morning. It began to rain as we were returning to billets just before we reached home and kept it up all afternoon. I had never seen Sir Douglas Haig before and was much impressed by his appearance. He looks and acts like a great soldier. One could easily pick him out from seeing his published pictures but he is somewhat thinner in the face than the photographs would lead you to expect.
Please forgive me, dear girl, for not thanking you for those splendid chocolates. They arrived at our dugout on the evening of Aug 21 and were much appreciated. Needless to say they were all gone within 24 hours. Do you remember me telling you about the pear & apple trees up in the battle zone? They were just getting ripe when we were up the line last time but the tactical situation did not favour fruit picking expeditions. There are some fine fruit trees in the village where we are now billeted but I am afraid some of the fruit was damaged by the high gale that blew all of to-day. The heavily loaded fruit trees exercise a very severe test of discipline upon the boys.
Col. Bell returned to the battalion the other day after being in command of the brigade for a month. We had the gramophone doing business and I had “When Irish Eyes are Smiling” all ready for him. The Colonel will likely be leaving the battalion to take command of a brigade before long but I shall likely have transferred before that. It will certainly not seem the same battalion without him.
Good bye for present dear heart
Always your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Sept. 1, 1917
Dearest Girl;-
Your letter of Aug 25 reached me this afternoon and I was very pleased to know that you were well and having a good time besides doing some hard work. I trust that the professional relationship with the other sister on the ward may improve.
Yes, I have heard from Margaret since I wrote and told her of our engagement. You will probably have heard from her before this for she told me she was writing to you. She will have told you all about it in her letter so I need not repeat. However I have no reason to fear that your somewhat gloomy forbodings are in any danger of becoming realized even in small measure.
We are having quite an easy time of it now and I am getting 8 or 9 hours sleep in a good bed every night. The only evil feature is the atrocious weather I think that captured German weather expert must have escaped. We have had a week of almost continuous rain, and the terrifically strong winds are doing a great amount of harm. When it is raining we remain within doors and spend our time playing cards, reading, writing and playing the gramophone or rather listening to it. Last evening I attended a company concert and enjoyed it rather. By the way I sent your friend Grant off to a field ambulance the other day and I shouldn’t be surprised if he makes “Blighty”. He seemed quite ill, had a temperature of 102° F but I do not think he has anything more serious than P.U.O. or trench fever.
Are you still considering the question of coming to France? Have you found out how much notice you will be required to give before you resign to ----- you know? Honestly I haven’t laid out any course of action and do not possess any more information as to rules of proceedure than when I left England. I certainly want to have that month with you in England and soon. And afterwards if anything should happen to me you would be fairly well provided for in the way of pension, etc. I hear you say emphatically that you are not thinking of anything so materialistic and I do not think you are. But I am and shall be less anxious when it will be my privilege and duty to provide to the extent of my abilities not only for your present but for your future.
Let me hear from you whenever you feel like writing.
Yours lovingly
Harold W McGill
France, Sept 3, 1917.
My dearest Emma;-
Your letter of Aug 26 – 28 reached me this afternoon, or, to be more exact, when we were at lunch. I was much grieved to hear that you had been having a fit of the “Blues”. These attacks are liable to come on at any time without reason or cause, as I trust was the case with you. However I do not think you should feel bad enough to weep. I think I told you about the time we came out of the terrible Somme campaign last September & October, and about my having an idea what a woman meant when she said she felt like having a “good cry”. We have had no such trials this year. On the Somme our battalion lost nearly 700 men and officers within two weeks, including 16 officers dead. No finer men ever lived than many who marched cheerfully to their deaths at the Somme. Now whenever I am inclined to feel low spirited which is very seldom, I compare our present experiences with those of last year and conclude that things are not so bad after all. Were you weeping because this Mr. Harris you mentioned was leaving for the front? You see I am immediately on my guard for anything like that. You will find me frightfully jealous and unreasonable.
This is a perfectly beautiful autumn day. The morning was almost as good to look upon as the famous picture. If we get a few weeks of the kind of weather that we have to day it well help a whole lot with the harvesting of the crops as well as dry the ground for artillery to move. With reasonable weather we should be able to land the Hun a few more stiff punches before Winter sets in. I had a busy morning; sick parade at 7, lecture at 10, and then an inspection of billets until noon. The battalion is in splendid condition and I have seldom seen the billets and lines kept so neat or in generally so fine shape.
This afternoon I have been taking things easy. A big parcel of tobacco, cigars cigarettes, etc. arrived to day from Drs. Blow & Chambers. I must write them this afternoon and express my thanks. Chambers very seldom writes but he is constantly sending me all sorts of things, chiefly in the reading and smoking line. I do not often hear from Calgary now since you came away from there, but of course my former chief interest in Calgary is now on this side of the Atlantic and I feel less anxious to hear from the old town. Mr. & Mrs. A. G. Clarke write to me with fair frequency, and have sent me a couple of snapshots of Annetta their little girl of whom they are so proud and fond. You may not remember Mrs. Clarke. She was a relative of Mrs. McTavish whom you nursed once at the Western Hospital. Do you remember the hot 24th of May afternoon when we went out on the Sarcee Reserve shooting gophers? I used to room at the Clarkes’ house and they were always very good to me.
Did I tell you that my mare had been lame, just when we were out of the line and had a chance to do some riding? However the weather up to yesterday was not fit for riding for pleasure and the groom tells me to day that the beast is fit for the road again. If the days keep fine and sunny I intend to get around the country a little before we return to the line. I wish I had you and the little Ford car over here. We could pick out some beautiful touring routes. Of course we would probably be put under arrest occasionally for using a car without proper authority.
I am very pleased that you had a nice letter from Margaret. I haven’t the least idea of what she intended to say to you. She has written to me only the once since I wrote and told her. I must write to my people in Canada and convey the glad tidings to them.
It seems to take our letters a very long time to reach their respective destinations. Six days the majority of yours take to come to me. We are nearly always able to buy the English papers here the day after they are published. Have you heard anything about being sent to France? If you are sent over here try to get with No 1 General. If you should go down to No 2 where my sister was I should never be able to get down and see you. I am beginning to think that I shall not have much difficulty getting that month of special leave. On the 18 of this month I shall have completed 2 years of continuous service at the front.
With best of love
Harold W McGill
France, Sept. 7, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Your letter of Aug. 31 reached me to day. It took 7 days on the road, the longest time any of them have done up to date. I am sure I do not know what the matter is unless the mails are being deliberately held up. I have also had several bundles of the “Times” from you and wish to thank you very much for them. Really though it is not worth the trouble to send them for they are several days old before they reach me.
Was much interested in your account of your dance and other activities in the social way. I think we shall be able to get along without many fights, for apparently we like the same sort of people. I trust young Owen will do well and that he does not go in for a temperature of 105° to any great extent. I remember well the day he left to get his commission. It was on April 8, and we were resting in a wood preparatory to going into our assembly trenches for the great attack on Vimy Ridge the next morning.
September has been a fine month so far and I hope that it maintains its record. We had a heavy thunderstorm yesterday but to day has been fine and very warm. I walked down to the Hq. 5th F. Amb this morning to hear a lecture on treatment of fractures of the femur. It was hot and close for walking. My mare has gone lame again and I fear that some of my riding program will have to be abandoned.
I am still with the battalion and we are still enjoying the blessings of peace. I do not know why I should be in a hurry to change while present conditions prevail. There are no souvenirs to be had here. The funny thing about souvenirs is that one is usually too busy with other things to think about gathering them when he is where they are to be picked up. Thélus was the best place I ever saw for souvenirs for we went into the place right on the heels of the enemy. In some of the dugouts we found their kits half packed lying on the beds. I didn’t manage though to find anything especially interesting or valuable. The next time we get the run on the Germans I shall keep my eyes open for something. I should like to get a compass pistol, field glass, or something of that sort. A 5 pfenning piece was all the German money I found in Thélus and I threw that away. I am sorry now I did. It would have been a rather interesting keepsake. When I go with the field ambulance I shall not have quite the opportunity to gather these things that I have had, for the prisoners are usually pretty well picked by the time they reach the dressing stations. Personally I never took anything from a wounded prisoner nor did I allow my men to do so. It never appealed to me as being “Quite the thing, you know”. Somewhat infra dig as it were.
What do you think of the political situation in Canada? Rather makes one think of Russia doesn’t it? I see by the papers that the number of automobiles in the western provinces has doubled during the past year. There are thousands of people over in Canada who do not give a damn (Excuse the expression please) how long the war lasts or how many men are killed or maimed so long as the prices of wheat and hogs do not fall. I have serious thoughts that, if Canada fails to enforce conscription, I shall never live there again but merely return to settle up what little business I have and then take up my abode in some new British possession East Africa for instance. I suppose I should say “We” dear girl shouldn’t I, for you are now certainly never out of my plans for the future. Would you be willing to go off to some new and wild part of the world?
Had a letter from Margaret yesterday. She said that it was time I had somebody to keep an eye on me, that I had had my own way long enough. I should like to know what Margaret had to say to you. She told me she had written to you but gave me no intimation of what she had said. I wrote to my other sister in Wpg last night telling her of our intentions.
Goodbye for present and good luck always.
Your lover,
Harold W McGill
France, Sept 9, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
Your letter of Sept. 2 came yesterday. I wish they would not spend so long on the road. How many days does it take my letters to reach you? You never refer to any of them by date, or at least very seldom, and I can never be sure of which letter you have last received.
Had a letter from my sister yesterday. She said I owed her a letter and was just writing to remind me of the fact. She had been on night duty but was hoping to soon be relieved. They were not enjoying the moonlight nights, for the Huns were using them for bomb dropping expeditions against the hospitals. Margaret said she had previously never thought she would dislike moonlight. I wish the C.C.S. she is with would move down a little near to our corps.
You mentioned your frequent interruptions while writing. The other officers are away to a shooting competition this afternoon and I have the mess table to myself for writing. Usually we consider ourselves lucky to even have a table to upon which to do our writing. When we are out of the line the gramophone is usually going during letter writing time.
Life is going along like one grand sweet song for me just now. I have scarcely a worry or care. The sick parades are not heavy and the men are keeping the camp and billets in the most scrupulous condition. The only jarring note to day is the fact that I had to put a man with a sore leg under arrest for “Talking back” on sick parade this morning. He will come up for his medicine to morrow morning.
Why are you going in for buying linen and other junk? You will only have a load of it on your hands and as you know the future is a mighty uncertain quantity so long as the war lasts. It may be months yet before I can get my leave. And then we do not know how long we shall live in England after the war. We may be returning to Canada at once or may not. Altogether “After the war” speculations are most inopportune. Most certainly announcements could not be sent until everything was concluded, but I understood that they should be ready to mail very shortly afterwards. However, that is a minor matter.
I am afraid this is not a very pleasant letter but please know that I love you every minute of the day.
Yours always
Harold W McGill
Please give my kind regards to Miss Reid.
HWMcG
France, Sept 12, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
I have your two letters of Sept 3 and 6, respectively. The latter reached me this afternoon. No, I do not think it likely that many, if any, letters are lost between here and England although it certainly takes them a long time to come and go. I write to you as a rule every other day but of course sometimes 3 or 4 days elapse between my letters.
The looting mania seems to have taken possession of you that you wish me to make away with furniture. What would you like, a set of dining room chairs or a baby grand piano? Wait until we get into Germany and I shall see what I can do. There was quite a lot of furniture, damaged and otherwise, left in Liévin when the Huns evacuated the place. I know of one case where a very nice piano that the Huns had been using was salvaged and afterwards put in very fair condition.
I have been particularly worried lately, as I think I mentioned in an earlier letter, about the political conditions in Canada. Isn’t it a fright the way the people are acting over there? They are really very little better than the Russians. The first idea of all the politicians seems to be to win the elections and the second to carry on with the war afterwards if such action is advisable from a political standpoint. Certainly if Laurier and his anti conscriptionist following get into power Canada will be out of the war so far as any more help is concerned. I see by some Calgary papers that I have that Geo Ross got up at the Liberal convention in Calgary and said he didn’t see why we should be using our men and money to help France get back Alsace & Lorraine. Now what do you think of that from a supposedly white ex alderman of Calgary at this stage of the war? I was pleased to see though that Davidson of the Albertan was one of the very few at the convention who came out flat footed in favor of conscription. It is hard enough for a man to stick and keep up his morale at this game month after month, and as it is turning out, year after year, even when he feels the people at home are solidly behind him. But when cowardly bounders get up and speak as above quoted it drives one wild.
Your friend Grant has returned to the unit but I haven’t seen him yet. Yes I am perfectly fit and well and we are not in the line.
Your lover,
Harold W McGill
France, Sept. 14, 1917.
My dearly beloved;-
Your letter of Sept. 8 is to hand and I was much pleased with it. I trust that you will be able to get your leave alright. What did you mean by “Putting in a transfer”? Do you mean changing over with some girl who does not wish to come to France?
We have been having somewhat broken weather here lately. It rained quite smartly this morning but the sun is shining this afternoon. After another month we shall be starting in on one more winter of rain and mud everlasting. It makes me flinch to think of it.
I see by the papers we have to day that the government in Canada intends to go right ahead with the enforcement of compulsory military service. This is necessary and I only hope that the powers that be keep right on with their good work. We shall need all those new recruits for reinforcements in the campaigns next summer if not before that time. I should like to have the work of going around the various pool rooms in Calgary gathering in the conscripts. Quite a few men in Canada are getting married to escape the draft; their wives must surely be proud of them.
Now, my dear girl, you will begin soon to think that I was talking merely in a “Pickwickian sense” when I mentioned a certain ring. However I have not altogether forgotten the matter and am having some difficulty making a choice from a catalogue. What style do you prefer? There are nice designs set with single stones, with triple and with clusters. I do not wish to have anything sent that might not please you. So if you would only give me some idea of the style you like please! Margaret reminded me that the “Other ring” was also quite necessary.
We had quite a spirited discussion in the mess last night on the question of “Marriage”. It all arose out of the new regulations lately issued concerning the marriage of men of the over seas force. Of course I chipped in with my opinion, and my views were considered as coming from a confirmed old batchelor. I argued that couples that were engaged at the beginning of the war should either have got married at once or broken off the contract. Otherwise it is not fair to the girl. If she cancels her engagement she will probably take a fancy to some one else who has remained at home, and who will be in a much better position to keep up a home than a man who has sacrificed his business by going to the war, even if he is not killed or maimed. I think most of those taking part in the discussion were inclined to favor my view. A man cannot expect a girl to wait for him through a war that has lasted and will last for years. Besides absence does not make the heart grow fonder, except in my case which of course is the exception.
What could have been in my letter I wonder to make you blush to a crisp as you stated? We must look on the practical side of the situation and immediately after our marriage shall have to constitute ourselves into a committee of way & means to consider what can be done concerning the H. C. of L. I tell you, you’re taking a great big chance with me; I belong to a different club altogether to John Jacob Astor and J. P. Morgan. One reason for my wishing to remain in France at the front is that I can save a little of my pay while I am over here, a thing impossible to accomplish in England they tell me. Love you know, while a splendid thing in itself, is liable to flourish more luxuriantly if there is a dollar or two in the family treasury.
Have you heard anything over there about the result of the Alberta Soldiers’ election? Those in charge of the ballot counting are taking such a long time over their work that I am afraid they are busy cooking the results i.e. switching enough ballots to make the desired result. I am told that the Sifton government was helping the lady candidate in every possible way and meant to see her elected. I am afraid of crooked work. Captain Pearson was in for lunch to day. I still have hopes of seeing Colonel Hewgill and him elected.
By the way in that “marriage” discussion I maintained that there should be no great disparity of ages in wedded couples. Otherwise they would each see life from a different angle, would not fancy the same amusements, etc. with the result misunderstandings and family squabbles.
Always your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Sept 17, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
I have your two letters of Sept 10 and 12 respectively. I do not know whether or not the stamps had anything to do with it but they each made the journey in one day less than any heretofore, i.e. in 5 days. I note that you received my letter of Sept 7 on Sept 12 the day you wrote. The time for my letter to reach you thus also works out to five days.
I am pleased to know that you have been hearing from your sisters. These letters will break the lonliness somewhat for you. There was a reference in one of your letters about Enid wearing a bracelet for the second time that was quite lost on me; I had never heard of the first time. Is there any romance or mystery about it? Do not fail to satisfy my curiosity when you write. I hope you will get your leave with Miss Reid on Oct 19. Have a try for it any way; you never get anything or anywhere in this military game without going after it.
You need have not the slightest fear of my becoming puffed up from anything Sandy Russell may say; he is the champion windjammer of two continents. Poor old Seaton! I know just how you feel about him. He has a most unfortunate personality which shows up in marked contrast to Col Hewgill’s sunny lovable nature. There are many things about Seaton I do not like, but I will always say this for him; I always felt safe in my dugout when he was in command of the company holding the line of trenches in front. I never felt fear of Germans suddenly appearing at the door of the dugout and bombing us. If that had occurred I should have known that Seaton and all his men were out of action. Seaton has had a hard struggle in life and I fancy many disappointments. Also he has poor health. These misfortunes have soured his disposition but one must admire his high sense of duty in a military capacity and his utter contempt of danger. I know you cannot like him, nobody could, but if you ever feel like being rough with him or “Turning him down” please remember that the poor chap has gone through a lot and has served his king and country to the best of his ability. Many officers who could make a much better figure at a social gathering are in England doing just that very thing because they lack the courage to face the enemy.
Please excuse this short letter.
Yours with best of love
Harold W McGill
France, Sept. 21, 1917.
My dearest dear;
Your two letters of Sept 15 and Sept 16, respectively, reached me this afternoon the latter enclosing the four proofs which I am very pleased to have. Three of them are very good but you wear a rather formidable expression in the fourth. If in the future you should ever meet me with a look like that when I come home late at night I shall do like Mr. Jiggs and climb up a ladder through a back window.
Certainly, my dear, I am perfectly well and alright. If I do not write to you every day it is because I have nothing to write except to assure you of my undying devotion, and you know what Shakspeare said about people that protest too much. As a matter of fact I had not heard from you since I last wrote until to day. However the other day I found the letter I had written the day before peacefully reposing in our mail box. The orderly whose duty it was to clear the box had failed to do so.
I am very sorry to know that you have no chance of getting leave soon. It may be that when you do get it in January or later I shall be able to get away at the same time and we can arrange to have your leave extended indefinitely.
We had Lieut. Col. J. N. Gunn from Calgary in to dinner last evening. He is looking rather tired. Mrs. Gunn & baby are both in Canada. Gunn has been at it very steady for a long time now and has done a lot of hard work. Col. Gunn told me that Selby of his unit had just returned from leave with some very interesting news to the effect that I was open for congratulations. Selby had the date and everything complete in his summary of intelligence according to Col. Gunn. I told Gunn that I would have to see Selby and get the latest information before issuing a statement. Now where in the deuce did Selby get his news? We shall have to appoint him one of the inquisitors of captured German prisoners.
My mare is over her lameness and I have been having a ride every morning recently. The weather is splendid but there is just a suggestion of autumn in the air. I was over to see Moshier yesterday and found him quite well and with his amazing self assurance quite unimpaired. Moshier told me that the unit where my sister is had been bombed and some 30 casualties caused. As I have not heard from Margaret for nearly 2 weeks I am naturally anxious although Moshier is as you know somewhat unreliable in his reports.
Yours lovingly
Harold W McGill
P.S. Please excuse bad writing and give my kindest regards to Miss Reid. HWMcG
France, Sept 24, 1917.
My dearest Emma;-
I received your letter of Sept 20 this morning and as you will perceive it took only 4 days to come, a record to date. I also had one from Miss Reid to-day. It was very nice of her to write to one and I shall reply in a few days. She thinks I am a very lucky man, in which opinion I heartily concur.
You had a lot to say about all the nice men you have been meeting lately. At present location I am quite defencless but shall have my revenge writing to you some time about all the lovely girls I am meeting. In the meantime I surely am perfectly satisfied, as you say, to be the one “Elected”. I suppose our engagement will not be a success, as an engagement, unless we have at least one row and make up again. However at present I cannot think of anything we could legitimately quarrel over. You will have to try to think up something. Otherwise our love affair will lack interest and romance. I shall warn you at the start to forget all that “Strong good, brainey” stuff. Otherwise you are in for a terrible disillusionment.
We are having quite an easy time and the weather is simply delightful. I had intended writing to you and Margaret yesterday afternoon but we had callers at the mess and I did not get started. In the evening Capt. Bob Pearson and I went out for dinner with the mess of another Alberta battalion. Capt Bob is naturally pleased at being head of the Alberta Election poll, and so are we all over here. I feel very sorry that Col. Hewgill was not elected and am ungallant enough to wish that almost anybody other that the lady had been elected, always excepting of course Lt. Col. MacKinnery and Lt. Col. A. E. Myatt. Miss MacAdams was quite palpably the candidate of the Alberta government and I am strongly of the opinion that the interests nearer her heart will be, not those of the soldiers, but those of A. L. Sifton. In every way I think her a most unsuitable representative but the fool soldiers that gave her the odd vote must put up with the consequences.
I am much worried over the absence of letters from Margaret. As I told you I had word that her unit was bombed and it is now over two weeks since she has writte to me.
Yours very affectionately
Harold W McGill
P.S. Please excuse these utterly impossible envelopes. They are the best I could by in the canteen. HWMcG.
Somewhere in France
24. 9. 17.
Dear Birdie.
You will have received my promised P.C. acknowledging receipt of your letter of Aug. 12 and today I got one of Aug. 20 and 27 telling respectively of your camp experiences and of your wish that I should not go to the R.F.C. It is funny that I should be here receiving a whole flock of replies to my letters telling how long I expected to be before being able to get here.
I met Harold with his battalion in comfortable quarters not far from here, the first town (Villers au Bois L.S.M.) I came to which showed the effects of war. Everywhere I go I am very well received because of his reputation but more will be expected of me in consequence. Everyone I have met in or out of his battalion who know him think he is the finest M.O. in France.
My two weeks at the base were broken by a trip to the railhead on conducting duty and back. I have seen quite a number of French towns of various types. Strange to say the mining towns are best of all except the summer resort. The people in this part of the country are nicer and more friendly than at the coast.
Of the many nationalities of troops I have seen, I was surprised to find that the Americans are the finest looking in the aggregate that I have seen in uniform. They seem mostly from the New England states. The Chinese are much bigger and huskier men than the B.C. Chinese. Our men improve steadily in quality the nearer one gets to the front.
I found my battalion in a town, (Neuville St. Vaast L.S.M.) or rather townsite, now several miles behind the line but formerly just behind our lines. It shows the hand of war all right, but to one who knows where it is and its past and present appearance it is a joke to find a palatial steam heated bathhouse, a Y.M.C.A. and a moving picture theatre in it. A mile back I saw on the day of my arrival a huge sports day.
I am in A Coy. and in comfortable quarters in a corrugated iron shanty built the day of my arrival which is Coy H.Q. I was out the other night close to the line with a party but it was very quiet. Today I was up fairly close getting certain information and was under long range artillery fire with some danger attached to it. It is the first time I can really say I have been under fire.
There are very many things of interest here, but of course I cant tell much. We are in close proximity and full view of one of the most interesting places in Canadian history (Vimy Ridge L.S.M.). Harold is now a couple of miles away and my pal Lindal about a quarter of a mile. I saw him yesterday.
The weather is fine and hot and I think I will make out while it stays like this. We are all watching the election anxiously and all in favour of course of both conscription and a conscription government. I dont suppose you have a vote but be sure you do anything you can.
Yours sincerely
Syd.
L.S. McGill
France, Sept 27, 1917
Dear Emma;-
I have not heard from you for 3 days but shall write to you again anyway to let you know that at last I have moved to the field ambulance. My address now will be 5th Canadian Field Ambulance. B.E.F. Do not forget to put “Canadian” in the address, otherwise the letter would probably go astray. Col. Bell left to take charge, temporarily, of a brigade the same day that I came away. I very much doubt if he will return to the battalion. So far I certainly have not been overworked in my new position.
Had a letter from Margaret yesterday. It was written on Sept 17 and had been thus 9 days on the road. I was much relieved to get the letter for although I discounted Moshier’s statement at his ordinary rate I was nevertheless considerably worried. In her letter Margaret said that she and Miss Lynch had just finished their tour of night duty and were about to have a day off in which they designed to do some exploring of the surrounding country – Margaret said she had sent me a card giving their location, but the censor must have grabbed it for it never came to hand. I have found out however just about where the unit is and shall try to get a run down there some time. Wish you were there too provided the Huns would quit their moonlight bombing attacks on hospitals.
To what hospital are you endeavoring to transfer? Do you like the place where you are any better that you did? I trust you are not working too hard and do hope you will not be sent back to the Tb. ward again. If you are I shall apply for special leave in order to go over to England and run away with you. Before leaving the battalion I told Col. Bell I wanted a months leave for a very special purpose and asked him to use his help, unofficially of course, to get it for me. He said he would always be pleased to do anything to help me in any way and was exceedingly nice about it. The Colonel is the only confidant I have so far made in the matter of our intentions except of course my immediate relatives.
The weather is keeping fine although we had a smart rain early this morning. I hope the rain keeps off for another month at least for it is great Hun straafing weather now. The moonlight nights are bad for Hun air raids though.
Yours with dearest love
Harold W McGill
France, Sept 30, 1917
Dear Emma;-
I had three letters to day, one from Canada and 2 from you. I had intended writing you to day anyway in spite of the fact that I had had no word from you for 6 days. The reason your letters were not reaching me sooner though was because they were going to the battalion.
This is a most beautiful day and September is maintaining its record for fine weather right to the end. It would be a nice day for a ride on horse back. Most of the ambulance officers are out somewhere and I am staying in to keep house. My first official duty was taking charge of the church parade for the unit this morning. This was my third attendance at church parade since coming to France.
It may be that I shall be able to get short leave before very long but do you not think it would be better for me to wait a respectable time and then apply for the month? How long notice would you require before you would be ready to move? Of course if I get a month the urgency in regard to time would not be so great but in any case the longer we have to spend together the better isn’t it? At least it would be for me but you might be glad of a chance to ship me back to France again. I think I shall have to take the padre of the old battalion into my confidence the next time I see him and get some information and advice from him. He is a good sort. You see I haven’t the most nebulous idea of the proper proceedure and if I were to get leave to morrow would know less about the steps to take regarding getting married than I would about forming a joint stock company in England. You may have acquired some information on the subject before now. It is just 3 months ago to day since I landed in England for my last leave, the most enjoyable holiday I have ever had. How is the sprained ankle that was such a good friend of mine?
It may be that I shall get up to see Margaret this week. An ambulance car will be going up in the direction of her unit on Friday and if possible I shall go along and look the C.C.S. up. Of course I shall see other girls as well and thus be on equal terms with you who are meeting so many nice men at the hospital every day. The colonel says that it will be quite easy for me to get off for the day. That is one advantage of being with a F. Ambulance. With the battn. I was pretty well tied down all the time.
Please excuse this short letter and the official paper on which it is written. Give my very kindest regards to Miss Reid. Do you think that there is any danger of Hornby becoming a casualty?
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 4, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Four long days have elapsed since I have had a letter from you but I shall write you a short note anyway.
Our beautiful weather has come to an abrupt ending and it is raining dogs and cats to day. Fortunately I have not had to be out doors much but the day is very disagreeable nevertheless. So far I have found the work with the field ambulance much less strenuous than with the battalion and I had a very easy time of it during the last month I was with it. Of course I shall have more to do at times that I have at present.
Are you getting any mail from Canada these days? The last letter I had from there was written in August. Some of the mail boats must have been sunk.
Lt Col. McGuffin was in to see us the other day. He expects to go back to Calgary as AD.MS of Military District 13 before long. This will do Hux Johnson out of a job. I think I told you about having dinner one evening with J. N. Gunn. I have since seen Selby but did not ask him about his communiqué.
It must be more exciting to live in London these days than at the front. We certainly had some beautiful nights for air raids. It doesn’t take the French long to take action after their cities are raided. They usually return and bomb German towns the following day.
This is a very short measly letter and I shall have to do better next time. Hope to get a letter from you to-morrow. Do not forget to put “Canadian” in the address.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 6, 1917.
My dear Emma;-
I was more than pleased to day to receive your two very nice and loving letters of Sept 24 & 28 respectively. You see they were reposted from the battalion and as you will see the first took 12 days to reach me. You should have my change of address long before this and I shall expect another letter to-morrow. Yes, I really truly love you – very much and all the girls I may ever meet will not make the slightest change.
It made me jump a foot to read about griddle cakes & maple syrup. I am certainly all in favor of that. I wonder how long it will be before we are able to have our first breakfast together in our own home and what we shall feel like. I know I shall feel quite excited and very happy.
No, I have not been at all busy lately although for the past few days I have been orderly officer and fairly well tied down to quarters. We had a move to-day but only for a short distance. It rained in buckets for most of the day and was altogether very disagreeable.
Had a letter from Margaret to day written on Sept. 24. Her unit was bombed but nobody was hurt. She told me not to worry any over her safety as they had a good trench to get into when the airplanes came over. They have to keep the lights out and sit in the dark or moonlight when there is danger of a raid. Margaret said that she had been out for a horseback ride, the first she has had in France. I have not been in a saddle since I came to the field ambulance, but a motor ambulance is good enough to go on with. I have not had a chance to visit the C.C.S. yet. I shall have to go either in a motor car or airplane. One of the R.F.C. officers invited me down to take a joy ride with him. I wonder whether I could persuade him to take me up to where Margaret is. The journey would take about 20 minutes in an airplane.
The war news from the Ypres salient is very good these days and I trust that it will continue so. I fear the rain will have a prejudicial effect on operations. How is the Hornby offensive proceeding?
Good bye for present. Kind regards to Reid.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 9, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
Your letter of Sept 30 reached me yesterday. You will note that the time the letters take in coming is getting slightly shorter, 8 days this last time instead of 12. I trust that I shall soon be getting some sent directly to my present address. These will not take such a long time to reach me.
We have been getting most deplorable weather lately, almost continuous rain with very high driving winds. However we have fairly comfortable billets. I am afraid though that the mud will tie up active military operations for a time at least, and it takes a long time for mud to dry up at this time of the year.
I hope that you had a good time in London and were not bombed. I am afraid the weather would be rainy at the time you were up. However even rain is preferable to bombs. The present weather is entirely unsuited to bombing expeditions.
I note what you say regarding the deportation of Canadian women. Is this official, and if so when is the deportation to begin? Would you be sent home if we were to get married? I certainly would not be in favor of that. It may be that I shall be able to get leave before many months, and what then? Have you found out how much notice you have to give for a resignation? If I were to go to London on leave to-morrow I should not have the faintest idea in the world as to the measures necessary to adopt in order to effect our purpose. Wish one could get a firm of brokers to arrange all details. I thought of taking Col. Hewgill into my confidence and asking him to help me, but I hate to bother him and he might not wish to be troubled with such a matter. What do you think of it?
Had a letter from Margaret yesterday dated Oct 3. They were looking forward to the waning of the moon when she wrote. Moonlight nights are not popular in C.C.S.s any more than in London.
Write often and at great length.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 11, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
I have your two letters of Oct 3 and Oct 5 respectively. The latter came yesterday and the former arrived this evening. Naturally when I read your letter yesterday I did not understand several references but the letter from Dr. Christie that you enclosed in the letter received to-day cleared up the mystery. I am pleased that you like the ring and hope it is a nice one. You see I did not have the privilege of getting a look at it myself but hope to see it on your finger in company with another one before many moons go by. Thank you ever so much for the cake which arrived to day. It will make a very welcome addition to our mess table.
I am pleased to know that you had a good time shopping in London and also that Major Hornby was on hand to do the honours of the occasion. Was it a daylight raid that you encountered?
Please quote the dates of letters you have received from me when you write. Some must be going astray for I write every two or three days, usually on the third day. Sometimes, I admit, the time elapsed runs into four days but not often. Do not whatever you do adopt a policy of reprisals for I dearly love to get your letters.
Our weather has been much better for the past two days and to-day was really fine. We are not at all busy but I am acting orderly officer for the week and cannot get out much. I have an invitation from an R.F.C. officer to go down to his aerodrome and take a joy ride with him but so far have not had an opportunity to take advantage of the offer. Lieut Walsh of Calgary was in our mess this afternoon and had “Afternoon tea” with us.
Have had quite a budget of Canadian mail recently and must soon get to work answering some of the letters. For a long time I got hardly any letters from Canada. Last night one arrived from my sister in Wpg., the first from her in over two months.
Now about those rings, I might have sent you more but picked only those bearing the respective coats of arms of cities I had visited in the course of our various military operations over here. I am glad you like the photo. And that reminds me I have not received one of your own sweet self yet; really you must hustle up your photographers a bit for I am most impatient.
You were well advised I think to change your hotel in London. I never liked that Regent Palace. It always appealed to me as being tawdry and vulgar. We had a nice time in London last Summer hadn’t we? I did at least and shall always love the old city and especially that comparatively modern institution the taxi. No I never did use taxis as a general thing for that sort of adventure. Were you ever really truly glad that you sprained your ankle? It was a lucky accident for me, much more so than any that ever landed me a patient.
Well good night and good fortune dear one
Yours ever
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 13, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Your letter of Oct 7 reached me yesterday. Was very pleased to hear from you and to know that your general inspection passed off with credit to your unit and to your own ward in particular. These general inspections are very trying ordeals no matter where they occur.
No, I have not been able so far to get up to see Margaret. I wrote and asked her if there was a landing stage for aeroplanes near them in case I could persuade a pilot to fly me over some time. They have not been molested lately at her unit with Hun planes. I saw in the casualty list to day the names of 4 nursing sisters, 3 of whom were killed and one had died of wounds. 2 were V.A.D. nurses.
Unless my plans alter very materially I shall not spend the winter months in England. Now do not think dear girl that the idea of being with you does not appeal to me. It most certainly does very much but I shall try to give you a few reasons for my decision. First, I left Canada to take part in the war and the war is being fought in France and Belgium and not to any extent at least in England. There are so many slackers among officers in England, men who have never been at the front and have no intention of coming if they can help it, that I wish to avoid even the appearance of being associated or connected with the bunch. Second, if I went to England for the winter I would be struck off the strength of the B.E.F. and would lose my turn in any promotions over here. I am now one of the senior captains in our divisional C.A.M.C. personnel. I am now known to some extent by the senior medical officers in the division and corps, and, although this may sound a bit egotistical to you, I think I am fairly favourably known. Naturally I do not like the idea of leaving and being thrown among “A generation that knows not Joseph”. I have always heard that a medical officer that goes down to the base or to England from the front with rank less than that of major has a very thin time of it. The occupants of “Safety first” positions look upon him with very little favour. Third and perhaps most important, I do not see how we could live comfortably at present in England on captain’s pay.
Now, my dear sweetheart, does this explanation satisfy you? As a matter of fact you will probably be quite happy to get rid of me for a time at the end of a months leave. As to your coming to France, that might be possible to manage. If you could live in Paris I could get away to see you more often probably than if you remained in England. I believe though that you would have to give up the nursing service. However you know the rules regarding that better than I do. I quite agree with you that you would be better off to have something to occupy your time. Something in the nature of canteen work might be available over here. Mrs. Bell lives in Paris and the Colonel takes his leave there every 3 months.
Our weather is atrocious, nearly continuous rains & high winds. I certainly dread the winter. Give my kind regards to Miss Reid and Good bye for yourself.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 16, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Your two letters of Oct 9 & 10 respectively are to hand. The latter came in the mail yesterday but I was away and did not get it until this morning. I should have written to you yesterday but did not get a chance to do so.
First of all let me wish you very many happy returns of the day and I hope and trust that we shall be together to celebrate your next birthday. I have reached that stage of life when my own birthdays are rather a source of distress & worry to me. You ask me if I may be able to get leave before Christmas. If I were still with the battalion I should have no hesitation in asking for a month by that time but I rather hesitate to do it now that I have just joined another unit. My turn for ordinary ten days leave will likely be around about that time. If I cannot get a month are you willing to marry me with the prospect of us having only a week to spend together? You have never suggested to me where you wish to be married or by whom you wish the ceremony to be performed. You know the choice of padre belongs to the lady. Is it be in London and where then shall we go? I was thinking of Scotland. In the winter though the South of England might be better. Would you mind making cautious inquiries regarding the best place to go.
You mentioned something in your letter about a Miss Smith who is to marry a model letter writer named Dr. Boyd. Do you mean Miss Smith of the C.G.H. and if so is Dr. Boyd the man who used to be in Calgary? If that is the man I think I can beat him at some things if not at letter writing. I really do not know what advice to give you regarding your consulting the Matron in Chief. You see the date of my leave is so problematical that you would not have much to go on would you? However it might be a good thing to let her know your intentions.
Yesterday I made a long trip with a suspected insanity case taking him up to a British Stationary hospital. The journey took me within a reasonable distance of my sister’s unit and I called to see her, finding the place after some difficulty. When we were within a few hundred yards of the hospital our ambulance car broke down and we were completely stranded. I had to wire back for another car and in the mean time I stayed at the hospital. Margaret was very pleased to see me and I certainly was to see her. If the car had not broken down I should have had a thoroughly enjoyable day. I got back to my unit in the relief car about 11 P.M. I saw Miss Lynch and a number of other fine girls but none so sweet and lovable as yourself. If you were at a C.C.S. out here I am afraid that the O.C. of the unit would be putting me under arrest for coming around so often. I felt very depressed yesterday over the accident to the car for I did not know how my own O.C. would view the matter. However he was exceedingly nice about it. I met many old friends at the hospital among them the Nursing Sister in/c Miss Inga Johnson. She was an undergraduate at W.G.H. when I was house surgeon there and is a perfectly splendid girl. I had dinner at the Sisters’ mess, an entirely new experience for me. Miss Lynch and Margaret are very pleased to be with their new unit. Both the O.C. Lt. Col. Prowse and Miss Johnson are of the best. You know a poor O.C. can make life a hell on earth for everybody under his command. I found that every M.O. in the unit was an old acquaintance of mine, one of them a class mate.
Am sorry that your relations with a member of the nursing staff are somewhat strained. I note what you say regarding a certain officer. You have a remarkable intuition in reading character. The remarks I made regarding the military efficiency of another officer do not apply to this chap.
You are a splendid letter writer and every time I get one from you I wish you were near enough to kiss.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 20, 1917.
Dear Emma;
This is really an abject apology – a pause here to read your two letters of Oct. 13 & 15 respectively which have just come in – for my delay in writing to acknowledge your letter of Oct 11 and the receipt of the box of beautiful stationary. Thank you ever so much. I fully intended writing you last night but was disturbed just as I was about to begin. I got a letter partially written to my cousin in Toronto yesterday. I owed her answers to three which have been reaching me at intervals during the past month. She was engaged to marry a young man who was killed out her a year and a half ago. He was in a howitzer battery. The poor girl took her grief to heart very much and I always try to answer her letters within reasonable time. She asked me last year to look up her boy’s grave which I did. He was buried within a mile of where we were camped at the time.
I had a letter from Margaret this morning written 3 days before I called to see her. It may be that I can get another chance to get up that way before long. The other time I went up with a case of suspected insanity who was being taken to a special hospital. Now I hear that there may be another to go up but of course the O.C. might not send me the second time. However I am very pleased that Margaret has moved up into the zone of active operations for I shall surely have a chance of calling at her unit from time to time and after all the danger from Hun bombs is not so very great. Quite a few English nursing sisters have become casualties lately though.
How would you like to come over to live in France after ----- you know? The South of France, e.g. Nice, would be fine for the winter. I have not made any proposals yet regarding the months leave but shall begin to make attempts before very long to find out what prospects really are. I have great hopes that it will be granted, but there are 2 or 3 others in the unit who have been here over two years and I may have to await my turn.
Shall close for present. I am afraid that you will justly consider this epistle a short one.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
What is your correct address please? HWMcG.
France, Oct 22, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
Your perfectly lovely letter of Oct 17 reached me this afternoon having been as you will see five days on the road. I am pleased to hear that mine are reaching you a little more promptly than heretofore.
Our weather has been a little more agreeable lately although it usually rains a little every day. It is of a very much better quality than we were getting at this time last year. Yesterday afternoon I got the O.C. to excuse me from church parade and went over to see my cousin who is a lieutenant in one of the units in my old brigade. I was happy to find him in good health and spirits. I sincerely hope nothing happens to the boy. It was such a fine day that I went over to the aerodrome to see the man who had promised to give me a joy ride. Unfortunately he had gone on leave but the major in/c asked me to stay and have afternoon tea with them. I met a very nice bunch of boys but nobody offered to take me up. They have a very fine mess and I believe the R.F.C. is noted for always having something very nice in that line. This afternoon we were out for a route march.
I have met the Capt. Cockshutt whom you mention but should probably not know him if I met him again. I am very sorry to hear of his trouble. How is Owen getting along? I have not written to Major Hewgill upon the little proposition I mentioned to you but may do so any day now. You have never told me where you wish the event to take place. Suppose I can get an ordinary leave soon what shall we do? Had I better take my ten days and trust to getting a month later? And if I do take a ten days leave shall we carry out our design forthwith or wait until I can get a longer leave?
I am very sorry if my letters are severe and lack warm expressions of affection. I certainly do not intend them to be so. I shall try to do better in the future. I am very happy to have you say you like the ring. You see I had to leave the choice very largely to the jewellers and did not have the pleasure of seeing it myself.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Oct 28, 1917.
My dear sweetheart;-
I have your two very nice letters of Oct. 19 & 20 respectively. I did not have a chance to write you for several days but acknowledged the receipt of your letters in a “whiz bang” that I sent and which I hope you received.
Do you know I had been counting all the time on being married in London. Somehow I never thought of any other place. In any case it must be by special license. Don’t you think so? Have you been able to find your friend Archdeacon Page? The only padre I know that I have much use for is Capt. Appleyard of the 31st Battalion. He is a fine chap and will probably be transferred to England before long. If you have not picked someone by the time we need him we might have Capt. Appleyard. One day in a joke he promised to perform the marriage ceremony for me at any time for nothing, having no more idea that I had such intention any more than I contemplated a trip to the moon. I have not written to Col. Hewgill yet but must do so soon. The only difficulty about making arrangements is the great uncertainty regarding dates. I have just heard though that the regular leave during the Winter months is to be of 14 days duration instead of ten. Do not indulge too much in your day dreaming for if one of Bertha Krupp’s messengers over takes me you will have to revise all your program, or at least substitute somebody in my place in the scheme.
The war news from Italy has been shockingly bad recently but we shall all have to make up our minds to just “Carry on”. I am pleased though that political events in Canada have taken a more favourable turn. The prospects for the enforcement of conscription now seem quite favourable.
Had a letter from Margaret a few days ago. At present I am not so very far away from her unit but have not been able to get down yet to see her again. Expect I shall though before long. Was up to No. 3 last night with a motor ambulance.
Two or three big bundles of Calgary papers arrived the other day from Dr. Chambers. Chambers is not much of a hand at letter writing but is constantly sending me papers and parcels to show that he has not forgotten me. He is a good chap. I saw something in one of the papers about Dr. W.E. Graham leaving for England. Surely he hasn’t decided to come to the war. As a rule Calgary papers do not interest me much now. The adventures of Mr Jiggs in “Bringing up Father” are about the only interesting features.
Good bye for present.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Nov 1, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Forgive me the very short letter I am about to write. I had intended writing you yesterday but simply did not get a chance. I have been quite busy during the past week and expect to be still busier during the week to come. Do not worry if you do not hear from me but I shall try to send you a F.S. post card from time to time even if there are no chances to write letters. I have not had a letter from you since I last wrote but I know that there must be one or more on the way.
You ask me if I think of you often. My dear girl, there is not an hour of the day when I do not think of you and of us when we meet once more, for I too have my day dreams. When I feel somewhat depressed as I do to-day (because the weather is bad I suppose) the desire for your love and sympathy is very keen.
Had a letter from Margaret to-day asking me why I had not been down to see her. It does seem too bad that I cannot get down to visit her unit when we are within a reasonable distance of it but my duties at present will simply not allow it and I dislike intensely asking another man to take over my work while I go off on a pleasure jaunt. There will be plenty of chances later on and patience is a virtue much required in this war game.
So soon as the period of active military operations come to an end for the winter, or sooner if they are much prolonged, I shall ask for a month’s leave. If I cannot get a month I shall soon be due in any case for 14 days leave and if you are willing we can complete our contract during that time. How many days notice will you require? I am eagerly looking forward to the time when I can slip that little ring on your finger. We must have a simple quiet wedding.. I have been thinking that we might spend our honeymoon in Scotland but I shall leave the decision as to that with you. Do not think me silly to talk like this. For many years I have lead a somewhat lonely life and your confession of love has been a source of great happiness to me. If we are not happy together in the future the fault will be mine for asking you to take such a chance with me. Of course we shall have our periods of trouble and anxiety but most troubles are serious or otherwise according to the view point. Are you of a forgiving disposition?
Was very sorry indeed to hear of the Flesher’s great sorrow. I hope that the new born baby will turn out to be a comfort to them.
Yours lovingly
Harold W. McGill
Nov 6, 1917
Dearest Emma; -
Your letters of Oct 27 & 28 reached me the same day and were handed to me just as I was getting into a motor ambulance to make a move. I read them as I traveled along the road. Thank you very much for the flowers; we do not see much of that sort of thing where we are at present. I am sure you will look very pretty in your new dress as indeed you do in any case. I was nearly saying “without it”, but that expression would be liable to mis-interpretation, might it not? Your letter of Oct 29 came 3 days ago, since when I have not heard from you.
It is now 4 A.M. and a fine morning with the moon showing between the clouds. The weather lately has not been at all bad for the time of year. It is very much better than that we had at this time last year. November and December are the two most gloomy and unpleasant months out here and if we get a reasonably fine November the winter will be appreciably shortened. There has been no rain for the past several days.
I had fully intended writing you a whiz bang last night but went off to bed at 10 P.M. without doing it. You see I was up at 3 A.M. yesterday morning and kept fairly busy all day. This morning my reveille was 2:30 A.M. and I got up to get a few lorry loads of men and supplied sent up the line. It is now just after 4 A.M. and I have everything and everybody sent safely off. This will probably be the only chance I shall get to-day to talk to my sweetheart.
We are now clearing the line and the C.O. has given me a safety first job, i.e. I am back at Hq. looking after the forwarding of relief in personnel, supplies and a dozen and one other things. I have not dressed a wounded man since we took over the line. It is quite an unusual experience for me during active operations. I suppose the C.O. thinks I had my share of the front line work during my two years with the battalion.
The place is very quiet except for the noise of transport passing on the road, and nearly everybody is sleeping. I wish you were beside me so that I could take you in my arms and stroke your hair. Do you know it is a long time since I first had a wish to do that, but I haven’t had much in the way of opportunities have I? Isn’t this silly stuff to be committing to paper? You had better burn this letter when you have read it; or perhaps I shall before I post it and then write you a partially sensible one. I send my best love.
Yours ever
Harold W. McGill
5 A.M Nov 12, 1917
Dear Emma;-
Your two letters of Nov 5 & 6 respectively arrived yesterday. I am very sorry to hear of your illness and hope that as you say you were better by the time your letter reached me. I have had quite a bunch of letters lately but have not been able to answer any of them. This is a peculiar hour to be letter writing but it is about the only time of day that I have a chance to do any. I got up at 3:15, had breakfast at 3:30, and then saw to getting away relief parties, rations, etc. I expected to take the parties up myself this morning but another officer was going up so I did not have to go. When there is no officer in the party I take the reliefs up the line myself and then return. After I got the parties away this morning the place was so quiet that I thought it was a good chance to talk to you for a short time. The last time I wrote to you was on Nov 6 while I was sitting up waiting for “Zero Hour”.
Yes, I received your letter speaking about Longham or Longman and have not forgotten the matter. However I scarcely see how I can help him much. Is he anxious to get with a field ambulance? If so I shall mention the matter to our C.O. and it may be possible to get him out as a reinforcement to this unit.
I really do not know what to say to you regarding your coming to France. You see I am very anxious to marry you when I next go on leave and am looking forward with a great deal of pleasure to spending the leave with you. This could hardly be if you came to France. However if you receive an order to report for duty in France I presume you will have to obey but I am afraid our marriage in that case would have to be delayed some months. I shall leave the decision entirely with you. Of course I should like you to have a record for service in France during the war but am selfish enough to wish very much to have you spend all the time with me when I next go on leave. What you will do afterwards when I return to the front is matter that I have not yet taken under serious enough consideration.
The 31st Padre is returning to Canada very shortly and I am afraid will not be available for our purpose. He was around to see us the other day and I had him bury one of our sergeants that had been killed in action. A number of fine 31st officers and men whom I know well went under in the recent fighting. Do you remember a young officer you noticed on the Victoria Station platform! He was killed by a bomb the other night.
Best of love dear sweetheart
Yours always
Harold W. McGill
France, Nov 18, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Your 3 letters of Nov. 11, 12 & 13 respectively came to hand this afternoon. We shall probably be more or less settled within a few days and thereafter I shall be able to write you more frequently as well as receive your very sweet and soul satisfying letters more or less regularly.
I do hope that you will be quite well by the time this reaches you; I have been quite anxious about you. No word of the months leave yet but I shall put in for it before long. Do you know our second in/c Major Burgess had a letter from someone to day in which you were mentioned? The letter said that it was reported that you were to marry Dr McGill of Calgary. The Major showed me the paragraph in the letter but did not give me the name of his correspondent.
Thank you ever so much for the photo which I am very pleased to have although I must candidly say that I do not think it anywhere nearly does you justice. It is not nearly as good as the one you sent me from Calgary.
It is really too bad about Major Powis and I am sure Col. Hewgill must feel his death very much for they were great friends. He leaves a wife and one little girl in England. I heard that your friend Grant was slightly wounded but have not learned any particulars. I saw quite a number of 31st wounded, officers & O.R. coming through the M.D.S. but he was not among them. I could always pick out the 31st men, even before I saw their patches, by the grins with which they showed their recognition of me. They were a fine lot of boys and I hate to think of the many left buried in the Flanders mud. Of course I mean the killed for I believe all our wounded were got out from the recent fighting.
Lt. Col. Kapelle is our O.C. and is a first rate and likable man. I called to see Col. Bell the other day at the Hq of the brigade he is commanding. It was the first time I had seen him since I left the old battalion. Please excuse this scrawly letter.
Yours very much in love
Harold W McGill
France, Nov. 21, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Your letter of Nov. 15 reached me to day, it being the only letter I received in the mail. I wonder why it is that my letters seem to travel so much faster than yours. It nearly always takes six days for your letters to reach me and never less than 5. Some of mine have apparently got to you in 3 days – eg. the one I wrote you early one morning while I was waiting for Zero hour. That was the morning the Canadians took Passchendaele.
So you are not coming to France. Well I am pleased but at the same time it would have been nice for you to have seen some service over here. However had you come we might not have been able to see each other for months, and the date of our marriage must have been postponed almost indefinitely. Do you expect to remain in Bramshott or will you be transferred to some other Canadian Hospital in England? Just so soon as you are reasonably certain of your probable destination I shall start negotiating for the months leave and if there is any prospect of success I shall write to Col. Hewgill and ask him to be my advance agent. Will you be ready and willing? Could the thing be done on 14 days leave?
Am very sorry to know that Miss Reid has been ill and hope that she is better by the time this reaches you. Are you still running a temperature yourself? Please let me know for I am anxious about you.
It is raining to day and altogether the weather is very gloomy. This month however has been much better than was November either last year or the year before. We have had a lot of mist and fog but not a great deal of rain and scarcely any frost. When we are married we shall go down to the sunniest part of England, Devon or Cornwall. What do you think about it?
Had a long letter from my sister in law in Vancouver yesterday. She wrote to congratulate me on the event of my engagement. She expressed her pleasure that I was to marry a Canadian girl and was not about to take some one back from England. Margaret had mentioned you in one of her letters to Ethel (my sister in law).
Goodbye for present and please forgive my long lapses of silence. The letters would not have gone away even had I written them.
With best love
Yours
Harold W McGill
France, Nov 25, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
I have your 3 letters of Nov. 16, 18 & 20 respectively. My mail has been reaching me rather irregularly lately and opportunities for my getting off letters have not been good. However from now on I hope to be able to write to you more often. Please do not worry and begin thinking there is anything wrong with me, physically or otherwise, when you fail to get a letter from me for a few days at a time.
It begins to look as though I shall not be able to get a months leave, for some time at any rate, but my turn for ordinary 14 days leave is nearly due and with luck I may be able to get away early next month. I shall not know for certain of course until near the date of my departure. Are you ready to go on with our little adventure during the two weeks or would you rather wait? Have you any idea where we could have you live after I return to France? You see there will not be much time for making arrangements and it will be well to have everything possible done before my leave begins. I have not written Col. Hewgill yet but shall probably do so to-morrow.
Am very sorry that Miss Reid is having such a hard time. Good night. Hope to see you soon again.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Nov 30, 1917.
Dearest Emma;-
Please excuse my writing to you on this military paper. Your 3 letters of Nov 22 & 24 all reached me together last night. I notice from your remarks that you consider some of my communications rather terse and to the point. I shall probably call to see you very few days after your receipt of this letter and you can say it all to me then. I am putting in an application for 14 days leave to begin on Dec. 7 and shall probably obtain it. I asked the D.A.D.M.S. how much leave an officer might be granted in order to get married and he replied that anybody that couldn’t get married in 14 days time had better remain single. So which is it to be? I shall probably be on my way to England before a reply to this letter reaches me.
Many thanks for the violets and for the rose which I am afraid I neglected to acknowledge. I still have it and consider it a beauty.
Mrs. Drysdale must be a lady of the very best type and I feel very kindly towards her because she has been so good to you. How long do you expect to remain at her home? Are you just naturally tired out or are you suffering from some actual illness? I am very anxious to know.
You speak in your letters of your worry about how hard worked I am. Place your worries away, for during the past few days I have not done enough to break Sunday. One reason why I think I shall get my leave is that things are very slack in our line now.
I intend writing to Col. Hewgill to day and ask him to look after my interests making what arrangements he can for me. You might have a consultation with him and get things going a little before I leave France. You see I am unable to take any steps from here.
Your lover Harold W McGill France, Dec 2, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
Your letter of Nov 26 is to hand. I am pleased to know that you are feeling some better and hope you may be altogether recovered by the time I get over there. I wrote to Col. Hewgill the day before yesterday explaining my circumstances to him.
Have not heard anything further regarding by leave but shall write you at once when I first learn any definite particulars. You may have some difficulties making out what this scrawl means for my fountain pen is nearly dry and I have no ink supply on hand.
The war news is beautifully cheerful these days isn’t it? Of course it is a cold windy day and perhaps the inclement weather makes the outlook even more dreary that it really is. You asked me if the weather lately had not been better than at a similar season last year. Yes November was a very much better month that that of last year or the year before.
Is there any serious food shortage in England? We hear so many alarmist reports over here that one does not know what to believe or disbelieve. Certainly the mild weather of the past few weeks would be a great help to people short of coal.
Had to attend a court martial yesterday morning and in the afternoon I went visiting. Had lunch with my cousin at his battalion and from there went to my old unit where I had dinner. The padre of whom I spoke to you has left to return to Canada. He is at present in England but intends to sail at the earliest opportunity.
Good night.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Dec 4, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
I have your two letters of Nov 29 and 30 respectively. The former arrived yesterday and the latter to day. Many, many thanks for the box of lovely grapes you were kind enough to send. They came last evening and were so good that they are now all a thing of the past.
Have not heard anything further regarding my leave but at least have not been told that it will not be forthcoming, so that is something anyway. I asked for my leave to begin on Dec 7 but of course I may not be able to get away on the date specified. Leave is being granted fairly liberally just now.
When is your sick leave up? It would be a funny thing for you to go and get married on your sick leave, wouldn’t it. I think I told you that a month of leave was quite out of the question. If we cannot manage the affair in 14 days – well – C’est le guerre.
I do not know why I am asking you so many questions for I shall likely see you before you have time to answer them. I am very impatient to see you and have you tell me all those things you were afraid to write in your letters.
The war news is certainly not very inspiring but I am not feeling nearly so blue over the situation as I was a couple of days ago. This is probably because the weather is brighter. The election news from Canada indicates as you say a very bitterly contested fight there. If Laurier should happen to win Canada will be eternally disgraced for we cannot keep up our divisions in the field without conscription. Of course Borden has a heavy handicap to carry due to his retaining that insufferable bounder Sam Hughes in his cabinet for so long.
My Christmas letters all practically all sent off now. I did not send anything but letters this year and not many of those.
Goodbye until I see you.
Your lover
Harold W McGill
France, Dec 6, 1917.
Dear Emma;-
I have not had a letter from you for a couple of days but feel sure one or two must be on the road.
My leave warrant arrived to day. It is made out from Dec. 9 to Dec. 23 and if all goes well I shall arrive in London sometime Sunday afternoon. I shall go to the Goring Hotel near Victoria Station and letters addressed there will get me even if I do not get a room in the house.
I am writing Col. Hewgill to night and shall try to get down Bramshott way on Monday. We can then discuss the situation and come to a decision regarding our immediate future. I may receive some news from you to morrow that will influence my movements somewhat. I shall leave the unit here before the mail is delivered on Dec 8.
Yours lovingly Harold W McGill