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The following are extracts from letters written from France during May 1940 by my father Corporal Robert Sloan to his parents and sister Patricia. Bob left France not through Dunkirk but through Le Havre a few days later. The letters, especially those written at the end of May during the evacuation from Dunkirk, show the contrast between his own experience of those days compared with that of the men heading to the beaches at the same time.

6th May

Dear Mother,

Well I am safely settled in now. It is my lot to spend the first week here at the waggon lines and then to relieve Cliff Read at forward HQ. I have had two trips up there already, driving myself both times. On the night we took over I had a beastly drive in the dark, incidentally I was leading HQ group. Yesterday I drove up by myself to deliver some things they wanted. They seem much more comfortable than I expected and all are getting along fine.

We are now living a species of lumberjack life in huts in the old pine wood. The days down here are spent in improving the tracks and making platforms for the vehicles so they will not stick in the mud. I think the chaps here are enjoying the change of having a little manual labour.
.............
You may know by now that the second leave spell has commenced. Eric Twigger was one of the lucky two to go first. I have asked him to phone you up and assure you of my security. The leave roster has not been published yet but I do not expect my turn will be before August.

As the village here has nothing in the entertainment line to offer our cook is very sportingly cooking a supper for us each night at about eight o clock. The weather is quite good and with writing, reading and playing cards we should enjoy our spells here. I don't know for how long we will be here but while the weather lasts I do not mind.
.........
Love to you and Dad

Bob

12th May

Dear Mother and Dad,

It is Sunday afternoon the sun is shining and I am outside our hut in the woods. The usual enenmy planes and ack ack fire can be heard but already we are accustomed to these sounds. Today has been a cleaning up morning followed by an afternoon off, so I am taking the opportunity to send some replies.
..........
The invasion of Holland Belgium and Luxembourg has started the war at last so the end will be that much sooner. You will guess where I would have been if I had stayed in Oswald's unit. The recent proclamation for registering up to 37 will bring in all the Ames brothers, still I hope for Mrs Ames' sake that the elder ones will be in home defence units.
..........
p.s. I shall try to send a line to Grannie as soon as I get the chance. Please thank her for the scarf but do not send it out as it is much too warm.

Much love to you both

Bob

20th May

Dear Mother and Dad,

...........
We are still in the wood but do not think we will be here for much longer. Eric Twigger and the chap who went on leave with him returned on Saturday night and are in our hut. There are still two away on leave whom we are expecting back tomorrow. No one else has been lucky enough to go as leave has been stopped for nearly a fortnight now.

Today I had a walk right through our wood which is pretty just now. There are forgetmenots lilies of the valley and plenty of other wild flowers under the trees while some of the fields outside are dazzling yellow with buttercups. Our nightingale still sings but not so frequently as previously. Perhaps enemy aircraft competition has put him off. We have played a crude game of golf with a ball I carved but yesterday the ball was driven into the long grass and lost. If you have not already sent my aertex vests off would you please put an old tennis ball in the parcel as we get a bit fed up with only having the football to play with.
..........
There's nothing more to write about now. The weekend newspaper should be arriving soon which I shall be glad to see. We still manage to hear the news on the wireless truck.
..........

With much love

Bob

30th May (A Wood near Thionville)

Dear Mother,

I am sorry I have not been able to write a letter for such a long time and hope you have not been worried. I sent a card yesterday which was the earliest opportunity for sending any mail. Today your letter of the 21st arrived.
..........
For the last couple of days we have had to eat biscuits as the bread ration has not come in yet. A certain amount of french bread was bought but a search party yesterday found all the shops had sold out. However we get along well enough with tinned food. Have just started having tinned bacon which is quite good. Our M & V stews are good enough when eaten once a day.

With much love to you and Dad

Bob

30th May

Dear Pat,

It was good to receive your epistle dated 20th this afternoon together with one from mother and Alex as no mail has come in for over a week.
..........
I have just broken off my struggle with The Telegraph crossword puzzle to send these lines. I find that I'm nearly back into form but not as good as when I could finish it by lunchtime in the office.
.........
At the moment there is no bread ration coming in and as biscuits are not popular there is a terrific rush when any body manages to buy any french bread. They brought in some loaves costing 14 francs today so you can imagine what a size they are.
..........
Once again we are tree dwellers. This time however there are no huts and we kip down under the lorries. The foliage is about 100 feet up so we have a lofty ceiling. One great advantage is that until now there have been no gnats or skeeters which have been a beastly nuisance recently. One night I lay in bed and brought down about twenty. Then finding a cigartte smoke screen did not keep them off I completely covered my head with a blanket and passed into oblivion without damage.

As you know from the newspapers the cutting off by land of our blokes in Belgium is a bad thing. However our wireless today says that Dunkirk is still held - a good thing. I do hope that Oswald and Raymond are OK. Next time I write home I shall ask Mother if she has any recent news from Mrs Ames.

I have just brought off a scoop. As I got out of the wagon from whence this brief is penned one of our boys came in bringing 7 loaves (& no small fishes). For the sum of five francs I was able to purchase a staff of life. That's all the news for now except that I keep quite fit and that we are too busy & excited to become browned off.

Your loving bro

Bob

No further letters were received from Bob until 15th June when he wrote home on Church Army notepaper

Dear Mother,

Well It's jolly good to be home in Blighty for spell especially as a few hours leave can be expected. It was a fine birthday for me to have it in England. I was sorry I could not speak to you on the phone that night.
..........We have spent the last two nights at King Edward VII School here in Southampton, Yesterday evening I saw my first picture show since I was home on leave. We are probably moving off today but do not know our destination. I have been very lucky in getting away so comfortably from Le Havre. I have all my kit intact except for blankets. I even have a new suit of battledress to which I helped myself from a deserted R E camp on the day before I left. There are only a dozen Signals here so we are extremely anxious about the rest of the chaps. Only a bare working force was kept forward in the end and the rest of us went with waggon lines. As we are so few in number we are afraid that we will have to leave the regiment and go to a Signals depot which none of us want to as we got on very well with the Gunners.

That's all the news for now Mother dear. Lots of love to you, Dad, Alex, Auntie Jenny, Uncle Wilfred and may I soon be seeing you.

Your loving son

Bob

Bob did indeed see his parents and brother Alec shortly afterwards when they travelled down from London to Aldershot to find him. The reunion is recorded in a letter of 18th June written by his father to Patricia. But that's another story.....

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