´óÏó´«Ã½

7-1-43 at Marske-by-Sea, nr Redcar, Yorks Have had a busy day today. Several lectures on various subjects during the morning when it was sleeting and a strenuous course of P.T. After dinner a further lecture period and for the rest of the afternoon we had gun drill and enjoyed it as we get sick of lectures. We should have had games but as we are behind in our training owing to the weather our sergeant decided we should take advantage of the better weather and so we had gun drill but nobody was disappointed as we are anxious to get on with the training.

We don’t seem to get newspapers here and I never learn the news so would you please occasionally send me a newspaper — not every day of course but perhaps once or twice a week.

We’ve quite settled down to the life here now and it’s not a bad place — one could go to far worse camps I’m sure. Of course it’s nicer to be near a town and nearer to one’s home as at Canterbury but still it’s quite comfortable now that we’ve shaken down.

10-1-43 I have to thank you for two nice letters, one containing £2 and an ounce of baccy, the other my washing and some books. It’s very kind of you to send me the money darling, though I shall endeavour not to touch it in which case I shall bring it home with me when I come home on leave. I was a trifle short of money owning to the fact that payday in Canterbury was Thursday and here on Friday.

It would be very nice if I could ‘phone you on the R…s’ telephone when it’s installed — it would be wonderful to hear your sweet voice.

I went to Redcar yesterday — twice in fact because in the morning we had a route march to that place. Redcar was in peacetime a seaside holiday resort: it has a promenade extending perhaps two miles along the sea front and there are excellent stretches of smooth sand although for obvious reasons the promenade is now the nearest to which one may approach the sea.

It’s a fair sized town with a busy main street of shops but most of the shops leading off the main street towards the sea are deserted and I should imagine that the civil population is considerably less than in peace time. As always today in almost any town in this island khaki and blue uniformed figures predominate.

Yes we’ve been able to get some gun drill and it gets quite interesting. The gun we are on at the moment weighs 21/2 tons and has to be manhandled into position. The shells weigh 100 lbs each and we have to put all our weight into the job of manoeuvring it onto a target.

12-1-43 I received the two newspapers this morning and thank you for them — it’s
nice to be able to read the news after being out of touch with things for nearly two weeks — why the war might have ended without our knowing it.

14-1-43 Thanks for your nice long letter darling. I always look forward to hearing from you and when the N.C.O. comes to us with a batch of mail, which happens at dinner time and tea time when we are lined up in front of our huts to march off to these meals, I anxiously watch him as the pile diminishes in case there shouldn’t be one for me; generally there is and you’re a darling kind wife to write to me so often.

16-1-43 Yesterday we had more gun drill but didn’t do too well. Operating the guns is rather complicated at first and needs a lot of training and practice. This only applies to two positions on the gun however. There are ten men to each gun: numbers one and three are the most responsible positions and number one is in charge of the gun. I’ve been trying to master number one’s job but it’s uphill work as this number must see that everything the others do is correct and also he has to lay the gun, that is bring the barrel to bear on the target and this necessitates the adjustment of a number of instruments. Still practice makes perfect as the old adage wisely says and we shall now be having plenty of this since the weather has improved. Unfortunately I came into the army at a time when training was being speeded up and we are expected to learn the job in far too short a time. It’s not as though we could concentrate on one thing. The soldier of today is expected to be an encyclopaedia of knowledge. We have to assimilate lectures on current affairs, anti-gas measures, first-aid, tank recognition, aircraft recognition, must be able to use three or four small arms and anti-tank weapons, map-read, and other things: and in his spare time must mess about with cleaning equipment.

This morning we had a first-aid lecture on how to treat stumps of arms and legs and such like gruesome matters and one poor chap had to leave hurriedly and visit the M.O. The sergeant instructor was a stout, jovial cockney and treated the whole matter very lightly. Of course it doesn’t do to have too much imagination when the subject of field first aid is under discussion.

It’s rather cold in the hut tonight as our coke has run out but in a little while when it’s dark I’m going to see if I can scrounge some. The coal and coke is heaped up kept in a walled compound, with walls about 9 feet high and barbed wire on top but no reef. If one man stands upon another’s shoulders quantities of the black diamonds should be within reach.

Most of the fellows in the hut are writing, reading, or sleeping — it’s such a dreary scene this untidy hut with equipment hanging on lockers, doors, and bunks, and the rain beating on the windows. Civilian life seems separated from me by years instead of 2 months. However I’ll be back there one day when this war is over.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.