January 9th. 1916.

My dear family,

Out of the trenches again with no casualties in the Company and after a reasonably good trip. Our tours in are not so nearly the hardship they were three months ago, in the first place we do not spend more than two consecutive days in the front line. Of course, your conception of front line and second-line trenches must be very hazy and I think probably erroneous. I know I thought second-line trenches were probably a couple of hundred yards behind and the third line just back of that about the same distance. Well that is in a sense correct, the front line speaks for itself, the second trench is the supports and they may be within a hundred feet of the front line, and then back at some strategic point troops are kept who can be run to wherever they may be needed, they are back from the front line anywhere from 400 to 1500 yards in what are fictitiously called Strong Points or S.P. However to further enlighten you the whole group above recited are what is known as the first line trenches, the second line is back of this or I suppose in some instances might incorporate the S.P's, but in any event it is uninhabited and may be and is used as a position to retire to and to rush up reserves from away behind the lines too. The third line which is probably about a mile or two miles behind this again all depending upon the tactical situation and the ground. Men working in or on the second or third line are practically absolutely out of danger, the of course in potential shell fire, there when anyone speaks of going into the trenches it means front-line supports or S.P's. We read so much amusing literature over here especially in penny magazines that I think you would like to have authoritative information on this point.

Well as I was saying, we only spend two days in the front line, then possibly two in the S.P's, and then two in the front again or in the supports, in many ways there is little to choose between any of them, back in the S.P's they shell you pretty frequently, they also do this in the supports and in the front line they try and get you with shells and if they cannot succeed they put over other disgusting devastating devices. The reason for the frequent changes is that they are so terrified of trench feet that they give us an opportunity to change our socks as often as possible; we are all obliged to carry at least two pairs of socks between us and if you get trench feet you are supposed to be court martialled. Of course this latter is not rigidly enforced as it would be desperately unfair. The trenches are in infinitely better shape, thanks to our most strenuous efforts. I am most interested to hear about Reggie and his men. We had when we were together in London a very heated argument about Canadians and their value as soldiers. Reggie said they were undisciplined and though plucky would probably get out of hand and were always wanting to do mad things in the trenches, and he had nothing but praise for his own Scots in comparison. Now since we have been over here I have found the men are hard to discipline only in matters of parade stuff that looks and frequently is foolish. They work and work magnificently when there is work to be done, and that so far has been all the time. We had I suppose as bad a line of trenches as it is possible to conceive. It was handed over to us by a bunch who had not done a tap all summer. Bad weather came almost before we had been here two weeks and everything fell to pieces. There was no drainage in many places, the mud was so bad that a man could not safely try to go through it, dugouts fell in etc. etc. We have got it fixed now so that practically every man has a decent dugout. They rustle and make themselves braziers, get leave to beat it off to some wrecked house for wood and generally keep themselves fit and comfortable. Some are lowsey but the great majority are not and the only thing we have not conquered are the Germans and rats. Until you have seen this country the task of keeping trenches standing is almost inconceivable. You require a batter of about 18 inches in 5 feet and you have to rivet with angle irons driven in every two feet, chicken-wire in between and the angle irons wired at the top and held back by pegs driven right out in front of the trench. As all this stuff has to be carried a distance of probably 700 yards at night in the pitch dark and you cannot carry more than three angle irons, and besides this you have to get all the timber for your dugouts, the metal roofs, the floor-boards for the trenches, the staves to nail them on and at least a thousand sand bags a day to keep you going, you can understand what a job it is. This is not only to be done in the trenches you hold but the communication trenches which are some two miles long, so you can understand the need of a pioneer Battalion to do fatigues.

Well this may not have been very interesting to you, but it will give you a good idea of what the men have been up against and the credit they deserve. I do not think I heard one man grouse during our last tour in notwithstanding that we were working at all hours, for instance going down in the pitch dark of the early morning before breakfast to carry up material. This was not so before we came over, then they were grousing all the time, but now they have the intelligence to realize that it is necessary work and as long as the next man does his share they do not kick at all and I love them for it. I would not swap the Brigade I am in for any in any army in the world, and I honestly think that they are as good as any there are and better than 90 per cent.