May 20th '16.

My dearest Family,

I rec'd the day before yesterday quite a long letter from Mums and just now father's of the 2nd. Inst. in reply to my first about the [?] fighting.

I am quite troubled at the idea of your publishing part of my letter for I have not the vaguest conception of what I told you. I usually have a fair idea what I have said in a letter but of that particular letter I cannot remember a line or a thought, in any event I don't think I gave away any military secrets and I didn't tell any lies so I don't think "I should worry."

Things here have quietened down considerably I am glad to say, it is still more active than our old front was but we must expect that as we certainly stirred up a hornets nest and anyway the Germans have been testing our line all along our front recently.

By our front I mean the British front, the opinion of most people is that their actions have been a species of defensive offensives they are afraid that we are going to attack and are trying out the strength of our artillery all along the line.

Honestly I think right in Saskatoon you get a clearer conception of the whole war and how it is going than the people in England and certainly clearer than we out here. If we happen to get the worst of a little show on a small frontage we imagine that we are being licked, if on the other hand our own particular frontage is stronger than the Germans, we imagine that we have got them going everywhere.

I had a nice two or three days acclimatize myself again in Rest Billets and yesterday we moved up to close reserve behind the front line, this place is shelled continuously but so far today they are being good to us and anyway we have good protection and are not under direct observation, which makes a lot of difference.

I feel perfectly splendid at the present time and certainly my leave did me a lot of good.

It was a change and a rest that I needed, and England was just like heaven. How I shall appreciate a quiet life when all this business is over. I don't see how it can fail to strengthen the characters of the entire nation. Sim and Manky are both away on leave, Biddy is acting Adjutant and will I think get the job as a permanency. Major Hill is acting O.C. Battalion and I am acting O.C. "D" Co. with Shorty Little as my second in command and junior sub. Shorty is doing splendidly, of course he has not been here long enough for us to know how he will make out as a permanency but he is shaping darn well. I have frequently remarked on Biddy, well he is just splendid, the best officer in the Battalion from any point of view and he has the supreme confidence not only of the men in "D" Co. but of all the men in the Battalion. I should like to see him get a Battalion in Canada. He'd certainly lick it into damn good fighting shape before it came over here.

They've got to have the physical condition before they come out, we had it but we find so many of our reinforcements, though good husky men, haven't.

Nothing but good physical trim can take a man through a winter here without sickness and it is so essential that they should not be sick, a certain number of men getting sick means that others will, the Battalion has to do a certain amount of work sick or well, the others have therefore to do more than their share and are likely to get run down.

Well, all that is not very interesting to you.

You will be very glad to hear that Wright has been given a commission in a British Regt. and has gone over to England to train for it. He was as game as anyone in the world and with his miserable physique, he carried on and did the same work and carried the same weights as a two-hundred-pounder. I hope you see something of Bateman. He will be able to give you a very vivid picture of life over here under ordinary conditions and he is a splendid chap. Men over here are largely judged on one basis, whether they have guts or have not and he certainly had them. I am most interested in Ted's case, in the first place he must come with a commission, then if possible he should be in the Artillery or Army Service Corps. Tell him not to volunteer as Grenade officer or Machine gun officer, they are lonely jobs and there is no great catch in having them. He knows sufficient about horses to be a darn good transport officer and I think it would be right in his line, its very important not safety first but more so than an ordinary infantry job. Mind you as Tspt. officer he doesn't have to know much about horses, just enough to ride decently and not let the men slip anything over him. I had no idea that Margot was expecting another but am delighted to hear it, it and Davis complicate matters and I will, express no opinion on what he ought to do as I really do not know how Canada is fixed for competent officers or how the young men have responded. By the way don't bother to send more socks until I write again for them, when in the ranks and moving round I found difficulty in getting them washed, and so used to turn them into the baths for the use of the troops generally but now I have got about 15 pairs all in good shape. My Star has not come yet damn it.

Good by dears, my fondest love,

FRANK.