Thursday September 7, 1916

Pleasant surprise, we slept till 7 and now after a warm breakfast, we are ready to hit the trail again. We only went through Pernois, Halloy, the big town of Naours, and Talmas, and a bivouacking on a big slope outside the village of La Vicogne. We marched 8 miles to-day. That seems to be a short distance. It would mean the same as 16 miles in Canada. The life we live, the thin rations, the heavy loads we carry makes the difference. The rations are regular army rations, but they seem inadequate to a citizen soldier. It will not be so bad when we get used to the change. We bivouacked out on the open hill-side last night. It was not bad but toward morning it became mighty cool. My chum and I crossed over into a neighbouring oat field and laying two parallel shooks cross-wise to the wind we laid our rubber sheets in between and with another shook as a joint pillow we took off our boots and putties, pulled on our spare socks over our others, tucked our overcoats well around us and listening to the steady thunder of the British heavies as we lay there it was but natural that our thoughts sent a silent prayer, formless but urgent rose to God. For well we knew that thunder meant thousands of brave fellows on either side; and well we knew that before many hours we expected to be in some corner of this terrible hell.