Pte L. Sinclair #460 609.

3rd Canadian Battalion

B.E.F.

France. 

Saturday June 17th 1916.

Dear Mother:-

I suppose my last letter must have given you a great surprise, but please do not worry about me. I was very uncertain whether we were really going until the last moment, and I could not write you a long letter, as we sure had to hop around to get things fixed up to leave that day.

I hope you got my pictures and the negatives I mailed home also the badges and Buttons of my tunic. Fourteen of us boys are still together and the remainder of the draft are western soldier who were out at Sewell with us last summer so we are not amongst strangers

I will never forget the trip across the channel, and can say, it about took away all the fancy I had for the ocean. Talk about roll and rock, I heard more curse that night than I have heard for a long time. Our boat went to beat blazes, now and again changing its course and as it did so, we’d get one these rollers sideways, sending a spray over the aft part of the boat. We were pretty well stuck for room so some had to remain out on deck. This was about fifteen feet out of the water and as close to it as I would want it. I stuck it 3 hours and everyone began running to the rails and up mine came. Well it was a great releif but sitting out on deck with a spray coming down on you now and again was rather chilly so I hit for downstairs. Well you should have seen them down there, you never saw anything quite like it.. It was far worse than those on deck and I had no sooner reached the bottom step than up she came again, All over the floor, Some got so tired standing up, they just dropped where they were, one on top of each other and went to sleep. I must have made a cue line for those rails at least six times, I got so darned tired in the end I just lay down on the deck floor, I darn near froze there though, so in I went again. Well it was funny everyone felt so sick they didn’t give a rip whether they were sitting or lying near where someone had brought up his supper. I never put in such a dismal night in all my life and beleive me when the coast of France came in sight. there was joy in the camp.

Everything was quite though but to be running along smoothly again was a great releif. All the buildings we could see looked rather funny, they were tall and narrow and one couldn’t help but feel that he was a strange country. We kept pretty close to the docks, passing large military stores and walking on cobble stones. These are funny after asphalt and hard on the feet. We had about seven miles walk from the docks passing places which looked very old but had somewhat of a dingy look about the place and I did not think the country that is what I say of it, nearly as pretty as England. They have the same hills though. Its funny how you speak to some of them and they dont know the first thing what you are talking about. That is another thing, that seems strange. You never saw the like of the kids who follow you up and whom you meet all along the way trying to sell you some sort of booze or another. We were not along to purchase or take anything in that line, or sneer prisoners whom we passed. We passed a large prison camp and I [?] say more Germans than we may [?] for a long time. They seem to be big fellows but appeared to me as though they’d be very clumsy, while others had a look on them as if there was, Nobody at home. We reached camp just before noon, in time for bully beaf and hard tack. You sure get all the corned beef you want, I’d like to taste what you’ve for dinner today. Ive forgotten what home cooking tastes like and beleive me I intend to taste some again. I beleive we are to more to the division base tomorrow so that we have to parade again this afternoon I must must close with best regards all and I Hope you are all well at home, from your

Loving son

Larry