France
June 26 1917
5 am

Dear Dave,

The phones are quiet and I may be able to say “comment ca va” anyway. I’ll be off at 6 and then for a good sleep if the boche doesn’t take a fancy to our domicile. Away back, you know, we expect a bit of peace and quiet but Fritz doesn’t quite see the point for he gives us an occasional five niner just for luck.

Night before last, Osie Thompson was visiting me and stayed all night. Well, I guess the bloomin hun got his wind up over something, anyway, he lobbed a few at us but not too close you know. I was rather loathe to leave my corrugated iron domicile for it took “My Mate and me” a whole day to build it but when he plunked a beauty not very far off us and directly in line so that if he dropped the next one short we’d wake up in the morning with harps in our hands. So we nipped for a bombproof and he landed another same as t’other. We did the “On the hands down” too fast for numbers and continued our flight – dress – sox, shirts and wristwatches. Well he quit as he has a habit of doing and about half an hour later – 11:30 P.M. – we managed to get to bed.

But I guess he wasn’t satisfied for about 4 A.M. yesterday he landed a lot of nail kegs a bit forward of us. We listened for a while and then finally upon hearing the swish of rubber heels over our heads and the crump of her arrival about 100 yds away we decided to move and were getting our boots on when (illustrated blast) !!. He landed a beaut just 5 yards from our shack. Boots didn’t count then and we just got outside when her mate arrived.

We beat it for a deep dugout at about 99 per and stayed there until breakfast time.

After breakfast we dug up the nose caps of the close ones and I tell you, [], they were dandies.

Tonight – or rather last night – we spent in the underground sig. stn.

Thanks muchly Dave for the R of a R.C. Man. We are all enjoying them thoroughly. In fact I was interrupted in my reading last night by those crumps.

How did the exams go? As usual I suppose. Anyway here’s luck

Ewan is in Flanders now too eh! I’ll try to find him as soon as possible but I expect to have a while to wait first.

Six A.M. Dave. Here’s where I roll in.

Love to all
Your loving bro
Mac

132759
Cpt M.J. MacDonell
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