Sergt. Cameron C. Philip of Colborne Writes (FROM FRANCE)

Sergt. Philip went overseas with the 4th Cobourg Heavy
Battery draft under Lieut Lean. He writes as follows to his mother in Colborne:

Was at advanced duty up near the front and was some tired when I got in last night at 10:30 after twenty-four hours duty and no sleep at all. Did a little washing today but it was slow work as Fritz had been shelling all day and I just had time to fix up my line, hang out my clothes and dodge back into the dugout. I boil the clothes with soap. It is the only way to get them clean. I have a good pal in the dugout with me and we get along fine. Have feeds quite often when money is plenty. Had a can of string beans with canned milk for dinner, and my they were good.

I bet old Bill wishes he was out of this affair he started. There is no doubt of it, we are winning, but the cost is fierce. There may not be many flunkers around home but if there are I would just like to say a few words to them. I see by the papers that conscription is pretty sure for Quebec but volunteers are the boys to fight.

People talk about the siege battery being away back out of danger, well they have another think coming. When you think of say 100 high explosive shells coming into a position in one day, you can perhaps realize what battery life is. Of course Fritz does not do it every day, some days it is almost quiet, but for two weeks he has been some busy. We have moved again and have been working hard with pick and shovel until we were ready to drop, to get our guns in position, but are having it a little easier now.

Our Battery will have been in France a year on the 15th of June and we surely have done fine work, as good as any Canadian battery help. The work is hard and never ended but is planned so as to give us a little rest.

We boiled some rice last night with a package of dates I got at the canteen. I had some canned milk and, gee it was good. We have a fire-place in wall of dug-out, a good cooker too, let the rice bake on top after it was cooked. I found the rice in an old sand bag but it was nice and clean. I will be glad to get the parcel of eats however.