April 10th, 1918

My Dear Mother:-

I'm getting tired of reading so in order to break the spell for a few moments I'll write you a short letter. I'm well and just now our company is experiencing it's first trip up the line. I, myself, am acting as a runner for our Battery. I am writing this in our dug-out, which, to you would seem a curious affair. It's quite comfortable, warm and the ventilation is not bad. We are down quite a piece in the ground and have to use candles all the time. There are two layers of bunks made of chicken wire netting and they are quite comfortable after sleeping on the boards back in our billets. We get very good meals. Here is today's menu. For breakfast I had a good ration of bacon, bread and butter and tea; for dinner potatoes, steak, jam and hard-tack and tea. Hard-tack is one of the standard articles of food. The name hard is well-used, altho' it might be changed to very hard. The[y] are a variety of biscuits, look like soda biscuits but are about ten time as hard. However they taste fairly good.

[text missing] appreciated over here where reading matter is scarce. Everyone in the hut reads it. I also got a package with two copies of the Belmont Times. That old journal doesn't change much, does it?

We are having lovely weather. Yesterday was a trifle wet but today the sun is shining and a nice warm atmosphere cheers one considerably. Tonight up on the hill there are two fine old games, one football, the other baseball, in full swing. Our Co. should get some athletics in swing soon. It doesn't take a Canadian unit long to get a ball team rigged out once they are in rest quarters.

Hope you are well. Glad you enjoyed your trip to Brantford. With best love from

Yours

p.s. Be very careful to address mail to the 19th Can. M. G. Co., as if Canadian is not there it might go to an Imperial Unit.

Frank