had lamed many. This last affair was a
Divisional affair & therefore included about
fifteen to twenty thousand Troops <sup>including cavalry & artillery</sup>, half representing
the attacking force & the other half, the <del>offen</del>
defensive. We wore white bands round our
caps & were the offensive & the enemy had a
yellow band. I believe we won the fight
but do not know for sure, for I may say that
in these things only the officers know what is
going on & even they have only a general
idea, the generals themselves & their brigade
& divisional staff being the only ones that
really understand the whole scheme.
It gives one some idea of what an
extraordinary genius must be required
to "run" an advance which includes a
million or two of men like that accomplished
by Mackensen & Hindenburg in Russia!
(or General Joffre's move at the Battle of the Marne.)
Can you imagine Maurice that a mere
<del>brigad</del> division in column of route-march
occupy over 15 miles of road! Therefore
Kitchener's Army of 3 million men (if all properly
equipped) would occupy, if one battalion marched
behind the other,touching in one long column
[Centre:] II
[Upper right annotation:] 3
would stretch over 2,250 miles of road!
nearly from Quebec to Rife! It goes home
to ones imagination that way, does'nt it?
Well, as I said, as private we dont know
much about what's going on, & at least not
any more than the section of the fighting
that we re actually engaged in. Only on
one or two rare occasions have we been
in such a position to be able to see any
extensive operations going on, it is an
interesting sight when you can. So the privates
lot is not a complicated one, he has only 3
things to do - obey order, use his common sense
where no orders can be given, & endure.
On the whole we have very intelligent officers
in our battalion & I think it is general throughout
the division (tho I'm sure, without predudice, we
are the best battalion in it <del>)</del> as far as Infantry
is concerned) But in spite of this one sees
many blunders & a good deal of confusion
going on at times which seems to prove that
some how we dont seem to have the genius
for military operations, at least not like
certain other nations, like France & Germany.
[Upper right annotation:] 4
The first day out we had the heaviest march
we've ever had, men fell out exhausted on
the side of the road & we had a full pack on
added to which we had nothing to eat for
15 hours because when we came to the end of
our march we had to start forming [out?] for
battle & indeed went thro a good deal of
scrapping well into the evening before we
finally got supper. Nor did we get much
comfort in sleep that might for we had
no blanket - part of our transport having been
captured by the "Enemy", so we shivered
most of the night. During the night <sup>(early morning)</sup> I got
up & stood around the camp fire of one of the
field kitchens, there being no wood handy
they had made a bonfire from fat meat &
ribs which flared up & gave them a tremendous
lot of light for working round the field kitchen
(which of course is on wheels so that food
can be cooked while it's actually on the road)
It is a queer sight to see these cooks - the roughest
& dirtiest chaps alive at the best - working
under conditions like these. The poor beggars
have to work at times very hard & at all hours.
[Centre:] III
[Upper right annotation:] 5
At this particular moment they were preparing
breakfast & cutting up slabs of meat for
dinner from huge hind quarters. All the fat
& ribs & second class stuff was thrown on the
fire which was composed solely of meat!
Of course the cooks can hardly be blamed
for this wastefulness, the lean itself is usually
none too tender & so the fat is naturally far worse
& in fact uneatable, but they havent time to
make drippings of it & would have too much
any way, so it goes on the fire, & I must say
makes a lovely one! The food is cooked in
square shaped caldrons that fit down into the
stove (so to speak) of the cooker. They are called
"dicksies" & each one has to do 50 men (1 platoon)
<sup>and there's one cooker field kitchen to each company.</sup> We come up in file for this grub with
our "mess-tins" which we always carry with
us, & I might say it is rare that we get
as much as we need & there is no second helping!
As I said before, these manoeuvres are not
much fun for the private. He does'nt know
what's going on & therefore looses all
interest in it & his chief concern is "when will
the bally business be all over! For most of
[Upper right annotation:] 6
the time he is tired & cold & hungry & it is
hardship without romance, expecially
when it is raining & he's wet through.
The next day there was more marching & more
fighting & somtimes orders were misunderstood
& a general mix-up occured such as a neighbour
battalion (or ours) going in the wrong <del>directiong</del>
direction & getting in from of our fire with
the result that we or they would be unable to
fire on the enemy because we would be shooting
our own men, & then there would come racing
along a brigadier-general or staff major mounted
<del>on</del> always on fine spirited horses, irritably
balling-out the officer who made the mistake
tho not always hitting on the one really to blame.
Most mistakes happen by night when
battalion Commanders sometimes take up
wrong postions thro misreading their maps or
mistaking roads or other features in the dark,
and so it often happens that in our march
we come to a sudden halt & stand in the
road for a couple of hours, & not being given
orders to fall out & sit on the side of the road we
have to stand there not knowing why or for how
long & being damp with perspiration from the
[Centre:] IV
[Upper right annotation:] 7
march & pack we soon chill down & begin to
shiver in the cold night air. And then we might
go on again for a few hundred yards & halt
again, & so on several times & never know
why. And then we may leave the road &
go across-country & adopt a new formation
perhaps in columns of extended companies &
race along in the dark through hedges & fields
stumbling through cabbage & turnip plantations
or thro grain fields, destroying fields as large
as a homestead & getting wet to the waist.
And then a halt may come out & a "fallout
& rest" & for a couple of hours we lie huddled
& try to keep the cold out & manage to sleep
thro sheer weariness. And we wake up a
good deal refreshed & start on again, still in
the dark & take to extended formation, one line
behind the other & then when the postion is Taken
up we lie & wait, & dawn breaks & we find
ourselves on <del>the</del> a high ridge over looking an
extensive valley. On our right & on our left we
see strings of other battalions & presently we
see long lines almost indiscernable <del>coming</del>
emerging from the woods on the other side of the
[Upper right annotation:] 8
valley & they are the enemy & we lie in wait.
At such a time sometimes the scouts are called
out by our [illegible] & our captain usually calls
for we 3, and the order given - "go out & find out
whether there are any of the enemy hidden behind
that ridge in front". Often such jobs are [rotten?]
because you have no <del>cover</del> cover &
therefore would be seen at once if there were
any men in the hollow mentioned & often the
messages one has to bring back are more or less
obvious so its not a bit satisfactory. But
what is interesting is when you are sent out
over a piece of country where there's some bush
or hedges or are told to scout a wood ahead
to see if it is free from an ambushed enemy -
then you feel you have been doing something
useful. But <del>after</del> otherwise we hate it for
it is almost making of fool of you & the scouting
is the only thing we take a pride in, in this Training
work for it is the only job where you can use
a little initiative & intelligence.
It is really thro our scouting & thro our cool
check in walking out of barracks & coming
back a week later, & our's & Papa's original
sort of letters that we have come to be known
[Centre:] V
[Upper right annotation:] 9
to the Colonel (who otherwise naturally does'nt
know or recognize the name or face of the bulk
of his men <sup>individually</sup>, that is, the privates. And he seems
to have a <del>friendly</del> good opinion of us as scouts &
seems to like us rather in spite of our occasional
"breaks".<sup>(The colonel is very well liked & admired by his men.)</sup> The same apply to some of the other
officers to whom we have become well known
through our peculiar ways. By the way one
of our chaps of our platoon over stayed his
pass by only a few hours last monday &
he got 10 days C.B.! His excuse (& it was quite
true) was that his mother was ill. He is a nice
honest chap but he was absolutely unknown
to the colonel so his story was put down as
"the old yarn". The Col. said 'I've heard that too often
- 10 days C.B." & before he had time to say a
word in his defense the sargeant-major who
ushers the defaulters in, in the strictest formal
style cried - about turn left wheel, quick march!
So this unfortunate chap who really had ample
excuse gets 10 days because of his 1/2 day over
due & we get only 8 days for 8 whole days!
At the same time I must explain that they
are getting stricter all the time.
[Upper right annotation:] 10
But to get back to those field manoeuvres - for
I want to give you a glimpse of a bit of Army life
as there is nothing much else to write about <del>& to</del> <sup>I must</sup>
fill up a few pages otherwise Papa will thank
me again for more correspondance which he never
got! In these battles we have it is very hard to
know who would really win but in the fighting
positions <del>I</del> we held over the valley I spoke about
a little while back we naturally had the best of it
as we dominated a <sup>very high</sup> ridge & they had to come up
& attack us. We have blank ammunition to give
the right effect & the fight usually ends in a
bayonet charge. After this we got a much
needed breakfast & then an other tedious &
tiring day & a rear guard action is perhaps fought.
And if we are lucky we form the "Reserves" &
therefore do not have to put our night in fighting
And even if there is no fighting at night at all
one unfortunate battalion has to do the Outpost
work <del>up</del> which is a sort of screening fan of
groups of sentries & armed groups who have
to keep armed & on the alert all night in case
of suprise attacks; & there are the "patrolling
groups & reconnoitring parties & so on.
On a wet night when you are shivering <del>&</del> it
[Centre:] VI
[Upper right annotation:] 11
does'nt make much odds whether you are on
duty or not for in any case you cant sleep for
the cold. Each sentry has 2 on & 4 off, & he
mus'nt forget who he is & his exact position, &
<del>these</del> this information is passed from sentry to sentry
when the next come on duty. So when you
"come off" you go & wake up the next chap
who perhaps has managed to fall asleep in
spite of cold or rain (for he's allowed to rest
when not on guard). It seems cruel to rouse
him & he curses it all as you drag him half
asleep reluctantly to his post & beat & tell
him "now dont forget, - you're the 3rd relief
sentry, over no. 2 sentry groups, over no. 3 Picquet
2nd Outpost Company. No. 2 Picquet is on
your left & no. 4 Picquet on your right, your
own picquet is back here & the Reserves
behind that again & this over here is the
enemy's front & they are coming in the
direction from Winchester, a patrol-party
passed by a few minutes ago, expect them
back from this side & the pass-word is "Egypt".
And if an officer goes round inspecting &
the sentry cant give his position nightly, there is
[Upper right annotation:] 12
hell to pay! On the last particular night we
were soaked & chilled through for the weather
now is far from warm, & for the sentry it is
rather funny to see these poor devils <del>th</del> who
are trying to sleep, huddled up together, most
of them awake & shivering, a few asleep snoring
& the others grumbling & cussing or patiently
sitting it out, & sometimes I would <del>spo</del>
stop & tuck them in with their one blanket &
exchange jokes about it. At day break
we rallied in again to <del>a</del> bivouac & got a few
camp fires going from wood [rustled?] around
& then some time that day the battle<del>d</del> came
to an end & no one was sorry & we marched
home.
There is every indication now that we are
prepairing for Serbia. Tomorrow we start
out again for another 3 days, & that is just
the sort of training that is needed, for it wont
be a question of trench warfare in the Balkens
or at least not at first. There seems no
reason to believe we will go immediatly, worse
luck, & most people seem to think we will
be reserved for a last decisive blow.
[Centre:] VII
[Upper right annotation:] 13
Most of Kitchners army is exceedingly well
equipped & trained, so it's only natural that
a good deal is to be expected of us after 12 months
training. I cant tell you how fed up we are
and how demoralizing this ceasless irksome
routine is & to be kept here still training
when men are so badly needed to end the war.
Two or 3 months concentrated train<sup>in</sup>g would have
been enough for we 3 chaps <del>[illegible]</del> <sup>& we</sup> would
have been just as far ahead as we are now.
I would'nt mind half so much if I could be
doing something <del>worth</del> where a little bit of
intelligence is needed or where I might learn
something that if not useful for the war, would
help at some other time - some thing that would
excuse the brain a bit, - carpentry, engineering
or anything that might have have the least bit of
interest in it, even officer work (much as I'm not
struck on it) And we have to give up our whole
time to this Training - one years sheer waste of
time, & the end not yet in sight! For the rumours
about going away in a few days seem to be
without foundation.
All the colonial element & most of the others in
[Upper right annotation:] 14
our battalion are filled with discontent <sup>at the delay</sup> but
none more so than we. But I must dry
up on the subject for it is an unpleasant one.
When I was trying to sleep in the rain the other
night under the trees, the good old West was
in my mind the whole time. What joy would
have been mine if with Guy & Paul we were
under a Spruce tree instead of an Oak & at
beaking of dawn found ourselves in Canada
- out in the wilds instead of on Salisbury Plains!
and the war, - only a nightmare!
Those days with Guy, in the winter or summer
when out on one of our "trips north" stand out
the more so now that we belong to the army, as
the greatest days of our life! In those days
there was no "Fall in", <sup>only</sup> to be "mucked about"
for another day. It did'nt matter then if
the night had been "tough" (& they often were) for
when dawn broke it meant another day
of adventure & enterprise that satisfied ones
great ambition for that sort of thing, and you
know how keen we were on the life & the
land "up north".
And I still love that land with the same
[Centre:] VIII
[Upper right annotation:] 15
keenness & that wilder life that we used to
occasionally get such as the trip Guy & I
made to Sandy River. The wonderful, beckoning
mystery of those far away lands & forest -
solitudes still has the same appeal to me, -
How strange it should be so! Poor old [Guy?]
who has become <sup>almost</sup> dumb from disgust at this
waste of time & delay dreams & reads of that
life at all times (except when he does not think
at all of anything, which is a thing that often
happens to us when we are "on parade" & the job
we have on hand prevents continuous thought
& leaves the mind a total blank!)
We took to that life out West as tho we had
been pre-destined to it, - like ducks to water -
& we always showed that love of that sort
of enterprise from the begining when we
were kids & used to break-up, dig-up & build
-up all sorts of things in the house & in the
garden.
On saturday morning we had a rather intersting
firing practice. The whole battalion had to
advance over about 1/2 mile of ground, making
it in short rushes of a hundered yards or so, & at
[Upper right annotation:] 16
the end of each rush we lay down & fired at
dozens of <sup>[silhouette?]</sup> targets (shaped like a man crouching)
that were stuck into the ground here & there.
We had 25 rounds of ball - ammunition (ordinary
303 [Maurice?]). It was quite good fun; it
made a tremendous klanging away & one could
have thought oneself in real action. When will
our time actually come?
This is a rotten week end, its been raining
steadily, even if we could have got a pass
I doubt we could have caught a train for
London, for it was late when we got back saturday
afternoon. We shall try very hard for a
pass next weekend & I feel sure we can get it
by talking "nicely" to the [coy?], sergeant-major with
whom we are on good terms. I will let you
know if I cant get it by wiring saturday.
I was glad to hear that dear old Grandmaman
remained behind, it seems to be she's so
much better off with you [Pumps?] than at
Boulogne <del>all</del> all alone.
It is very satisfactory to get good news
from you at Rife, I'm so glad that the world
is using you pretty well. How I would
love to sleep in & see your dear little home,
dear Maggie, now that you have got it nearly
all fixed up. I miss the little home of logs
[Centre:] IX
[Upper right annotation:] 17
so much & those that are in it. I'd give
anything to give you a hand at washing-up
Mag & would like to tease & argue with you
& have the great long talks that would
take place & will take place if we are ever
given <sup>half</sup> a chance to come back.
I'd give just anything to see you once more
& dear old Sylvie too, but it cannot be &
I suppose we are lucky we can write &
should be thankful for that.
I suppose Syl is still in [Quebec?] & unable
to decide to leave <del>[Quebec?]</del> it. I wish she
would come in time to see us before we
go. I have no more time to write now & its almost
time I dried up anyway for I dont want to bore
you with too much of it.
So with very best love to you both & Pumps
& family your loving brother
Georges
Item is a letter written by Georges Destrubé to his brother Maurice, sister-in-law Maggie and his family on October 23, 1915, from training camp at Tidworth, England in which he describes training manoeuvres, firing practice and other details of camp life.
[Upper left, written upside down:]
Just received Syl's P.C.but have
no time now then to just say how
mighty surprised & pleased to know
she is here. Will make every effort to get
away the next week-end.
[Centre:]
Tidworth
[Upper right:]
Please return when you
write to me
Mag
Saturday <sup>& Sunday</sup> Oct 23rd 1915
Dear Maurice & Maggie & family
We got back yesterday from a 3 day field
manoeuvre & were cheated out of our saturday
afternoon by coming home at 5, O'clock instead
of 1,O,clock as usual. On the whole we've
had a hard week hardly a minute to ourselves
in short "pas mal tough" (as the french - Canadians
would say). I was unable to get off a
satisfactory letter to you Syl, which I sent
via home on wednesday, because I had
to cut it short at the last minute, so I
shall start in writing right away so as not
to let the weekend go by without getting
a letter off home, tho as a matter <sup>fact</sup> I feel
fairly tired after our late exertions & could
readily roll into my blankets like nearly
every man-jack has done this evening on
account of the week's work.
We started out on wednesday morning
with full pack & did a heavy day's march,
not more than 2 thirds of the battalion was
out for the Monday - Tuesday manoeuvres