Letter to Mother

#782373
To Mrs Alice D. Cunningham 
Hazenmore   Sask. Canada
21-8-18

Dear Mother:–    

I sent a green envelope yesterday. I hope you receive souvenirs all right.

McKeith found a Heine red cross kit this A.M. and he gave it all to me, so I have quite a complete kit now, two nice pairs of scisors a big red cross he had a bayonet, two nice leather dressing pouches to be worn on belt, needles, pins, straight and safety, wax thread, bandages and etc. Kline found an other the other day he had an auto matic revolver, that goes good with a red cross, then an other co'y ran onto a bunch of red cross men with a machine gun. Well if they ever run onto me it won't be with a red cross, but it will be with a gatt.

I started to dig a funk hole last night about 12 M.N. and when I thought I had done enough for once I got into it to sleep, I had a cupple of hours sleep when we got the warning to put on our gass masks I did that, then when gass was off. I got up and done some more work repairing my F.H. then I went to bed some more and slept till breakfast about 6.30 today I had a cupple of hours. again. It was foggy this A.M. so I got out on top and ran around some looking for souvenirs but had no luck.

[Inserted paragraph: I enclosed 5 marks in last letter a green envelope to be censored at base tell me if you receive them, all so two post cards of Heines,]

I received a nice letter from Gertrude Forbes this A.M. she writes nice, she is the only one of the niagara girls I ever got a letter from and this is the third I have had, she is 26 years old in July my how time flies, she said she was hauling hay on her birthday.

I wrote a letter yesterday to man who lost a boy in the push he was in my platoon, the poor fellow never knew what hit him. But I guess he was ready to answer the call, but he never expected it. He often said Laurie I am going to get a Blighty this trip and he would argue that he knew he was, well the poor boy I miss him he was one of my best friends, he would fight for me, he thought there never was a S.B. like me, and then he never come to, to know whether he was dressed or not.

I think you would like the climate we have in France for the wind is still so much of  the time, but I  realy long for  the good  old  west where the wind is on  the go  and the good old prairy stretches out for miles and miles to front from any way you want to look.

Just to feel the springy loop of the western cyuse or the jerking buck I would not care which. If I had a bronco to day I would be tempted to get on him and turn him loose among the wire entanglements and thing for that change to the real life I love

Then to have a meal of those hot biscuit and butter with any thing else just so Mother cooked it, I would be tickled to death just to be able to wash or wipe the dishes,

So you cashed in the old gobler well I liked to see the big bunch of chickens and turkeys around you out in the yard, but the old turkeys never make much money they are nice for the holiday dinners tho,

22nd

Dear Mother it says 11.42 P.M. by my Heine watch and the good old moon.  I thought of trying to write some by moon light last night but was to buisy until 3.30 A.M. then I roled into my F.H. and slept untill 3 P.M. we are having very hot days now but it is what we like for trench life, warm and dry

We do not see many daily papers but I saw one of the 16th today, 

Laurie