vicarage, from school-houses and colleges, the endless
stream goes, all with their heads up, fussing over their little bits of
packing, and then away to stand exploding shells and gas and bombs. No
one except those who have seen knows the ghastly tale of human suffering
that this war involves every day. Down here 550,000 Armenians have been
butchered in cold blood. The women are either massacred or driven into
Turkish harems.

Yesterday we heard some news at last in this most benighted corner of
the world! England has raised four million volunteers. Hurrah! Over one
million men volunteered in one week. French takes command at home and
Haig at the front.

* * * * *

_To Mrs. Charles Young._

HOTEL ORIENT, TIFLIS,
_26 December._

DARLING J.,

It seems almost useless to write letters, or even to wire! Letters
sometimes take forty-nine days to get to England, and telegrams are
_always_ kept a fortnight before being sent. We have had great
difficulty about the ambulance cars, as they all got frozen into the
river at Archangel; however, as you will see from the newspapers, there
isn't a great deal going on yet.

I do hope you and all the family are safe and sound. I wired to ---- for
her birthday to ask news of you all, and I prepaid the reply, but, of
course, none came, so I am sure she never got the wire. I have wired
twice to ----, but no reply. At last one gives up expecting any. I got
some newspapers nearly a month old to-day, and I have been devouring
them.

This is rather a curious place, and the climate is quite good; no snow,
and a good deal of pleasant sun, but the hills all round are very bare
and rugged.

I have had a cough, which I think equals your best efforts in that line.
How it does shake one up! I had some queer travelling when it was at its
worst: for the first night we were given a shakedown in a little
mountain hospital, which was fearfully cold; and the next night I was
put into a newly-built little place, made of planks roughly nailed
together, and with just a bed and a basin in it.

The cold was wonderful, and since then--as you may imagine--the
Macnaughtan cough has been heard in the land!

[Page Heading: GRAND DUKE NICHOLAS]

Yesterday (Christmas Day) we were invited to breakfast with the Grand
Duke Nicholas. A Court function in Russia is the most royal that you can
imagine--no half measures about it! The Grand Duke is an adorably
handsome man, quite