be your turkey, and it
was voted the best one we ever tasted! Many thanks for it and the
pheasants, which also arrived this morning....

IN TRENCHES.
_December 21st, 1914._

Your letter of December 15th, in which you said that you had got back to
Carlton, arrived last night. I wish I could run across and see you, but
it will be hard for me to get a fortnight just now like your cousin
Massereene. You see, he is Cavalry, and attached to the Staff
Headquarters of the Division; so also is Percy Laurie. Major S.
McClintock got leave, so I hope mine will come in due course, but even
then I am not sure I can leave my men. I think I told you in my letter
last night that we received a frantic message from our Brigadier-General
to expect an attack at 4 p.m. As a matter of fact, there was less
fighting than usual, and I lost fewer men. My night's experiences were
almost humdrum! Leaving my ruin at 9.15 p.m., accompanied by my bugler
and clad in my old waterproof, I sallied out and ran the gauntlet of
some snipers from the German lines, then dived into my ditch, floundered
up it in mud for about a quarter of a mile, perhaps more, secured some
Engineers I have at last got hold of to improve the place, went on, saw
Major Wright and Capt. Tee, both as deaf as possible from cold, etc. The
water was steadily rising in their trenches, and had already flooded
their dug-out; another one had fallen in, whilst their third was leaking
badly; so, on the whole, they were not in a good way. Then I struggled
on through the mud round the trenches, seeing that men were awake, that
necessary digging was being carried out, that lights were not showing,
that sentries were posted at proper points, and that officers visited
them regularly; for all have to keep to their particular business in
this horrible time. I got back to my ruins about 12.30 a.m., having sent
a message to the gunners that some of their shells were pleasantly going
into my trenches in the darkness, and not into the enemy's. By twenty
minutes to 1 o'clock I had dry boots and garments on, and, wrapping
myself in blankets, was fast asleep, despite artillery fire and infantry
fighting on my right. I awoke at 3 o'clock, went round again, saw
everything was right, then to sleep once more until 5.15 a.m., when I
was up for good. It is a hard life. To-night we take two companies back
to just outsid