14/8/1918

My dear Gertrude.

This is one of the hypocritical days - you will have been imagining me - amidst the dangers & discomforts of war and I have been swimming in a calm sunny sea - not very far from Boulogne spent some time in a Tennis club, enjoyed a picnic with convalescent & other nurses in a sandy pine wood, followed by baseball on the sands later & am just in from a moonlight walk on the sea shore, after dinner, after seeing the sun set gloriously over the sea.

Which all means that my rest which I did not get before has come off now & I arrived here for 7 dear days yesterday.

I left the battery at 8 oclock yesterday morning - was able to get our car down to railhead & catch the train at 9.15. Arrived at the nearest station where - at one oclock - had lunch at a pleasant native hotel - & caught a trolley car at 2. An hours up & down ride & we reached this place - which is a quiet French watering place in peace time now given up to Hospitals & convalescent Homes & a large Physical Training Camp for men. There is a wide level sandy beach stretching up & down the coast, some 100 or so large & well built private house about 4 shops & little more except our temporary buildings - oh yes a fair sized hotel which forms part of the hospital.

I am at the - Corps Officers Rest Hostel, which occupies two houses on the sea front - holding 56 at a time. Very nice & the meals good - at a cost of 7 for a day - that is 5 or $1.25 about.

Real beds to sleep in with a pillow & one sheet. The bedroom window looking out over the ocean & the sound of the sea not to mention the sea air coming in. However we didn't altogether escape war - the air alarm went at 10 & all our lights went out. An Anti Air Craft Batter opened up behind us & we heard the Bosche machines over us. Today we learnt that 2 sisters were killed at a hospital further up the coast.

Quite a decent lot of fellows & all being from the same corps we have plenty in common & talk over when we do talk shop & it is difficult to get away from doing so.

Another letter has come from you but I don't seem to have brought it with me. It enclosed the sketches which you mentioned before - for which many thanks. I don't see anything to be in the least dissatisfied in them - they are very good indeed. I wish I could make one occasionally, did attempt one day from an O.P. but seem to have something else on my mind all the time. No reason really why I should feel that I have always someone to relieve me - except on night duty.

Am glad you were getting such a long time at Burgoine out seemed to be not so strenuous during the latter part.

Lights out so finish in dark to catch post

Love
Jack