Late fall, 1915

Dear Lola,

I received your most welcome letter today and as I have plenty of time today I can reply for we don't get much time to write letters only on Saturday or Sunday, for we have night maneuvers two nights a week on Monday and Wednesday and as we are not supposed to even whisper (although I can't keep quiet and never could) it puts me in mind of the nights I used to roam around with my dog and so I have only to imagine the dog is there and it seems almost like home. Our instructors hinted that we may be in the trenches for our Christmas dinner but we should worry, the sooner the better I say. We have already got the reputation of the best draft that has come here yet and our colonel told us the better we were the sooner we'd get over in action. I was very lucky today for I got five letters in one post, your own and four from Huttonville. I received a letter from your father yesterday so you see I'm doing fine in the mail line. I'm sorry to hear about those pictures you took but never mind you seem to have about as good luck with them as I do with any I take or any I get took of myself. I hope you have better luck with your matriculation exams than you did with the pictures. I hear you are head of your class but I'm not surprised for you always were ahead of your class at public school. Talking about school why this is like school and you have recess too only you don't have quite such a good time for the teachers here are a little stricter than Miss Stirk was. Well Lola [stup?] will have to study a little if she wants to pass I think. The fellows are all well and still anxious to go shooting germans. There is a lot of wounded men here from the first battalion and one fellow showed me his wound where the bullet went through his body and out only about an inch from his spine but he is as well as he ever was he told me so if I am as lucky as him why I'll be satisfied. Alec Booker just left here about a week before we came. Well I think that is about all this time so I will close now hoping you are all well in Toronto and remember me to Mrs. Passmore and Jennie.

Yours truly,
George H. Tripp

P.S. I wrote to Fred at Barriefield so I guess it will pass on to him and I'll soon get a reply. You must be careful the teacher don't catch you writing letters in school or you'll get stood in the corner.
Good-bye.

I moved since you wrote so be sure and get the right address and perhaps it would be better still if you put my number on as well it is 135315. Don't forget to write often for I want to get more letters than the other fellows and I'm ahead now although Frank Cookson is pretty close. Mother sent me a snapshot of Father, Minnie & herself and George Simpson from Mr. Taylor's niece (she sent them to Will Booker & he gave them to us) and Arnold sent one of myself with a group with all Kirk's dogs & my own in it that he took the day before I left Huttonville the last time and it was pretty good too. I'm going to try and fetch them home with me when I come. We are all happy & have lots of fun for we've done nothing but travel since we came over here. Well I'll close for sure this time.

George