Belmont, South Africa

December 26th, 1899

Joe dear brother I have just heard the news that we are to be on the move in the morning for Moder river and if we are it means fighting for in earnest it cannot be much worse than what we have gone through and are going through at present anything before lying around everything is quiet here at present we are going to make another raid on a boer camp tonight a small force Just to break them up and capture them if possible it is very warm here Just now the heat affects one worse in this country than at home on account of so much sand everything is burnt up with heat and when you see anything green you can hardly leave it the water is not very good and what water is any good it has to be drank two miles and it gets warm again we get it for all the boys keep happy and most in good health there is no liquor dealt out to the men in this country and it is a good thing for some of them we have only had one pint of beer doled out to each man & it was on Christmas and for all that some of them were pretty full where they got it I dont know. we are in the middle of summer Just now it seems queer to hear of snow out in Canada and us burning with heat. I only attended one sick parade since I came to the country and that was a slight touch of Malaria it is a queer feeling your head is the worst but once you get over it you feel grand I never felt better in my life than I feel now you will hear of a general advance on the Boers pretty soon and six weeks after you may depend on peace been declared in south Africa so far as the Boers are concerned and it will not be long before the colonials will be on the move for home and I tell you there are not many Canadians will put out their best leg when forward for home is given they are pretty sick of their Job it is no picnic we have lost a couple of boys already and that is enough with sickness it is bad enough with lead we may have some fun tonight I hope we do to break the monotony of the thing there is no news that is fresh only our Christmas dinner we bought a fruit cake from Mr Thomas a farm a couple of miles from here then we got issued for fourteen men that sleep eat & quarrel in one tent three small cans of jam mind this is our days rations 1 lb of bread per man two tins of Coffee per man one pint of Beer per man two table spoon fulls plumb pudding per man four spoonfulls thin chicken soup pre man and one pound chicken to be divided between fourteen men you may depend we had a grand swell out close wishing you a merry Christmas H new year

good bye love
to all

Noble