France, Mar. 9, 1916

Dear Brother,

Received your letter a few days ago and was glad to hear from you and so often.

We moved back into France yesterday for twenty one days rest, which consists of rifle, gas helmits, iron rations inspection, and shaves every morning followed by route marches in the afternoon of eight miles. You see there is no chance of getting stale, that is what they call a rest in this country. We did thirty more days in Belgium between the front line and the reserve trenches. As you have read in the papers of little action here, we had to reinforce other brigades. We had a few casualties but consider ourselves lucky. But so far I am fine and feeling good only for a cold, which a fellow gets living in damp dugouts, which sure gets a lot of them. We had all rainy weather up to the middle of Feb. Since then it has froze up and snowing, we have six inches of snow on the ground and still snowing. This is the last winter I was to put in here and I guess there are a lot like me.

They don't allow you to light a fire in the front line trenches, so you can imagine what it is like in there for four days, looking over the parapet all night on sentry go, and trying to grab and hours sleep in the day time. We are allowed a small fire in the reserves also to do a little cooking and it certainly gets a great play.

You have read about British retaken their lost trenches - well that bombardment has lasted a day and a night. It was just a continual roar. It was certainly a rare sight to see the shells bursting in the air after darkness, it just lit up like day all along the line. You know when the shells burst, there is a big flashy fire from it. There were hundreds of guns in action to you can imagine how Fritz trenches flattened and the barb wire. There is no use telling much more about it as it will be censored.

The passes started in our brigade. They just let a few go for a day, and then all of a sudden they were stopped. You know in account of expected more of Fritz. We all expect they will start again now since we are back here. I drawed number eight one in the company, so you see it will be a week or two before mine comes. The boys are back that got away before they were stopped, and to hear them tell of the time they had. Well you know the affect it has on us, but we have the misatisfaction ours is yet to come.

Had a letter from Doc the other day. He's still at base and the good time and the treatment he is getting, he wants to stay there. He has got rheumatism, about the worse case they have had. He has sure missed a lot of hardships since he went.

We are billeted in an old barn with half the roof off with some hop vines to sleep on, but we sure do sleep while we are at it. This is a great hop country here, every farmer grows them. You see just old men and women and girls on the farms here.

The aeroplanes on both sides have been very active when we were in, we witnessed some great scraps in the air. It certainly is exiting when they go after each other trying to ram each other and each firing machine guns. When Fritzs planes come over our trenches we get under cover, so as they can't find out our strength.

They dropped a lot of bombs behind our lines trying to find a battery, that are all well concealed, but did little damage. It seems to be a hard winter on the old people there. I hope you all are well, and have an early spring, and not catch the spring fever. Well as I have a number of letters to write now, as you don't feel liking writing in the trenches, I will have to get busy. You can tell Bert and Jim that this will do for them, also this time, but will write them later.

Hoping to hear from you soon. I will close.

Love to All,
Bill