Witley Jan 20/17 Dear Hazel - I suppose you will think that I have forgotten you but I assure you that such is not the case. We have been busy lately doing all kinds of crazy stunts and this is the first chance I have had to write this week. Our battn has been duty battn for some time and all the available men are kept at work pretty steadily. Besides that we took a short course on gas. I suppose after reading some of my letters you will think that I didn't need any instruction along that line. Anyway we had to walk thru poisonous gases and it was rather an exciting experience. We all managed to get thru it alright. We also had a dose of weeping gas and when we came out one would think that we were all at the funeral of some dear friend the way the tears rolled down our rosy cheeks and ploughed deep furoughs in them etc etc. I might write about that sad affair all day but I guess I had better change off to a more cheerful subject. I have to go on piquet tonight and it certainly is a pleasant job. It is raining like the deuce today and it looks as though it would keep on all night. I am glad that there are a few "pubs" on our beat- just to keep out of the rain you know - we start at 5.30 PM and don't get off duty until 12. I know I will go asleep before then as I haven't been up that late for over two weeks. Apparently you keep later hours than I do as you mentioned that you wrote the last letter I got from you after midnight. However Canada is a different place to this - I know that if I were in Can I would be up until after twelve and so would you for a few evenings anyway. I am afraid I am wandering away from the subject. I must hurry and finish this letter as we have to "fall in" in about an hour and we have to get our suppers - I mean lunches first. I expect we will have some tea- a couple of slices of bread and margarine and a little jam perhaps. Then we get another lunch when we get back tonight. I don't think we will go overseas for about three months now perhaps not until the war is over. The chief ambition of this bunch seems to be to keep the battn together so they can have big church parades etc If they took us to France now someone might get hurt and it would spoil the appearance of the battn on parade. Ralph Brock has just arrived here and is bothering me so I will have to stop. He is a crazy nut and is always doing some funny stunt. Bill George Lee & I go out every night for chicken dinners attend picture and vaudeville shows and have a grand time generally. This is certainly a fast country and I like it better every day - not. Jack