Oct. 7th 1916
Pte. H. F. Ball, No. 436610
Canadian Base Depot
Censored, France
Army P.O. London, Eng.

Dear Uncle Sam,

I received your letter about two weeks ago and was glad to hear from you. I intended to write before we left England, but when I heard we were to leave I didn't have time. We only arrived here yesterday morning so I don't know very much of this country yet. What little we see of the country and places on the road looks very much the same as it was around Bramshott. It only took a few hours to cross the Channel but it made quite a lot of the boys sea-sick, otherwise we reached here safe and sound.

This is quite a good sized camp and there are quite a lot of men here who have been up in the firing line and were slightly wounded but not bad enough to send to the hospital or back to England. I have met a few of the 51st boys who have been up to the front and are back here for a while to have a rest and get fit for the firing line again. It is quite a long way from here to the front.

I have no idea how long it will before we are sent out, it may only be a few days, or it may be a month or more. I have not heard anything from Albert for a long time but I must write to him this afternoon and let him know that we are over here. We will try and look up Wendle and him when we get up there.

I see Earl just a few days before we left and he was feeling pretty bad about Eugene being killed. His two other brothers were wounded some time ago and he has been to see them as they are both in England.

I guess you were all glad to see Uncle Henry again after so many years. I would like to see him myself. I expect he had a very nice time going around seeing all the folks. Yes I think those pictures aught to look pretty good. Aunt Becca sent me a piece out of the paper about the reunion of the Ball family. I showed it to two or three of the boys and they laughed and said the country out that way must be all "balls".

I hope you don't get too much wet weather out there and spoil the hay and grain. I guess Papa and Ralph will be kept pretty busy if they are doing most of the work alone. Have you any hay or grain to get up this fall? I hope you are feeling pretty well this summer. Sam has a little cough but he is looking very well. I have been well and feeling pretty good all the time. I can not give you all the details, as they don't want any information to get around, but I will write quite often if we get the chance and let you know how we are getting along. We have had quite a lot of wet weather lately, but I don't know yet what it will be like over here.

Well Uncle Sam I will have to close for this time but will write again soon. Give my love to all the folks at home. Try and not worry too much and look on the bright side. I think of you all quite a lot and hope it will not be very long before we return. Well good bye for this time.

Your Loving Nephew,
Bert
[Signed by censor: J. E. Griffiths]