Aug 26th 1915 to Gwendoline Bragg

A Battery dug out ‘same place’: there doesn’t seem to have been much action after the 21st according to the unit diary and Robert’s own account. The battery registered the guns, exchanged some fire but not much else. They’re still waiting on their parcels, it appears that there is still some miscommunication, their parcels have been delivered to Cape Helles — this is right at the bottom of the peninsular and where the first British landings took place. Robert’s division is all the way up at the top, on the other side of Anzac bay.

Again he seems to be emphasising how their conditions have improved, talking about how easy it is to dodge the shells and how the range means that the Turkish artillery cannot fire with any accuracy. Possibly to reassure his mother, he seems to write about this more in his letters to her and details of the campaign to his father.

He also talks a lot more about people from home in this letter, possibly it’s because he’s finally getting some information through to reply to.

A Battery Dug Out / Same Place

Aug 26th 1915

Dear Mum

There is plenty of time for letter writing at present because we are doing absolutely nothing, but just sit in our dug outs & twiddle our thumbs. It does get boring the only things that seem at all alive are the flies & they are too energetic. We got a chit two days ago addressed to O.C. A/58, informing us that a parcel had arrived for us at the Lancs Landing. Full of joy Peel & I set off for the beach, supposing it to be a box of stores. We made inquiries down there & discovered that this particular landing is right down at Cape Helles, miles away.

Great was our disappointment. We informed the postal authorities that we were not where they thought us & they are going to send on all our parcels. I suppose they will all be down there which will account for the reason of our not getting them. This chit was dated Aug 5th! What is happening about Elizabeth Wikesteed have they pulled it off? How does John Baines happen to be at home is he on leave? I do hope it works alright. Peel & Ellison are going strong. Ellison was on the verge of collapse when we arrived, he had been sent on with the guns you know, and did some very good work with the New Zealanders. He was at it all night and all day & was regularly done up, but now he is picking up & “taking notice” again.

My fat mare is as well as ever, I don’t think anything would upset her she eats old boxes or biscuit tins & gets fat on them. You know this is really quite an amusing life and the danger is practically nil, they send over occasional big high explosive shells & then you have to look out; but the effect of even these is extraordinarily local. One landed ten yards from our horses & amongst a whole lot of drivers lying on the ground, and nothing happened at all. As for the shrapnel nobody but a fool ought to get hit by them unless they are caught in the open, then of course you do get it. But in this country there is any amount of cover on the hills — not on the plains — so you are fairly safe All these shells can be heard for at least 3 secs before they arrive so there is plenty of time to “get out & get under”.

The arrangements here have improved vastly in the last new days; they have got a big mail for us somewhere & it is coming in driblets we have now had a few letters every day for the last four days I have heard of a rather good scheme which same people are carrying out. All their letters and parcels from home are numbered so one can tell which have gone astray. I will start by numbering this one A 1 A stands for August & the following ones 2,3,4, etc. I will number them in sequence whether they are to you or Dad. Will you number yours & Dad’s in sequence no matter who they are from, also parcels, most important. The latest letter I have got from you is dated Aug 3rd so that isn’t so bad is it. By Jove one does look forward to the mail, its about the one stir we get in the day.

The Turks have been shelling the beach pretty hard this morning & still are; as I sit & write here I can hear them shells whistling overhead, well over us, so we are quite safe. They do very little damage really because they all burst on percussion You see they can reach the beach by cocking up their gun — giving it a false angle of sight — but the fuzes [sic] on the shells are not long enough to burn all that distance, so they have to set them at safety percussion & hope for direct hits on something. These they very seldom get & a shrapnell [sic] shell bursting on percussion does no harm at all. We have got a new observing station now it is right on the top of a ridge & one gets a glorious view of all the country all around.

I have got such a nice letter from Cicely will you tell her that I have received it safely & thank her very much for it. I haven’t yet written to congratulate Elizabeth but I am waiting to do so until I hear definitely from you, Tell Cicely that I hear that with next years Ford they are giving away a squirrel with each car trained to follow it. The answer is “To pick up the nuts” but leave her in doubt for a bit. You are asking who Miss Tydd is — Don’t you remember the two girls who stayed with Elaine, it must be 3 years ago now. They were Miss Tydds. When I was at Milford, Elaine wrote to them & they asked me to go over & see them, they lived at Ascot. Ellison & I went there for a dance just befor[e] we left England. By the way a propos of that dance; it was Elaine who really got us asked to the dance I wrote and thanked Mrs Tydd but I didn’t thank Elaine You might tell her that every time I take the battlefield I am stricken with pangs of remorse on account of this ungracious act — usual frills etc — .

Have you seen Sylvia & Gwen lately. Are they moving from Beechwood, Sylvia said something about it the other day — that sounds rather vague, I mean — sometime when I was in London. Sylvia wrote me such a cheery letter the other day. By Jove I have got a nice lot of friends, they do write too. How did you enjoy your week at Cloughton. I bet it was glorious, I have been longing to be transported over there for a bit. But really there is nothing to complain of here lovely weather, lots to eat (except jam) lots of flies & nothing to do.

It’s the last two that I occasionally object tho to. Especially when the flies crawl over my bald head. The fashion here you know is “Zwei Millemetres” (I don’t know how to spell it) Have you fixed up a house in town yet. I do hope you choose one that is fairly well in. Since I have started this letter, our horse lines have been shelled & we lost rather heavily 7 horses dead & 11 wounded, but not a man was touched though they drivers had to untie all the horses & move them away under fire. I have just heard that 600 mail bags have just turned up on the beach so I live in hopes. I can hear a cheery motor bike in the distance. They have just landed a few & it is so nice hearing them it gives a feeling of security.

Well Cheer Oh March. I am going to try for a snooze if the flies will let me. Remember me to Mrs Gott Mrs Bidder & all my friends. Lots of love to you & Dad & Bunts

Bob.

Photos courtesy of the Royal Institution of Great Britain. RI MS RCB/A/13

Notes and General Information

Robert mentions his friends in the battery, R. H. Peel and William Ellison, Ellison was sent on early with the guns and seems to have had a hard time of it. It is mentioned in the unit diary that he went into battle with some of the brigade with the New Zealand troops on the 9th August (3 casualties).

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