LIVERPOOL CIFT PARCELS.

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 123, 16 February 1918, Page 5

LIVERPOOL CIFT PARCELS.

APPRECIATION OF SOLDIERS. The groat appreciation for the gift parcels which have been received by the soldiers in France is very stimulating' to the ladies of the Countess! of Liverpool Fund Committee, and the further knowledge that they are sending what seems to be particularly useful to the men is ' very gratifying. Among the last ' batch of letters received % the lion, secretary wag one from a Dunedin soldier, who wrote as follows:—"We, the members of the 2nd Battalion N.Z. Eiflo Brigado Band, now in ' Belgium, join in sending you our heartfelt thanks for your kindness to us. Your parcels Arrived the day before' Christmas, and the milk and 'plum duffs' enclosed wero just what wo needed, to make our Christmas' dinner complete. Apart from receiving your kind gifts the thought that our dear friends, the ladies, in good old New Zealand, are ever thinking of us in this desolate land really did our hearts good. On behalf of the band; very many thanks for your kindness." ~©

Another soldier writes; "All .the boys join in thanking you dear ladies for all your goodness and kind thought. The Christmas pudding wavs a real New Zealand treat." In the course of a post-card acknowledgment another soldier writes: "If you could see the appreciation of the boys oil receipt of the parcels you would feel amply repaid." A soldier belonging to the West Coast Company, Ist Battalion, Wellington Regiment (France), wrote 011 behalf of the men in his platoon acknowledging the deep gratitude which was felt to the ladies of Wellington for the gift parcels, which had recently been received. "They wero all the more appreciated as they reached us just after a rather unpleasant spell in tho mud of tho front line, and apart from their usefulness, the very fact that thoy came from the good people in Now Zealand helped to buck tho boys considerably."

From another soldier comes the following: "We do appreciate tho thought of those who are left behind, and consider they are doing their utmost to provide comforts for us. Wo value, too, the. work done by our Y.M.C.A., and truly it is the most beneficial organisation out here for the troops." From a transport "Somewhere at sea" was received the following letter from a field secretary of the Y.M.C.A.: "I want to take this opportunity of writing to acknowledge the splendid services of the' ladies of Wellington in looking after the comfort of the men ■on board this transport. I can assure you what has been done is greatly appreciated by all on 'board. If it had not been for your generous services and gifts Christmas would indeed have been dull. Through the goodness of Wellington and Auckland there was a Christmas parcel for every man in the reinforcement on board. There was also a lovely box of miscellaneous gifts, which we "distributed by; ballot, ana a kind of lucky bag, over which .1 presided, the distribution giving great pleasure and sport to all, especially the winners.

"The milk tins were all used for giving all the men at the messes, (two sittings at two messes) milk for their Christmas pudding. The tomato sauce, which came from Canterbury, went round with the meat at the eyenmeal, and three cases of cake irom Auckland and Wellington were handed out for tea. For once there was something left over for next day. I congratulate you on the splendid work you are doing, and on behalf of all send you warmest thanks. If I can be of any service to your organisation, please let me know. We are having a good voyage, and all are fit, happy, and healthy."

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