LETTER FROM THE DARDANELLES.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIII, Issue 11, 11 September 1915, Page 3

LETTER FROM THE DARDANELLES.

The following letter was sent to Mrs Downs, wife of Mr Olios. Downs, of Mangawhare, by Mr Harold Spencer, who enlisted for active service whilst he was in the employ of the Northern Wairoa Dairy Factory. Since writing the letter Spencer has been wounded. “The Young Men’s Christian Association Army Department, Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, Alexandria, Egypt.” This is' the printed heading on the letter paper. The letter begins: “Juno 20th. 19,15 Dear Mrs Downs. , I received your welcome letter of the Ith May. and was pleased to hear from you. . . You mentioned in your ‘letter tlmt you had just_ moved away ( from the table, which is a thing 1 have not seen since I left Cairo, so 1 just sd.i OPi.thp gtoun.d where I have bully beef stew and a. little Amber Tips tea don’t tHiftk) and scribble away,, • • I, am , glad you had an enjoyable time at the Coast and pot o allowed to hare your fun unmolested,, for where we are there is a lovely beach, hut as soon as we start to have a dip in the briny, somebody tries, to drive us off, for I suppose they consider they have more claim to it than wo. Biit I have managed to get k few dips. The women or New Zealand appear to be having a busy time ,and I suppose they wllmi; with contributions for relief funds ami the high prices of things they are at their wits’ end to make both ends meet. You can tell Mr Downs that if he cannot get the price for the but cm- in Dargaville I think I could get rid of di few boxes at a good pi ice from the hoys, as wo have not seen such a thing for over three monthfj. . . . You said in your letter that you had a very hoi summer, but I can tell you New Zealand summers are nothing compared with what we have here; and to make matters worse, the place is simply full of flies, and one has to fight to see who is going to have the stew, for they chase each spoonful almost down your throat.”