LETTERS FROM THE FRONT.

Taranaki Daily News, 18 December 1917, Page 6

LETTERS FROM THE FRONT.

Writing to his parents on October 13, Private J. T. Mills, 13th Reinforcements, says:— Have been lucky enough to miss the great battle up in Flanders and am at present in a rest camp in reserve. I recl;on my luck must have been properly in, as I believe this last battle is the most terrific slather up of the war, and I believe the New Zealand boys have been pretty badly smacked up. I was about the only one in our section that hadn't had a spell of some sort since the Somme and I guess I've landed it about the right lime for once. We got a severe handling on Messines. Only eleven of us in the Otago Section got out of it with whole Bkins, and I believe Canterbury got it worse than we did. We have had a pretty severe handling ever since Messines, but I believe they are getting it a .sight hotter up at Ypres now. We reckon we've had it pretty hot, but it must have been wholesale murder for the Huns, as their artillery fire absolutely can't be compared with ours. Messines was a little scrap that I won't forget in a hurry. It opened out at ten past three First the mines went up, then the liquid lire from the trench mortars, and then about 2000 of our guns and eighty machine guns all bashed out almost as one. For about three hours it eeemed as if the top had been lifted off the sky and Old ■Nick and all hell had been let loose on the German lines. The actual stunt only lasted about five days, but the old hands reckon that it was worse than the Somme for shell fire."