Private Horace Humphrey, 8th Bedfordshire Regiment

Dear Governess – A last I am writing you the letter I promised when I came away from home. I have all day to myself now, so I spend a lot of time writing. We have not been out of the trenches long, but when we came out for a rest I was picked with some more to go and patrol the frontier. It is easy work and we are in a good billet, but what I don’t like is being away from my regiment. I can hear the guns here, and I know they are under fire while I am right way from it, and the only chance we get of seeing a German is when one or two try and cross the frontier, which is not very often. I should like to tell you what we were doing when the great charge was made, but of course I must not. It was a grand sight. The Huns did not wait to see who was coming, they scrambled out of their trenches and made off behind the town, where they are safe (for a short time though). I went in some of their dugouts, and they were beautiful inside, they had chairs, tables, gas stoves, beds and everything one could wish for, but the men had no heart and gave themselves up rather than fight. In my opinion our village is worth the whole of France put together. I remain one of your boys.