Dearest Brother,
I have just received your letter which you say
no doubt will be welcome. There certainly can be no doubt about that whatever,
always and ever welcome, more than welcome, it seems to me that as soon as
I get through with one letter I look at the date and wonder how soon I can
get another and as soon as I got yours, I used to think to myself all well
so far with one of my boys and then eagerly watch evening post for a letter
from my other laddie. But now Oh my dear, dear Sam, my heart is breaking,
aching, with the pain. Oh my Wilfred. My Wilfred, my boy, my brother, never
another letter will he write to me.
But Oh Dear Sam I must not go on like this for I sat down to pen these few
lines to you, to try to comfort you, to console you & here am I only thinking
and writing about myself but Oh Sam I loved him so, the few months that he
was with me, I learnt him, and whatever his faults, he had a heart of gold,
but Dear Sam you must think that I loved him more than you, for If I had
been called on to make my choice between you, to say which of you should
be taken and which of you should be left, I couldn’t have answered that but
you see God spares us that. He made the choice and we have to pray for the
strength to say Thy will be done. On Dear Brother I have often tried to comfort
friends in similar trouble and prayed that they may be given help to say
Thy will be done, but little until now did I realise what a lesson, a terribly
hard lesson it is to learn.
May God help us my own dear brother, knowing you and your loving heart so
well, I know this will be a dreadful blow for you, for I know in you heart
you loved him too. Oh Sam, Dear brother, how I wish I were with you to help
you bear it. I suppose it is not even possible that you could come home. I
have had a better night to-night but the night before, I was so ill and upset,
and I did worry after I had sent the news over to you, for I was afraid that
it would put you back again, but I hope not.
I think I told you I went straight down to mother, but we came back again
(George went with me) the same night, for as you know dear he had to go back
to work the next day for we couldn’t afford to lose more time, so I came back
with him, to do what I could for him (in the food line) but I going down
again this day (Friday) and stay until Sunday or longer if I must. Our Dear
mother & Dad, you will know just how they are taking it, first her bitter
heartbreaking cry, but now with that wonderful faith in her God that he doeth
all things well. But I despaired to see Dad. Not a word scarcely did he say
but he seems to just double right up and I pity such grief, when the tears
won’t come to relieve the bursting heart. Write to them lovingly to ease
their aching hearts.
I haven’t heard from Martha or Louie, but there
is no doubt that there is news down home, if they are not there themselves
for when I phoned to Louise it was from Dartmouth.
Well Dearest perhaps to-morrow or Sunday I will send you a copy of the letter
that I received from Dear Wilfred’s Platoon Officer, such a beautiful letter.
Surely he must be a real Christian Gentleman to write to us, and in the spirit
that he did. Our Minister said that of all the letters that he had read that
have come from the front on a similar errand he had not seen one that expressed
such genuine sympathy, such divine sentiment and never did laddie have higher
praise. The letters breathed o their sense of loss brave big-hearted comrade,
that’s what they called my laddie. Only a laddie, but he has done a man’s
work since he was sixteen and he has fought a man’s fight.
Well no more now Dearest, wishing that God will strengthen you and keep
you even if you cannot be with us, you can have him near. Good morning, God
Bless you. Mispah. My own dear brother from your Loving
Sis.