Item 34 - Letter from George to Ruth Mallory, 17 April 1917

Letter to Ruth Mallory written from France on 'April 17 1917'

Had been doing observation work. Saw Germans against the skyline but his battery weren't allowed to fire. Two hours later a few rounds were fired but did no good so that was disappointing. He had been exploring a wood for a new observation post as he didn't like the place Hutchinson and Johnstone had found because it was a favourite dugout of the Germans. Many trees had been destroyed but he liked being in a wood and the feeling of the earth under the trees. Green things were beginning to carpet the ground and he saw wood anenomies and oxslips. He built a fire and had coffee and sardines for breakfast. He found three good O.P.s in the woods and had wires laid.

Describes firing on a target before an infantry attack, the bombardment from the Germans, and how the communications were managed.