[25/08/1915]
Force of habit – Gore
Trentham
Wed. 25th
Dear Mother,
I suppose you would get my note on Wed. I posted it on the express as it passed. Well we have now got sort of settled down here & so far everything seems to have worked in our favour. To start where I left off we picked up the North Otago men at Oamaru but the public was not admitted to the platform & we received strict instructions not to leave our carriages. There was a regular sea of faces looking over the fence. I looked at as many as I could but recognized no one I know. All the way up we were cheered & our throats were quite husky when we arrived at Lyttleton. I was disappointed at Chch as the train shot straight through. There were a few people on the station but as there was a row of carriages along the front of the platform I could not recognize anyone. However we gave them a big cheer as we passed through.
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We arrived at Lyttleton at 10 to 9 & were off by 9 0’clock. There were 442 of us & most of us had to sleep on mattrasses on the floor. We stood on deck until we were out past the heads & then went & lay on our bunks. It was a delightful trip & I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a long way smoother than the trip we went in the old tug at Bluff. We slept fairly well & rose at 5. After a good wash & a cup of coffee etc we got out on deck & it was just lovely. Hargest lost his breakfast over the rail but I think it was more imagination than anything else that caused it. I didn’t see anyone else showing the slightest signs in that direction. We arrived in Well. about 7 & spent most of the morning prowling about & waiting for different things about 9 we had a good breakfast at the barracks & left about 10.30 to march through the streets to the station. Wellington I think is pretty used to the sight of troops & didn’t get at all excited although we met with a little cheering here &
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there. I saw nothing of Aunt Tot or May but will write them & tell them I am here but we wont get leave for a fortnight or so. It was just on 12 when we alighted at Trentham station & marched a short distance to the camp. The 1st performance is medical inspection & then we had to march round & receive knife fork plate etc & sat around in groups & had lunch – bread, butter, cheese & marmalade & a pannican of tea. We were afterwards sworn in & marched to the stores to receive denims, overcoat, hat, sweater, 1 each shirt, undershirt, underpants, 2 pr sox, 1 boots (about 12 pounders) palliasse, 2 towels 2 blankets & 1 rug – I think that was all. By the time we all got supplied it was teatime. Tea is our best feed – roast meat, potatoes boiled in their jackets & plenty of bread, butter & jam & tea. Occasionally they give us vegetables also. The Milton girls gave us all the cakes that were left over so we have been supplementing the camp fare with them. Altogether today has been chiefly a day of waiting – waiting for trains, for medical inspection, for the dealing out of equipment & for a dozen other things. However they do their best for
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us. Of course when they get 3500 in in less than 24 hours you can understand that they take a bit of fixing up. Tomorrow morning we get to work but for a few days it will be pretty monotonous work. For 7 weeks we will be here then we go to Tauherenikau for 9 weeks & back here for two weeks musketry. We usually get our leave the last week we are at Tauherenikau. Trentham is a great place – looks more like a river bed than anything else. The huts look as if they will be alright. They are nice and roomy, 30 bunks to each & tables down the centre. The bunks are folding stretcher with fairly springy board tops & straw mattrasses. They look a trifle narrow but I think we will all sleep well tonight as it will be my first proper sleep since Sat. night, however we have to be up at 6 o’clock in the morning. Will have to stop now as it is nearly bedtime. Will give a fuller description later. So far we have had a great time & now we have secured 4 bunks in a line so we should be alright. Altogether the 8th seems to be a very decent lot of chaps & we have struck quite a lot of real good sorts & so far I have not seen a single crook specimen.
Love to all
Len
[Written in margin of Page 1]
We don’t get a number until we leave N.Z. Address letters to A. L. Shepard, D Company, 8th Infantry Reinforcements, Trentham. This is probably only temporary so don’t tell anyone just now.
[Written in margin of Page 4]
I see they have been shaking things up over there since I left home – if we don’t hurry up we will be missing the show.
