s
done splendidly. Every one of the fellows I used to know from the
age of seventeen onwards is serving, and they were all serving
long before there was any talk of Derby schemes.

TO HIS BROTHER.

_February 10th, 1916._

I went into the trenches a few days back--not in the front line,
but as far as Brigade Headquarters, which is a sort of series of
caverns in the ground, and is approached by a long communication
trench. Nothing much was happening; and, anyway, this particular
trench is so deep that there is nothing to be seen save a strip
of sky above your head. In a few places you can get out and stand
on the open ground without much danger. The spectacle is
curious--practically nothing visible to indicate that there is a
war on. No soldiers in sight, only a lot of shell-holes and
barbed wire, and a general sense of desolation, with an
occasional crack of a rifle bullet, the whistle and crash of
Boche shells and the bang of our own guns from just behind.

I suppose that the Army class at Dulwich are hot favourites this
year for the Form Cup, and the Engineers for the Side. Our star
on the Modern Side has, I fear, waned. I shall never forget that
final Side match last year, when, with a team much the weaker on
paper, we (the Modern Side, captained by Paul Jones) snatched a
victory by sheer tactics. It was the best game, or rather, one of
the four best games, I remember--the other three being the
Bedford match in 1913, when A. H. Gilligan shone so brilliantly;
the famous 28-28 draw at Bedford in 1912; and the Haileybury
match of the same year. In every one of these games the football
reached a high standard, and the result was a pretty fair
indication of the run of the play, except perhaps in the second
game, in which it was the personal brilliance of the Gilligans
and Evans that snatched an almost lost game out of the fire.
Great Scott! What wouldn't I give to be starting my school career
again? Make the most of your school days, my son, for you'll
never have such a time again!

_March 2nd, 1916._

A few days ago I went up to see Elias--Captain T. Elias,
son-in-law of Dr. MacNamara, M.P.--and had tea with "C" Company,
1st London Welsh. To my a