Sherriff’s letters home to his mother were brief. He was ‘keeping quite fit’ he wrote, but had little time to write at present:

‘I am still in the front line but will soon have more time to write you longer letters when we go into rest – at present you want as much time as possible for resting and sleeping when off duty, so you will understand, dear, why these notes are so scrappy and uninteresting. The weather is keeping remarkably good and even when it is soaking wet, we all have big thighs gum boots that keep your feet and legs quite dry.’

In a subsequent letter, dated the same day, he noted that they were now half way through their tour in the front line, and admitted that the adjustment from his previous duty was not easy:

‘Of course, coming back after two months with the RE when your time is almost your own is rather a strain at first, but it is quite useless to have wished for a longer spell with them – 2 months was quite exceptional and I still look back with pleasure on the 2 months, which were happy as could be, and soon if all goes well we should be going out for a rest behind the line somewhere and what a fine relief that will be!’

As he signed off, he told her not to worry: ‘I am with nice men and fellow officers and that is the great thing.’

[Next letter: 6 January]