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[Page 29]
Perham and the other for Codford. I thought I was for Codford so I missed the Perham Draft and then I was up to Orderly Room and charged with being absent off a Draft Parade after being duly warned. I stated my case so I was remanded to the C.O. Major Cambell. On the 4/9/17 I got 7 days C.B. for it and had to report to the Sgt of the Quarter Gaurd 6.30 & 8.30 A.M. 12 midday and 1.30 and every ½ hour from 4 to 9 P.M. every day for seven days it was no Bon. And on the 7/8/17 I got on a 24 hour gaurd and that ended my C.B. And on the 10/9/17 was was warned for draft to Perham so on the 11//9/17 left Weymouth. Passed through Southampton Andover and got out at Lugershall then we marched about 2 miles to the camp and we done general fatigue work. While in this camp and a little drill but not much and on the 28/9/17 I was on draft for the O.T.B. [Overseas Training Battalion] and at the final inspection I with 4 others was rejected of course we was not sorry either. On the 29/9/17 I went to Lugershall and met Norman Way so we went to the pictures and when I come home to the camp the hut I was in was isolated for scarlet fever so we was not allowed to go away from the hut and we stayed there till the 8/10/17 when we had to get to work and pack the whole camp up to shift to Sutton Veny near Warmister on the 13/10/17 when we marched to Tidsworth where we entrained. We passed through Westbury where we seen the great white horse cut out of the chalk on the side of the Westbury Hills and we arrived at the new camp about 4.30 P.M. and as soon as we was dismissed some was off to Warmustes [Warminster] and some to Frome. We done the general camp duty such as fatigue and drill. And on the 1/11/17 I with 2 others volunteered for the permenant gaurd for the command and was excepted and had to mount gaurd at night at 6 P.M. And I stayed in them till 29/11/17 when I was transferred back to No. 3 Coy where I stayed till the 3/12/17 when I with some more was transferred to O.T.B. at Sandhill camp and it was there where we had to drill and these are the places that makes one feel that you would like to be back in France with your own Btn and old mates again.
On the 6/12/17 we was inspected by General McKay officer commanding oversea troops in the United Kingdon. And on the 8/12/17 was transferred from A. to C Coy and in the afternoon went to Frome in the county of Somerset and then to Bath by motorbus where I stayed at the Y.M.C.A. till Monday morning at 6.30 a.m. 5 of us left by car and arrived at the camp at 7.50 on the 10/12/17 and on the 15/12/17 a 108 of us was warned for oversea draft and in the afternoon 6 of us went to Frome where we stayed till the early on 17/12/17. When we had our final inspection by Brigadeir General McKay and he presented a Sgt of the 16th Btn and in the afternoon we was lined up and warned for oversea draft anytime after midnight and on the 19/12/17 we was fell in 1,500 of us and we marched off to the tune of Australia will be there and the thing that struck me the most was when we was passing Longbridge Deverel [Deverill] School the children was in a line and they saluted us and some had large letters and this is what it read (God be with you) (and Good Luck and a safe return Home). And it looked real nice so we arrived at Warmister at 10 a.m. where we entrained for Southampton we passed through Salisbury and we went aboard the S.S. Ceaserea [Caesarea] at 6.30 and we was packed in like sardines and every man had to wear a life belt and we