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[Page 16]
drenched - oozy and squishy with water and the road in spate - a scolding flood-creek. For two miles the jolting and drenching kept up, during which we passed through a recently shelled village and entered another wood. Here we pulled up and at an A.S.C. tent. I caught sight, just as he was disappearing round the back of it, of L---G--- an old Egypt and Staples friend. We had a joyous reunion, for, he is one of the best and he lent me an old overcoat. Norman the half-limber specialist got a new pair of ''strides" (breeches) and on we went. We then drew near the village I'd seen shelled the night before, but without entering it we swung round to the left and pulled up at the edge of another little wood, and here I got my treasures - the canvas roll a bit bent, but otherwise the stuff not in bad shape. Off on the home trail the rain again came down on us direfully and in no time the borrowed overcoat was soaked through and I feared for my fine blocks of drawing paper. After more fearsome bumping over the macadam and down the roaring gullies, a-leap with rushing water, we got back. I descended stiff, shivering and dripping and dragged myself and my bundle inside. Practically everything except my book and one of my sketch blocks was undamaged and they but a trifle. I put these under weights to keep them from buckling, went for some lunch, hurried back, took off my water-logged duds and went to bed for the afternoon. At five I went to tea (our usual hour) and since then have been writing this letter. If this were peace time and you were here we could be enjoying it in a way that would "make Milwaukee jealous". Tomorrow if the day be fine and I am well I intend to wade right into some of the good subjects that are so plentiful round about. On my journey to-day I saw a great barn with huge wide-open doors, turned into a smithy; a regular Cyclops cavern. Several of our felt hatted diggers were welding and the heavy old beams up above looked in the glow like bulky red-hot metal bars against a purple-bloom shadow such as a cathedral vault at dusk would hold. There are lots of subjects, but their mobility is the drawback, though this may ultimately be to my benefit by forcing me to speed up my senses. Nous verrons. The sky has again clouded over and the setting sun throws the tree up, a brilliant pea-green against dark slate coloured banks of cloud.