Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 13 December 1915

Foo, Bar; Bar, Foo

Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 13 December 1915

1 Harbour House Ganges Dec 13/1915. My Dearest Aunt Tweety. I am writing to let you
know that I am off tomorrow to join the
Canadian Army having been sworn in
a few days before into the 88th Regiment
C.E.F. There are two reasons for my doing
so 1st to serve themy country every man
being needed & 2nd its a long story but I am
going to tell it all to you. I have been
unable to keep my head above water & its
only with a hard struggle I amhave 2 been able to keep things going at all. I have
kept it all to my self as I did not want to worry
my mother. There are certain debts I have accrued
which I am unable to meet at the present time
& I dont want to leave the country for the war
with this hanging over my head leaving Nona
to have to face it. Norman her brother is going
to look after the place for her with half interest
but as he has his ranche & wife & children to
look after but he cannot resume the re-
sponsibility of this debt of $400 = 8Â£80.
I have never written ofor had to ask for
help since I came out here 18 yrs. And if
you can raise it for me it will be the
1st debt paid on my return from the 3 war as Nona & her brother are going to
run a boarding house in Ganges in this
house & hope after the 1st year to be able
to make it pay. I have nearly settled all
my other debts & as we had depended
on selling land to help out since the
war there has been nothing but very hard
times. With my 1/2 pay1/2 my pay & her separation allowance
for a wife & six children Nona will be
have something for her to live on consisting
I will not most likely leave Canada for
England till the spring when I hope to
have enough leave to be able to meet
you somewhere in England or Ireland
&& then I will be able to tell you everything 4 I hope it will be a happy New Year for
us all & I am taking this beststep hoping
it all for the best. I will write you
again telling you how I like the life.
Again wishing you all a happy
Christmas Ever Yr Affec Nephew Fred.
My address is : Private A.G. Crofton. 88th Victoria Fusiliers C.E.F. Willows Camp Victoria

Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton (1882-1942) to his aunt, Augusta Caroline Dillon, Lady Clonbrock (1840-1928). In the letter, Crofton informs 'Aunt Tweety' that he will be joining the Canadian army having enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force and lists his reasons for doing so. The first is to 'serve my country'. The second relates to a large debt that he has accrued on his ranch and is unable to pay. He hopes that Lady Clonbrock will cover the debt, which he will repay on his return from war, and that his wife will be able to live off the 'separation allowance' that she will receive.Crofton had emigrated to Canada aged fifteen and was a rancher in Ganges, Saltspring Island, British Columbia. Lady Clonbrock was a prominent member of the Irish Women's Association, founded to provide aid and assistance to Irish prisoners of war and the wife of Luke Gerald Dillon, 4th Baron Clonbrock. Lady Clonbrock paid the debt and Crofton survived the war, remaining in Ganges until his death.

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How to cite

Letters 1916, published by the Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities, Vienna, 2026 (https://letters1916static.github.io/letters1916-static/item__0155.html)