Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 1 October 1916 Letters 1916-1923 Alfred Gerald Crofton

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Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton (1882-1942) to his aunt, Augusta Caroline Dillon, Lady Clonbrock (1840-1928).. Written on British Expeditionary Force paper, provided by the YMCA whose volunteers aimed to provide comfort to soldiers at the front, the letter describes a day in the life at war for Albert Crofton. He also thanks Lady Clonbrock for £80 which she had sent to him his wife to cover debts he had accrued on his ranch in Canada. Lady Clonbrock paid the debt and Crofton survived the war, remaining in Ganges until his death.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.In December 1915 Crofton had joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force and has been been sent to the Western Front

 National Library of Ireland Clonbrock Estate Papers, Collection List No. 54, Ms. 35,797 (1) https://letters1916.ie/item/156 English Alfred Gerald Crofton 1916-10-01 Augusta Caroline Dillon Ahascragh, County Galway, Ireland Male World War I (1914-1918)

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 Y.M.C.A. On Active ServiceWITH THE BRITISH EXPEDITIONARY FORCE Sunday. .Oct 1st /1916. My Dearest Aunt Tweety. I cannot thank you enough for the £80 you have sent to Nona. It has indeed lifted a great weight off my mind as I had been worringall along about it. And I shall see that it is returned as soon as possible. This certainly is a strenuous life because you never know what will happen next. I will give you a brief outline of our days work. Breakfast 7 fall in at 8.15 & build huts till 11 'oclock then at 11.30 lunch or breakfast for those out at night. In afternoon 1 hrs work for those going out & then rest till evening the other lot continue what work we were doing vice versa per day. 6 o'clock tea & at 7.30 fall in. Rifles helmets, gas H& 50 rounds of amunition everything is overhauled & then we march to trenches in single file after passing rendezvous. inIn certain places machine guns & snipers get a pot at us, & so we continue till we get to our appointed place of work & when the word comes , over we jump the parapet & start filling sacks. At every flare we have to remain in what ever position we might be in & believe me you feel pretty big when you see the German trenches only 100 yds away, sometimes more, sometimes less. All the time machine guns are spraying lead about & we have to duck & let it pass over when the order is given. However German snipers often get a bead on the party & its ping, ping, ping everywhere. However we plug along filling sacks & building up the parapet. Of course we strike places where the dead has been buried a little time before & its anything pleasant working in that vicinity. Also water & rats are very plentiful the latter sometimes as big as cats. Still the boys are very cheery & make jokes & jeer at Fritz's shooting although sometimes he gets a bit too close to be pleasant. Still it does not always do to show what you really feel. But beleive me theiris not a man in the whole division who does not wish it all over now but it must beenseen through, now or never. We carry on in this fashion till 12.30 or 1 & then march home & about 2.30 turn in after having a tot of rum (very small indeed) tea & bread & jam, & sleep till 11.30 (if possible). You must always remember you have rats & the sounds of guns etc ringwringing wet clothes to contend with. But still here we are all merry & bright. The Officiers are fine & do their very best to make life as easy & enjoyable as possible under the circumstances. The Major who commands my Co. 'D.' is from Salt Spring & put me with him. Our platoon Officier seems very decent indeed but I dont know him very well as yet, but he seems to know his work which is such a great point. I hope soon to hear poor Edward is reinstated. I think although I only heard a rumour from my mother that he has been shamefully treated & that the other chap will be before long on the mat. Well heres more power to his elbow. Will drop you a line or card from time to time to show we I am still going. Again thanking you from the bottom of my heart. Always yr affec nephew Fred- P.S. One of the letters I sent to you has just been returned to me I wonder if the other will ever reach you or me. RB back of envelope postmarked Ballinasloe Ahascragh, County Galway, Ireland Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 13 December 1915Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 1 October 1916Letter from Private M. Cahill to Lady Clonbrock, 17 April 1916Letter from Emma Armstrong to Lady Clonbrock, 2 August 1916 Augusta Caroline Dillon Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 13 December 1915Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 1 October 1916Letter from Private M. Cahill to Lady Clonbrock, 17 April 1916Letter from J. L. Hay to Lady Clonbrock, 7 January 1916Letter from Private Patrick Furey to Lady Clonbrock, 4 January 1916Letter from Jessie Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 19 April 1916Letter from John J. Thompson to Augusta Caroline Dillon, Lady Clonbrock, 13 November 1915Letter from Josephine Murray to Lady Clonbrock, 22 May 1916Letter from Elizabeth Francis Neill to Lady Clonbrock, 21 February 1916Letter from Maude Chenevix Trench to Lady Clonbrock, 13 June 1916Postcard from Maude Chenevix Trench to Lady Clonbrock, 16 May 1916Letter from Lady Clonbrock to Eliza Chamier, 24 May 1916Letter from George Hugh Chetwood Townsend to Lady Clonbrock, 1 April 1916Letter from Edith Francis Maxwell to Lady Clonbrock, 22 June 1916Letter from Emma Armstrong to Lady Clonbrock, 2 August 1916Letter from Ursula Mahon to Lady Clonbrock, 18 July 1916Letter from Lady Mayo, Royal Dublin Fusiliers Kildare Committee, to Lady Clonbrock, 31 December 1915.Letter from Mrs. Arthur Goff to Lady Clonbrock, 12 August, 1916.Letter from Mrs. Arthur Goff to Lady Clonbrock, 12 August 1916.Letter from Mrs. Arthur Goff to Lady Clonbrock, 29 February 1916.Letter from Mrs. Arthur Goff to Lady Clonbrock, 25 February, 1916.Letter from Lady Mayo to Lady Clonbrock, 28 December, 1915.Letter from N. Maxwell, 23 July 1916.Letter from Emma Armstrong to Lady Clonbrock, 23 February, 1916.Letter from Kathleen Lewis, 19 October 1916.Letter from George C. Townshend to Lady Clonbrock, 18 October 1916.Letter from Emma Armstrong to Lady Clonbrock, 26 June 1916Letter from the Marquess of Sligo to Lady Clonbrock, 23 October, 1916.Letter from Florence to Lady Clonbrock, 28 November 1916. Alfred Gerald Crofton Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 13 December 1915Letter from Alfred Gerald Crofton to Lady Clonbrock, 1 October 1916