1 8th.R.Irish Fusiliers,
France 19/6/'16 My dear Father, My postcard will have told you of my pleas
ant crossing both from Ireland and England,and of
my safe arrival here on Thursday evening. On my way over Isuddenly remembered a promise I
had made to visit the Sisters at Newport,Mon. if at
all possible, and as Ihad a day to spare Ithought
I could not do better than drop down there. As
luck would have it my ticket ran from Dublin to
FranceS, so I changed at Chester and went down
South by the G. Western R1. Ticket collectors
looked puzzled to find me so far off the track,
but I ended all argument by asking them to deny
the fact that I was making my way surely,if slowly
towards France. Had I examined my ticket sooner I 2 might have gone round by the North of Scotland,
taken a dive for Cornwall and so worked on towards
the land of frogs and Frenchmen, I had a very
warm welcome from the good Sisters,but unfortunate
ly the Mother Provincial whom I wanted to see was
away on visitation,and the girl whom I had sent to
Newport as a novice was in another house some dis-
tance away, so I saw neither of them. The following morning I went to London,slept
at Farm St.and crossed to Boulogne on Thursday,
reaching Bethune about eight the same evening. My
travelling companion was a corpulent Major who
spent most of the 6 1/2 hours' train journey getting
outside a formidable pile of provisions with which he had
provided himself,the whole being steadied by two
large baskets of strawberries. For a while I fear
ed he would bust,as the Yanks say,and then un-
charitably I hoped he would,as I had had to run
for my train and was starving in consequence,but
my friend did not offer me a bite. Iput up in the hotel that night and next morning, 3 Friday,made my way up to the trenches where the
Brigade had gone. I had hardly got there whed when I
met with an adventure which at first I did not in
tend to mention fearing it might make you more un-
easy about me,but on reflection it seems right I
should not keep from you this last mark of the
good God's wonderful protection which has been so
manifest during the past four months. I was standing in a trench quite a distance from
the firing line,at a spot almost as safe as Dalk-
ey itself,talking to m some of my men when e
heard in the distance the scream of a shell. It
was evidently one of those random shots,which
Brother Fritz sends along from time to time, as
no one came after it. We very soon became pain-
fully aware that our visitor was heading for us
and that if he did not explode in front of our
trench his career would certainly come to an end
close behind us. I did not feel very uneasy for I
knew we were practically safe from flying frag-
ments which would pass over our heads,but none of
us had calculated that this gentleman had madeup 4 his mind to drop into the trench itself, a couple
of paces from where I stood. What really took place in the next couple of
seconds I cannot say; I was conscious of a terr-
ific explosion and the thud of falling stones
and debris. I thought the drums of my ears were
split by the crash and I believe I was knocked
down by the concussion but when i jumped to my
feet I found the two men who were standing at my
left hand, the side the shell fell, stretched dead,
though I think I had time to give them absolution
and the Last Sacraments. The poor fellow on my
right was lying badly wounded in the head; but
though a bit stunned and dazed by the suddenness
of the whole thing I was absolutely untouched
though covered with dirt and blood. My escape was nothing short of a miracle, for
a moment before I was standing on the very spot
the shell fell and had just moved away a couple
of paces. I did not think it was possible to be
so near a high explosive and not be gkilled and 5 (5)
even now I cannot account for my marvellous es-
cape. In saying this I am not quite truthful, for
I have not a doubt where the saving protection
came from. I had made up my mind to consecrate
some small Hosts the following morning and put
them in my pyxa as usual, but as I walked through
the little village on my to the trenches the
thought came to me that with so much danger about
it would be well to have our Blessed Lord's com-
pany and protection. Iwent into the church, opened
the tabernacle and with the Sacred Host resting
on my heart set out confidently to face whatever
lay before me, little did I think I was to be so
near death or how much depended on that simple
action. That is the explanation of the whole thing
I trusted Him and I believe He just allowed this
to happen on the very first day I got back to
make me trust Him all the more and have greater
confidence in his loving protection. 6 (6) Whether it was my trip in Lena's motor, Mai's vile
pills or the fearful guzzling of those memorable
days at home I never felt better or fitter in my
life. All the same I am hoping that my next trip
will be the last and will see the end of this
dreadful war, a thing which is not impossible. Au revoir, my time is up. Love to all. Willie.