1 D2109/9/4/B Khedivial Hotel Alexandria Nov. 22/15 My dearest Mamma Your letter with the great news about Drosie
& me from her herself arrived on the 20th. I am sure it is
the best thing that could happen to her, & it sounds very nice. I was
glad to details for she gave me really were. I know how
anxious you & Papa will be until you see him. I hate to think
they may be married before I get home, as indeed they most
likely will be, for all being well I have 5 months in front of me
still. I try hardly say, wheresome me to share the news
with, let me know when I may tell Molly! Let me have more
details when you can, I presume he is not well off, but no one can
expect the that after this war. I am awfully glad about it,
but we will all miss him a lot, won't we? I am very happy
but there is no cause for your suspicions, the only me I have
met so far have all been married! Yesterday we got
paid £15 up till the end of October all expenses of board etc.
having been deducted, so that is pocket money to do what we like with
we nearly fainted with surprise, but it appears we get colonial
allowance for active service of 3/— a day, and various other allowances
too, this includes our time on the boat so we will not get
quite so much next time but as far as I can see we will have
about £10 a month free, so Papa's £10 will certainly not be 2 D2109/9/4/B 2 required. I am awfully glad about it, for though I
don't mean to spend it all, still it is a pity not to have some
cash to go about to see things & buy things which we might never
have the chance of seeing & buying again. I must also
acknowledge your £20, it is really splendid to have that, we went
out straight away & bought some books & papers, flowers &
sweets, & the men were delighted. The Australians love, what
they Call lollys, any form of sweets & they all delight in
having flowers. Tell Mrs. Heyn I will spend her £1 on flowers
and I know it will give the greatest pleasure to them. They are
such fine men, great handsome fellows, & such nice manners they nearly
all tell you they have never been ill in their lives & it is difficult
to persuade them they must stay in bed. One of them is nearly mad
with delight because he is going to England, he has asked me again
& again to persuade the doctor to send him, & Inow is firmly con—
vinced that it was my doing, especially as Capt. Connor's familiar
Irish manner makes them think that I am very great with him.
I have just enticed our chambermaid on to the roof to take his
photograph, unfortunately the minute he saw the camera, with
mutterings & of gesticulations he fled to return in 2 minutes dressed in
his best clothes, red fez & all. I am afraid he will never allow
me to take him in his housemaid's apron! I wish I could
describe all the things I see here. A funeral has just gone
by below my window, the women wailing, & the men chanting, the coffin 3 3 has a little thing like a stove pipe in the end in which sits
the dead man's Fez, or when it is a girl a white veil & wreath
of flowers. The children here are sweet, such wonderful
velvety brown eyes & such lashes, the better class children wear chiefly
European clothes with the inevitable red Fez for the little boys, but
the poor children wear bright picturesque clothes, are always dirty
but look jolly & well fed. The women carry their babies stride
legson their hips or their shoulders, & spring along often with a
big bundle on their heads as well, but they have awful hijabs and
generally hideous feet and ankles which they have no modesty
about covering displaying. At night when we are waiting
for the mule wagon, I see such pictures sometimes, a man in
a white turban & a lovely green eau de nil garment rides past on
a pure white mule with the moon behind him and a perfect
sky, a woman all in black, withveiled, follows presently on
a dark mule, andold man the colour of old mahogany goes
all bent up with a gourdskin water bag on his back, & a little brass
mug to give drinks, to children a boy & a girl, on donkeys
with panniers & big shining tin water jars on each side, it is
like living pictures, I never get tired of watching them. If
I had only Ruth's gift of writing, I could write not one but
20 articles, I think of you shivering round the fire
when I am basking in the sun! Think not a drop of rain
since we came! I am as usual bursting with
health & that reminds me, you asked about Celia! Well
firstly I'm afraid she hasn't a chance for a new lot of V.A.D.s
came lately. I think if anything they have more than they
want, here anyway. It is very difficult to say, undoubtedly
it doesn't suit some people, & a fair amount leave some home
and one or two were very ill with enteric & dysentery, two died
the first week we were here, on the other hand if it suits you 4 4 you are very well, it is not too hot now at all and as far as hard
work goes, she has stood that for 6 months already. It certainly
is the chance of a lifetime well this peace. I think a lot of illness
though of course by no means all, is due to carelessness, one girl who
sat by me at latte the other day, said gaily Oh I forgot to wash my
hands since I left hospital, & it transpire that she had been
bathing enteric patients back, this I think not only disgusting
but madness. She has been ill, not I must admit with enteric, but
dyre diahoerrea which has been so bad that she goes home to—
morrow, still if she was as careless as I have that what can she expect.
I have come to the conclusion that nursing like every other walk
of life is a case of common sense. Sister Sargeant
who was the night superintendent sister, & whom I did not like
told one of my friends, that she had a great admiration for
me & that she had to write a report of us as well as our own
sisters, & according to herself she gave me a most glowing one. I
would love to see it! I thought her & soon latter eat! She
has now been with 19th hospital where she Behand
It was she who asked me if I have engaged to him, I think I
told you about it! By the way, yesterday I went to see one of my friends Nell Ryland,
such a nice girl who was had jaundice, she asked me if I
could order her a tea service, the same as the one you gave me
for her sister in France, I said I knew you could do it with
pleasure if they were who had. Could you please, get me,
not a basket but one the same as mine, it is so convenient
tell Mitchell to send it to
Miss C. W. Ryland
V.A.D.
13th General Hospital
B.E.F.
Nr. Boulogne France. Nell was most anxious to send the money, but I could not
remember the exact price, so will you pay for it & let me