1 3rd London General Hospital
SW. 1915 Dear Auntie B Thanks awfully for sending the
plants, I have planted them in the hut
garden, and I do hope they will do
well, so far they look quite perky.
One of the patients takes a great interest
in my gardening, he can't help much
as he can only use one hand, by he
thinks his advice very valuable and
tells me exactly what I should do.
Even on the wettest days, he solemnly
fills the watering pot and insists on
my coming out to water the plants -
when I tell him the ground is wet 2
enough, he shrugs his soldiersshoulders and
gets quite sulky. He presented me with
3 large clumps of dahlia roots the other
day , which I suspect he must have stolen
from some place else, and told me they
had flowers as big as two plates. We have a few patients at present
that the war office has told the
colonel to close down some of the huts
and dismiss some of the staff, so
perhaps I may get a holiday. I
would rather like to come home now,
and go out to France with Emma
a little later. Nise is a nice Lutton girl here, a
cousin of the Wicksteeds. I had a letter
from Mrs. Wicksteed last week, and she
says Justine is to be married quite soon. Thanks for the cuttings of the poems,
I like Katherine Tynan's very much. It
is a pity maunsel has failed, I am
sorry for poor Mr Roberts as I think
he is a real book lover, and brought all
his books books out so well - It is nice having Dorothy here, though
I am afraid I won't see much of
her; I went to her lodgings the other
day and thought them very nice. Then
we went on the top of the bus to
Hampstead Heath as neither of us had
been there before, and sat there in
the sun for a little - The King's surgeon comes to our Ward 3
and operates on nearly all our bad
cases, he is a very solemn person and
stalks round with great state - Please give Aunt Ellen my love,
I am sorry she has been having such
a bad time, I hope she'll soon be
all right again. Some of our patients went to
Buckingham palace to a tea party
given by the King. They came back
full of excitement as the King came
and chatted to them all, and
Princess Mary poured out their tea. Best love and many thanks
From your loving Celia