The Letters of Arthur Martin-Leake April 1918

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5/4/18

My dear Mammy

Nothing much doing just now, after the big events, & perhaps the Boche is getting ready for another effort. We have plenty to do, of quite an uninteresting kind, but a necessary part in the big machine.

The war now seems to have been brought home properly to the Kaiser, by his own people, or at least two or three of them. This is satisfactory & they can no longer say that England did it.

Weather bad today & wet.

Best love

Y[ou]r affect[iona]te son
A.M. Leake

{87168}

13/4/18

My dear Mammy

All well here & quite quiet. Very cold today & misty again. The weather is extraordinarily changeable, yesterday we had a beautiful warm sunny day, now it is wintery. We don’t hear much from the N[orth], but the fighting seems to be heavy & the Boche taking a bit of country. He will be held up all right & perhaps pushed back. Hear that the Americans are coming over at great rate now, & no doubt the Boche knows this & is trying his best to have things settled as soon as possible. He will go a bit too far one of these days & have a nasty knock.

Best love

Y[ou]r affect[iona]te son
A.M. Leake

{87172}

26/4/18

My dear Mammy

We have moved & arrived at this place yesterday. We are now a bit NW of our old spot. There seems to be some renewed activity in the S[outh] & we hear that the Boche has had very little result, so his losses must have been heavy.

Weather is fairly good & warmer.

Hope you are quite fit, will write more later.

Best love

Y[ou]r affect[iona]te son
A.M. Leake

{87176}

{For some reason, Arthur’s letters around this time are generally short, though fairly frequent.}