Now on his way back to the Battalion after a very welcome ten days’ leave, Sherriff found time to write letters home to both his mother and father.

In his letter to Pips he set out the details of the trip he had just taken. After arriving at Folkestone at 10:00 in the morning the previous day, he had been told that his ship did not leave until 1:15pm, which – despite his feeling ‘very miserable’ – had given him time to walk around town and do a little bit of shopping (as he had told his mother the day before). It was raining and drizzling intermittently so he had gone to the boat a little earlier than he needed. Once it sailed he gave himself the chance of ‘a farewell gaze at the White Cliffs’ before retreating down to the Cabin to read.

Arriving in France at 3:30pm, he found he had nearly twelve hours to kill, since his train was not due to leave until 4:00am. He went to the hotel he had stayed at when going on leave, and booked a room for the night, before whiling away a few hours strolling around town, having tea and visiting the local picture theatre. After dinner he took another stroll, during which he thought of ‘the glorious time I had in England (which now seems more like a trip to wonderland)’.

Percy High (rear left, with pipe). From ‘Memories of Active Service’, Vol 1, facing p 22. By permission of the Surrey History Centre (Ref: 2332/3/9/3/2)

He woke at 3:00am and went to the station, but found the train was delayed an hour. After a couple of hours travel he changed trains, and was eventually deposited at ‘a small village station’ from where he had a long walk to rejoin his Battalion. He still was not back with his Company, however, for they had been billeted elsewhere.

He told his mother none of this – merely that he had written to Pips about it, and if she wanted to know the details she could read it herself (‘if Pips lets you’, he cautioned – rather curiously). Instead his letter to her was one of longing and sorrow, and gratitude for the wonderful time he had enjoyed in England:

‘Needless to say, I felt very miserable at leaving dear – I had one of the most enjoyable times I have ever had – and those ten days passed like a beautiful dream. I have little fits of feeling miserable – sometimes while I was going for a walk with [Percy] High this evening I caught little glimpses of country that reminded me so much of home, that I simply hated this country – which seems so vastly inferior in every way. As I look back to [those] days I feel there is absolutely nothing that we omitted to do, and I am so glad, dear, that we spent them so happily with nothing to mar them – all I hope now is that everything will be just the same when I come home again – and I simply hope that will not be so very long. One of the most delightful parts of my holiday was to find everything and everyone just the same – to find everyone keen to do all the old things again and all our old haunts looking just the same.’

He thanked his mother for everything she had done to make his leave ‘absolutely beautiful’, and hoped that he would soon have the chance to pay her back for everything she had done. But he was aware, too, that it might be a while before they saw each other again:

‘Now dear, there is only one thing to do and that is to start our weary wait again and look forward to the time when the whole wretched affair is over and to my turn for leave again.’

[Next letter: 6 July]