SOLDIERS' MAIL

Evening Post, Volume XCIII, Issue 27, 31 January 1917, Page 8

SOLDIERS' MAIL

DIFFICULTIES OF DELIVERY.

Referring to: the frequent complaints from'correspondents in Hfew Zealand in regard to' the non-delivery of correspondence ,to soldiers of the Expeditionary Force, the.,"following will be of interest, showing those who have not experienced it, how; often and frequently a soldier on service may change his address. Couple' with this the loss of mails duo to a stale of war, and much of the difficulty is experienced. A complaint that Lieut. 's correspondence had not been delivered was recently investigated in London. It was found that in one year he had moved or' transferred as follows : ; Joined unit (0.M.R.), Mudros, 29/9/15. Admitted hospital,, Mudros, 6/10/15. Embarked for England, lI.S. Aquitania, 21/10/15. . Admitted 3rd London Hospital, London, 27/10/15. Attended N.Z. .Base Depot, Horn- . church, 26/2/16. , Embarked for Egypt, 24/3/16. j Posted to N.Z.M.R.T.R, Moascar, . 7/4/16. Detached to School of Instruction, Zeitoun, 30/4/16. Rejoined regiment. Tel-el-Kebir, 25/5/16. Transferred to ■ A.1.R., Tel-el-Kebir, 29/5/16. ■ .: . Embarked 1 for france (Marseilles) from Alexandria, 29/5/16. " ■ . ■ Embarked for Prance (Marseilles) from Southampton, 26/6/16. Attd. strength Base Depot, Etaples, 6/7/16. ■■-„ S/out to tN'.Z. Division from Etaples, 6/7/16. Taken on strength of Ko. 2 M.G. • C!oy., 7/7/16. In 2nd New Zealand Field Ambnlance, from ,17th. to 19/7/16'(influenza). •. Transferred from No 2 to No. 3 M.G. Coy., 28/7/16. ' ■ . . ' ■ . Wounded in action, 16/9/16. . In some cases letters had travelled from New Zealand to Egypt, been forwarded to England, failed to catch him there, iand been sent back to: England again, finally overtaking him in-France^ . '[ \ . This is not by any means an exceptional case, and serves to show how difficult it is to deliver mails to members of an army in the field.