A LETTER FROM THE FRONT.

Evening Star, Issue 11677, 8 February 1902, Page 4

A LETTER FROM THE FRONT.

Trooper GTofton Umbers, of the Scottish Horse, who is still in hospital at Johannesburg, writing to his parents, says; I won’t give you a long article entitled ‘ Christmas Day in a Hospital and the Front,’ for the simple reason that Christmas Day differs very little from any other day here. We had the stout doubled, and the “ Tommies ” were overjoyed. Plum pudding was also a feature of the day. In the afternoon the sisters gave a tea to the patients in the concert marquee, and the patients who were in bed had tea brought to them. It was very good of the sisters seeing that they bore the whole of the expense. The men had an impromptu concert among themselves in the evening. On the 19th December we had a splendid concert given us by some talented civilians from. Johannesburg. 1 don’t think I ever enjoyed a concert so ranch in my life. It was superb. Puller's name was mentioned in a song a few times; the song was stopped then and there, and the cheers of the soldiers were enough to deafen you. It was the best concert of the season held in our “opera-house.'' With the exception of one ail were civilians, some of them very clever, but even then the " gentlemen in khaki ” scored, for the exception was a canny Scot of the Scottish Horse. He had a beautiful voice, and was made to sing about a dozen songs. The ‘ Darkie’s dream ’ was one of the items. A lady played the piano part and a real darkle played the mandolin. 'The nigger was in evening dress, and came on the stage in a very dignified way and took his seat. Of course a Tommy in the pit must spoil the quietness of the place and the dignity of the dark gentleman by shouting out “ Sakabona f’ We have one of the Buffs here (one of the wounded at Brakenslaagte), who was out in New Zealand with the Imperial representative corps at, the beginning of the year. The “little boy,’’ as the sister calls me, is doing all right. I get ont of bed for books, etc., but, must watch that she doesn’t catch me. My leg has been X-rayed four times, and the bullet has been located, ’[‘was operated upon, under chloroform, on the 24th December, but the doctors failed to extract the dodgy little piece of nickel. I think it is a Mauser bullet. However, if it does not work its way to the cut, the doctors will be pretty sure to get it the next time they operate on me. The wound where the bullet entered is healed up now. The Marchioness of Tullibardine was in seeing me this afternoon (Ist January), and said she was very sorry to see me in hod again. She is a very nice lady, and always lias a lot to say when she comes round, bhe always comes round by herself, and finds her own way about. The Marquis was round again to see ns the other day. We are having another concert to-night I have got my end or the marquee opened, and I can see the concert sta/re from my bed. I will be able to see and bear everything. We are well off for literature, and I have read the Christmas numbers of nearly all the popular magazines. The weather is very hot now. We get some beautiful pineanples here, and lemons to make drinks with. Being midsummer, the lemon water is the very thing. Please tell all my friends not to write any more, for, with God’s grace, I will be coming home in March, and will wait till I reach home before I consider whether 1 will come out again or not. It is over five months now since I left New Zealand, and I’ve bad only two Jots of letters. I’m afraid they must be going adrift out here. Letters have been going astray very remarkably, and some raontlis ago perhaps many fell into the hands of the Boers. On the other hand, complaints have been made of the laxity of the postal authorities in South Africa. One of the newspapers stated that hundreds of letters had been allowed to accumulate at Cape Town until they were months old, and had never gone to the front. One of the letters received by Mr Charles Umbers from South Africa was found cut open when it reached his hands. Other letters and a book sent to Mr Umbers by General Baden-Powell were never received at all. As the letters contained trophies of the war, one can draw conclusions as to why they never reached Dunedin.