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venture an engagement again of any
sort for some months.
Everyone seems to be working at some
war work, either Red Cross, Munitions,
Soldiers wives, Moss Dressings, gathering
literature for the troops, or something.
Prices of commodities especially of
meat are very high but as we long
ago gave up eating meat at night,
the prices do not affect us seriously.
The event of this week has been the great
Russian push in the Southern half of their
fronts, whereby they have broken through
the Austrian lines for a length of 100 miles
to a depth of 40 miles or so and have
captured to date 75,000 prisoners.
This country has now adopted the summer-
-time system by which we reckon time
an hour later than it really is from
April to October, thus prolonging the
daylight hours by one. Three weeks ago
at 2.o'clock on Sunday Morning, time
was officially changed, and, as convenience
suited, before or after that hour everyone
put forward their clocks & watches one
hour. The effect is that now as I write

the sun is just sinking behind the distant
Ochills at 9.50, and no light is needed on
a fine night till after 10.0. This
has been one of the coldest and wettest
summers on record. Now in mid June I
regret having ever left off my winter under-
-clothing.
Prices for food are as follows:- fresh eggs 2/- a doz. [dozen]
beef 1/8d a lb. [pound] - Mutton 1/6d a lb. [pound] New Zealand
Mutton 1/4½.

18 July 1916
What a wretched summer this has been. It is
speeding on rapidly and still no warmth or
sunshine and rain nearly every day. The popular
idea is that this condition is due to the tremendous
gunfiring in France, but the eminent meteorologists
will have none of such reasoning. It must be
getting serious for the country. The one good
point in it is that it reconciles those who are
making munitions to the long postponement
of their holidays. The great offensive has been
going in France for 10 days now and our
armies are making splendid progress. It is
almost beyond belief that men drawn from
trades & offices who never dreamed of shouldering
a rifle two years ago should have been trans:
:formed into such magnificent soldiers. No one
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