While he was away, his family missed him greatly.
His numerous letters showed that they were
always in his thoughts. On the back of the
postcard, to your left, his mother and sister
wrote, "Am sending you a train to come home
on." Later, his body would come back on that
very train. For his mother, it was as if she
were receiving the news for the very first time.
She had learned of his death by telegram.
This, she kept with his letters. Every word on the
telegram is underlined in pencil, as if she read it
again and again, trying to take in what the words
meant...life would be different now. Her boy was
gone, but she still wrote letters. These were
addressed to a number of different officers
whose responses are with Herbert's letters.
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"I was not with your son when he was killed..." and
"I am sorry that I do not have the information you requested..."
Until, finally, she contacted someone who was able to give her
a written account of how her son had died.
Here are some links to just a few of his letters.
Take a step back in time...
(A letter he wrote on a train as he left home)
(a description of trench life...rats, rain, and waiting for letters)
(2 days before his death)
(more newspaper articles, family stories, and photos)
at Find a Grave
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