The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-10-06
ENGLISH MOTHER
 WRITES ID FRIEND
Show Spirit of Mother of
 Heroic Soldiers
HUSBAND AERONAUT
Only Regret Is That They Are AL lowed to Receive so Little News About What the Army
 Is Doing

The following letter received in Bir- ningham from an English lady gives some interesting glimpses of the spirit shown by the mothers of English soldiers who are now winning honors on the con tinent:
 Liverpool September 10, 1914. My Dear Mavis: Shall I ever be for given for neglecting you so long? Your little note of reminder quite shocked me. I did not realize that six months had passed since I wrote to ycu. But now promise, under any penalty you like, to behave better for the future. Yes, 1t Is too terrible, we are at war with Germany and you, so far away. will be unable to picture the change in our life here.
 My dear Pat was at first at Sheer ness where he remained fortnight with the others of his air squadron to guard a part of our coast. He had a new en- zine fitted to his aeroplane and he flew to France on August 1S. Since that date, when he sent me telegram saying that he was leaving, l have heard nothing of him.
 The movements of our troops have been kept extraordinarily quiet too quiet most of us think of the landing of our expeditionary force in France we were
 told nothing-the troops were entrained at night and left without our knowledge. Of course their presence in France wa s published in the French newspapers inn
 heolateiy and no doubt the enemy was
 well aware of it. It is very natural that We resent being kept entirely in the dark ana treated as if we were children. Fortu-
 nately, our press Cor as 1t has been aptly 1 named our suppress bureau, has thought better and Is now supplying us with of-
 ilciai news little more generously. General French's dispatch, published l today, makes glorious page in the his
 tory of our army. What Is called our re- treat to conquer, in which our forces
 have been fighting against overwhelming
 odds, has been carried out with the ut most courage and devotion and you can | imagine my feelings of pride when 1 read General French's high praise ot
 the work done by the royal flying corps
 To quote his words, Their skill energy
 ana perseverance have been beyond all praise-fired at constantly both by friend
 and foe, and not hesitating to fly in every
 Kind of weather, they have remained un-
 daunted throughout He adds that they
 have been actually fighting in the air. 1 At the present moment the enemy | appears to be in a very serious fix; it
 remains to be seen how it can extricate
 ltsef' Until this week the story has been | a very terrible one for our brave little
 army, which was only saved from utter l destruction by the admirable leading of | It's generals and the cooiness and cour.
 age of the officers and men,
 | The accounts of individual deeds ot 1 bravery are legion; we hear of numbers
 of instances of officers holding important
 tactical points till every one Of their men | was killed or wounded. notable ca SC
 is that of Lieut.. Claude Norman Cham.
 pion de Crespgny. Major General Al | lenby, c. B., ends up his letter of sym-
 pathy to this poor boys mother, Lady
 Champion de Crespigny, by saying: Nc man could have done more, few would
 have done as much Surely the glory of
 It has robbed his death of much of its sting.
 1 The allied armies are now engaged in | driving back the Germans practically all | along the tremendous line of battle from - and the movement seems to be espe- cially successful.
 We are all sure of a final triumph
 but we may suffer deeply for long time 1 yet.
 And now for our own personal news | Harry was in Hamburg until two days | before war broke out, but had the good fortune to get through before it became too difficult. His boat was sent back three times by the Germans but finally the captain made up his mind to get through, mines or no mines, and man. aged 1t triumphantly. The boy went to London and offered his services to every one who might be able to make use of him, but he was told to wait for orders He came home and after day or two decided that waiting was a tiresome game and quite unsuited to him, so he called upon the colonel of Pats old battalion who immediately promised him a com mission and he has been hard at work for sometime and I need hardly add, thoroughly enjoying himself. He looks very big and imposing in his khaki uni- form. I feel very proud of my two sol dier sons, you know they are both over six feet two inches. They are blessed with an ample supply of brains as we'll as of inches; quite a useful combination
 My small boy plays at soldiers all day and I think he dreams of them at night; he decorates himself with soldiers badges of all varieties. He has always had passion for everything military, and, of course, it is greatly intensified at the moment Now he will be a gunner little later in the Grenadier Guards and by and by in the beloved flying corps.
 When he Is taken to Seaforth he care- fully dons the badge of the Kings regi- ment, so as to do honor to it's battalion stationed there. He is seriously annoyed with the King because he will not let his special friends, the Red Indians. come to help us to fight
 Well my dear. I will write you often and send you regularly all the news, and hope to hear from you by return and learn that my sins of omission are for given and ever forgotten"