Letter from H. Hilliard: Private Harry Hilliard, who was admitted to the First Australian General Hospital on Dec, 15, suffering from defective vision, recently wrote to his mother in Broome : — ‘ I am not having the best of times — living on tinned dog and hard biscuits, and it is snowing in the trenches, where I am alongside John, who is well, as is also Arthur. When the Howe company landed there were about half of them shot down. It is a terrible sight — dead men all over the place. It is a wonderful place, and I have had all the experience that I wanted and won’t go looking for any more. [His excuse to his mother for enlisting was that he wanted experience !] It is ‘ lovely?’ in the trenches with bombs and shells flying about. . . The night we landed we all slept in holes in the hills, just like a lot of lizards. The lice and flies nearly eat us. This is the place to come for experience.’North West Echo, 8th January 1916

Harry Hilliard wrote to his sister on Dec. 28.— lam back in Egypt, in No. 1 general hospital. I have been wounded in the foot, and a piece of a bomb hit me in the eye; I have lost the sight of my right eye. I have been back from the front two weeks today, and am just about right again. . Charlie Banfield and Bruce McDonald are here with me. I haven’t had enough yet. The doctor wanted to send me home, but I told him, I didn’t want to go as I hadn’t been here long enough to be sent back. I haven’t had a letter since I left W.A. I went down to the beach and carried the mail about a mile thinking there might be some for me but there, wasn’t a bloomin thing. Poor Loton Annear was shot about three days before we left ; he had been recommended for the V.C. for some brave act.North West Echo, 11th March 1916