9/11/17
My dear Father
Many thanks for your letter of 5th. You'll be a small party for most of this month, but I'm glad Ethel has arranged a holiday, a change of air and scene does her, as anyone else, a lot of good.
Mary seems very well. She has made a few friends in Porthcawl and seems to find her time quite well occupied. Baby of course gets a lot of attention and at this age the constant care of a sensible mother cannot be bettered. I wish there were another one to keep Baby company and share her mother's care and attention.
I'm afraid we must all face the extreme probability of another two years or so of war. Only an unthinking optimist can reasonably expect less though it's quite legitimate to hope for less.
I've lately been reading Lockhart's short life of Napoleon, an excellent subject for these days and one well calculated to make one full of faith for a successful issue. Whatever our muddles and mismanagement in this war they seem nothing to those of the first six or seven years of last century. While the limited military successes obtained sometimes by the Boche appear very small when measured by Napoleon's brilliant victories in the first eight years of his career. The less "hopeless" section of Pacifist and weak-kneed politicians seem at last to have grasped the necessity for keeping on the fight. The action of Simon in "joining up" was at least courageous in the moral sense, and one detects in the utterances of Ramsay MacDonald even some indication that he begins to realise we are right and must and will go on.
I hope the success in Palestine can be pushed well on and react favourably on the Mesopotamian situation. Otherwise it could hardly justify itself when men, ammunitions and transport are so needed in many other quarters.
Life here is quiet and usually uneventful just now and I suppose that is likely till next year, on this bit of the front anyway.
With love to you and May.
Your affectionate son
Arthur
