______________________________________________________________________________________________

24 Dec 59 Julius Fyzabad Mother Hyde Park Place (West) ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Fyzabad

24 Dec. 59. –

My dear Mother

Yours of 13th Nov. arrived this evening. I find that you have misunderstood me & imagine that I am very angry with John for being ill & suffering from the Climate.

I must have expressed myself badly, as I could not be angry with any one for such a cause, as I know well what both states are in India. Probably the matter was this: that I was annoyed at receiving several letters commiserating much with him about all his sufferings, the writers concluding from my silence that I was perfectly happy & contented, whereas the truth may have been that I had been exposed to equal or greater hardship & it is probable that the letter in question may have been written during a slight attack of fever, which are frequent companions to all in this country. But I do not ever remember finding fault with a man for being ill.

It is now some time since I have sent you any of my writing. My time has been pretty well divided between Rifle Drill & House building. The latter has been getting on rapidly. I hope to be ‘at home’ in a fortnight. We shall be turned out of our present quarters in a month or six weeks. I am very well provided for. I have built a little place on the ground, supplied by Government, containing two rooms, bath room &c. surrounded by a veranda. It is nearly finished. I expect altogether it will cost about £55. I have drawn on Cox for £30 & intend to draw more. I hope my Father will put that straight for me.

I believe I have laid out the money well & am pretty sure of a return when I leave, more so than some of our Captains who have laid out their £300 & I do not think have got any thing more comfortable than I have.

25^th Dec. – Christmas day.

A happy Xmas to all of you. – and many returns of the new year.

Our men are making great preparations for a merry Xmas. We keep it tomorrow. In the morning we give them a hunt. It will be rather fun seeing some thousand men running. Then the Commanding Officers of Companies provide the feed & drink & the men get their huts or Barracks ornamented so that when the Colonel & Officers go round at dinner time, everything looks very nice.

Healths are drank & then we generally leave them to amuse themselves for the afternoon & it is astonishing how little trouble the whole Regt. will give. Tuesday & Wednesday the soldiers’ games come off, including every sort of running, jumping, sack, wheelbarrow, blindfold & poney racing. You may imagine that making it agreeable to them causes it to be a little expensive to us, but they deserve it as I daresay there is not a Regt. in India which gives so little trouble.

In a telegram received last night, we see there are to be eleven new Battalions which will take us in & so at last Hurrah for promotion.

I have heard nothing from Arthur for an age. I have been getting very much behind hand myself in the letter line, as I have had to be continually at my small ‘Bungalow’ (if such a name applies to small houses as well as large).

We are going to make a party shortly to Akbupore, where we spent last Xmas, for the shooting. It is only 40 miles off and we have never seen any better shooting. The ‘Serai’ which everyone talked large of, did not produce anything to match. Just near this does not abound with game.

I had a long letter from Robert a short time back, which I shall put off answering until I can date from my new establishment. By the way, Peel has rejoined. He says he saw a good deal of you, that you were very civil him. He is an extraordinary fellow. We all understood he had come into some £50,000 & here he is. One would think with nothing but his Captain’s pay, he is rather close.

On Monday we eat our Xmas dinner. The whole Station dines with us, so it will be a large business. We have found out that repining does not improve our circumstances, so we endeavour to make ourselves as comfortable as possible.

This Indian Mutiny business is at last at an end as the Ghoorkas, having got all they could from the Rebels, have now turned on them & are giving them over to us. Now we must look to China or some other quarter for glory (?). By the way, does my Father know anything about those Turkish medals. I believe I ought to be the proud possessor of 3 different ones and I have but one.

All things must end, so I must begin to think of finishing this letter. Once more I must wish you all a merry Xmas & a happy new year & may we all be blessed by seeing you & my Father have many of them.

With love to Helen

I am Yr. affect Son

J D Laurie