30 Dec 60 Julius Fyzabad Mother

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30 Dec 60 Julius Fyzabad Mother ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Fyzabad

30^th Dec 60

My dear Mother

I am sure I shall be giving you cause to call out about the singular manner in which I conduct my correspondence if I do not write today. I am really very much tied for time. Still that is no reason why I should not be able to send off a letter by nearly every Mail. I hope you may have enjoyed a happy Xmas and may be entering on a pleasant new year.

We have been doing our best here to keep up old customs. Our men of course had their usual treat on Xmas day & I am proud to say No. 7 Co. seemed as happy & behaved themselves as well as any Company in the Regt.

Many times did they express a wish that I might soon be their Captain. Our Band as usual gave their Ball in the evening. Most of the soldiers’ & Sergeants’ wives were present & there was plenty of fun. We had a great Hunt on St Stephen’s morning.* All the Station, including the Ladies & Soldiers were out & we killed one Jackal.

Then on St John’s day* the Lodge* gave a banquet at which the festivity was prolonged until the small hours. On Thursday & Friday came the men’s games which I think on the whole went off very well & of course included all the well known sports such as catching the Pig with the greasy tail; sack races; climbing greasy pole etc. etc.

On Saturday we finished up the week’s amusement with a great pig sticking pic nic at the island on the Gogra about 9 miles from here, so we were very lucky meeting with such sport as, in my humble opinion, will not be excelled in India.

We speared three splendid Boars, one the largest seen this season. I have not yet obtained the ‘first spear’* but I flatter myself I am only beaten by the lightest weights. This sport is the most exciting I have ever witnessed; the ground is so bad. Out of 14 riders yesterday there were 7 very fair ‘pips’ as they are termed in India.

No one however much hurt. Most people are lucky enough to fall on their horses. My horse, not satisfied with his work yesterday has just now been endeavouring to devour his syce.* He is a very vicious beast ‘Mr MacCrenan’, but appears to me to last for ever.

It will appear strange that I should begin my letter bewailing the small amount of leisure I have & immediately go off into glowing descriptions of all of our amusements, but during the last week I have given myself up almost entirely to the fun & mirth of Xmas. I have even dropped for a week (as a lady at this place is pleased to call it) my beloved Hindustani. The consequence is, it seems to me, I have forgotten nearly all I have with so much labour learned.

We who cannot be at home & bear a part in the general festivities of Xmas time still endeavour to make the time pass pleasantly. The observance of old English customs makes us think of home & thinking of home does one good.

I hope my Father is doing pretty well. Last mail did not bring very satisfactory accounts of him but I am looking forward to the next news being better. He has had a very poor time of it I am afraid the last six months. I trust he will have been sufficiently well to have joined a little in the celebration of Xmas.

In the course of another fortnight I hope to have a little more leisure, when I must make up all debts in correspondence. I hope you can read this scrawl.

Believe me, with love to Helen & all

Yr. affect. son

J D Laurie

* St Stephen’s morning – 26th December

* St John’s Day – 27th December

* Lodge – He had been admitted to the Third Degree in the Light of Adjoodhia Lodge, Fyzabad, Bengal on 5th October 1860

* first spear – the first to strike the boar, whether or not causing a wound, fatal or otherwise

* syce – Groom