Category Archives: Diary – Raws

We sailed to the Wishing cave first used by Adam and Eve

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TCD MS 10853 folio 129 recto

Aug. 18th Red Cross Fate at Dublin Castle.
There was a large crowd there and I had tea on the Terrace with Mrs. Brown. The next day I lunched with her and Mr.Frank and Mr.Percy and afterwards drove over the Dublin Hills to Monkstown and Kingstown where we had tea on the lawn of an hotel.
Aug 21st. Croyden Park Tennis Club.
Aug 22nd. Paid a visit to Mr.Oaks little cottage on the Three Rock Mountains and in the afternoon drove down to Enniskerry. Lovely day.
Aug. 23rd. Great Charabanc Drive to Glendalough All the boys went who were well enough and Sisters Procter, Coade, Foote, and Courtenay. We were a happy party and the long journey some 33 miles seemed very short. We had lunch on the banks of the lake and then took a boat and sailed up to the Wishing cave first used by Adam and Eve so our truthful guide informed us and all

My leg was going on well

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TCD MS 10853 folio 128 recto

dinner with them at Mrs. Youngs in Gardiner St. where they were staying. We all went up to Mr. Rea’s house in Ranelagh to tea.
Next day Father, Mother, Bissell and I went to Dorset Street Pictures and on the Tuesday Mrs. Brown kindly lent me her car and Mother Francis Dad and I went a drive round Enniskerry and Bray and then had tea with Mrs. Brown at Hopeton, Rathgar. The Family went home on Friday having thoroughly enjoyed their visit.
Aug. 8th. Howth Church with Miss Courtenay.
11th. Tennis Club at Malahide.
12th. Soldiers Club at the Scalp.
13th. Miss Curwens at Sutton.
14th. With Captain Mann to Dorset Street.
Nearly every day I went somewhere and I was improving in health all the time. My leg was going on well but it was a slow process waiting for it to heal up.

Father, Mother and Francis arrived

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TCD MS 10853 folio 127 recto

Sunday 25th. Went to Malahide Church with Miss Courtenay. We had a puncture on our way back but soon got that put right.
July 27th. Whist Drive at Miss Curwens house in Rathgar. I won the booby prize. All my own fault too. In the interval I’d been showing a friend a trick with the cards and had arranged them in a certain order and when I had finished I forgot to shuffle the cards, with the result that when the play recommenced I and my partner had two trumps between us and we lost every trick. I took a photos afterwards and Miss Curwen was very pleased with them and ordered quite a number.
July 28th. Went down to the Hiber[n]ian School at Malahide and enjoyed the outing and the welcome we received greatly.
July 31st. Father, Mother and Francis arrived, and next day George and Agnes landed. I had

Men did harm to themselves

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TCD MS 10853 folio 126 recto

Automobile Club of Dublin, and every day in the week Soldiers were taken in members cars to this pretty little country place about 8 miles from Dublin and quite near Enniskerry. It consisted of a pavilion perched on the side of a hill and a marquee where there were indoor games all sorts in abundance. For the more vigorous cricket nets were provided and footballs. The drawback to the place was that men tried to play these vigorous games when they were not fit and did harm to themselves. I know of one case in which this happened. It was a delightful place and every time I went I liked it better. The company of the boys, the ride there and back through the pretty countryside and the cheers of the villagers of the hamlets we passed through, the flowers we received, and the general good time we had all made us glad to be alive and thankful that we had been sent to Dublin.

Did not enjoy tea at Guinness’

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TCD MS 10853 folio 125 recto

was a fine old chap, 53 years of age, and had two sons fighting in France. He’d been wounded in th[e] head by a bomb and it was a miracle how he escape[d] alive.
July 22nd. Red Cross Fete at the Zoo. Had a great time. Met Lady Ball, she had been visiting the Hospital some time previously and had remembered me again.
July 23rd. Went down to Howth to tea at a Mrs. Guiness but did not enjoy it very much. It took any warmth there was out of their welcome when they considered we were not good enough to have tea with them but allowed us to have it with the servants. Shall I give them credit for thinking we would perhaps be more comfortable under this arrangement.
July 24th. On this day I went to the Wounded Soldiers Club at a place known as the Scalp. This Club was founded and run by the Royal

Champion fowl killer and plucker

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TCD MS 10853 folio 124 recto

July 18th. Miss Rita Courtenay was at this time acting as Miss Stuarts secretary and as she poss[ess]ed a little two seater car she often took me about in it. On Sundays we frequently went to Howth Church in the car. One day Sister Procter Miss Courtenay and I went to Enniskerry and over the Dublin Mountains and we certainly had a delightful time.
July 21st. Went with Turner and Captain Mann to see a game of Polo in Pheenix (sic) Park. Turner was a remarkable fellow. He’d served 29 years. 21 years in England and the rest in Reserve in Canada. He said he was the Champion fowl killer and plucker in the world and guaranteed to kill and pluck a chicken before one could walk across the road, 20 seconds I think he said. I was strongly tempted to put him to the test but the difficulties of procuring a live chicken were too great so we had to take his word. He

One of the best remembered outings of my stay in Dublin

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TCD MS 10853 folio 123 recto

and we went down in a cab to the North Wall and had tea with him on his ship, the S.S.Cork. He showed Bissell the gun which he had on board to defend his boat against submarines, or rather as he would put it, to sink any submarine he saw for at that time he would have given anything to have had a shot at one.
July 14th. One of the best remembered outings of my stay in Dublin took place on this date. Mr.Wilkinson a veterinary surgeon called for us in his two seater car and Bissell, White and I (the two former sitting on the Dicky seat behind) went down with him to his seaside cottage in Rush about 12 miles away. On the way down we called at the Government Remount Station and saw a large number of horses being exercised round a large track. He looked after us splendidly when we reached Rush and we agreed when we got back that we’d enjoyed ourselves immensely.

On Mrs. Brown’s lawn we played target croquet, bowls, and clock golf

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TCD MS 10853 folio 122 recto

July 7th. Went with Captain Mann to look over th[e]Botanical Gardens. The flowers were beautiful and the hothouses were splendid.
July 9th. Went to Mrs. Brown’s house in Rathgar. I paid her many visits and she was awfully good to me all the time I was in Dublin. Both she and her two sons, both officers in France at the time of writing this, did everything they could to make wounded “Tommies” happy. She devoted all her time to this end and had soldiers to tea and took them Motor Car drives every day in the week. On her lawn we played target croquet, bowls, and clock golf and we always had our photoe taken during these visits.
July 10th. Went to Dalymount Park with Miss Renny-Taillyour to hear the Irish Horse Band.
There were about 100 soldiers there and we had our photos taken.
July 11th. Went to Findlaters Church and in the afternoon Captain Mann called for Bissell and I

They would look at my empty trouser and ask me if I’d lost my leg.

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TCD MS 10853 folio 121 recto

The questions they asked too were exasperating. They would look at my empty trouser and ask me if I’d lost my leg. However, their visit and their queries were all kindly meant, but I for one liked to be out on visiting days.
On Monday July 5th, we were invited down to Judge Moore’s house in County Wicklow with Miss Whelan our night nurse. It was a lovely ride and we were treated splendidly when we got to this beautiful Country House. There were a num[ber] of other soldiers there from other Hospitals and we all had tea on the lawn, arriving back at Mountjoy Square about 7.30.
July 6th. Went in Mrs Ellis’s Car with Sister Proctor to Grafton Street Picture House and aft[er] the performance her car called again and took us on to the Shelbourne Hotel (The Adelphi of Dublin) where we had a fine tea in her private room.

Hearts full of sympathy and hands full of toffees

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TCD MS 10853 folio 120 recto

Indeed I count it one of my best achievements that I escaped visiting that gentleman. I forget his name but I will never forget him. When I heard him enter the house I seized my crutches and made myself scarce but he would leave a message that he would expect me next Sunday, and Mrs. Murphy next door would like me to come the following Sunday and so on. Yes we had some queer visitors, old ladies with hearts full of sympathy and hands full of toffees were the worst. Cigarette smoking such a bad habit you know, toffee so much better. Tears would appear in their eyes and trickle down their cheeks as they tried to cheer you up. Fortunately I had regular visitors including Mr. Rea and Captain Mann and we would get into a corner and have a good smoke and a chat and defy the sympathy and woodbines of the other visitors.