The letter below to Irene Peterkin was composed by her sister Ruby Peterkin precisely 100 years ago. Ruby has some “slack time” – only 350 soldier patients for a couple of weeks – and excursions into town are permitted. Ruby requests the family to send her some of the comforts of home: hair pins, hair-nets, tooth paste and cold cream, and edibles such as coffee, tea tablets, biscuits and oatmeal cookies stuffed with dates. In the detailed instructions for how the parcel should be packed there is a hint of the take-charge Ruby she would be for the rest of her life.
Ruby goes into Salonika from the hospital which is located in a suburb, Kalamaria. She is accompanied by fellow Canadian nursing sisters Madge McCort, Daisy Dean and Jean Martin, and several Canadian officers. Of Salonika she writes: “It is the quaintest and dirtiest place you can imagine.”
The young “crush” who takes her for outings is still very much around. Here we learn details of the welcome “eats” placed before them when he takes her to dinner in the officers’ mess tent .
It seems that her older sister Ethel May Peterkin and “Auntie”, who is Annie Gordon Peterkin, the sister of her father Charles Peterkin, had both sent “care” parcels earlier.
No. 4, Canadian General Hosp
Salonica, Jan. 23 – 1915 [i.e. 1916]
Dear Rene –
It is ages since I wrote to you and ages since I have heard from you – over two weeks. The last letter was the one in which you told me about your shooting trip and the shooting coat and rifle. Now who is Mr. Winters? A man who sheds shooting coats and rifles on his friends sounds interesting.
The box came a few days ago and thanks ever so much. The bed socks were just the thing. I bought a pair in London but believe me they are really worn out for they have had constant use. The rose-colored bows made me quite home-sick. I liked the stockings very much and they will save darning. Tell Ethel and Auntie I will write both of them very soon to thank them.
Well, my dear, I cannot claim that I have been too busy to write. I am still on the officers’ wards and the last few days we have had four patients and four sisters. We have had only about three hundred and fifty patients altogether for a couple of weeks. However it has been cold weather for the last few days and we got quite a convoy in to-day so by the time you get this we may be fearfully busy. However, we have been making the best of our slack time The four of us in our tent got our half day last Tuesday and gave a tea (in our tent) and invited about thirty of the sisters. It was a huge success being the first of its kind to be given here, and we paid off all our social obligations for the little parties we have been asked to in the other girls’ tents in the evenings. You see a lot of them have been getting boxes of eats from home and then they have a party. Of eats – more anon.
Salonika in photo by Ruby
Then on Wednesday Miss Dickeson came around and said that McCort, Dean and Martin were going to town next day and there was room for another and would I like to go. So of course I said yes. So we all had the whole day off and went to town in the afternoon. You see, we are not allowed to go to town although we are just about 4 ½ miles out – in fact no one below the rank of Colonel is supposed to go unless on duty – and then only with a pass. Well, the Quarter Master takes three or four sisters in, in an ambulance nearly every afternoon on an official sightseeing trip. You put your name in to go, but usually the days are taken up weeks ahead. I had not put my name in at all for a reason I will tell you later on. Well we had a great time. Capt. Van Wyck went as well as Capt. Trump and then we met Capt. Thompson the paymaster in here. It is the quaintest and dirtiest place you can imagine. The streets crowded with solders, mostly officers, British, French and Greeks, and the people are of every nationality in Europe – and America. They speak French or else German in all the shops, and they do you at every turn. The prices of ordinary articles of use is appalling and half the things that are necessities of life you cannot get. Then there are heaps and heaps of “antique” shops and a whole street they call their Bazaar with
the populace in Salonika
nothing else than curios – brass, copper, old revolvers &c. &c. They ask fearful prices at first but you can beat them down you know. I got an old brass hot water jug for five francs. They say a good many of the antiques are made in Sheffield, England, but I am sure mine is genuine. We had tea at the Café Roma where every one goes for afternoon tea and got back about seven.
Now the reason I did not ask to go to town was that I had already been in, and although I do not think anyone knew I was afraid they were holding it up their sleeves and if I asked to go that they would pounce upon me – that is to say that the matron would. I don’t think I told you that I had a young crush out here – a patient of mine – an A.S.C. – 2nd Lieut. and he has a car at his disposal so while he was still in the hospital he got one of his brother officers to bring the car over and I walked down to the road and met them and we went in and had tea and got back in time for me to be on duty again at 4.30. But while we were in the Café Roma didn’t the personally conducted party of sisters from here walk in. But I guess they didn’t split for I have not heard any thing further of it.
Well my young crush went back to camp which is about a mile up the road, last Tuesday. He had wanted me to go out to dinner with him but I said the only way it could be arranged was to get up a party. So we got an invitation for last Friday night. McCort, Laura Gamble who is in charge of the officers’ wards, Nora Campbell and myself. Lt. Andrews called for us and took us up in his car. Dinner was at seven-thirty and was not over till after nine. It was some dinner. They have a fairly good sized mess tent and there were five of them. It was really quite a wonderful dinner for active service. They had been keeping a few chickens and they were sacrificed in our honor. The fish course was canned salmon and we had roast beef and vegetables and pudding and nuts and raisins and candies. Oh, some dinner, I assure you! They were a little short on table equipment. The fish was served in pink and blue soup plates and the next course in white soup plates. The next in pink and blue and the next in white – with a faint sound of dish washing in the far distance. Then, too, the man would slip you a knife and fork and spoon that you were dimly conscious of having seen in some previous course. But it certainly was some dinner. Then after dinner we sat around the oil stoves and talked and then at ten o’clock they drove us home.
Did I mention that the O.C. of the company my crush belongs to had been coming up to see him with increasing frequency while he was in the hospital. Well, on Friday night he asked me if I would like to go out for a drive today (Sunday) well – would I not? I guess I would. So my dear I have just been for the most perfectly glorious drive right up the mountain road to the very top, to the very last camp of the British forces and the trenches are just beyond over the mountains. It was perfectly great. Capt. Foster (he has another name with a hyphen before the Foster but in No. 4 Can-Gen we drop all hyphens on active service except Capt. Livingstone-Learmouth who is a patient and we were afraid to drop any of his for fear we might get to call him Leary.) Anyway I was going to say that Capt. Foster drove the car and his man sat behind. We went thro one village in the mountain. There is only one road thro and it is only wide enough for one vehicle so they have a telephone thro the town and when any thing starts thro at one end they phone thro to the other and traffic is held up there. We were across what will probably be the battle field in the spring.
Then one other day we were up the mountain road in another direction to the French camp. I have not time to give you all the details but some British guns are up there and some Br. officers and men have been lent to the French to run them. One of these officers called for us in a motor lorry and five of us went up and had tea at their mess. They invited
officers and nursing sisters drinking tea
two French officers too and then they all drove home with us in the lorry. We were home by six but it was clear moon light. This expedition however was also one to keep close under your hat. So you see we are having some compensations in our strenuous life and quite a lot of things are coming my way.
Now, my dear, I want a heap of things but cannot seem to remember them all just at once. Will you get these things for me and write Hugh for a check for the amount please? I have told him I wanted a check for some things.
I want a pair of tan rubbers for a 5-B boot with medium pointed toes. I may have to get you send me ‘boots’ too but think I will try to get them in Salonica if possible. Some invisible hair pins – brown if possible. Some hair-nets medium size. A black silk jersey petticoat and some kind of plain narrow petticoat raw silk – if possible – to wear with my wash uniforms. Several tubes of Kolynos tooth paste, 2 large tubes of Daggett and Ramsdell’s cold cream. Also 2 pairs of Can walking gloves, Deuts, if possible, or Fownes. Short black hat pins. I got some in Eaton’s before I left. Some white headed pins ▬▬▬▬▬▬ about that long, with as small a head as you can. Some Martha Washington prepared coffee – quite a bit of it and tea tablets if you get such things in Toronto. Also any other eats you can think of – biscuits cream cheese, and a box of cream soda biscuits. Also I have been dreaming of those oatmeal cookies with a date rolled in each! Real home made. The eats here are good but plain – very plain, and I could dispose of quite a lot of eats from time to time. There are a lot more things I want I know but cannot think of them at present. The best way to pack these is in a tin box – a strong one, and pack them tight, with the hard things inside and soft things rolled around them. Then the box should have some thing soft around it like … or cotton-wool and then sewn up in factory cotton and the address printed plainly. This sounds like a lot of work but perhaps Minnie would help you in your odd moments.
Good-night for the present. Ruby
Charles Peterkin's Journey 