Evie's War Read Online Free PDF

unwell. Rained non-stop all weekend in a drizzly sort of way, with a heavy thunderstorm this morning. After Church I played cards with Millicent and Eugenie. Monty was in too foul a mood to participate and was eventually evicted from the parlour.
8 September
    We are now to have First Aid classes twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Mother says I will overtax myself.
10 September
    Having discovered that I have already achieved a St John’s First Aid Certificate (I had not been sure whether a New Zealand qualification would be recognised so had not mentioned it earlier), Lady Braybrooke assigned me to teaching, with a brisk ‘nonsense, my Dear’ to all my objections. Some of the women really are hopeless — Miss Lorly is squeamish at even the mention of blood! Lady B has moved her to bandage rolling.
11 September
    I have a new dress, pale green crêpe with broad revere collar, revamped from one of Aunt Marjorie’s by her dressmaker. I do hope I shall look suitable.
    News from France significantly improved, with the British and French Armies pushing the Dreaded Hun back.
12 September
    Joy of joys, a parcel of letters has arrived from New Zealand, amongst them a long missive from Ada and a shorter onefrom Harriet. Of course the news is rather old, War not having been declared when the letters were written. Harriet reports the first spring blossom on the trees and daffodils in abundance, and that her father has her reorganising his patient files. Ada was newly home from a month staying with cousins in Auckland, where tea parties and dances were the order of the day, and where she met several young men who proved of interest — apparently it is rather quiet at home by comparison, though it may not remain so, as her father intends standing for Parliament in the General Election later this year under Prime Minister Massey’s Reform Party banner. I should think it a troublesome time to become a Member of the Government.
Sunday 13 September
    Sybil’s party was very jolly, despite the War. Edmund was in great demand with the young ladies, who took delight in laughing at his accent. Nor did I lack for attention. My dress, though nice enough, was not so lovely as Sybil’s, which was a confection of pleated silk and lace in the palest pink. About half the young men were in uniform and looked very smart, leading Edmund to agitate about joining up. He has asked whether Uncle Aubrey might gain news of the New Zealand contingent.
14 September
    The newspapers report that wounded servicemen are daily arriving on our shores in such numbers that our Hospitals risk being swamped.
15 September
    At tonight’s meeting a resolution was passed to raise fundsin support of the work of Dr Flora Murray and Dr Louisa Garrett Anderson, both members of the WSPU, who are committed to establishing Military Hospitals — staffed by women! — where they are most needed: in France. The War Office has raised objections, saying that women should do better to stay at home.
17 September
    Miss Winstanley deigned to join my bandaging class yesterday and her behaviour towards me was quite vile. But I bit my tongue and refused to rise to her gauntlet, being well aware that was exactly her intention. Sybil stepped in at last and dressed her down for her snide comments, Miss Winstanley then flouncing off to take her complaint to Lady Braybrooke. I later heard from Miss Bartlett that she received very short shrift!
19 September
    Uncle Aubrey came home for the weekend and I was able to ask what he thought about the Women’s Hospital Corps initiative. He replied that the Front is no place for women, being too challenging by far, however he did concede that the work carried out in England by Doctors Murray and Anderson suggests that they may be amongst those ‘rare birds’ who might prove able to cope. He also told us that the New Zealand Expeditionary Force has secured a victory in Samoa, wresting the Island from