Fritz Limbach - letters from the front - 1915: 73

Douvrin, 23 August 1915

[Monday]

Dear family,

I received father’s letter of the 16th with the money and the photographs,[*1] and also a mass of parcels (why do you always send everything on the same day?) I’ll confirm the numbers as soon as I have them. Many thanks for everything.

We are enormously happy with the photographs. I’m really curious as to how the photographs of the second roll of film have turned out. They will hopefully arrive soon .

I’ll send you the third roll of film one of these days, and hope to receive a new one soon. I’ll have myself photographed in Fieldmarch gear then.

I’ll write to Paul Bonert one of these days, to thank him most heartily. Isn’t it too much work for you? Otherwise take the rolls of film to Jansens or Tietz.[*2]

I won’t be on the next roll of film. Otto Mertens stayed behind Douvrin this time, on guard-duty, and then I really don’t have anyone who can photograph me.

Please send a print of every photograph to the Mais’ [Parents of Heinrich Mais], or perhaps mother can deliver them herself if she wants to think of something else than those poor soldiers in France for a while.

Unfortunately the photographs did not turn out quite as nice as I had wanted. But then it’s more difficult to photograph in the trenches that I had anticipated. You haven’t got room anywhere, and no good spot to photograph anywhere. But still it’s a good thing you sent me the camera, don’t you think?

You wouldn’t believe how many men come to me to get photographed. So I took a lot of photographs of reasonably unknown Grandees, but that doesn’t matter. You all know I’m not good at refusing someone, when you see it in his face he would só like it and asks me in a friendly manner. There are also some rather annoying people “I want at least 5 prints” etc. And postcards too, of course. I do anything but photograph those guys naturally.

Then, please send me my razor, with a little mirror and a pair of scissors. I don’t want to walk around those 12 days in the trenches unshaven anymore.

I’ve got nothing more to write to you today.

Tommy is usually quiet, but he can be a bit restless now and then. But not in a way that we have to deploy the heavy artillery.

The day after tomorrow we’ll be having a Kompaniebesichtigung [Company-Inspection]. Untill then of course many drilling exercises. We’re in rest for 5 days this time, as we were in rest for only 3 days the last time around.

You will have received my last letter with a delay. The guy I gave it to forgot to post it. And this letter was supposed to be sent yesterday already too.

Then one small thing: please thank the A Weyerbusch’s, and Aunt Vollmer, for the parcels.

Doch Schlüß. Many warm greetings to everyone.

Your Fritz

[*1] Of the second roll of film (nrs 13-24) I only have nrs 20, 22, and 23 in original, 16, 21, and 24 plucked from the internet:
All taken around 10th August 1915

Nr 16 , a picture of Karl Steigleder's grave