58613: Letter of death of a son to a mother.

The original letter is written on a page torn out of an ordinary notebook and was probably similar to thousands written to homes at that time, but it is a moving expression of sympathy to a grieving family. The most comforting part is the line - "He said. tell my mother that I died trusting in Jesus as my Saviour and that I shall meet her yonder." The family would have been greatly comforted to know that when he knew he was dying he was "resigned to God's will and patiently awaited the end". His thoughts were clearly towards a better, heavenly home. All I know about him was that he was my mother's uncle.

Editor's Comment:
The soldier mentioned is most likely to be identified with Serjeant 15052 J. Thomas, 2nd Bn. Grenadier Guards, buried at St. Pierre Cemetery, Amiens. The letter is addressed from the New Zealand Stationary Hospital, which was sited at Amiens from July 1916 to May 1917, and explicitly states that Thomas was buried in the 'Soldiers Cemetery in this city'. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission records list only one Thomas buried around Amiens with the correct date of death. The 2nd Bn Grenadier Guards went into action on the 15th September, taking part in the Battle of Flers-Courcelette, a hamlet a mile away from Ginchy.