Pte Francis McLass (Lilydale), 59^th Battalion: Is evacuated to hospital in England suffering from myalgia, trench fever and poor vision.

Sr Alicia Kelly (Mt Dandenong), Australian Army Nursing Service: A letter written by Chaplain G C Munschamp, attached to her unit, to Alicia’s mother – ‘I am chaplain of the unit which your daughter, Miss A. M. Kelly (But whom we all call Rachel) has been a Sister. I think you ought to know what a wonderful influence for good she has been upon everyone – Officers, Orderlies, Patients. From the Colonel downwards, every man and woman adores her, though I need hardly say we do not tell her so. No one has ever shown greater devotion to duty, greater courage in the face of danger, greater usefulness in every way. She has been a mother to every soldier she comes across and every man is a better man for having met her.

She has been recommended more than once for decoration (She may not know this) and we shall never be contented till she receives recognition of her splendid devotion; but very few honours fall to the nurses, and then they always go first to the heads. We have just passed through a very trying time. We have been bombed continually. The noise of the guns, only a hundred yards from the camp, has been startling and deafening. One bomb fell close to the Sister’s quarters, killing an Officer and an Orderly and riddling the sister’s tents in which they were sleeping, fortunately on the ground. Rachel suffered a great deal from sleeplessness and looked worn out, but the duty was so exacting, she had to go on, in fact she will never give in.

She has now been sent to 3^rd AGH. We shall miss her greatly, but she ought to have a chance from the exciting CCS work for a time. It seems a shame that a mother should not be able to see her daughter and the glorious life she is living. Glorious, I say, but she is the humblest, gentlest child that ever lived. And so I wanted you to know in this very brief way how much the Army values and how much it owes your daughter. My own great joy is to hear that my son is doing his duty in the world and I wanted you to know that though you have made this great sacrifice of being parted from your daughter, there are thousands who are benefitting from your sacrifice and who thank God for this revelation of noble womanhood. With all good wishes that you may soon have your daughter back safe and happy’.