Source 2 - Return to Britain - A Short Life in the Sky

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Source 2 - Douglas's last letter home, 8 December 1916

Douglas’s last letter to his mother tells of ‘a very successful Sale of Work’ in aid of wounded soldiers. He was killed two days later when flying over the Thames Estuary. His funeral was held on 13 December and he was buried at Eastminster Cemetery, Sheerness in Kent.

Image

Douglas's last letter to his mother
NAS: GD486/133

Transcript

R. N. Seaplane Base
Westgate-on-Sea
Kent
8 December 1916

Dear Mother

Please find enclosed cheque for £3 towards Sale of Work. Hope you got on well. We had a very successful sale. £178 –17 – 0 so far and a few pounds to come in yet. The Doll’s House (for which I had 12 tickets) brought us in about £45 & went to a little girl from Margate who was almost small enough to get inside.

I won the prize for [the] Gentleman’s shooting competition which was pretty good considering that I was up against Army & Navy Instructors.

I had six bulls out of six shots at 25 y[ar]ds. All inside a 1 in[ch] circle & so had the Army Instructor Sergeant-Major but I made mine on my first target & he had to take two targets to make his.

Glad to hear of Reggie’s appointment.
Much love
Douglas