28 November 1915

Duty 2400 to 0300.  During my watch tonight it began to snow.  At 03-00am it had turned into a blizzard and the cold is intense.
Later - Our duties were exceptionally hard.  Since taking over the right flank, we never had one hours spell from the trenches.  If we were not in the firing line, we were on sapping, and water and other fatigues.  All transporting had to be done by the boys, which meant everything had to be humped from Watson’s Pier to our line, a distance of over two miles. 
Often enough when reinforcements were late in coming, everyone had to go on fatigue by day and firing line by night.  I was nearly always on a 12 hour shift without a break.  My meals were brought to me and during any activity on the part of the enemy or ours, I often did 18 to 21 hours, then I’d get two or three hours sleep and go on duty again. 
A fellow wanted a cast iron constitution to stand it.  I was only ill for four weeks, or rather I was off the Peninsula for four weeks, but I wasn’t sick all the time.  The very first to go under were the big, strong looking fellows, whilst the thin, wiry chaps hung out like grim death and refused to get sick. 
J. A. Graham