p.

4.

doing anyway - but I was quite glad to hear
him say that. I was afraid he would say that they
would get fed up with me if I tried again, & that
I should now try & forget about it. I told you in
my letters that I intended to write to him
rather than talk to him - but he brought it up
himself. When the next time for applications comes
round, which will probably be in February or March,
I will send him a copy of my letter & ask him
quite straight if he can do any thing to help it.
But I am afraid that I now feel less hopeful than
I did before. There are so many officers out here &
the vacancies are so terribly few - luck must
enter into it so very much. That does not seem
to be our speciality . Which means that once
again we are back at looking forward to the
end of the war. It is a sad prospect & when I
am dying for you. If only Japan had had the
sense to stay out. It might have been over really
quite soon. Now, the one hope seems to be that
we may crush Germany first & then Japan will
go quickly or else give up. But it is still hard
to see the end.

Friday - 9 January. I was President of a Court Martial
all yesterday & did not finish until after 7-0 pm.
It was only notable for the fact that the
defending officer was a Jewish barrister, it was
his first time, only having been commissioned
a short time ago. He was more than I could
bear - cross examining soldier witnesses & trying
to twist them this way & that & make them