The Emma Gees

Military shorthand supplies the title of Herbert W. McBride's account of service with the Machine Gun Section of the Twenty-first Canadian Infantry Battalion. Drawing on letters from the front, notes and maps, he describes his wish to experience a real war, the battalion's training at Kingston, Ontario, and its departure from Montreal in 1915. His introduction places Canadian service around Ypres, while an explanation of army signaling connects the title with the spoken names soldiers use for letters.

The narrative mixes observations of fighting with the practical routines of trench life. McBride describes cooking over improvised bucket braziers, the danger of visible smoke, artillery exchanges and the disappointment of wounded comrades sent back to England. Photographs and trench maps accompany the account. Readers interested in the First World War can find a soldier's view of working conditions, unit loyalties and the blunt humor used to endure life at the front.