Xmas Eve - with all its preparations and arrangings for the next day and its rather clouded pleasure by the departure of all the convalescents except the rather tottery ones. The poor men could have stayed quite well as far as any rush was concerned and joined in all the festivities, as we hoped they were going to do. After supper we carolled as arranged, Friend leading on violin, Ellis in forefront with her fine voice and the rest of us tailing out behind. We started our tour through J and K huts and made a bold beginning, but the violinist made a very brisk pace and we stepped along through the wards, in at one door and out at t’other, singing rather breathlessly, before the patients had hardly realized our presence. Not till we had whirled through E hut and done a good part of the tour, did word come that we were to go slower. Had repertoire of six. Some of the party having no music, no light, no voice and a good many lacking one or other. However, all are willing and so the procession wound up and down the stairs in the building, along corridors and into wards, and several male singers tacked themselves on at the end and added quite a lot to the volume of sound. Sometimes there was a good deal of diversity of opinion as to the speed of a carol on the ends of the procession but on the whole I think the general effect was quite good and seemed to gratify the patients. Colonel hovered around all the time and most of the MOs lent their silent support, and after the singing ended, all the waits hastened into Mess to imbibe hot wine and refreshments. The visitors drifted in too. Quite a nice time, though I missed the nice well-practised choral singing we had last year at Treport with Chant as conductor. << less