[shane bannatyne]

Hi Bill,thanks again.Roddy enlisted with the 90th Winnipeg Rifles & moved to the 11th reserve battalion a month after arriving in England.A month later he was transferred to the 78th Winnipeg Grenadiers which he was with for the rest of his service until his death at Vimy. I now know from what you've told me he would have worn a trade badge for either a machine gunner or Lewis gunner,but that's my new question,which one? There might be a clue in his letter home telling of his new role as a member of his platoon's M.G section.In it he tells of how much less he has to carry now that he's gunner.The letter is somewhat messy & faded but there is a word that initially looked to me like 'bandolier' "I carry a(?????)instead of a rifle and bayonet".A bandolier might suggest a regular Vickers instead of magazines used with a Lewis gun.Perhaps someone more familiar with M.G jargon can tell me what the word is & if it gives clue as to what specific gun he was using.I'm including the whole letter,but the section I've been referring to is on page 3. Again,any help would much appreciated. Cheers Shane