From the RMS KARAPARA at Calcutta, Short writes on the 15th October 'This war is beginning to make itself felt out here, the Government has ordered one of our biggest passenger ships to stand by and fit out for carrying troops ... It's just a precautionary order, I don't suppose England will be dragged into the fray'. In his next letter, he witnesses the sinking of a German ship of the Hausa Line, remarking 'what a tragedy it is to see a well built ship sinking'. For the remainder of October, Short writes about the daily routine on the ship and on shore in India, Burma and Singapore, and about his money worries. 1st - 4th November: They are carrying elephants on the ship, and it is very difficult to persuade them to walk across a gangway to shore. He also writes about the human passengers in some detail. Just as Ambrose confessed to burning some letters of his, he says he has followed her example and burnt hers from the same period (April 1935 - again, it is unclear what happened then). 1st December he writes about spending an evening listening to an orchestra on a German ship, which he calls Shorhorst, but is most likely the SS Scharnhorst ocean liner. The last few December letters describe dances and parties leading up to Christmas, and Christmas day aboard ship he was delighted to find presents from the crew in his cabin.