September 28, 1944
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310.11.1-4.2016 Transcription
28 Sept 44 Thursday
Geeeeee, dearest,
Your letter written on
your return from Mpl[1] (THE 26th) was
oh so very very ncie! All your letters
are very swell but there was something
sorta super about this 26th-letter. Fairly
often you say certain things, but this
letter was just filled c̅[2] things that
a husband-a soldier loves so much
to “hear.” Geeeeeeeeeeee!
If it weren’t for having read
such a wonderful letter only minutes
ago I would probably be pretty
draggy right now, but instead I
am absolutely “floating.” The reasons
for the dragy would be many so I
had better start chronologically. My
sleep was kinda short (4+ hrs) last night
night [after the phone completion][3] as we got up so early to assemble
& assign for range firing. Then, as I
wrote, I had to drop out for negro-
nurse-maiding. Another! company of
negros needed “Short Arm Inspections” in
addition to all the regular routine
work, but Heaven knowing how I did
[2]
everything at that 190th dispensary in
one hour & was on my way rushing
to the firing line in an ambulance.
I was too late to have the priveledge &
help of sighting-in-shoots & had to
go right onto the line to fire for
record. (not mandatory-record but what
you shot, you got — credit for..) To
minimize alibis & come to the point,
I shot only a little above fair. In
otherwords I shot 140 c̅ the carbine
& 135 qualifies you as Marksman —
there is still Sharpshooter & Expert
yet above Marksman. However, I
could fill you full of alibis about
(1) no sleep (2) Dispensary rush (3) no
sighting-in priveledge (4) 17 cartriges
out of the total 40 jammed because of
my “luck” in getting onto inferior guns,
etc, etc — but that is enough.
Just about one minute before I was
to go onto the firing line for the 45
automatic pistol a rush messenger
in a jeep drove up c̅ a message from
the head of the 190th QM Bn[4] to report
[3]
immediately — rush 16 miles
back (that I had rushed out) to the Bn = battalion
Headquarters. Lordy! I didn’t know
what bad thing I had done or nuthin’.
Again, long story short, the Army had
made a last minute change (int’l
outfit) about physical fitness
criteria, soooooo, I spent the
whole damn afternoon rechecking
negros & 6 conflicting (but interdependant)
books of Army Regulations. The mental
exertion alone was worth a U of Wis[consin]
examination. Finally I got
their malingerers, goldbrickers,
“overseas fever-ers,” etc fairly
straightened out. Lordy! Lordy! what
a day — BUT YOUR WONDERFUL
LETTER REALLY SAVED-THE-DAY!
I’m ashamed to tell you that
I heard only very few of Alec Templeton’s
numbers but I was there for 45
minutes. I sat on the highest stone
steps for 98¢ but the acoustics were
phenomenology good. Anyhooooo, I heard
[4]
more than enough to night as of
this moment ask a very swell
Phi Mu[5] for a Templeton concert date
at the earliest possible moment.
the last thing to say about Templeton
et al is that even though my early departure was partially based
on getting sleep so as to shoot
well [YOU KNOW THE “STATIC” THAT [THENCE][6] HAPPENED][7]
I nevertheless left early on an
unexplainable premonition. This
premonition, vague as it was, became
concrete in the form of a scribbled
note containing the words of your
telegram asking me to call. Heaven
knows what time I would have
gotten that call through to you had
I stayed for a full concert. To
make a long story short, there were
6 of we [(us?)][8] soldiers around that outdoor
phone booth last night who could
have murdered-in-cold-blood
every southern phone operator & most
all southern women in general. Just
[5]
as an example (just one) — one
poor guy sat for 5 hours at a
telephone bell that wouldn’t ring
even though the phone worked, &
I had the damndest time to get
the operator to change my phone
card data to the adjacent booth
whence the bell would ring. Oh, me!
While phoning — dearest,
I hope I didn’t sound too grumpy
over the phone. If I did please
forgive me, & realize I didn’t
mean to be — it was
just all that damn-lazy-
recalcitrant-southern-operator
indifference boiling in the blood
of 6 of us [plus hour of night, etc, etc].[9]
Anyhooo, for many reasons it
was so nice, so beneficial &
so revealing — (for example): —
You remember that cheap
side show “Numerologist” by the
name of Alden Kelly who, at the
[6]
Winnepeg County Fair filled us
full of numbers, numbers, &
more numerological-numbers. Well
this war just seems full of
numerological considerations / tricky
schemes / & codes, as manifested
by “Yank” Magazine publications
& the like publications. Why even
the 87th Division has all sorts
of schemes worked out for itself.
Of course, Numerology is just
about as certain a thing as is
anything a person could guess [or]
rely on.
By the way, dear, even though
I think I know the Bismarck
phone number, you write it as
well as the King’s phone number
& their initials. (Bis. = 724 – ain’t it?)
If you don’t believe I am
making a sincere effort to get
my picture taken since you phoned,
this will prove it — I have
[7]
done considerable inquiring about
who of the 116th has a visor cap still
in camp. [Most all sent home.][10] I may have to borrow / rent
one from a downtown store if I
can get a portrait appointment.
Also, I almost went sort of AWOL
today to be able to rush downtown
to try to argue a sitting out of
some photographer, but that
negro physical rechecking just
made it insurmountable.
Honestly, I’ll still keep trying, dear.
I must let you know that
I hope this letter reaches you
on Sunday by my sending it
special delivery. Here’s hoping.
Also, I will tell you that I am always
going to carry your lovely letter of the 26th —
for space reasons I have multiply-read your
other “Army-letters” & then destroyed them, BUT
not this one!! sooooo, just as your expressed
it, I say —
I Love you so & miss you so,
Dave
[1] Minneapolis.
[2] Medical abbreviation meaning “with.”
[3] Bracketed text inserted into the original with a caret.
[4] Quartermaster Battalion.
[5] The sorority Emily was a part of in University.
[6] Bracketed text inserted into original with a caret.
[7] Bracketed text is part of original.
[8] Bracketed text written above “we” in original.
[9] Bracketed text is part of original.
[10] Bracketed text inserted into original with a caret.