Letter 215- July 17-18, 1945

July 17, 1945
(Dürtingen, Germany)

Dear Mudder and Dad,

Nürtigen, Göppingen, Dürtingen, Blürtigen—I’m telling you I’ve got “ingens”. In Alsace it’s “berg”—Lemberg, Saarberg, Glassenburg, but here it’s “ingen”. Why can’t it be sumpin’ romantic like “Alt Schmats” or “Guzzlaufbien”? But no! It’s always “ingen”.—Phooey.

This may sound like bull but just as I wrote that last line I did get a letter from you, Dad, which keeps me from being altogether burned up at the mail situation.

Well, we’re guarding Russian D.P.’s again. We’ll be getting rid of them this week and it’s a good thing since the way they’ve been getting on their high horse lately somebody’s going to get hurt, and you know we wouldn’t let it be us. It’s too bad too, because actually the Russians are a rather likable lot. The trouble is that they’re emotionally so unstable.

(to be continued)

July 18, 1945
(Derdingen)

Dear Folks,

Yesterday I misspelled Derdingen and today I mispelled misspelled. Anyhow I didn’t get it right one of them times.

It’s a beautiful day to loaf—hot in the sun but cool in the shade so of course we have to go out in the sun and practice for a regimental parade or rather a review. The entire Regimental combat team will be there. In this war a regiment can act independently like a division. There will be 3 Infantry battalions with a full complement of jeeps, 1 service battalion, 1 medical company with ambulances and jeeps, on Engineer bn., one reconnaissance group (armored cars), cannon co. (75mm. howitzers) one bn. of field arty. (105mm. howitzers) and the anti-tank company (57mm. guns) plus 100 piece division band plus 100 piece 399th Infantry drum and bugle corps. The reviewing stand is surmounted by 3 flag bearers with white starred red banners forming 3 stars on a red background; the insignia of a Lt. Gen. (Devers is inspecting us). But get this; this is the “piece de resistance” or something. The Gen. flies up in a small plane, taxis up the reviewing stand, deposits himself and then the plane assumes an honor guard position along with the armored cars around the stand. It’s somewhat reminiscent of the pagents that Adolf used to put on before the war. I must admit, however that a marching regiment with a 200 piece band is a thing of beauty and majesty.

I suppose it’ll all have died by the time you get this, but tonight it would seem that the war in the Pacific is just about in the bag. I suppose such rumors are inevitable since we’ve made such progress in recent days. All day today it’s been—Stalin has or is about to hand over Japan’s unconditional surrender to Truman. To me that seems absurd but when one week the Japs are fighting so hard for Okinawa—suicide planes and such and the next we are bombing and shelling the heart of the Empire at will with no opposition at all I don’t know. They do some of the queerest things—surrender without having a shot fired at them, refuse to fight. “NICHTE VERSTAY”.

Well, that’s it.

Best Love,
Bill

Letter 212- July 11, 1945

July 11, 1945
(Vaihingen, Germany)

Dear Mudder and Dad,

Well, while I’m waiting to go on guard duty I’ll at least start this letter. I suppose you saw in the paper that “Ye olde 100th Division” is slated to stay in the E.T.O. until the first of next year at any rate. I’m perfectly satisfied with that arrangement.

I’ve been sick as the devil for the last few days—diarrhia. I probably spelled that wrong. Today I finally got something for it. Hope it does some good since I’m getting tired of living in the bathroom.

I’m guarding a Russian camp and we are having a time. Last evening a bunch of them got drunk and a fight ensued. You should have seen me holding 2 of them apart. They were trying to hit one another but succeeded only in hitting me. They were both husky but the way Russians fight nobody could get hurt. They stand sideways to one another and strike out with the backsides of their forearms. I suppressed a desire to knock their heads together. After we calmed them down they wanted us to drink some Schnapps with them. Wot a bunch.


(sketch here)

Gotta go now. I’ll write again later.

Best Love,
Bill

Letter 204- June 22, 1945

June 22, 1945
(Goppingen, Germany)

Dear Mudder and Dad,

I know I haven’t written in a coon’s age but likewise I haven’t heard from you in a long time. The only difference is that I know you are writing even if I’m not getting any mail.

Last night we had some pretty wild weather here—especially for the first day of summer. We had an electrical storm and the wind blew so hard that a lot of glass was broken in this bloomin’ town. There wasn’t too much rain though. The Russians have been moving out for the past week now so every 5 minutes a G.I. truck swishes past covered with red flags and full of singing ‘Russkies”. I went into one of the camps after they left and boy did they leave it a mess. The Krauts had their volunteer fire brigade there all morning because they were afraid the Russians would set the “jernt” afire before they left. That afternoon I recruited my own little army of 25 firemen to keep the civilians and Pollocks out of the camp until the military govt. had made its inspection of the place.

Speaking of the Russians they put on a show for us the other evening. I went for lack of anything else to do but was certainly surprised by how good it was. It was mostly Russian swing and good. In fact, it was remarkable since only 6 weeks ago they were working in slave camps and even yet have no orchestrated music. As I said, it was mostly swing and gay Russian music—“Russian sailors dance, etc. with very good dancers; and a few off color jokes all of which goes over big with the G.I.’s. There was one Polish girl who put on a Spanish dance and one could see where her concentration camp number had been branded on her left forearm. After the show was over one Russian girl in terribly broken English thanked us for releasing them. God! It made the tears come to everyone’s eyes. You don’t have to worry about our relations with the Russians. The big shots may be having a tough time but the Russians here think that the average G.I. is about 2 removed from God. The average American, by merely being his own easy going friendly self is accomplishing more than all the treaties and conferences put together.

Last night’s S. & S. (Stars and Stripes) claimed that the Air Corps will run out of targets in Japan in about 3 months. It would sure be swell if they could knock her out by air. I can’t see how they’ll manage at all by the time the combined air fleets of the U.S. and Great Britain get working on them night and day if 450 plane raids are ruining them already.

Well that does it.

Best Love,
Bill