Category: Cottam

Artifact 1940-11-15-a – Letter to Mrs. Elton Newman

Letter to Mrs. Elton Newman – November 15, 1940

TRANSCRIPTION OF ARTIFACT CONTENT

Aldershot England
November 15/40

Dear Franc:-

Here it is after lights out & I’m sitting up alone writing to you. I have already written to Onn. & Eva & I couldn’t go to bed without writing you. After the four nice letters I received from you this morn.

At last our mail came in & I got 14 letters How’s that for getting mail eh? I got your 4, 3 from Onn. 1 from Marg. and Charlie,1 from Wilbur and Gladys, 1 from Josephine Wride in Kingsville 1 from Dot Sweetman, 1 from Mildred Spence, 1 from Chip, & 1 from Pearl. & I was really tickled too. Just imagine going 2 weeks without any mail

I’m sure glad to know your feeling better Sis. I was anxious to hear from you since you had your tonsils out. I hope our mail is never held up again like this.

I haven’t received any parcels yet from the Canada Bread. I think Elmer must be crazy or something. The cheque you received Sept. 11 was for the month of August & the one you received Sept 30 was for September. God there’s an air raid on & the big guns are cracking away at a plane. It was nice & moonlite last night & the damn d big guns firing & bombs falling kept everyone awake. I suppose it’ll be the same to-nite. I just heard a terrible sound & I ran to the door but there was no flash in the sky. I still don’t know what it was. Those damned big aircraft guns ring in your ear while your sitting inside as loud as five shotguns all at once. They are 6 & 8 inch guns.

I’ll bet you had a good pheasant dinner eh? Onn’s dad got three in one day too. I’m glad to hear that Eula has a girl this time Also Lloyd Griffin’s

And as many letters as I have written her. I can’t imagine what is wrong I sure was glad to hear from Marg & Charlie. Marg says she has a pet goat that Mr. Hope gave her. She’s going to send me a picture of it.

I will say hello to Clarence for you he is in the truck drivers now. Johny & Bob are on their seven days leave. I think they went to Ireland So is Cpl. (Marsh) Healy. I know he went to Ireland. I see Jimmie Bulmer nearly every day & Bill Hiseman too. I am in supposed to be in 12 platoon. But I just haven’t been there since we arrived in England I am attached to Battalion Head Quarters for the duties & rations & I’m on police duty. So I don’t do any drilling at all. Just escort the detention men (prisoners) to work or wherever they go. I am trry trying to get transferred to B.H. 2. So I’ll be sure to be on police all the time. This is really a good job. There goes them guns again They really go to your ear drums if anything does.

I’m not on that ship that you sent the picture of. That is another ship that sailed in our convoy tho’

I sorry Marjorie fell off her bic. & hurt herself. Well tell her thanks for the letter anyhow. I haven’t received an the 1000 cigs you sent Nor the parcel with the razor blades & don’t think I get tired of reading your letters I really enjoy all the letters I get. I wish them cigs would soon come tho’ I have a lock on my box in Johnnie & Bob keep these cigs in my box & they left some in it So they have them when they came back off leave. Well I hope mine get here before they get back So I can pay them back cuz’ I’m smoking their cigs. I just hate to have to start smoking English Cigarettes.

My hands are starting to chap again. But it’s a wonder they didn’t start long ago in this climate. I think I’ll have to see the M. O. in the morning & see if he has anything good for them.

I well remember last halloween when I came down dressed in Dots’ clothes & I went over to Orrence Laramie’s party. Gee I haven’t heard from Orrence for so long. Onnellee says he said Chatham training with the rest of the boys. Don’t worry about those cigs & that other parcel They’ll eventually get here. It takes longer for parcels. especially cigs

I guess I told you about Pat Burling. But I didn’t know that Hugh had both his legs off. Neither did anyone else in the regiment. Gee Franc. Who ever told you that.

Poor Pat. He was sick in bed Franc & there were a couple more in the room. But they weren’t paying any attention to him. Well I guess he got out of bed. However the rest of the boys heard the rifle go off & they looked around just as he was falling He had a bullet hole just be between the eyes only ½ inch higher & when the bullet came out the back of his head. It made a big hole. They held a court of Inquiry & said it was suicide. I have plenty of socks. But I still need my sweater I told you to send. We don’t get many apples over here in what we do get don’t seem the same. Jimmie Tweedale has some sent from Essex So if you want to send some it will be all right.

Well here it is 11.30 So I’d better get these lights out. If the orderly officer comes around here. He’d raise old hell. So I will close for now & go to bed. Good nite dear sister & all.

I remain

Love & Kisses

Harry

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Artifact 1940-11-14-a – Letter to Mrs. Elton Newman

Letter to Mrs. Elton Newman – November 14, 1940

TRANSCRIPTION OF ARTIFACT CONTENT

Aldershot Eng
November 14/40

Dear Franc:-

Well I haven’t written you for a couple of days now. I still haven’t received any mail from you. But the mail man brought in 28 bags of mail to-nite So I expect a couple letters from you to-morrow. When he gets it sorted out. That seems like a lot of mail (28 bags) But then we haven’t had mail for 2 weeks & there is over a thousand men.

Two of the police have gone on 9 days leave this morning. Jimmie Tweedale & Burdett. Burdett is the one I went with on my five days leave. Its making a lot of extra work for the rest of us. Altho’ we only have five prisoners now. I hope we don’t get any more either.

I wrote to Onn. last nite & was going to write her again to-nite. But I’ll wait until to-morrow & I’ll get a letter from her (I hope) & then I can answer it. I’ll answer yours too. If I don’t have to work too late.

We have had a grand day to-day. The sun shone all day long. I washed my pants to my oldest Battle dress uniform, yesterday & so I hung it out in the sun to-day & it dried real good. I’ll have to find time to press them to-morrow. It will likely rain to heat the old devil to-morrow cuz’ this is the first day we’ve had without rain for I don’t know how long

Well I have just made some coffee & I told Glen to come over to the office & have some. I don’t know wether he’ll be here or not. I will write more when I get your letter & will close for to-nite

As Ever

Lovingly

Harry

P.S.

I hope you can read it

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Artifact 1940-11-11-a – Letter to Mrs. Elton Newman

Letter to Mrs. Elton Newman – November 11, 1940

TRANSCRIPTION OF ARTIFACT CONTENT

Aldershot England
November 11/40

Dear Franc:-

Well here is another rainy nite.  It has rained all day long. & it’s so darn’d miserable to-nite.  Well it isn’t ever funny.

I started to write you last night. But got discusted over not receiving any mail.  So I burned it. & I still haven’t received any.

We really had a grand time to-day.  They wanted three truck loads of wood.  Well I took the detention men out to load it.  Well what fun. It was a long drive out there & we got the trucks loaded. & I drove one of these English trucks (Bedford) with a right hand drive, part way out. On the way back we stopped at a tea room & tooke the prisoners in for tea along with the truck drivers. Well you can imagine about about ten soldiers walking in a small tea room, laughing & joking. Well a young lady come in & didn’t seem very anxious to wait on us. So I pulled my 45 (revolver) from the holster & laid it on the table & said. We want service. & the poor girl nearly had a fit. Until all the boys started laughing. But it’s a good thing we have fun like that once in a while. Or we’d go nuts.

But I still think we’ll go nuts if we don’t soon get some mail.

Well I’m passing up Peg’s letter to-nite & I’m only writing to you. I’ll write you her again to morrow nite. Gosh you should see this table. There is every thing from pop bottles to sausage sandwiches all over it. Dirty cups & spoons & everything else.

Well Franc. I can’t say much until I receive a letter from you. I know you won’t enjoy this letter. But then I guess I’m not in much of a mood for writing. So will close now.

Lovingly
Harry

P.S.

When are you going
to send my pictures

*** End of Transcription ***

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