March 28 1944
Dear Ma
Ill write you a letter to try to clear up a few things about your letters. I think I have all the letters you have written me. The last one I got was a air mail it was mailed about a week a go so you see it doesn't pay to write air mail. Also I told you to jump nene about the address business well I guess I'll jump you now. You had the address on my letter letter wrong so I guess I'll have to tell you to be more careful.
We started to school yesterday & it sure is rough. They go over things so fast & you have to get them or else. We had the 50 cal machine gun and plane reconition. We had a bout 6 hours on the Mach. Gun & then had a test if we don't pass the test we have to go 2 hours a night for 3 night. It is really rough. We get up at 4:45 & get off at 6:00 PM & then have to go eat so we have plenty of time to our selfs. We have a little more than a hour at noon, and most of that is taken up by standing in line for chow & the remaining time is bunk fatigue.. by the time we have mail call & eat at night it is 7pm. Then a guy should review what hes been given out in class.
We are having a General come here for an inspection tomorrow so every one will be on edge & we will probable catch hell for everything we do. Oh well I am getting use to it so it won't make me any difference. It seems like I can't get use to this army life: I always am broadcasting when I should be turning in, it don't pay to try to tell a sgt. whats the right or easiest way to do something.
Bo ask me to have my picture taken so I'll explain it to you be for you do the same. They don't have any place to do such here on the post to you will have to stand fast until I get home.
Well I have to hit the sack so will close
Jack.
Dear Ma
I ain't feeling so good so this will probable be short & sweet.
I would like you to write Bo, Margaret, & Wayne & tell them that my getting a delay enroute would be very unlikely. In fact we were told this after noon that we wouldn't get them so I guess that's the way it stands. We also had a hard day today & then we got told off just a few minutes about the barracks being dirty & etc. All I call we ain't feeling so good tonight. We had quite a lot to do & then we had a nice hard hour of K.P. not K.P. but P.T. so my bottom sure is draging.
I saw my old friend Clp [?] Johnson the fellow I told you about Xmass. He was shipped in here today. He was shipped out befor I left Buckley & went to Salt Lake. I sure was surprised to see him
Well it's rather late so I'll have to close
Jack
31 March '44
Dear Ma
Since I have been getting quite a few letters from you Ill write you one in return.
I got a letter from Marg today – she didn't write much except about the baby so I don't quite get the score, but don't tell Nene.
You say you don't understand why it is so warm here & so cold there. Well for one thing we are only 1,800 feet here & most of it around us is desert. We do have mountains but nothing on them. It gets cold here at night as there but it's hot as the devil during the day.
We took another test in Machine Guns today but I don't know how I did. I'll find out tomorrow & hope to gosh I didn't flunk it. We also had a test on sights too, I did it all right though – I made a 100. We have a test in it tomorrow too & hope I do as well but probable won't.
I got the candy tonight & thanks a lot. I do't know who made it but it sure is good. I couldn't quite figure out what it was – so small & heavy but I soon found out.
We had it a little bit easier today but am still tired to night but can still move. We have quite a time but live, how I don't know know. Yesterday I swore I couldn't move another step & went out went through calcucentic & then run 3/4 of a mile but was next to dead when I got back. I went to bed at 8: o clock.
Well I will close now & get ready to to go to bed. We have a big day a head of us tomorrow which is Sat.
Jack.
P.S. Take a look at the map a gain & check the distance from Denver there & here to there.
Notes:
"Marg" and "Margaret" in these instances refer to his sister Margaret (Tuck).
According to Google maps, the distance from Denver, Colorado to Las Vegas, New Mexico is 328 miles, and from Las Vegas, Nevada to Las Vegas, New Mexico, it's close to 700 miles if they drove Route 66.
It's the first time he used the military style of date format (date-month-year). Military jargon is starting to slip in, such as "stand fast," which he used in telling his mother he couldn't get his picture taken.
And speaking of military: I haven't described much about what was going on in the war while Jack was preparing to fight.
Just the week before these letters, Allied POWs took part in "The Great Escape." Seventy-six men crawled through a tunnel to escape the Stalag Luft III camp. All but three were re-captured, and many of those were shot.
Another significant event that came as Jack was writing this last letter: the Royal Air Force was suffering huge losses when they conducted an air raid over Nuremberg. 795 bombers were dispatched; only 689 retuned. The British lost 545 men that night, while not causing much damage to their targets. They badly needed Jack and his comrades to get over there and help out.
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