March 12, 1944

Dear Folks:                                                March 12
            Hope you’re getting my letters by this date. You should be. We cut some more wood day before yesterday. Cut the blocks shorter this time and it works a lot better in the stove. Each crew now has a bicycle issued to it. It is an English make and has the brake on the handle bars instead of on the pedals as the American bike. We take turns riding it. Horridge was coming back from a class last nite and stopped at a corner to let some cars pass. When he stepped off the pavement he went into a 5 ft. ditch. He sat up in the ditch and started to laugh at himself but then his feet started to get wet and he decided it wasn’t so funny. He had just written his wife about the real blackouts and that a man was foolish not to carry a flashlight.
            Have quite a time getting a fire started. When the lid is lifted it cuts the draft off. By the time 9 men do this to see how the fire is coming its out. We could wire the lid down but then the fuel couldn’t be put in and no one could see how the fire was coming! Ha!
            Got your letter of 26 and Marvel Lee’s of 22 saying she was changing jobs. Sounds like more work but I think she liked Knightly to work for better than anyone. Probably be interesting to change jobs anyway. Will keep writing her at same address or rather her house address since she will probably get it.
            You probably have quite a few pigs on hand by now. Got a roll of Dispatches up to Dec 29. You’ll have to write some of the paper news in your letter. Hope you got my letter asking for vitamins. I have a light cold and could use them. I wrote Aunt Hattie and Willmans, also Jo & Chris this last week. Your mail has been coming thru good, about 14 days average and every once in awhile a letter written in Jan. It may come through a little straighter on the new APO number.
            We got a 48 hr. pass last week and took the train to London. Went Mon., stayed that night and came back the next day, Horridge, Kinzer, Goodwin, Hollis, and I went together. Hollis is the one I took the trip with over Christmas. London looks very much like Chicago except there are no high buildings. We stayed at the Strand Palace Hotel. It was just like our big hotels. An elevator is a lift. A flashlight is a torch. We rode the underground — subway to you. The hours were wrong for sight seeing. Will have to go in earlier next time.
            Heard over radio it was 40 below in N. Dakota. Incidentally the address letters were D for dog and Z for zebra — as we say it over the inter-phone. It evedently didn’t hold the mail up though. Suppose Chris & Jo are moved by now. Hope the draft board don’t start worrying Chris. From what we hear over the radio, the draft boards are getting hard pressed. I’ll bet it would be easier to be President than serve on the draft board. So far your guesses as to where I was going were slightly off. We came that way on account of the weather. How about a picture of the tomcat & dog? Warren S. told me he was moving up there. He left the day after I talked to him, I think.
            One of the new men in our outfit is quite a card. He lives in our hut and imitates cowboys from Texas. When he comes in the door he swaggers and says “Howdy, po’dner” in a deep voice. He comes from Mississippi.
            Went to chapel this morning. Just got a letter from Rev. Elliot saying Art Brown had been lost in action. I should write him [Rev. Elliot] this week. Also just got your V mail of 29. Only 12 days to get thru. All for now.
                                    Yours truly,
                                                John