Luxembourg City
[Friday]
April 27 [1945]
Germany
Dear Mom & Lou,
Yesterday certainly was a banner one for mail- 7 from you - 3/17 - 4/15, one from Claire [Van Duyne] & one from Sarita. Also the papers re Roosevelt’s death. Thanks for sending them. That morning when the Paris papers were full of tears I wondered what the New York papers were saying - Paris certainly was the most tearful place I ever saw.
I’m astonished to hear that Shirley has had her hair dyed - doesn’t sound much like her, although she never was one to be too conventional. Do say hello for me next time you see her.
The last time I was in Luxembourg the park was full of pansy beds, each one a different solid color. It really was a beautiful sight, the park & whole city being very attractive to start with. Evidently some of the young girls had been able to go to Brussels, because there were a number of bright new spring coats walking around, and clothes are next to impossible to buy any where else. In Paris a very ordinary dress costs the equivalent of $120.00! Mme. de Maublanc offered as high as 10,000 francs ($200.00) for a man’s raincoat, and when Nancy [Woodell] agreed to get a nurses jacket for a French gal we know, the girl wanted to give her 5,000 for it.
Beall brought me a couple of very old maps (German) from England. One is in need of some restoring - I’ll send them home as soon as I can get wrapping paper.
I wish I could see Walt Sparling - goodness knows where he is now - haven’t heard from him for quite a while. Maybe apres la guerre. -
About Holland - there are two distinct parts - the section of Windmills & wooden shoes was still held by the Germans - in the south, Limburg, it is Catholic & very much like Belgium only nicer. It was liberated quite early in the game & while there is little for the people to subsist on, they seem very fond of the Americans and are lovely to them.
Imagine 20 years at Western Elec.! You certainly are a veteran now aren’t you Lou? I can look ahead to the day when you will be feted as the oldest employee - how about that? Don’t worry about the coffee - I have more wine to drink now than I ever saw before - all for free!
Jack Chance probably will be able to take me at chess hands down, he being the chess type. I can understand how he feels if Manila was his first banged-up city - I’ve seen so many by now that a fairly good one is a surprise. Some babbly German women came up to me the other day to ask a question & started to bitch about her tough fate. “Papa is 5 years prisoner in America, I have 3 babies, 2 kaput, 1 baby left. All the time I work hard & do not eat.” Said she was 39 - looked 60. I didn’t feel sorry for her. In this town the old Roman ruins look better than the modern.
Lou, I’ve read some excellent reviews of Gertrude Stein’s book “Wars I Have Known” - will you buy me a copy? The New Yorker thought it excellent, and that’s a good enough recommendation for me.
I haven’t heard from the Ellerhusens for quite sometime - how are they? I’ll write them again in a day or so.
The weather here has been lovely, too. Today is rainy, but for several weeks it has been consistently clear & warm. The lilacs & wisteria are in bloom everywhere - the dandelions are the largest I have ever seen. After a winter of soldiering the spring is even more welcome than usual.
Also had a letter from Nancy Betts yesterday in which she mentioned the cookies you sent her - she seemed well impressed.
I guess you never got a letter on such huge paper before, did you? My thin stuff is all gone now - everybody has been using it, paper being very scarce over here. Please send me some more paper if you can.
Love
Harold
April 27 [1945]
Germany
Dear Mom & Lou,
Yesterday certainly was a banner one for mail- 7 from you - 3/17 - 4/15, one from Claire [Van Duyne] & one from Sarita. Also the papers re Roosevelt’s death. Thanks for sending them. That morning when the Paris papers were full of tears I wondered what the New York papers were saying - Paris certainly was the most tearful place I ever saw.
I’m astonished to hear that Shirley has had her hair dyed - doesn’t sound much like her, although she never was one to be too conventional. Do say hello for me next time you see her.
The last time I was in Luxembourg the park was full of pansy beds, each one a different solid color. It really was a beautiful sight, the park & whole city being very attractive to start with. Evidently some of the young girls had been able to go to Brussels, because there were a number of bright new spring coats walking around, and clothes are next to impossible to buy any where else. In Paris a very ordinary dress costs the equivalent of $120.00! Mme. de Maublanc offered as high as 10,000 francs ($200.00) for a man’s raincoat, and when Nancy [Woodell] agreed to get a nurses jacket for a French gal we know, the girl wanted to give her 5,000 for it.
Beall brought me a couple of very old maps (German) from England. One is in need of some restoring - I’ll send them home as soon as I can get wrapping paper.
I wish I could see Walt Sparling - goodness knows where he is now - haven’t heard from him for quite a while. Maybe apres la guerre. -
About Holland - there are two distinct parts - the section of Windmills & wooden shoes was still held by the Germans - in the south, Limburg, it is Catholic & very much like Belgium only nicer. It was liberated quite early in the game & while there is little for the people to subsist on, they seem very fond of the Americans and are lovely to them.
Imagine 20 years at Western Elec.! You certainly are a veteran now aren’t you Lou? I can look ahead to the day when you will be feted as the oldest employee - how about that? Don’t worry about the coffee - I have more wine to drink now than I ever saw before - all for free!
Jack Chance probably will be able to take me at chess hands down, he being the chess type. I can understand how he feels if Manila was his first banged-up city - I’ve seen so many by now that a fairly good one is a surprise. Some babbly German women came up to me the other day to ask a question & started to bitch about her tough fate. “Papa is 5 years prisoner in America, I have 3 babies, 2 kaput, 1 baby left. All the time I work hard & do not eat.” Said she was 39 - looked 60. I didn’t feel sorry for her. In this town the old Roman ruins look better than the modern.
Lou, I’ve read some excellent reviews of Gertrude Stein’s book “Wars I Have Known” - will you buy me a copy? The New Yorker thought it excellent, and that’s a good enough recommendation for me.
I haven’t heard from the Ellerhusens for quite sometime - how are they? I’ll write them again in a day or so.
The weather here has been lovely, too. Today is rainy, but for several weeks it has been consistently clear & warm. The lilacs & wisteria are in bloom everywhere - the dandelions are the largest I have ever seen. After a winter of soldiering the spring is even more welcome than usual.
Also had a letter from Nancy Betts yesterday in which she mentioned the cookies you sent her - she seemed well impressed.
I guess you never got a letter on such huge paper before, did you? My thin stuff is all gone now - everybody has been using it, paper being very scarce over here. Please send me some more paper if you can.
Love
Harold