July 4, 1943

July 4, 1943

Dear Mother, 

What a way to spend the 4th of July. There is no excitement here at all and it just seems like another Sunday.  Last year out here they had a Garrison parade in St. Louis and about 30,000 men took part in it.  This year they have a small parade scheduled but no one from G.B. will take part.  This certainly doesn't seem like home and I miss it.

Yesterday (Sat) I went on sick call to get a tooth filled.  You may remember the tooth I have had so much trouble with, well Friday I pulled out the fillings and a piece of the tooth.  It went to the Dental Clinic to be looked at and they sent me to a dentist.  I had to wait about 2 hours for a line longer than you ever saw at any dentist's office.  These camps have a set up so that they can work on about 14 men at a time with one Lt. in charge.  The young fellow who worked on me pulled out a big filling and some more tooth.  Now the whole front of the tooth is gone and he said it should be pulled but as long as the rest of my teeth are in good shape he will try to fix it.  He pushed and prodded around down there until I thought I was going right out of the chair.  The gum is especially sensitive where the front part of the tooth has broken off and left the gum exposed beneath the surface.  It will have to be filled clear down to the root.

We have done quite a lot of work with the rifle lately.  We are doing a lot of dry firing.  You can ask Pop what that means if you want.  I did rather well in it but that is only an indication that i know how to shoot.  When we have mastered all of the rifle possible without actually firing it we will go to "Arcadier" {Arcadia} a firing range quite a way from there.  Here you get shooting with the Garand rifle and the Thompson sub-machine gun.  If you qualify you are sent back to camp and get put on shipping.  We won't go for several days but I hope it is soon.

We get K.P. again tomorrow and you ought to hear everyone grip now.  Everyone hates the job and would do anything to get out of it.  We are going to the mess hall that we have been eating in.  It is an awful dirty place compared with the other mess hall.  It should be a lot easier to keep in condition than the other.  I am going to S. L. now.  I got a 10:00 pm pass.

St. Louis is the same as always. I am beginning to get an idea of how the city is put together.  As I get to know the city better I find that it does have a compactness that I didn't realize before.  The theaters and night clubs are close together but not as close as in Boston.  You have to walk quite a lot getting form place to place.  They do however have a good system of carfares.  For $1.00 you can by a week pass that allows you to ride anytime anywhere in the city.  Anyday you can but a .25 cent pass that allows you to ride anywhere all day.  You also can get transfers to go anyway except back the way you came.  All this riding is done above ground in cars like the Watertown cars.

All I have tried I still can't find a guide book to the city.  No one seems to know if there ever was such a thing.  You have to get directions everywhere you go and you can hardly find the things worth seeing.  I have a lot to say but I will write about them in my next letter.

With love

Austin

P.S. I just ran into Joe Frasher at the P.X.

June 28, 1943

Jefferson Barracks

Missouri

June 28, 1943

Dear Mary;

I first want to thank you for the letters and of course the yearbook.  It certainly is the best one I have ever seen.  I like very much that last bunch of pictures that were taken by everyone.  I recognized that picture of Jack and Maryanne. I like that picture of "Doc" and "Wild Bill" Miller.  The book was especially interesting to the fellow from Woburn as he knew some of the fellows in your class.

Of course they wanted to see your picture.  They were a very surprised bunch when I showed it to them.  They couldn't see how I could have such a nice looking sister.  You better look out or you maybe getting letters from the bunch.  The only trouble is they all have steady girl friends.  They were really amazed at your picture.  My G.I. haircut must make me look like an ugly duckling. {For a few pictures of Mary, check out the Family Pictures tab at the top of the blog}

I hope you haven't forgotten that box you were going to send along with mother.  Most of the fellows have received boxes from home and I have been eating goodies of from them.  I really must repay them some way.  Most of the boxes have candy but some have things I have never seen.  For instance one had stuffed prunes.  They were stuffed with nuts and some kind of candy.  Once we got some real Italian candy.  It was very sweet, almost like saccarin. Another time we got some cakes with frosting all over them.  All these were really good.  Probably the box is on the way anyway.

Stuffed prunes? 

I went to St. Louis yesterday. It was really great but is nothing like Boston. It is the most incoherent city I have seen yet.  You see a beautiful building like the city hall and almost 1/2 a minute walk from it you find a slum district.  That is the way with everything I saw there, a very beautiful place bordered by a poor section with old down-and-out men in the streets.

We went to the main U.S.O. and had one heck of a time.  They do everything they can to make you feel at home. Free cookies are on tables but you have to buy all your own drinks.  The U.S.O. provides music, entertainment, reading, writing matter, and girls.  The girls are what most of the fellows wanted to see after being in camp for 2 weeks.  Every once in a while an announcement came over the loud speaker saying that 4 boys or 3 boys were wanted for a tour through St. Louis or some boy would be taken to supper by someone, or a party is being given to honor someones birthday. They had pool, billiards and all kinds of games.  There is nothing that you can't do.  I only got mad once.  I had fun shooting at airplanes and had a terrific scare when they played the National Anthem.  Of course I had to stand at attention and watch 8 flights out of 15 go by giving me just a fairly good score.  I had a wonderful time and I will go back when I go to S.L. again.

Thank you Norman Rockwell for expressing it like no one else could.

We left the U.S.O. and went to get supper.  We went into a little place and really got taken in.  I payed 83 cents for a terrible supper.  We had chicken friend in oil (tasted like motor oil) greasy mashed potato, a terrible mixture of vegetables, a good tomato salad and greasy spaghetti. The silver just lid through your hands and the dishes looked bad. I won't go in there again.  It's a wonder I wasn't poisoned.

I am sending to you and Mother some pamthlets that I picked up in the Jefferson Hotel.  You may be interested so when you come to see me you will know where to stay.  The hotel was a really beautiful place and we just wandered around to see what we could see.  We walked into a ballroom that has floor shows down near where the people eat and a stage in back just like the pictures in the movies.  It must have been very expensive. I also got the coldest drink of water I ever had. It made my lips numb.

Sure would love to find room rates like this today

I saw a little of the Mississippi in St. Louis.  Here at J.B. we have to walk 1 1/2 miles to see the river.  Near shore it is really muddy and out near the middle almost blue.  I have never seen anything like it.  Where we are it is about 1/4 mile across but in many places it widens out more than that.  On the other edge it seems to have trees growing in it but that must be because the water is still high and has not left the low land by the river.  No matter where you look you will find something floating in it.  If it is not a tree it may be a branch or a box or can or most anything.  I don't know whether the reason for the stuff in the river was the flood a couple of weeks ago or it is that way always.  It is really a mighty river.  I could only get a 1:00 a.m. pass or I would have taken a trip down the river on the "Admiral", a river pleasure boat.  You may see a picture of it in that group I sent home.      

Not his picture, but a postcard found from about that time period.
The Admiral sailed the river all the way up until it was sold for scrap in 2011.

We have changed our eating place and what a change.  The food is terrible and the silver and trays look half washed, grease on everything.  There are flies everywhere and the table and chairs are a mess.  What a messy mess hall.  I feel that I can now complain about the food.  ( I just heard the "Admiral" whistle about 1/2 a mile away by the crow flies)  We really were fed well in the other place.

We went to camouflage school today.  It is really wonderful how they hide things the way they do.  Guns, trucks, tanks, and everything in general can be concealed from observation from airplanes at a reasonable height.  They also showed us the best way to conceal onesself in battle.  They use everything available that is natural like trees, shrubs, rocks and attempt to break up shadows and shadow effects.  It is one of the most interesting subjects we have studied.

Well I don't know what to do.  I have some washing to do but I am to tired so I guess I will let it go until tomorrow.  I may not have to do it then.  You really don't have time for everything.  However I will try to write again sometime.

With love,

Austin

June 30, 1943

Jefferson Barracks

Missouri

June 30, 1943

Dear Mother;

I try to read your letters as soon as possible and write an answer.  Often it is hard to do just that but for once I have found time before supper to write.  This is not written by street light as most of my letters.

I have bought a book on aircraft spotting.  It shows views of both Amer. and Jap planes.  William might be interested in some of the models we see once in a while.  These are not models made by civilians but are a cast plastic and are much better than other models.  They are cast to size.  As yet we have had no instruction in aircraft identification and we don't expect it for some time.

About that business in the Sat. Eve. Post of the PX's, I haven't had a chance to read it.  Each week one of the boys on the Post comes around and sells them.  Each time I buy one and set it away in my foot locker.  I have read only 2 articles in the 3 magazines I have bought.  I am glad you brought it to my attention.

I don't know whether I wrote or not about our day room.  We are about the only ones in camp without a day room.  Our room was taken over and everything removed to make way for an office staff who does a little of the work on the red tape the army is wrapped up in.  Down the street they have a room with pool tables, books, soft drinks, easy chairs, tables and everything to make you comfortable.  It is really the place to go after dark if you have nothing else to do.

I went to St. Louis Sunday.  It is really quite a place.  It takes about 1 hour and 15 min. to get in and, out it takes longer because it seems every soldier comes home at the same time.  I didn't get a guide to the city as I didn't know just where to find one but I will get one if it is possible.  St. Louis people are so nice they will tell you anything you want to know or do anything for you.  At the U.S.O you can get all kinds of things and invitations to churches and organizations.  Everyone has a wonderful time and most everyone goes back.

Harold was the one who saw to it that I got started in the right direction.  We got separated just before we got on the first bus.  I was stopped by an M.P. who was checking up on the fellows leaving from the 29th.  We had to show some identification and I had only a Mass. driving license.  I thought sure I would miss the bus, Harold and my first chance to get out of the camp.  He did not go all the way with me but went to his girl friends house.  He sure has it bad.  I don't think he is a wolf however.  He is a lady's man alright.

We see a report of temperatures every once in a while in the St. Louis papers.  I guess you have had some real hot weather.  Our hot spell is broken and I slept under 2 blankets last night.  It was cold all day and a swell breeze flew.  I didn't swet at all today even when we drilled 2 hours, had conditioners for 2 hours, and ran the obsticle (sic) course and 1 3/8 miles.  I think I could like it here if it wasn't for the food.  Now we eat in a mess that is a mess. The plates and silver are greasy.  This is something I am not used to.  

Your letters seem to arrive in pretty good time.  The letter you wrote June 26 came today in the mail call at 11:00.  I keep writing about things that I have written before.  I don't know just what I have written about.  I can't realize sometimes how long it takes to get mail home and back.  Sometimes my letters must be rather incoherent because of the hurry I write them in and partly because these guys are always making a heck of a racket.  I sign off now.

With love,

Austin

June 27, 1943 Postcards from St. Louis

Dear Mary;

I am at the big U.S.O. and having a great time.  You can't guess all the pleasure they give free.

Love
Austin

Dear Mother;

I finally got my pass and am seeing the sights.  I haven't seen much yet but I noticed this building on my way to the U.S.O.

Love 

Austin