Spring Term 1944

 

January 23rd

The blue shirt I am wearing is rather too big all over but that is a good fault. I will send it home to you to be washed. I hope that is O.K.

I got a nice navy blue tie. I hope you don’t mind.

How are the hens going now? Have you decided whether to have chockens or not?

By the way can you send back the blue shirt. Will the green shirt and pyjamasa be ready soon? Could you send me about half a dozen collar stiffeners?

I am liking being head of Social Hall a fair amount.  It isn’t too bad at all.

I am in quite a high form now and am preparing for School Certificate, which I will probably take in the winter term.  There are 8 forms below me.  I have gone up 3 forms.  My form is called Upper Five Two.

Could you send me a 5/- book of stamps.  You will have quite a large parcel to send me soon.

We had a game of rugger yesterday we won about 20-3.

The two days before that I went for runs about 2 1/2 miles or 3 miles and I was very stiff after them but the stiffness has gone now.

My trunk and tuck box came safely on Wednesday.  Will my bike be coming soon?  I haven’t needed one yet luckily though I can borrow one if necessary.

Is Dennis a Cadet Captain or anything?

Any news from Michael?

Have you started reading the Count of Monte Cristo? Its in the sitting-room book cupboard if you want it.

The pants and vests aren’t too bad but a little big.  There is another hole in my sports coat and I will get it mended.  I’ve eaten about ½  the cake so far and it is very good indeed.  I swapped those Weetabix for an unused packet of Shredded Wheat which I think was a very good bargain.

I hope you aren’t feeling too lonely now but there are only about 10 more weeks which isn’t very long.

Sunday Undated

We had two or three games of rugger last week and I scored a try.  I had a game of squash yesterday and I quite enjoyed it.  Somebody showed me how to play.  I am going to have another game today.

I bought an egg this afternoon and put it in my pocket and forgot it was there.  Of course it bust and made a horrid mess.  But it is all right now.

Confirmation next term is on the 9th. A Friday. Will it be allright if I get you a double room for Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday night. I can see you Friday Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday.

I am afraid those collar stiffeners were too long so I will send them home, don’t bother to send me any more.

I think we will start rowing next week.

A bit of choc will be very welcome. 

February 6th

The parcel arrived safely on Saturday afternoon.  I didn’t find any clear gums in the parcel so I suppose you forgot to put them in.  I got the sweet ration card as well.

Before I forget could you send me one of those blue bakelite plates, also if you buy any cakes in Bridgend or slab cakes or your own make of cake they are always welcome.

I have made quite a bit of Ginger Wine and am enjoying it very much indeed although it goes very fast.  The fat I took back has lasted quite well and I will finish it to-day.

I haven’t played any more games of squash this week.

I think I have passed the 3rd class Spotter’s test yesterday, I’m very pleased about it, but I’m not sure that I’ve passed yet.  I’ll know to-night.

I went down to the station yesterday to see if my bike was there but it wasn’t, but someone told me it was there when he went down to-day, so it’s O.K..

I scored one try in rugger last week.  Rowing begins next week beginning on the 14th not the 7th. 

February 13th

Will my sports coat be back from the cleaners soon, because the one here has gone into a hole at the right elbow.  I will send it home when I get the other one.  You will have to put some leather on the elbow or something like that.

My bike has arrived safe and sound and I collected it on Tuesday morning.

I will tell you what has happened in rugger this week.  All the people under 16 are divided into ‘leagues’, these are the same as games really but with 30 people in each.  I am in league II, which is the best league.  There are two other leagues I and III.  Last week we had matches against them both and beat them.  League I we beat 22-nil and league III we beat 9-3.  And yesterday we had a match against I & III combined and we beat them 10-nil.  It was a good game.  I scored a try in the latter two games.

Rowing I hope starts on Tuesday.  I am not sending my shirt home this week.  I hope you don’t mind but they are done fairly well at the Laundry here.

Also could you send me also with the coat some ‘Crestona Ginger Wine Essence’ you can probably get it at Bevan’s at Southerndown, or in Bridgend somewhere.

I got 4 pluses this week and 1 last week.

I am afraid I burnt the whole of the handle off my knife while cooking which is a great pity.  I’m very sorry.

February 20th

Thank you for the parcel.  The cakes are very good indeed but are going very fast.  Last week we had two oranges each and they were both very good.  I have just thought I could have sent you one for a birthday present.  What a pity I didn’t.

I had three pluses last week, and took the list to the Warden to-day.

There were the Social Fours last week.  In the 1st IV we won the first two stages but were beaten by 2 seconds in the final.  We won the 1st stage in the 2nd IV but lost the next.  Yesterday a list of the 3rd IV went up and I was in it, I rowed yesterday and kept up O.K. but got a sore behind!  I doubt if I will stay in it long but I may, anyway I hope so.

I haven’t started my sweets ration but will probably do so soon.  I had a very good tea to-day and made some lovely toffee-fudge kind of stuff!!  It is very good.  I made it out of sugar and water.  I must try and send you some.

Sunday undated

I am still in the 3rd IV strange to say!!!  The coat hasn’t arrived to-day, worst luck.  I am glad you made some marmalade.  I think I told you that we have had two oranges.  On Shrove Tuesday we had a pancake and an orange and they were very good.

I am afraid my nice sports coat has gone altogether.  At both elbows, on the top of both pockets and at the ends of both sleeves also another hole above the right pocket.  But I suppose you could put leather there.  Anyhow I will send it home and you can see what is to be done.

Monday

I’m afraid my pyjamas ‘went’ last night.  There was nothing left of the behind.  I’ll send them home with the coat.  I am wrapping them up in that cake-tin and enclosing some sweets in a tube.  I hope you like them I made them myself.

March 12th

I hope I can manage till the end of term with two pairs of pyjamas as long as one of them doesn’t go the way of the last.  I hope I get the other coat in time to wear but I hardly thing it is worth having the old one cleaned, it will only get more holy still.

When I made those eggs last week, I’m afraid I don’t know the quantities but I put mostly milk, but a little water as well, and not much butter, but what I did was I melted the margarine poured the egg in the saucepan and took it off the gas-ring to scrape out the bowl the egg had been in, stirred it round in the saucepan and then started heating it again.  I don’t know if it made any difference all that but I doubt it, also I didn’t put any pepper in but it would probably have been nicer still if I had.

I am still in the 3rd IV.  I started rowing on stroke-side at the beginning of term then I changed to bow-side then I changed back to stroke side last-week and now I can row much better there and I’m called ‘a one-side oar’, not an uncommon thing.

I took the Spotter’s 3rd class test again last night and I got full marks 31 ex 31.  I hope so anyway.  I have got my certificate now for passing near the beginning of term.  You saw the one Michael got I think, well mine’s like that.

By the way could you send me another packet of dried eggs please, I expect you can with all the eggs you should be getting.  By the way, how are the hens laying.

There are only 18 more days.  I hope they go and quickly.  The term seems to have gone frightfully quickly, I hope it keeps up it’s speed up.

P.S.         I thought of lots more to say during the night so I’ll have to start another page.  Last night just before going to bed I saw one of the grandest sights I’ve ever seen.  I saw hundreds (literally) of bombers going over with all their lights on it really was the best sight I have seen all the way to the horizon I thought I saw Flak but it was the bombers signalling to the ground.  You saw these bombers going over all their lights on in three’s.  In the background were searchlights lighting it up.  I certainly realised about Britain’s air-power.  It was about the first time I have heard bombers going over like that.  Hundreds!

I also know what Michael means when he says he likes the whistle of the American engines.  Because several times one has come past here whistling it is a lovely noise.

Could you please send me some more Enos Fruit Salts if you can.

 

Sunday undated

I am still in the third IV, I don’t find it very cold this weather though.

I have had a very good week indeed this week.  There was no J.T.C. parade on Wednesday because those in the J.T.C. who have been here a year went on ‘Night Operations’ while the rest did ‘prep’.  And the people who did night ops did prep while we should have been on parade but instead we had some spare time.  On Friday there was a half-holiday because of the plays.  All that was extra spare-time and there was no ‘prep’.  Yesterday there were no games and I went into Oxford and shopped a bit but I didn’t get anything hardly.  And then in the evening I went to the play which was very good indeed and very well acted indeed, called ‘Strife’.  It was about a strike in some tin mines in Wales.  It may sound very boring but it was excellent.

 

Sunday undated

I went to Abingdon aerodrome yesterday with some other people from here of the Spotters club.  We just fired some guns from a turret.  We had done it before at home.  It was quite good fun doing it again.  Also yesterday there was a championship test of planes mostly foreign ones for those in the spotters club who wanted to t\urn up.  I got 75 ex 196 and was 5th.  Which wasn’t bad for me.

I am still in the third IV and getting on fine.  The races are next week.  I will tell you the results in my next letter.

I am glad the hens are laying well and long may it continue.  We will have thousands and thousands to eat next holidays.

I am glad you liked the toffee.  I should like to make some next holidays but it is very extravagant with sugar but I may be able to make some.

I am reading a very good book called ‘Jamaica Inn’ by Daphne Du Maurier.  We saw the film about two years ago with Charles Laughton.  Both were very good.

It is field-day tomorrow.  We are going to the place this time in buses and then going to have a battle.  I hope it comes off and the weather is nice.

Monday.

We had a field-day today so I might as well tell you all about it.  In the morning we all paraded and were given rifles and blank cartridges and after waiting for ages we got into some buses and went to the other side of Oxford to a place called Hurst Hill.  The idea was that some ‘British paratroops’ had been ‘dropped’ in France and some ‘Germans’ were coming to drive them out.  I was a German.  When we got to Hurst Hill we debussed and after waiting ages by the road while the ‘British Paratroops’ to dig in.  Then we attacked them and about 10-clock we drove them out of their positions.  We then sat down and had lunch.  Then the ‘Paratroops’ counter-attacked.  And then a terrific battle ensued in which we delivered a counter-attack and I was killed.  That was about the end.  We got into buses and came back here and had supper and had to do prep which was a great nuisance as we don’t usually have it after field-day.

I may be sending you a pair of shoes home this week, because one pair has got a large hole in it and it might be possible to get them mended during the holidays sometime anyhow before the end.