January 1947
Hello you all –
Well, we
have cold weather again, but there’s one consolation: it hasn’t rained the last
few days. Down here it’s a damp cold that’s
penetrating. It must be agony for those
that are afflicted with arthritis or rheumatism.
Business
people are making preparations for next month – that’s the time for carnivals
and the famous “Mardi Gras.”
I feel
they will be disappointed from the money standpoint. The people just are not spending like they
used to. I noticed it during New Years celebration.
Most of
the vendors were caught with plenty [of] stock on their hands. The people did a little drinking but they
steered away from the high priced joints.
It didn’t make much difference. The
other spots are clip joints anyway.
Mardi Gras is supposed to be the big day. In French it means “Fat Tuesday,” the day of
feasting before Ash Wednesday – [the] first day of Lent.
There’s
one week of joy and fun I think, [and] it [goes from] Feb.13 to the 18th.
That’s the time when most everybody
dresses in costumes and masks, makes merry and forgets their troubles.
From what
they say, this carnival must be worth seeing – the costumes and settings: the balls,
parades, floats, the Kings and
Everything
that is good in
In some
parts of the French Quarter, there are [edited for content] [that] still
practice Voodooism – snake worshipping. They’re Queen used to be a big fat winch. She’s dead now, but ever so often they visit
her tomb and do a little jitter buggin’.
After the
dance they ask for favors, and if the Queen favors them she grants their
request. It can be, love, fortune or
death.
If she would
tell me who would win the 5th race in Tropical tomorrow I’d do the snake dance
and the strip tease.
Well when
the Mayor closed up the gambling in
He said
crime decreased 30 percent, [but] I think it increased. A few days ago the police department issued a
new order: stop any person at night, and if they can’t show proper
identification, book them for loitering or vagrancy.
Right now
the vice squad is busy closing up the disorderly houses, and they’re bringing
in the prostitutes from 18 to 80.
The road
houses and tourist cabins are next. Too
many complaints, [and] too many of the bobby soxers
have been losing their pants lately.
According
to the paper some food prices dropped again. Butter [is] 5 cents less –[it]
was 80 cents a pound. Sliced bacon [is] 55
cents, and sugar [is] 8 cents a pound when you can get it. They say if they take the price lid off it
will go to 40 cents a pound. You better
stock up if you can.
Liquor is
cheap here: bar whiskey and hi-balls [are] 10 cents a shot. Bahrets, Three
Feathers, Five Brown and Shenley are 10 cents a
shot. Luckies,
Camels and others cost 25 cents a pack – how are the prices up north?
Those
whiskies I mentioned cost $3.69 for a 5th. Is that cheap compared with prices at home?
That’s all for now. I’m going to quit using them big words – it takes
to long to look it up in the dictionary. You guys gotta come
down to my level.
So
long,
Pete
P.S. – Best regards to all.