Pvt. John S. Wenzel
33830319
Squad C
LJAAF
La Junta,
Miss Kathryn Wenzel
Dear Sisters,
It is still cold here but the snow has melted pretty well and I guess it
is going to get a little warmer. We
are both fine and hope that you are all the same. I guess
I just listened to “A Date With Judy” [and] it is a rather good program. We finally got the radio back. It had a new volume control, a couple of
condensers and a new tube. She
really needed some new parts. It
cost eight bucks – not too bad.
We are pretty busy at the field these days. Here’s one that should be kept quiet for
a while yet. We got a ship back
that we had just changed the engine and the new one only had four hours, 25
minutes and our Engineering Officer tore it down to find out what went
wrong. Well, when he pulled it
apart here a part of it had melted and burned. Well, it takes a good heat to do that
[to] the manganese alloy so it looks like it is sabotage. Well, the base intelligence officer
arrived and a half million more ___ men, then three Federal Bureau of
Investigation men arrived and not it is one big commotion and there is hell to
pay, I guess. But something fishy
has been going on for some time.
They are trying to make it appear as if it isn’t unusual but that is just
a cover up until they get to the bottom.
It would be better if this isn’t talked about until it gets in the
papers, it will be wise. This
afternoon a ship came in and its one landing gear wasn’t down and locked and it
folded up and there was a pretty good smash up. The fellows weren’t hurt, just shaken up
pretty good from what I hear.
I hope you got the box I mailed to you also that you enjoy the camp
papers and such. Boy it looks like
they are pushing the Germans around plenty right now. They surely are getting plastered from
the air, I guess their railroads and such are pretty well smashed up and that is
what they are after. In the Pacific
we are doing pretty good, all but that damn little
I have a letter from Kathryn and Irma and I’ll answer them now. It was nice Sonny W. came to see you and
from what you say they must have done him some good. I wonder if that story he tells about
the General having that rifle inspection in the jungle is true? That about
making them stand at attention while Stillwell talked, sounds like a
2nd Lieutenant trick though you never can be sure about it. I kind of figured he was going over when
you said he was home. Although you
can learn a lot in four months time especially something like that. I see that the Senators don’t like it
but I really figure it is long enough.
Yes Irma, I plum forgot it was George W’s birthday so he did not get a
card from me. I hope that you don’t
get floods back home with all that snow and now rain. You are lucky you had someone’s arm to
hang onto on that icy morning. I
don’t blame Sonny for not spitting at Nazi prisoners but if I were he, I’d
harden myself for a little killing.
Well I’m about out of news so I’ll sign off for this time.
So Long,
Love,
John