All these letters have been leading up to the 2nd Battle of El Alamein & the German retreat from North Africa - Tricia
Letter No 26
Middle East
5th Nov ’42
Dear Mum,
Your letter number 10 to hand. It was older than the couple I received last Monday but none the less welcome. Please thank Dad for the telegram & also the fiver. I’ll probably need all I can get when I come home. - whenever that’ll be.
Regarding the shortage of letters from me I don’t want any more complaints because since the 16th of last month I have written 16 times & I think that should be quite sufficient for a lad of my size.
I know my writing isn’t much good but yours is the joke of the tent, especially the way you spread it out. Just for a joke this afternoon I re-wrote your letter number 10 &, believe it or not, I fitted your three pages in just a little over 3/4 of a page. Just as an example.
Please give my regards to Mr Rees, Sid & also any other kind person who donates to anything towards filling up the spaces in a parcel.
I’ve written to Aunty Lizzie several times. but so far I have not received any word from her. The letters she sent to me c/o the R.A.F. base must have gone astray or they would have been here long ago.
Bad luck about Rex Whiting’s son dying. By the way what happened to him.
I could only knock out a couple of pages today but I may have more luck in a few days time.
Give my love to Dad & Betty & regards to all I know at Cremorne.
Lovingly Yours
Frank XXX
LETTER No. 27
Middle East
8th Nov ’42
Dear Mum,
First of all I want to wish you many happy returns of to-day although it will be a long while after your birthday when the letter arrives.
Thanks very much for the parcel which arrived yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately, as yet there is no sign of the cake or Leo’s parcel. Please thank Vivi & Maureen for the box of sweets & also thank Mrs Rees for the tins of meat paste. The parcel was even more acceptable now because as you probably read in the papers we are on the move & because we have to travel so fast our meals are not nearly as good as they were when we were stationary. At the rate we are moving now we will probably be well settled down & enjoy our Christmas dinner in Tripoli. Here’s hoping anyway.
When I wrote to Betty a few days ago I forgot to thank her for the canteen order so will you thank her for me. Canteen orders are received by some of the boys in each mail but I have always got plenty of money so you needn’t bother about sending them over because they may get lost & I really don’t need them.
From what I read in the Aussie papers cigarettes seem hard to get but over here we can get as many as we want & they are only 10 for 6d. (6 pence)
The biggest racket in the war is the navy, army & Air Force Institute stores. These stores supply tinned foodstuffs, cigarettes etc to unit canteen & their prices are terrific. For example we get most of our canteen stocks from the Aust Canteen Services but sometimes they get too many orders & can’t supply all we order & we have to get it from the N.A.A.F.I. When tinned fruit is obtainable from the A.C.S. we can buy it in our canteen for 6 1/2 pilasters (1/7.5) a large tin (1lb 14ozs but if we get it from the NAAFI it costs our canteen 7 pistes for a small (1lb) tin & 11 pilasters for a large tin. Australian cigarettes are 6d a packet if bought from the A.C.S. but 9d a packet if bought from the other lousy place.
14.10.42
I had to leave off writing last Sunday because I had to pack up & move & this is the first time I have had a tent over my head since then. We have been chasing the huns up the desert but, as you have probably read in the paper, he runs rather fast. We have been travelling at a good speed for the last week & we will be going for a while yet. We have travelled from dawn till dark each day & slept under the stars at night. Meals came out of a tin every day & consisted mainly of bully beef (Libian chicken), tinned meat & vegetables & hard biscuits, but as long as we keep moving the way we are now we can put up with any discomfort at all.
I still have the parcel of things for Betty but I won’t risk sending them until we get settled down again.
While we were on the move up I received three cables, one from Leo & the others from Aunty Molly & Betty. Thank Leo & Aunty Molly for the cables.
At one of the stops on our way up we struck a Jerry clothing dump & now most of the boys are dressed up in green shorts & shirts, knee boots & enemy overcoats.
We now have a wireless on at night we listen to the news service from the B.B.C. That’s the only way we have of telling how things are going at the front.
I think that’s all I have time to write at present but all write again as soon as I have a chance.
Give my love to Dad & Betty
Lovingly Yours
Frank XX
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