U.S.S. PRES. COOLIDGE
SOMEWHERE IN THE PACIFIC
November 5, 41
Dear Dad,
I will write & address this letter to you in appreciation for the nice long letter I got from you Monday morning. It was delivered by chopper plane Sun. nite. As the plane passed us on the way to Honolula. I hope you continue to write some in all the letters I get from you folks. Of course I know when Mother writes it is the same as from both of you or all of the family for that matter but it is nice to get some from each & every one of you. How about having the kids add a few lines once in a while too. Now Mother I don’t want you to think that I don’t appreciate every word that you write too. After all they say a boys first love is his mother & I don’t see why I wouldn’t want to get all the mail I can from my oldest sweetheart. Do you??
Well I guess my sailor ancestors are doing me a good turn as I haven’t been seasick as yet. Of course it hasn’t been very rough yet either. The largest waves I’ve seen so far were only about 8-10 feet high.
We left San Francisco Saturday at noon. There were a few people there to see us off. I wish you could have been there but in another way I guess it was easier on both of us this way. The Pres. Coolidge (the name of this boat) was a passenger boat & a big one too. They just added a bunch of bunks in all the available space for the soldiers. We have 1900 men on board besides the crew & officers. We all eat in the dining salon which is really elaborate. Cushioned chairs, individual tables which seat 4-6 men, waiters to bring coffee, butter etc. and a 5 piece orchestra for music during dinner & supper. We eat cafeteria style and all squadrons have to furnish K.P. Our squadron had K.P. yesterday & I was one of them. It was a lot easier than doing K.P. in regular army mess hall though so I didn’t mind it much.
Outside of K.P. & Guard duty we can do whatever we wish. I’ve spent a lot of time on deck watching the waves. It sure is funny the way the water looks like it is always coming downhill at you. Even up on the top deck the horizon looks higher than I am. I saw some flying fish this morning. They were about 2ft long with about 6 inch wings or side fins. They skip along from wave to wave flying as far as 10-15 feet at a time. They sure are pretty. I guess that is one fish you never seen, huh mother? At least they say that Flying fish are tropical fish so I guess you haven’t.
If it wasn’t for being in the army I think I would enjoy this trip very much. In fact I like it anyway even under the present conditions. We have about the same things as any 2nd class passenger has. There is a small pool but it has been too cold to do any swimming. They also have shows every afternoon & evening. I was afraid at first that I would get seasick but I didn’t although there were quite a few that didn’t eat much the first 2 days & some are still having a hard time of it but I guess they’re all coming around now. So far as I know I have heard we will probably hit some rough seas & hot weather after we leave Honolula. We are going to be in a convoy from Honolula to the Philipines so there will be no lights or smoking on deck after sundown.
We are supposed to get into Honolula about 6 a.m. tomorrow. We will lay over there for 8-10 hours & they have promised us shore leaves so if it don’t cost me too much I might send you a souvenir from Hawaii Islands. I will mail this letter there too.
Did you notice how light this paper & envelope is? It is get more writing for our money. You see Air mail is 20 cents a half ounce from Honolula to the States & from the Philipines its 70 cents a ½ oz. I imagine it takes 4-5 weeks for an ordinary letter to get there but I will write some that way & for special occasions I will send one Air Mail.
You wanted to know what all the abbr. were for, well A.S.N. means Army Serial Number which in my case is 37072108. It is a means of identification as same as a serial number on a car motor etc. PLUM is a code word for our destination which I guess is the Philipines. 27th Bomb Group is a Group of 4 Squadrons the same as a Battalion in the Field artillery. It is composed of the 91st, 16th, 17th 7 27th Headquarters Squadrons.
So far all I’ve done in the Air Corp is travel & guard duty & K.P. while I’m not traveling I washed a plane one day in Savananah which is the closest I’ve been to one so far. I did sign up for a machinist course in a air corps school but it looks as if I won’t get to go to school for sometime if nay time at all. Of course I’ll probably get practical experience which will do me more good than going to school. It might be a little slower to pick up this way but once I do something I should be able to remember it better than if I had just read how to do it in a book. In some ways I think we are getting a raw deal but in other ways it is probably for the best. It isn’t everyone that gets to travel 8000 miles no 10,000 miles by train & then an addition 8,000 miles by boat with all expenses paid & get paid for it besides.
You remember I told you about our footlockers with all my civilian clothes going in the Bay at Frisco. Well we filed claims for damages & so it won’t be a total loss though I imagine it will take 3-6 months for us to get paid for the damages done.
I got a letter from Joyce the same day I got yours & she said she met Doris at the Homecoming Dance. She said Doris resembled me a lot though I never could see it myself. I never thought Doris was that Good-looking.
I have to close now as the lights go out in 10 minutes. I will write again as soon as I can. You should get this letter within the next weeks or so. Be sure and answer as soon as possible.
Hoping this finds you all well & sign off with Love.
Your Son
Charles G.R.
P.S. Continue to address my letter the same until I notify you differently.