Edward J. Thomas - World War II
Below letter written by Cpl john Chrisomalis
from Hq & Hq Co, AGF, Army War College
Washington 24, DC USA
28 March 1945 Wednesday
Dear Cpl and Cpl,
The above salutation holds true only if you two inseparables are
still together. Your letter of 1 March 45 with the letterhead of Hq
2d Army, Memphis, Tennessee (Office of the Commanding General) came to
the Washington contingent of the 153d boys and not to be outdone we are
sending you the above letterhead. If you get a higher letterhead then
I will have to pull some strings and see Eleanor for some of her personal
stationery.
Here is a bit of news that I have gathered about some of our former
playmates in the Aleutians: If you recall Capt Cox, former regimental S-2
in our Hq and now the son-in-law of Vinegar Joe, then read on...He is now
a major and is in the G-2 staff of a Burma command. He has been overseas
for over a year now since finishing his Chinese language course at the
University of California at Berkely. His marriage with Vinegar Joe's
daughter produced a son. I was talking to Vinegar Joe's Chinese major
aide-de-camp yesterday and that is where I got my dope from.
Jerry is at Hq Co, IRTC, Camp Joseph T Robinson, Arkansas (remember)
and is a big gun in Hq , Capt Ayres is in a training regiment as the
adjutant. Mikenas is having his ups and downs in the games of chance
and lately has run into some bad luck. It was an inopportune time for
him to get that bad luck for he is planning to get married around April
11th to his girl friend from Schenectady, NY. The movie projectionist in
the Aleutians (Paul Ladas ) is now a Tec 5. They had to change the T/O
here in order to give him the rating. I have no other rating than the
Tec 5 that I got in the 153d and I have no chance for a rating now because
the T/O is well stacked up with overages and it is now being cut
down. Before long it will be a skeleton crew that will operate the
Hq Co of the AGF, Army War College. Which brings me to a point that
will prove most interesting to you and also will be disappointing.
There has been a directive put out just recently on the subject of rotation
of overhead personnel and from the looks of things here, it won't be long
before most of us will ship out again. You fellows are in the same
category as Mikenas and myself and there doesn't seem to be any distinction
as to a priority for overseas service meaning that anybody that has served
over the pond and those who have not along with any other category of
personnel usable in an overseas theater will depart from local stations
at any time.
The boys at the college are sweating it out and they know that they
will go shortly. It will hurt a lot of these boys because they are
nothing more than USO soldiers who have done no training outside of
drilling on the parade grounds of the college. They were brought to the
college through pull since the first week of their induction and most of
them are 1st three graders to boot. It will hurt when they find themselves
as platoon sergeants or squad leaders and are ordered to lead the
platoon with that old battle cry "Follow me men" with the thought that he
hopes that there are men following him.
Mikenas is sweating also because this marriage business is serious
and he doesn't want to get married if he is going over again. However
I think that she talked him into a marriage without his gettinr wise to
it and when he did wake up, it was too late. He will get married the week
of the 11th April....so he made his mind up. He planned to have his fiancee
come down either to Philadelphia or Washington to live while he was at
the college but I gue:ss things are changed a bit now.
I don't have to write about the wonders in Washington since you
have first hand information from former college men who are with you.
There is no place like the college. Believe me! A ball diamond, tennis
courts, gymnasium, swimming pool and other facilities which could be more
useful in camps down South rather than here. Washington has everything
that could be desired by a servicemen and it all is for nothing. We
have taken in boxing matches, many hockey games and now the baseball
season is about to open. We saw Mae West in "Catherine Was Great" and I
should say she was. Numerous concerts and theaters are free to the
soldiers not to mention the local USO clubs and canteens which we don't
visit. With the coming of spring and summer we are going to take some.
boat rides up the Potomac and from what the boys tell me, a wild time
is had by all. That is if we are still here.
I manage to go home and see my wife about once every three weeks.
Not bad for an old married man. Next month I will be married one year
and it seems such a short time. However I have no off spring as yet
and it is not due to the fact that I am not a man. Mikenas seems to think
not because I have not produced an heir but I am waiting for him to get
married and then I will hee-haw him.
The weather is strictly wonderful now. Not too hot and not too cold.
The sun is shining but it has not the effects of the sun in Memphis. I
know!!! Mikenas is out to lunch now but he says that you two should not
bet together too often or else people will start talking.
The joke that you sent me was not appreciated at all. Sorry but we
have better ones here.
Sweating out the new edict of rotation,
Wed. Mar 28 The Allies travel beyond the Rhine River, General Eisenhower is in charge. The Allies will invade central and southern Germany. Russia will invade Berlin.
Thur. Mar 29 US troops capture Frankfurt under General Patton & the last V-1 attack on London. US forces land on Negros Island in the Philippines.
Fri. Mar 30 hs Danzig captured by Russian troops.
