Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula

EValentineJRMValentineUM430216-0001.jpg
EValentineJRMValentineUM430216-0002.jpg

Title

Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula

Description

Number 54. Received cigarette parcels and ask her to trace and thank donors. Notes parents worried that he is not acknowledging their parcels and writes that he has done so but letters may have gone mussing and that he is limited to two letters and four cards a month. Mentions his lack of progress with violin. Discusses labelling issues about parcels from Switzerland. Catches up with friends/family news.

Date

1943-02-16

Temporal Coverage

Language

Format

Two page handwritten letter

Rights

This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.

Contributor

Identifier

EValentineJRMValentineUM430216

Transcription

Start of transcription
Number 54
16-2-43
Darling Ursula: Yesterday I received two cigarette parcels each of 200. One lot being Players & the other Gold Flake. There was no note of the senders [sic] name nor date of dispatch so, if you can, will you please trace the donors & give them my most sincere thanks. They arrived very opportunely for I was almost out of cigs. although I have plenty tobacco. A book also arrived, from you I think a massive tome - the [one indecipherable word] chronicles. Thank you so much for sending it darling - it will keep me going for quite a long time. My parents seem to be worrying about my not acknowledging their parcels - would you assure them that I always make a point of doing so & have done so without exception. Possibly some letters have been delayed - or lost. Incidentally remind them that mail is very strictly rationed to 2 letters & 4 cards per month (???). I am sorry to tell you that I am exceedingly depressed by my lack of progress with the fiddle. I have now being [sic] going 6 months & am still just about where I started. I have managed to have a lesson from my teacher at last after a gap of nearly 3 mos [sic] but I wish I could get someone else. He is not the slightest bit interested, gives me very little help, no definite instructions & much depressing criticism. I really have tried hard in the 1st 6 mos & cannot even play a single scale in tune. I haven't the slightest intention of giving up while I stay here but I have lost any hope of ever being able to play with you, which was the chief reason for my starting. I haven't had a letter for a day or two but plenty are coming into the camp, still. I heard from Grenfelds [sic] Swiss friends. They sent me one parcel apparently but it has never reached me & they want to send another but are having difficulty in procuring certain official labels upon having which they say that the Swiss Red X insist. I have approached the Germans here & am told that they are not necessary for British POW's & are therefore not available here. Could you pass on the information? Only one of your earlier letters is missing now but it is the one, I presume, telling me all about Irene's wedding & I hope it arrives. I gather that she really is married from my folks letters. I also know where Leslie is. Will you tell me if he gets any excitement? Have had a spot of trouble with fleas lately!! They are fairly prevalent here. All my love & best wishes darling, John

[page break]
[underlined] Kriegsgefangenenpost [/underlined]
[sticker] EXAMINER 3310 [/sticker]
[ink stamp] GEPRÜFT 64 [/ink stamp]
An MRS U.M. VALENTINE
LIDO
Empfangsort: TENTERDEN GROVE
Straβe: HENDON
Kreis: LONDON N.W 4
Land: ENGLAND
Landesteil (Provinz usw.)
[underlined] Gebührenfrei! [/underlined
[sticker] OPENED BY P.C. 90 [/sticker]
Absender:
Vor- und Zuname: Sgt JRM VALENTINE
Gefangenennummer: 450
Lager-Bezeichnung: M.-Stammlager Luft 3
[underlined] Deutschland (Germany) [/underlined]

End of transcription

Collection

Citation

John Ross Mckenzie Valentine, “Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed March 29, 2024, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/19256.

Item Relations

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