Letter from Douglas Hudson to his parents
Title
Letter from Douglas Hudson to his parents
Description
Catches up with mail sent/received. Acknowledges fast delivery due to consular route. Writes that numbers in camp have trebled and hopes they will retain mail privileges despite increased numbers. Mentions rearrangement of living quarters as they have had to give up their small rooms to officers but they have managed. Mentions camp newspaper and that weather was getting hotter. Catches up with home news and gossip and warns them to take care about censors.
Creator
Date
1942-04-12
Temporal Coverage
Language
Format
Two page handwritten letter
Publisher
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
EHudsonJDHudsonP-HE420412
Transcription
Royal Air Force. 755052. Sgt. J. D. Hudson
c/o Consul General des Etats. Unis.
Alger. Algerie.
Afrique du Nord.
12-4-42.
My Dear Mother & Dad,
To-day is Sunday, and it is about four days since I wrote to you last. On Thursday I received your letter No. 20 of March 2nd. Of the letters written this year I have received all the first twenty with the exception of No. 11, and letter 24 arrived on its own some days ago making an especially quick journey. I think we may consider this is all good going. I was glad to learn from your last cable that you received six letters from me dates between Dec. 9th & Jan. 9th & also to learn that the Post Office anticipated slight improvements. This is quite probable because for the past two or three weeks letters have been going by the old Consular[?] route again. I hope this will continue. Our numbers since yesterday have been trebled and the inundation, besides being awkward, was unexpected. I hope we shall still be able to enjoy the same mail privileges, & wonder if the position will alter now there are hundreds to deal with. Lets hope not. I don’t see any real reason why it should. With the new arrivals there had to be a terrific reshuffle and extension and in consequence we were moved from our last small rooms to give way to officers. However, we very fortunately were able to secure a room for four, so the only difference is that instead of being in two rooms of two we are together. The difference is negligible and our present room affords more ventilation. As it is we are the most privileged N.C.Os on the camp and
[page break]
shall be able to continue with the fortnightly productions of the “Camp Echo” but I fear we shall have to try and turn out more copies. The weather is getting increasingly hotter and I am afraid we are in for a hot summer – hotter than anything I have ever known. Probably by the time this letter reaches you the height of summer will be reached, or past. In your letter of March 2nd you mention the rather disappointing stay of Mrs. Clayton, during which period she apparently expressed at regular intervals, much[?] surprise of you chosing[sic] such a place as Nelson to live in. Perhaps Hobson’s choice is a term with which she is not acquainted, but I always imagined you were very comfortable and as happy there as it is possible to be under the present conditions. In the same letter you say I shall feel a sense of almost personal loss to learn[?] – and the rest is censored. This is annoying as the essence[?] of the information is missed and surely if it is only the name of somebody I knew it would hardly be necessary to censor. Perhaps you would tell me again in a manner not to offend the blue pencil [indecipherable word]. I cannot understand in what capacity [indecipherable word] is engaged by the R.A.F. I do not know of any branch requiring [underlined] extraordinary [/underlined] mathematical knowledge. [two indecipherable words] have put up a good & long[?] show & will doubtless have earned his rest. I am sorry if my writing is getting more & more difficult to read. My pen is getting more & more difficult to write with, & I don’t see much chance of getting a new one, especially now. So good-bye once again until next letter. Keep smiling and of good cheer. As always I send you both all my love, thoughts & best wishes.
Douglas
c/o Consul General des Etats. Unis.
Alger. Algerie.
Afrique du Nord.
12-4-42.
My Dear Mother & Dad,
To-day is Sunday, and it is about four days since I wrote to you last. On Thursday I received your letter No. 20 of March 2nd. Of the letters written this year I have received all the first twenty with the exception of No. 11, and letter 24 arrived on its own some days ago making an especially quick journey. I think we may consider this is all good going. I was glad to learn from your last cable that you received six letters from me dates between Dec. 9th & Jan. 9th & also to learn that the Post Office anticipated slight improvements. This is quite probable because for the past two or three weeks letters have been going by the old Consular[?] route again. I hope this will continue. Our numbers since yesterday have been trebled and the inundation, besides being awkward, was unexpected. I hope we shall still be able to enjoy the same mail privileges, & wonder if the position will alter now there are hundreds to deal with. Lets hope not. I don’t see any real reason why it should. With the new arrivals there had to be a terrific reshuffle and extension and in consequence we were moved from our last small rooms to give way to officers. However, we very fortunately were able to secure a room for four, so the only difference is that instead of being in two rooms of two we are together. The difference is negligible and our present room affords more ventilation. As it is we are the most privileged N.C.Os on the camp and
[page break]
shall be able to continue with the fortnightly productions of the “Camp Echo” but I fear we shall have to try and turn out more copies. The weather is getting increasingly hotter and I am afraid we are in for a hot summer – hotter than anything I have ever known. Probably by the time this letter reaches you the height of summer will be reached, or past. In your letter of March 2nd you mention the rather disappointing stay of Mrs. Clayton, during which period she apparently expressed at regular intervals, much[?] surprise of you chosing[sic] such a place as Nelson to live in. Perhaps Hobson’s choice is a term with which she is not acquainted, but I always imagined you were very comfortable and as happy there as it is possible to be under the present conditions. In the same letter you say I shall feel a sense of almost personal loss to learn[?] – and the rest is censored. This is annoying as the essence[?] of the information is missed and surely if it is only the name of somebody I knew it would hardly be necessary to censor. Perhaps you would tell me again in a manner not to offend the blue pencil [indecipherable word]. I cannot understand in what capacity [indecipherable word] is engaged by the R.A.F. I do not know of any branch requiring [underlined] extraordinary [/underlined] mathematical knowledge. [two indecipherable words] have put up a good & long[?] show & will doubtless have earned his rest. I am sorry if my writing is getting more & more difficult to read. My pen is getting more & more difficult to write with, & I don’t see much chance of getting a new one, especially now. So good-bye once again until next letter. Keep smiling and of good cheer. As always I send you both all my love, thoughts & best wishes.
Douglas
Collection
Citation
James Douglas Hudson, “Letter from Douglas Hudson to his parents,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed April 25, 2024, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/22668.
Item Relations
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