Letter from Jack Darby to Jean
Title
Letter from Jack Darby to Jean
Description
He says he can be as rude as he likes because he is 4000 miles away. The weather is getting warmer but he expects to be there for another two weeks. He has been to a dance which he enjoyed.
Creator
Date
1943-03-15
Temporal Coverage
Spatial Coverage
Coverage
Language
Format
Two double sided handwritten sheets
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
EDarbyCAHWellandJ430315
Transcription
[Postmark]
[inserted] 15.3.43 [/inserted]
Miss Welland,
7. Queens Drive,
Surbiton
Surrey
England
[page break]
927893 L.A.C. Darby.
31. P.D. 12G. R.A.F.
Moncton. N.B.
Canada.
15/3/43. .
Dear Jean,
Just a few more lines, more rude remarks, think of it 4,000 miles away and you can’t do anything about it, can be as rude as I like.
Hope you received my last letters and airgraph, of course I don’t suppose I shall hear from home for at least another three weeks, however hope to have [deleted letters] mail which was forwarded on from Heaton Park. before then.
Have settled down quite Q.R. expect we shall have another two weeks to wait for the posting
[page break]
II/
to start our course, shall be glad to get cracking am fed up with waiting about.
The weather has turned much warmer these last few days, the thaw has definitely come and in a week or so the ground will be pretty clear of snow, as we have’nt a lot to do here we have plenty of route marches so it will make the going easier for us, these jaunts are alright but you notice the cold to start with. We have been issued with special caps, they have special flaps to protect the ears from frostbite, they look too – too delightful on us, by the shape of them it looks as though a woman designed them, you know they look O.K. but are not practical
[page break]
III/
(just the opposite to that carpet bag you usually carry).
We decided to go to a dance last Tuesday, was quite an amusing affair, the band and floor was good but the standard of dancing – hopeless. All the girls can do here is jitterbug, at least they try, they nearly strangle you in the process, anyway we had 50c worth of enjoyment out of the affair.
We don’t go out of camp a lot, theres so much to do inside that its not worth it, the pictures are changed 4 times weekly so theres always plenty to see, also we indulge in other pastimes such as badminton, whist, chess etc.
[page break]
4/
Whats happening around your part of the world? any raids lately, give me any news you may have, you know usual births deaths marriages effort, especially the latter, like to know whose just been ‘shot down in flames.’
Happened to be glancing through last years diary, its just 12 months since Cyril was killed, seems a very short time to me, its only when you read other extracts that I realize how long ago it happened. Diaries are rather fascinating things, do you keep one? they’re O.K. provided other people dont get hold of them.
Well, will close now, take care of yourself.
All the best
Jack
[inserted] 15.3.43 [/inserted]
Miss Welland,
7. Queens Drive,
Surbiton
Surrey
England
[page break]
927893 L.A.C. Darby.
31. P.D. 12G. R.A.F.
Moncton. N.B.
Canada.
15/3/43. .
Dear Jean,
Just a few more lines, more rude remarks, think of it 4,000 miles away and you can’t do anything about it, can be as rude as I like.
Hope you received my last letters and airgraph, of course I don’t suppose I shall hear from home for at least another three weeks, however hope to have [deleted letters] mail which was forwarded on from Heaton Park. before then.
Have settled down quite Q.R. expect we shall have another two weeks to wait for the posting
[page break]
II/
to start our course, shall be glad to get cracking am fed up with waiting about.
The weather has turned much warmer these last few days, the thaw has definitely come and in a week or so the ground will be pretty clear of snow, as we have’nt a lot to do here we have plenty of route marches so it will make the going easier for us, these jaunts are alright but you notice the cold to start with. We have been issued with special caps, they have special flaps to protect the ears from frostbite, they look too – too delightful on us, by the shape of them it looks as though a woman designed them, you know they look O.K. but are not practical
[page break]
III/
(just the opposite to that carpet bag you usually carry).
We decided to go to a dance last Tuesday, was quite an amusing affair, the band and floor was good but the standard of dancing – hopeless. All the girls can do here is jitterbug, at least they try, they nearly strangle you in the process, anyway we had 50c worth of enjoyment out of the affair.
We don’t go out of camp a lot, theres so much to do inside that its not worth it, the pictures are changed 4 times weekly so theres always plenty to see, also we indulge in other pastimes such as badminton, whist, chess etc.
[page break]
4/
Whats happening around your part of the world? any raids lately, give me any news you may have, you know usual births deaths marriages effort, especially the latter, like to know whose just been ‘shot down in flames.’
Happened to be glancing through last years diary, its just 12 months since Cyril was killed, seems a very short time to me, its only when you read other extracts that I realize how long ago it happened. Diaries are rather fascinating things, do you keep one? they’re O.K. provided other people dont get hold of them.
Well, will close now, take care of yourself.
All the best
Jack
Collection
Citation
Jack Darby, “Letter from Jack Darby to Jean,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed May 19, 2025, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/39893.
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