Letter from Peter Lamprey to W Gunton
Title
Letter from Peter Lamprey to W Gunton
Description
Peter Lamprey starts with a poem and continues with some banter. He continues with some light hearted comment on life in general. The letter has been opened and signed by censor.
Creator
Date
1942-04-23
Temporal Coverage
Coverage
Language
Format
Envelope and six page handwritten document
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.
Identifier
ELampreyPGuntonW420423
Transcription
SCARINISH
ISLE OF TIREE
23 AP 42
[postage stamp]
R.A.F.
CENSOR
184
[indecipherable censor signature]
Mr. W. Gunton.
Machine Room.
Waterlow and Sons. Ltd.
Twyford Abbey Road.
Park Royal. N.W.10.
London
[page break]
[reverse of envelope]
[RAF Crest]
[page break]
[RAF Crest]
[underlined] Thursday. 23rd. April. [/underlined]
Mr. Ashton or any other lug that likes to climb into the ring:-
With due consideration,
And a sense of emulation.
I reply, in manner fitting, to your screed but percieve [sic] with perturbation,
Though with something like elation,
That your style has suffered terribly indeed.
Now you, with no compunction,
Hold, that in a natural function,
Like a dream, I should express myself in rhyme.
I retort with righteous unction,
That working in conjunction
[page break]
With the R.A.F., I really haven't time.
Although this situation
Will cause mighty consternation,
I regret the tears my friends are going to shed.
But reflect, in rumination,
On the joyous jubilation
You will hold, when news comes through that I am dead.
If there should be some reaction,
Like a certain satisfaction,
At no rhymes or verse, a favour I would ask.
You will name me to the faction,
For my future line of action,
Will be, to take these certain folks to task.
I can see that my promotion
Has effected a commotion
But I hope that one and all will understand
I distrust your sweet devotion
As I have sneaking notion
[page break]
[underlined] 9. [/underlined]
[RAF Crest]
That you're working hard at something underhand.
I take the greatest pleasure
In recording - in full measure
My feelings to the chapel as a whole
But the hours I spend in leisure
I will everlasting treasure
And not in writing to a bunch of bloody dimwits that I have only heard from once in the last month.
Dear Uncle Bill.
From the foregoing you will see that I have heard from Mr. Ashton. You might thank him. I wouldn't. I also heard from our old friend Fred Baulch, who has some how [sic] picked up the quite erroneous idea that I am enjoying myself. I have a rooted objection to such tales being spread. Any
[page break]
further misinterpretations of my letters will find you facing a charge - or a summons for defamation of character.
Life has for some reason taken the easy road lately. I can now sit and stare for hours at a pile of work and not even sweat. This is where the training I perceived under my old friend Harry stands me in good stead. If it goes on like this, I shall leave my. [sic] saddle and bridle off and take things as they come. That's if some of my thieving friends don't take them first.
My short stay in this holiday resort seems to have got jammed up somewhere. If I am here much longer I can see myself marrying one of the Indians and forgetting I was ever a white man. Having been
[page break]
[underlined] 5. [/underlined]
[RAF Crest]
so long out of contact with civilisation – or what goes for civilisation in your neck of the woods - I am just a bit doubtful as to whether life goes on the same in your little bear pit. From reports that drift through it seems as if life is one long round of letting someone else do it. Business as [deleted] has [/deleted] usual.
The weather having climbed up off it’s [sic] knees we can look forward to being enticed out without our coats. Then I suppose - the urea will descend upon us from a terrific altitude. Never having evinced the slightest interest in my welfare this if course will not cause the slightest heartburning.
I hope Brother George is now back in
[page break]
harness and performing his usual acts. As soon as I know for certain he is well I will dig up the rifle again. Give my love to all at home, if you still have the nerve to go home. Remember me to all. Love and kisses.
[underlined] Pete. [/underlined]
P.S. I don't quite know what to to[sic] with this last half page but your mind is dirty enough.
P.P.S. What has happened to the "Royal"? Is it in one of the parcels?
P.P.P.S. You will notice the hut No. is different again. I dare say we will be in a cave next. We've been in every hut on the island so far.
[undecipherable censor signature]
ISLE OF TIREE
23 AP 42
[postage stamp]
R.A.F.
CENSOR
184
[indecipherable censor signature]
Mr. W. Gunton.
Machine Room.
Waterlow and Sons. Ltd.
Twyford Abbey Road.
Park Royal. N.W.10.
London
[page break]
[reverse of envelope]
[RAF Crest]
[page break]
[RAF Crest]
[underlined] Thursday. 23rd. April. [/underlined]
Mr. Ashton or any other lug that likes to climb into the ring:-
With due consideration,
And a sense of emulation.
I reply, in manner fitting, to your screed but percieve [sic] with perturbation,
Though with something like elation,
That your style has suffered terribly indeed.
Now you, with no compunction,
Hold, that in a natural function,
Like a dream, I should express myself in rhyme.
I retort with righteous unction,
That working in conjunction
[page break]
With the R.A.F., I really haven't time.
Although this situation
Will cause mighty consternation,
I regret the tears my friends are going to shed.
But reflect, in rumination,
On the joyous jubilation
You will hold, when news comes through that I am dead.
If there should be some reaction,
Like a certain satisfaction,
At no rhymes or verse, a favour I would ask.
You will name me to the faction,
For my future line of action,
Will be, to take these certain folks to task.
I can see that my promotion
Has effected a commotion
But I hope that one and all will understand
I distrust your sweet devotion
As I have sneaking notion
[page break]
[underlined] 9. [/underlined]
[RAF Crest]
That you're working hard at something underhand.
I take the greatest pleasure
In recording - in full measure
My feelings to the chapel as a whole
But the hours I spend in leisure
I will everlasting treasure
And not in writing to a bunch of bloody dimwits that I have only heard from once in the last month.
Dear Uncle Bill.
From the foregoing you will see that I have heard from Mr. Ashton. You might thank him. I wouldn't. I also heard from our old friend Fred Baulch, who has some how [sic] picked up the quite erroneous idea that I am enjoying myself. I have a rooted objection to such tales being spread. Any
[page break]
further misinterpretations of my letters will find you facing a charge - or a summons for defamation of character.
Life has for some reason taken the easy road lately. I can now sit and stare for hours at a pile of work and not even sweat. This is where the training I perceived under my old friend Harry stands me in good stead. If it goes on like this, I shall leave my. [sic] saddle and bridle off and take things as they come. That's if some of my thieving friends don't take them first.
My short stay in this holiday resort seems to have got jammed up somewhere. If I am here much longer I can see myself marrying one of the Indians and forgetting I was ever a white man. Having been
[page break]
[underlined] 5. [/underlined]
[RAF Crest]
so long out of contact with civilisation – or what goes for civilisation in your neck of the woods - I am just a bit doubtful as to whether life goes on the same in your little bear pit. From reports that drift through it seems as if life is one long round of letting someone else do it. Business as [deleted] has [/deleted] usual.
The weather having climbed up off it’s [sic] knees we can look forward to being enticed out without our coats. Then I suppose - the urea will descend upon us from a terrific altitude. Never having evinced the slightest interest in my welfare this if course will not cause the slightest heartburning.
I hope Brother George is now back in
[page break]
harness and performing his usual acts. As soon as I know for certain he is well I will dig up the rifle again. Give my love to all at home, if you still have the nerve to go home. Remember me to all. Love and kisses.
[underlined] Pete. [/underlined]
P.S. I don't quite know what to to[sic] with this last half page but your mind is dirty enough.
P.P.S. What has happened to the "Royal"? Is it in one of the parcels?
P.P.P.S. You will notice the hut No. is different again. I dare say we will be in a cave next. We've been in every hut on the island so far.
[undecipherable censor signature]
Collection
Citation
Peter Lamprey, “Letter from Peter Lamprey to W Gunton,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed April 24, 2024, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/6594.
Item Relations
This item has no relations.