Letter from Harold Gorton to his wife

Letter from Harold Gorton to his wife

He writes of his family and his journey to Farnworth and an auction taking place in Bolton. He mentions a colleague who is missing after a operation to Hamburg.

1943

Six handwritten sheets

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EGortonHGortonLCM430807

Farnworth,
Saturday.
Dearest,
If this letter is a little disjointed you’ll have to blame it on Jennifer, who seems to find her chief amusement in playing with me.
I got here at 5.45 yesterday, coming on the 4.10 from Preston, - the one you & I waited for. In Bolton I met Norris Parker, who was very cut up because Geoffrey is missing – from the Hamburg raid a week last Thursday, when we lost 28. It was [inserted] his [/inserted] first trip after coming back from leave.
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2.
Dad wasn’t [inserted] completely [/inserted] better yesterday but he managed to go off to St Annes, although Alice carried his case to Bolton. He will be there a fortnight, from the 6th to the 20th.
Mother thinks it a good idea for us to try to get a house, difficult though it may be, & she suggests, if you like, that you should stay on here for a few days & have a look round after I’ve gone back.
She was very pleased indeed that we used this house when we wanted. I don’t think anything could have pleased her more. They both like
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our dinner service. Alice would swap hers for ours if we would agree, as she thinks it much nicer.
I’ve seen in the Journal an advertisement of an auction sale next Wednesday in Bolton. I think the only things of interest are easy chairs & possibly a sideboard. I suggested that Alice should go & look at them on Tuesday & buy a couple of chairs if they are suitable. I’m sending the advert. What do you think? Perhaps I can get Alice to ring you up on Tuesday if she goes to look & thinks they are worth getting. I’ve no idea what
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price we ought to pay. Would £10 for the two be too much or too little?
It’s been quite nice here, but but [sic] it’s not the same without you. I had the double bed in Mother’s room to myself last night. Mother was with Alice & Mary at her other grandma’s. It seemed an awful waste to be there on my own. When Mary came this morning, her first words were “Where’s Auntie Lilian?”
In just over a fortnight I shall see you again, darling, & then in another month I shall get some leave, so I’m beginning to think that the time will be
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endurable.
Bob has received the razor, & has had his best shave for six months, so it was worth getting it. Norman is now in Sicily.
All my love,
Harold.
On talking it over with Alice, she says she’ll go & have a look at the stuff on Tuesday, but she’d like you to reply by return – instead of phoning, to say (a) what you’d like her to try for
(b) what price she should go to.
You can be assured that she won’t buy anything unless she really thinks it worth the money.
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If you don’t think much if the stuff advertised, don’t hesitate to say so. She’s quite willing to get it for us, but just the same, she won’t be sorry to be let out of it.
Finally, Mother has just raised the storage question, to which my only suggestion is to get the auctioneer to store it for a few weeks.
All things considered, perhaps you would let Alice know whether you think it’s worth going on with, & if so, what you want, & at what price.
Harold