Letters from the Brown Jug

Belgium January 9, 1945   Dear Dad:   Received the package with the two cartons of Kools in it. They were in good shape. That was a good way to send them as they’re recognized pretty easy if left in the regular cigarette carton. They had been on the way for so long that I thought someone shanghiad them on the way. It’s pretty cold here now but it’s not the kind of cold that settles in your bones, and so far I’ve been standing it with ease. There is a couple inches of snow on the ground and the roads are plenty slick but we keep operating the same as ever.   I am in the best of health at present and hope you are the same. Hope you had a happy birthday. Tell em all howdy for me. So long.   Your pard The Jug

Belgium February 1, 1945   Dear Dad:   Received a v-mail from you today and several in the past week. I’ve received all the packages by now and the cigarettes. I have been reading about the shortage at home. We have plenty of cigarettes over here now. This week we went back to our old standard of seven packs a week. A pack of cigarettes cost about a nickel, that’s about two francs in Belgique money.   We’re still driving semi trailers. A fellow from Leavenworth, Kansas and I are on a truck together. He sure looks like Russ, in fact I showed some of the guys Russ’ picture and they thought it was him. We’ve still got the original International tractor we got in France right around my last birthday. We had smaller GMC trucks for a while before that in France. In a few days we’ll have ten thousand miles on our truck and no serious trouble yet. That’s a lot of miles for an army truck of this size and there isn’t many guys get much over half of that before something goes haywir...

Belgium February 6, 1945   Howdy Dude:   How’s my old buddy by now. Well I guess you’re just about twice as old as I am, but I hope you don’t feel your age as bad as I do. I got a letter from Kenny today and he is in France now. I am in the best of health at present and hope that you and the tribe are the same. Give them all my best regards and Happy Birthday to you. Hope this little drawing will serve the purpose of a card. So long.   Your old buddy, Brown Jug

Belgium February 16, 1945   Dear Dad:   Received a v-mail from you a few days ago. Did you ever get them pictures developed you were talking about. I’d sure like to have a couple of you if you could spare them. Just small ones as I have a pocket folder about the size of a wallet and I’ve got about fifty pictures in it and I’d like to add a couple of you to my collection.   Heard from Kenny the other day again. He’s in France near Metz. Says he’s ok.   Sure is a pretty day outside today. In a couple of weeks I guess we’ll be digging our balls and gloves out of our duffle bags and throw the pill around a little, on our time off. The season sure changes quick over here. Up till the end of January we had snow and below freezing weather, and as soon as February first came the weather really warmed up in a hurry.   I am in the best of health at present and hope you and all are the same. So long and take it easy.   Your pal Mel

Belgium March 14, 1945   Howdy Dude:   Received your very welcome v-mail today and was very glad to hear from you. You asked a while back if we had any dogs. Well we have one and I’m sending you a couple of pictures of him. He sort of reminds me of that Jack pup you gave me out of Janes litter when I was a kid. He’s a pretty smart pooch. I don’t know what breed he is but he seems to have a little hound in him and the rest is like army stew. A little bit of everything. We got him when he was about three weeks old. One of the fellows was hauling some Negro troops and stole him from a yard in Cherbourg, France. We’ve had him since a short time after we landed in France. It’s about ten o’clock at night as I write this and the pooch is laying here on my blankets having him a snooze. You should see some of the positions he gets in while he is sleeping.   Well Dude that’s about all I know for the present. We’re still herding our semi-trailers. I am in the best of health and hope...

Belgium March 14, 1945   Dear Dad:   Received a letter from you today. It was an old one and must have been sidetracked somewhere. The male sure has been slow for the past three weeks or so. We’re having pretty good weather lately. Clear days that are warm and cool nights.   Got a letter from Pat today. He is in France near Rennes, and is working in a warehouse. He sent me a picture of his colt and he sure is some colt for ten months old. Haven’t heard from Kenny for a couple weeks. The last I heard from him he was near Metz. Young Elmer Gruber is in the Infantry in France. Porter McAdams was in an army hospital in Galeburg, Illinois but he has moved to an army camp somewhere in Illinois now. I forgot to copy his address so I’ll have to wait for his next letter to get his address so I can write him. I’m sending you some pictures we took. Hope you like them. I am in the best of health at present and hope that you and all are the same. So long.   Your pal Jug   P....

Germany April 7, 1945   Dear Dad:   How’s old Youngster doing today. Ok I hope. As for me I’m in the best of health at present. The sun is sure shining bright here in Germany this morning. It’s about nine thirty in the morning as I write this. The countryside around here is just about like Missouri. Rolling hills with big hills in the distance. The prettiest part of Germany is across the Rhine. Sure is like the Ozarks down around the old Janis farm at Lawrenceton. Lots of evergreen timber & plenty creeks and clear little rivers. I believe a fellow gets to see more country in an outfit like ours than in any other. Our old corn binder International is still in pretty good shape. It will soon have 15,000 miles on it. It uses a couple quarts of oil in a thousand but that’s not bad for the miles on it.   Well that’s about all I know at present. I have a new A.P.O., 350. Guess the mail will be slow for a while until it starts coming through the new A.P.O. Take it easy and t...