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Cpl Roman F. Klick 36620923
HS 1393 Engr APO 709
c/o PM San Francisco, California
18 May 44

Dear Aunty Clara,

Thursday

Gnash, Gnash and gnash --- those represent the sounds issuing from my mouth as a grind my teeth in anguish over what seems to have become a bad habit of not getting any more mail. Now if I was one of those senseless fellows, I would quit writing letters until some came in. But of course, that would be cutting off my nose to spite my face since maybe the letters at the other end would stop until an answer was received and soon there would be no more correspondence.

We just came back from chow (we, the big four, seem to eat together every day lately) where we had ice cream! But they are all down on me because I had two helpings. Here is how it happened. I was the first in line for the ice cream and Johnny Marth put a little bit in my plate and I went back to my table to eat it. Then, not fifteen seconds after sitting down and putting that first spoonful of ice cream into my mouth, Johnny calls over to me to come and get my ice cream. Well, I felt kind of funny eating ice cream and here is Johnny calling for me to come and get some. However, Elmer Solomon, who was passing out the atabrine and is a permanent cook's helper told me not to be a dope but go right up there and get some more so I did. When I got back to the table again, the first helping was gone along with my mess kit and spoon but they soon materialized from underneath one of the tables. The fellows were all saying, "I'm going to snitch" in school-boy fashion and they haven't let up on me yet.

We also had raisin pie today and it was as good as it always is. But there is one thing which still gets me although I've been in the army for over eighteen months now and that is the gross violations of sanitation which exist in every army mess hall I have ever been in. For instance, just today the KP breaks open his cigarette after finishing his smoke and then immediately hands me a slice of bread from his unwashed hands. Then too, that bread is handled like so much rags although that is also a common practice even back home when the breadmen make the deliveries of fresh bread to the grocery stores. Uncovered bread is set on the floor of a truck where shoes have walked over and then KPs carry it into the kitchen with it brushing up against their dirty fatigues. Yet in spite of these things going on I have kept my health so evidently I have either been lucky or my anti-germ cells have put down any uprising caused by unsanitary methods. Occasionally the fellows in the Army will get what they call the GI runs and I wouldn't doubt that it is caused by those conditions sometimes other than the most common cause which is a mess kit which still has soap or old food on it from a previous meal. Whereas these minor transgressions against health rules will not as a rule kill a person, I still contend that one of the reasons I seem to have had a sick-free life is for taking care not to get too many of these unwanted germs inside of me.

Now that I am no longer Company Clerk and therefore not included in the Company Headquarters they have made an official announcement that that section of the company need not stand the Reveille formation. So it appears that I was the only company clerk in the army to stand Reveille throughout my term of office. In all other companies and outfits I have ever seen, the company clerk had that privilege of missing that formation.

Well, I got out that work for Mike Nyalke and now have begun clearing up some more of these standing work jobs. Maybe someday in the far far future I'll get to the point where I will not know of anything to do next but I doubt if the day will be here for a long while because if I catch up in my section, I'll have to go over and give Leishman a hand and then soon it will be time for another payroll. And next time I'm going to clear out my officer pay vouchers in less than no time so that I can devote my full time to seeing the Leishman's payroll is a perfection.

The show tonight is with Judy Canova and the band so I guess I'll stay in and try to write some letters.

So-long,
/s/ Roman
Roman

Cpl Roman F. Klick 36620923
HS 1393 Engr APO 709
c/o PM San Francisco, California
18 May 1944

Dear Aunty Clara,

Thursday

The light in the building is something terrible this evening and I have to strain my eyes even by typewriter so my aim of writing quite a few letters is once more dashed to the ground. I only hope that the people concerned will forgive me for the long delay I have taken in answering them. Do you realize that time is flying so swiftly along that we are already on this island for a good length of time? The first month or so on New Caledonia passed by with interminable slowness but time seems to be ticking off with a fantastic steadiness and swiftness. It is good too that such a thing is taking place for sooner the war will be over and the sooner will our two years overseas service be over with the possibility of a quick return home again even if only for a furlough. Jack Molyneaux on the other hand is already sick and tired of this island and wants to be on the move to another joint. I can't see that myself for first now we are settling down to a real good existence after all the hubbub of moving and setting up camp that I wouldn't want to move for another year if it could be arranged. One of the things which may be making this time pass fastly, I think quickly would be a better word, is that my work hasn't been caught up for some time and the day just starts and it is already time to stop. Then there is the evening canteen with the usual chewing the rag with the boys which also helps pass the time away.

But one thing which I'm going to curse my fate for is that I didn't get any mail today. That mail situation is worse than I have seen it in a long time even to go as far back as New Caledonia. Even there it was rare when I went so long with so many mailless days. By the way, I guess I will not be answering your letters this evening either for that would necessitate reading the small V-mail print by this poor headachy light and that would be no good.

Perhaps later on in the evening the lights will be a little better. It may be that the show (stage show) is drawing all the electricity off the generator and consequently causing our lights to be so dim.

You'll pardon me, I hope, in the fact that today we had another beer ration and I bought and drank the same. You can blame Uncle Jack for my taking to this vice without a qualm of conscience anymore since he said an occasional glass of beer would do a person more good than harm. And he also said it would be better for my stomach than a lot of Pepsi-Cola. In fact, this evening I had my choice between three bottles of Coke and two bottles of beer and I chose the latter. Do you think that a wise choice or am I off the base?

Well, the barracks are finally set up and we will be rearranged shortly in the new arrangement by sections. Fortunately, for me, it seems that the barracks I am now in is the one that is going to be assigned to the headquarters section so evidently I will not be called upon to move out which is something I wouldn't care to do for it is quite a job to cart all your personal belongings, barracks bags, cot, rifle and foot locker from one place to another and then straightening out all over again when you get there.

After supper, Lewis, George and I broke down two more boxes of jungle rations which means breaking open eight individual cartons. Our yield was 32 cans of Nescafe, 4 cans of cheese, 4 cans of Borden's powdered milk, 4 cans of an unnamed brand of whole milk and about sixteen bags of good cocoa. The rest of the stuff we either threw away or gave away to someone who wanted it. For instance, the eight cans of peanuts we opened up along with the rest of the contents were distributed among the fellows going to the show including for one, Lt London.

The supper this evening was delicious with fried hash patties if you have any idea of what they are. Meanwhile the other canteen boys didn't go down for their meal but opened up three cans of cheese and toasted it on some toast for their meal.

So-long,   /s/ Roman   Roman