March 3rd, 1945 – 7 AM –

Dear Sis,

            I asked Mother to send you my last letter but now you don’t appreciate too much second-hand stuff, so will take off a few minutes this morning and write.  Had letters from you and mother during the last week and that’s all that I’ve had.  For some reason or another, our mail has been rather irregular the last three weeks. They must be using all the transportation supplying the Philippines and the new operations at Iwo. I imagine they are using most of the planes evacuating the wounded there.

            Mother seemed to be having a big time in North Carolina and was seeing a lot of kind folks!  No doubt, from the tone of her letter, she is with you now or maybe even home? She said she wanted to go “home” and “see about things”, what, I don’t know!

            Well, I had another physical exam yesterday but don’t know what the doctor found, if anything!  I seem to have a very strange case and no one will make a definite diagnosis.  At the other hospital the doctors not only didn’t want me on my feet, but wouldn’t let me sit up in bed.  Now at this place, the doctor tells me to get up and walk around and do almost as I please, so you can imagine what a position that leaves me in, not knowing what to do!  Every time I get up and stir around much I start coughing again so naturally, I’m “staying in” most of the time!  I’m hoping someone will make up their mind as to my trouble or send me where they can find it.  I’ve been in now for twenty-four days and this wrangling around is beginning to work on my nerves.  I feel fine and have enjoyed the “rest” but I’d like very much to be rid of this uncertainty.  All I know so far is that I haven’t “T.B” and that I must have “coccidiomycosis,” the next thing to it and that the only treatment they know for it is “rest”, the same as T.B, well so much for that; I must be in a bad humor this AM!

            It has rained quite a bit the last few days so it has been quite pleasant on us bed patients.  I walked up to the barbershop the other day and got a haircut and sat in a barbers chair for the first time in most a year!  There is one boy here from my com. and I see him a lot.  A good friend of mine from the com. was to see me one afternoon and I enjoyed that.  Then the C.O. came by and brought my pay Wednesday night, he drew pay for January and February this month and then last month he drew all our back pay, so I’m fairly well off for a PFC at present.  Too, I can’t send any money home until I get back to Company and my combat pay. Also “Longevity Pay” mounts up very good now. [This portion of the letter was censored before delivery for unacceptable information in its contents.]  I hear our Colonel got the “Legion of Merit” medal for his part of the battle.  He is really a smart fellow and we all like him very much.  Several in our com. got bronze stars and a few silver stars. The general got the navy, “Distinguished Service Medal”, or something like that.

            I haven’t heard from Paul in ages.  Doc said he was OK in a December 15th letter, so trust that he still is.  Mabel wrote me some of the home news so

We are satisfied with the war news and hope it continues good.  No doubt we’ll be in the thick of it again soon?  Still, that’s what we came over here for. I’ll write again as news materializes!

                                                                                                Love, Russell