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- April 10, 1943 envelope
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- April 10, 1943, p. 1
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- April 10, 1943, p. 2
Letter transcriptions:
Apr. 10, 1943
Lieut R. S. Yegerlehner USNR
Navy 224
% Fleet Postmaster
San Francisco Calif.
Dear Mother,
We’ve had several discussions about censorship and I’m almost afraid to write for fear I’ll over step but after all is said and done I really believe we are bowing over backwards because I’m sure the enemy knows more than we give them credit for.
I’ve been running hither and yon today and really not composed enough to write but I’ll still try to get a line out in order to keep up the daily record. I’ll be very much interested to know how my mail is coming to you but our mail has been absent for several days. Right now supper chow bell has sounded so will finish later – Later. In fact much later (Apr 11) so
[page 2] in counting the letter you will have only one for Apr 10 + 11.
Was able to get a little news over the radio last night and that always helps – seems to be a connecting link between out here and the States.
This is my regular day to write the Folk so sometime during the day I’ll have to scratch my head to figure out what to say.
Many of the fellows are getting regular mail so I wish you would write a few more of those and not so many v-mail.
I’ll try to get back on my regular daily writing schedule again tomorrow
Love Daddy
Russell Islands
Image by Kelisi at Wikipedia.com (Wikipedia Commons license)
©2014 copyright owned and transcribed by Deborah Sweeney
Post originally found: https://genealogylady.net/2014/04/07/discussions-about-censorship-roscoe/
Genealogy Lady 
Actually my dad’s handwriting, at least in these letters, is better than mine. I confess to having very bad handwriting. Even when I try, it’s not much better. Good luck to you, Deb, when you one day get all my diaries. 🙂
I am so looking forward to it. 😉
As you know, Japan’s military did not value intelligence as much as the Allies. Sure, they had some but not to the extent we did. In addition to breaking “Purple” and “JN-25”, the Japanese-American US 8th Army soldiers provided battlefront interrogations and translations while the Japanese military did not. However, many of them were schooled at schools like USC and Ivy League universities. There was a famous story of how a captured Japanese officer had on his school ring from the US. I believe it was USC.
Thank you as usual for your great military expertise. I often wonder how much of what Roscoe says is just military propaganda or if things were really as he says.
I truly believe what Roscoe has written isn’t military propaganda. Franky, I think it was much worse than what he wrote. For instance, “Old Man Jack” said the place was also ridden with those huge coconut crabs; I think I recall Roscoe writing about them or is my memory twisted from old age? lol But these men and women that were there – I’m sure they endured more.
I don’t believe he has written about crabs. Lizards, yes…
I am currently waiting to hear back if Roscoe’s military record still exists. It could take months. But hopefully it will provide more information that I can use to locate more records in the NARA system.
I am sure his records are intact and in detail as he was USN. Army records were burned for the most part as you know. All they had on my dad was his Record of Separation and even that was a microfiche of a microfiche. Good luck! It may take six weeks+.
Do you think that this handwriting is representative of the time period?
Do you mean Roscoe’s penmanship or his writing style? I think he had particularly messy handy writing. I think he joked about it. Since he was a doctor, his handwriting had to be messy. It didn’t quite follow through for my dad though. Very messy hand writing and not a doctor of medicine. 🙂