Letter # 4 May 7, 1944 "Cartoons and Musings By A Young Marine"

                               
" Dear Fran,"

 "Just reread your letter and thought of more to write, so here it is, before the urge goes away. Seriously now, I can't think of any reason either for not writing before, but look at all the paper we saved the Effort. Say, about this secretary business, in a way it sounds pretty good ( and in another it doesn't but who can blame the guy?). Glad to hear it though, Fran, and good luck. But going to school and working both are a little tough on a person especially at night- aw yeah, where's the school? Don't over do it Lewis (m- m -m that name is so nice to write). . .It was swell of you to reply so well to a V-Mail...  I'll be seeing you in only fifteen to twenty more months - not very long from now, no not long at all gr-r-r.  Ha! and Ollie's just coming over soon." 

 "This is a year of marriages all right - even Woody. That surprised me more than a little knowing him so well...That's like something that was in a magazine telling about a guy in the fleet who had a sign near his bunk; "I have given the best years of my wife to the Navy!" How 'bout that."

"We've been having some mutton  lately...this side of the world seems to abound in sheep... the story goes that its kept in a pit dug in the ground then covered over. In a few weeks the sheep begin to swell and when the dirt over them begins to push up ... they know it is now ripe and ready for serving. And you send those ice cream and stuff ads"

..."sometimes you'd be sitting outside the house on the steps and would speak the magic words "Hello Wick", Fran you really have a way of saying that, and every time you said it window shades would run up and down my back, it still haunts me..(The words) would float all the way across the street in low tones, just audible enough to reach my ears. I've seen a few sights like New York, Wilmington, Newark, Philly, ...etc. and an active volcano, earthquakes and a campaign but nothing compared with that sound. Ain't nature grand? ..."

"Well goodbye now and give my regards to your cherubic brother- who'll need all the luck now. Aw yeah, keep haunting me, Lovely Lewis,"

"Your Pal, Wick"