Letters to Home
Pfc. Ervin R. Allen
Feb. 20, 1946 – Tokyo
Dearest Mom Dad & Lorna,
Well here go’s for a few lines again. I’m O.K. & sure hope you all are just fine, it sure been nice that is pretty nice it rained again, but is nice now. I haven’t got any mail from you for some time now. Ha yes I got one yesterday. You said my letter’s haven’t been getting there. I don’t know whats wrong. I’ve been writing every other day. I’m sure they’ll get there after bit. I got those News letters Mom today & boy I’m sure glade to get them. They came through pretty good. Yesterday after noon I went to my friend’s houses & then we went through the Imperial University & took a few pictures of it. Sure a big University. The biggest in Japan. Then I spent the evening at there house. Well here it is another day. I never got through writing this last nite as I had to go on guard again. I will again tonite. I just came off at 12- & go back on at 6-. They are short on help, so you see they keep us going. Ain’t bad tho. Well I never got my mail from you today again. Sure hope so tomorrow.
It sure nice today, the wind is blowing a little you know about like March. Boy it won’t be long till March will it. The time go’s so fast. Well I’m glade. Boy they sure had a nice show last nite down in Tokyo where I was on guard & there going to be one tonite, don’t know the name of it. But I suppose it be pretty nice. We get to see the shows & every thing. One thing about the M.P. you can go any where, that is when we on duty & when your off to. Well here I start again, but haven’t got time to write very much. Chow is in quite a little while. You see I was writing & they called us out for a shot in the arm, don’t know what for. You know just an other one. Well Mom Dad & Lorna I’d better close.
Sure hope you all are O.K. So till next letter all my love & lots of kisses for now.
So all my love & kisses
From your Ervin
S/Sgt Joe Toth 20950236
Aug 4, 1945 – Gunzburg, Germany
Dear Ella, Carl & all:
I guess its been quite a while since I have written so will try and get off a few lines.
I am enclosing a picture that I had taken, I also sent Mom, Buze, and Mary one. Hope you like it.
I have written to Billy several times but he hasn’t answered. I don’t know what is the matter, the only letter I have had from him was one that he wrote in May.
I would like to know what town he is in, and also what division, if you know, because there might be a chance going to see him if he is close enough.
I am on guard tonite in a little town about 3 miles from Gunzburg. We are guarding a pile of coal. It is army coal and you have to guard it or else the people would steal it because fuel is pretty hard to get here.
Was sorry to hear about Grandma Hansen hope she is getting along O.K.
I am getting along pretty good here. Hope to hear from you Soon.
Joe
Sgt. E.H. Toth
April 18,1945 –
Phillipine Isle
My Dear Sis Ella & Family,
Our A.P.O. is #70 now, the last letter I wrote from the Philippines our A.P.O. was 75. We are quite a distance from A.P.O. 75 so send all your mail to 70. I have really seen some country in the last 12 days. I can hear the Big Guns firing at Nite. Again the Nips are about as far away as Clay spur. I haven’t read any mail at this A.P.O. yet. However I rec’d a letter from mother and Lillian at A.P.O. 75. I also rec’d a fruit cake there from Helen, she mailed it Oct 12th so it was on its way 6 mo. I shared it with Boys on the trip up. It Certainly was a dusty trip this time. I am sending you some Jap invasion money in this letter I hope the children will like to see it.
The last two days I have been building on a mess hall for us, at present we are orphans eating with another outfit until we can get our camp set up. We are using West Coast 2 x 4’s for framing and putting a Corrigated Iron roof on it. It will be a large bldg. Kitchen stove house and mess hall combined. We set Pile Butts on end dug in to the sand for foundation, so it is a pretty solid foundation, our area is all sand this time. However I think that it will be much better when the rainy season sets in. At present we are camped in a rice paddy. The rice paddys are a square piece of land about 200 ft long and 60 ft wide banked up all around to hold the rain water in the Dam around the paddy is about 18 inches high. In other words it looks much like the Irrigated grounds at home lnstead of Ditches we have mounds to hold the water.
I haven’t the least Idea how long we will be here. At present it is much better here than it was at A.P.O. 926. Thank God we are more or less used to the heat being we have had hot weather on the other Islands, but nothing like this. My Clothes were wringing wet all day not a dry stitch on me. The Natives or Philippinos I should say are coming back into their small village, they are being put to work, as fast as things can be arranged, by the Government. They pay them around $1.25 a day.
We have some helping us put up our camp they do all of the digging and carrying lumber, and odds and ends.
However their homes are all burned and all of the small factories and Bldgs leveled, there is a railroad, too but it is all out of commission. I saw a lot of Bridges that were blowed up on the way up here. It certainly is Terrible the People are in rags and most of them try to Beg food cigs or any thing they can get.
We are all very short of cigs some days we hardly smoke, I have seen several hundred Jap ships sunk out in the ocean. They really look good with their masts sticking out of the water, also have seen a lot of their airplanes scattered every where you look. Wrecked tanks and all sorts of Equipment.
Well Folks I hope my mail reaches me pretty soon. Glad to hear that Donald is safe. Jigg’s wagon was crash dived. This Island is a nice looking Truck farming & Rice Country they also have Bananas, but the Natives want a fortune for every thing. Bananas 5 cents apiece.
Well I will close and write you again soon. I hope every one is well at your house. Tell everyone hello.
Wishing Everyone the Best
With Love, Emory