Undated

Camp Beale, Calif

Dear Ralph;

Got your mail today after going over the mail box. After all you still was in the states. Some of our boys had orders to report to that same camp so you might see them coming in pretty soon.

This place is hot as a bitch & we consume ice cream, milk, sodas beers & water by the quarts. It’s just as bad as the worst in Mississippi the other summer.

The boys from Hawaii are just piling up in camp coming in every day from the Meditteranean, European & C.B.I. theatres of operation. The last bunch from our battalion say that all the old timers have left the outfit already including cooks, clerks & truck driver & ought to be due here soon. There are quite a number of Hawaiian “Blas” who were with the different

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divisions in Europe. So far only one group have left for home & they had been here almost a month before they got their orders so most likely as things stand now we will be there for sometime yet.

You can send the watch to this address for I’m sure I’ll be here for some time yet. I was going to tell you to throw it away but since you say it’s fixed you might as well send it to me for I want it for a souvenier in case it gets no good for time purpose.

I hear our old outfit was moving into Austria according to the latest report. The boy are lucky they can see more of Europe than us. The last time they were processing German prisoners & they collected plenty of souvenier from Jerries like cameras, silk stocking & arms. They took a lot of money away from the Germans & they all thought they were rich, but the had to burn all that for it had no value at all. I haven’t received

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any answer for “Flora” as yet I figure it’s about time I did received an answer or maybe they think I’ll be coming home right away so don’t bother to write.

You know when you are inducted into the army they rush you through everything but they sure do take their time when it comes to discharging you. If we get our discharge in Hawaii as we almost certainly will we won’t be entitled to take our furloughs so will lose out there. I hear the mustering out pay of $300.00 is just about enough to pay for you civilian clothes as prices stand now I’ll most likely go back to my same old job & I hope the wages are just as good as they were before. If you are intending to write in the next week or so you still can mail your letter to this post.

So long, Brother,
Saburo