Welcome back to part 9, Peter is in Rhodesia after a long trip by sea. He is to start his flying training and is happy to be there with his friend Bob who is also training to be a pilot. The first letter in December is to Peter from his mum on the 2nd December 1943, she says:
" It seems a very long time since we had your last letter, as a matter of fact, your first one saying you were at sea, came after the one in the desert! Your telegram arrived about a fortnight ago, my thanks dear, i am so relieved to get them.
...You will be amused to know my war work ended after three weeks, i only took it to help them until they got fixed up with resident workers from Scotland. Anyhow it was fun and i enjoyed it! Now we are not far from the festive season, what a farce it is without young life to enjoy it.
Joan is hoping to get home sometime, i have not heard if Enid is coming, she is enjoying her new course. She has received your cable. You will be sorry to know that Knobby has at last passed out! He must have been quite 10 years old. I think the bitter frosts finished him off! Expect you will see a lot of new birds with wings and without. I read in the paper that sometimes the lizards get into your beds!! Lets hope that's all!
Dad is still going strong with his fire partys. He is off to Glasgow on the 14th. The shops are very plain this year and most unlike Christmas. Am sorry i have not sent you a gift! It is difficult to know what to get, everything is so expensive and of poor quality. You must let me know if you want anything specially, anything in the clothing line, socks, hankies, tie?"
On the 5th December 1943 Des sends an air mail letter card home, it has an interesting picture in it that i believe was add into the letter using a stamp. He says:
" My Dears, A Merry Christmas to all at home, and may all our wishes come true very soon. Perhaps by next Christmas we will have happier times with us once again. I will be drinking to you all at 10pm on Christmas day. That will be 9pm with you dears, so don't forget to keep a little drop of something ready. I feel sure that this will be our last Christmas apart, my two years will be up in 3 days time, and by the time this arrives will have commenced my third. Keep smiling and with Gods help, all will come right in the end. My love and best wishes to all of you and to all our friends at home. May God bless and protect you always."
In an airgraph dated 12th December 1943 Peter's parents write to Peter again, they mention that they have received an airgraph from him and fill him in on general chit chat and what the neighbours are doing. They also say:
" Joan is coming home for Xmas, it hardly seems possible that my two sons are so far away, and we miss you both more than i can express"
Christmas must have been especially difficult for families during the war, as really shows in these letters. On the 17th December Peter sends an airgraph to his sister Joan, his address is now RAF Belvedere, Salisbury, S. Rhodesia:
" As you see, we've left Bulawayo and in a few days will start flying. We passed our exams which were not difficult (my average was 90%) To our relief, Bob and i are still together in the same hut, though not in the same flight. We stand a fair chance of keeping together as his preference is for 'singles' and i think i told you that i am destined for 'singles' too as my height goes against me for 'twins'. This camp is a muddy place, reveille is at 0430 hrs and on some days i believe we fly before breakfast. We sleep under mosquito nets.
We shall miss the service club where we could obtain such wizard grills and fruit salads. My friend John ate 13 fruit salads and ice creams on our last evening there!"
.On the 19th December 1943 there is a wonderful 16 page letter from Peter to his sister Joan, his address is now RAF Belvedere, Southern Rhodesia. I won't add the whole 16 pages here but will include quite a bit of the more interesting parts:
" My dear sis, this is my first long surface mail to you, so i must go right back to our stay in the desert, here goes! When we disembarked from our first ship we were conveyed in lorries to a large camp and were told to install ourselves - 12 in a tent. Bob of course was with me and amongst the others was 'Porky Owens' who was employed at the Southampton branch of Lloyds. There was little to do each day, Bob and i washed all our dirty clothes, quite a pile! We used to hold discussion in the evening on all sorts of subjects and they proved most interesting.
...As you know, i had a week in hospital with a mild attack of dysentery. The wards consisted of large marquees. Sisters were very decent and life was not too bad, though i was very glad to get back to the camp - just in time as we embarked again next day. This ship was slightly less uncomfortable that the first one, though we still slept in hammocks. The sunsets were often very lovely, sometimes the sea was very calm and the flying fish skimmed rapidly over the surface. We also saw a small swordfish and large flat fish. We had freak weather as we crossed the equator as the days had become steadily cooler. Our ceremony was a riot, practically everyone was drenched through. Bob ascended into the rigging whilst i remained still and looked small. We both escaped! The Wrens suffered most i think.
... When we docked we were welcomed by a large lady on the quayside. She wore a voluminous white dress. On her head she wore a red turban and a floppy straw hat. In one hand she carried a multi coloured shopping basket and in the other a megaphone. Through this megaphone she sang all kinds of songs, patriotic, popular and classical. She had a beautiful voice. Next morning we disembarked and were conveyed to a camp in which we resided in huts resembling cow sheds. In the evening we explored the city. It was a marvellous place and it was grand to see shops full of fruit and chocolate and to see brilliantly lighted streets again.
... The last part of our journey to Bulawayo was by rail. Six of us were in each compartment. We passed through the town where Des did most of his training! I wish we could have visited the Brickhills.It was an interesting journey and the scenery was very lovely in places. Sometimes it resembled downland. Prickly pear cactus grew close to the railway. Later it gave way to the bush or 'bundee' We saw wonderful birds with tails 6 - 9 inches long which they trailed behind them. At the various stations we were able to purchase fruit - oranges bananas etc and chocolate. We bought some candy in which we found two bent nails!
... One evening we rolled into Bulawayo, our journey at last over! We marched to the camp and installed ourselves in the huts which had thatched rooves. Bulawayo is a grand place... most of the buildings are modern and the streets are very wide. By far the most popular building with us was the services club, a wizard place. It had a tea room and an excellent grill. Their ices were mountainous and delicious! Their fruit salads were the finest attainable anywhere i should imagine! We used to go there every Friday evening for a grill... Within some miles of Bulawayo there are many interesting places, but we had neither funds nor transport to reach them. We did go to the Hillside Dams, a very beautiful spot only four miles away.
Part of our training at Bulawayo consisted of expeditions into the bush and practice in the use of a prismatic compass (in case we should ever force land and have to walk back to base) These 'bundu bashes' as they were called were grand fun. They varied in length, the longest being about 15 miles, finishing up at the Matolas Hotel for lunch. On one 'bundu bash' we had the misfortune to miss the lorry which was to have taken us back to camp. Our party consisted of Eric Mold (who i knew at Newquay), John Masefield (no poet, believe me), Bob and myself. We started to walk back about 8 miles. We were very fortunate however as a farm truck stopped to pick us up. They took us back to their farm, unloaded the truck, then back to Bulawayo. The farmer and his wife Mr and Mrs Fouche proved very nice people indeed and we spent two pleasant evenings with them at their bungalow in Bulawayo.
...Although it is summer it is the rainy season and it has been raining heavily (on and off) for several days. We have had very little flying, but i suppose we shall get some improved weather soon. There is mud everywhere!"
I thought this was a very interesting insight into what it was like for them going over there to train. It must have been an amazing experience, but also was so far away from family which would have been tough. The very last letter i have for 1943 is also dated 19th December and is from Peters mum to him, she says:
" We were very glad to get your letter this week and to know you had arrived at your destination. It is good to know you are ok for eats! Things are as usual here except the turkeys which were promised us, they are drawing lots for the few the shops have and a small bit of holly 3/- talk about profiteering!
I have sent Mrs Leonard a nice table runner, expect she will be glad of it in these couponed days! Am afraid dear, that most of our letters and graphs have vanished during November, but they said they were dealing with the matter! It is not much use buying anything expensive as it is all a gamble if they arrive. You must let me know if you want any mags sent on, also anything else. We are a very quiet household without you dear, i wake up every morning at the usual time to call you! Guess you find it an effort getting up with the lark! By the time you get this epistle we shall be in the New Year, we will have a drink on you and hope for better days and conditions soon."
On the 4th January 1944 Peter is still in Salisbury in South Rhodesia, he sent an airgraph to Joan his sister:
" Many thanks for your Xmas card, letter and airgraph dated 15 Nov. Thank you very much too for the cigarettes which I have not yet received! I'm sorry to say that I have not smoked a fag for the last 9 weeks! However they will be enjoyed by Bob who sends his best wishes! When i have sufficient dough, I am going to send a few parcels home, so you will receive one some day.
Our Xmas was not exactly festive. On the Thursday eve we had our Xmas dinner, quite good as lager was flowing! We went to communion and a service at the cathedral on Xmas morn, and we returned to the camp for lunch and slept all the afternoon - we went to bed early! On Boxing day Bob and I went riding, a marvellous experience in grand country. On the Monday eve, went to the museum, Tuesday - work started again. Flying is going quite well and I’ve done a few hours solo"
At about the same time, Peter's mum sends him an airgraph, she says:
" We were so glad to have your Xmas greetings, and to know you had a happy time with such kind folks. We had a graph from Des and expect he also had a good time. Joan was here for five days and we had a happy time together... But we missed you boys terribly."
On the 9th Jan 1944 Peter’s mum also sends a letter to Peter:
" Well here we are at the end of the first week of new year, we are having quite spring like weather, no snow and very little rain, in fact they are appealing to us to be careful with the use of water! Otherwise shall have to draw from standpoints in roads! May and i went to Pinner yesterday to see a new film of the play 'Claudia' with Robert Young, Dorothy Mcguire and Ina Claire, quite unusual.
Well my love, are you getting nearer to the planes? Expect you will have a terrific amount of study to do. What price the new discovery of the jet propelled planes! They estimate the system will, or might double the speed of ordinary planes!! What a fight the inventor made to get recognition.
.. Glad to hear you get plenty of fruit! We are promised more oranges and lemon! Have not even seen an orange for many moons! "
Peter writes a letter to his parents on the 10th January 1944:
" Last Saturday I was extremely pleased to receive your letter containing the photographs of Des and May with Frisky, I’m delighted to have them. They're pinned up inside my locker door. We're only allowed one or two photographs showing and I’ve got Joans and the one of you Mother with Frisk pinned up over my bed. Thank you very much too for the charming calendar, it is much appreciated.
... We do a bit of flying in the morning before breakfast and we also have ground subjects to learn. One learns something new (sometimes rather painfully) every day in this flying racket! I like my instructor very much, he's a Rhodesian Flt Lt. and has had considerable experience of operations. Bob and i are just about coping ok at the moment. Salisbury is a pleasant town and there's a fine swimming bath, admission to which is free to the forces. There are four cinemas at all of which one can book seats. Films are not too ancient, though one misses the news reals. Last Saturday Bob, Alan and i saw Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in ' Ride em Cowboy' - which you may have seen. It was quite the funniest film i've seen for a very long time."
Peter also sends an airgraph to his sister Joan on the 16th January 1944 to thank her for her letters. Near the end he writes:
“Flying progresses fairly well and I’m doing solo spins, forced and precautionary landings etc. My instructor is an amusing chappy and in the authorization book told me to go to a FINOMINAL HITE (His spelling!)”
Trainee pilots walk past their De Havilland Tiger Moth trainers at No. 25 Elementary Flying Training School (Southern Rhodesia), at Belvedere Airport, Salisbury. Photo taken by the RAF and curtesy of the Imperial War Museum.
To be continued...