Letter from Harry Massey to Barbara Massey

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Letter written by Harry Massey from the No. 6 Palestine company at the Bluffs to Barbara Massey.

This is a scanned version of the original image in Special Collections and Archives at Middlebury College, Middlebury, Vt.



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No. 16. Saturday - June 6th Marjor J H Massey 6 Palestinian Coy. The Buffs M.E.F.

My own darling Barbara

I feel very sleep & tired as I begin this letter at 9-50. There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, I started a physical fitness campaign in the Coy yesterday morning. For me, this means rising from my bed at 6-30, drinking a cup of tea, shaving, & then being on P.T. parade with the men at 7.0 until 7.30. The hot weather has now really begun, & it is even pretty warm at that time in the morning. We all do it stripped to the waist, & I make it pretty hard. So as to pull out people's guts - & it certainlly pulls out mine. This is all followed by a lovely cold shower, which is still a poor substitute for the sea of Haifa last year. And the second reason is that a pair of starlings have taken to flying into my room at 5-0 exactly & making an infernal din - but I have now organised my room windows with netting & hope that trouble will now be over. This exercising of the body is a marvellous thing, though, & you must incist that I carry on doing it after the war. It is so good to fill one's lungs right down to the very bottom, & to stretch one's muscles, especially the ones all around the stomach. Are you dong your exercises darling? You must, you know, it will be fun to do them together, & see how long we can go on, without succumbing to passion - & even more fun when we do succumb.

I have not much news at all - but lots of things about which I want to write to you - but I like the whole evening ahead of me when it is like that, & I shall hope for such a situation tomorrow.

Yesterday, I had your no. 92 to cheer me up & keep me going. It must be admitted that the England-Palestine

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service is reasonably regular now. I do hope there is an improvemetn from P to E. I also had my monthly epistle from Vera - she had had my 7 page effort to her & reckoned to be v. thrilled with it. Did you hear that the 7th had gone abroad? - but that Parsh had blood pressure & could not go? Vera tells that he now has a job in Altrincham - not too romantic, but how I envy him. Putting 2 & 2 together, I think that their destination must have been India - so if my transfer had been effected that is where I should be now.

I must on to bed darling - I'm far too sleepy to write a decent letter you know that I will think about you in bed & go to sleep doing that - I always do, no matter how sleepy & tired I am. XXX Barbara sweet xxx H.

Sunday - June 7th Your last letter began by telling me that you loved me so much - which was a very lovely beginning & gave me a nice warm feeling on top of my normal thrill & pleasure when I get a letter from you. I love when I see such a spontaneous announcement in one of your letters - then a special feeling of realisation surges up & fills my whole body & mind.

It is 6 1/2 years today since we were married - I am just thinking how we have been pushed around during that time. Nearly 2 years in Arthington - then 3 months at the Troutbeck & Ellis' - 1 1/2 years in Shipley - one year being pushed around in the army during this war - & now 1 3/4 out here & away from you. It is very much time for me to come home - & for you & I to be given the chance to settle down & get on with our lives. I have just worked out that by Nov 16th, when I shall have been in uniform for three continuous years, you & I have only been

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together for 22 weeks, or 5 months - & that time has been split up into 9 periods. It really is not good enough, is it darling? By God, but we shall have to make up for this, & whatever we do must always be done together. Will you also insist on that, darling, please?

I am very anxious to have replies from you to my letters trying to tel you something about my ideas for the future. Whether you agree or in what ways you do not - & how desparate you are to be of some service in making a changed England.

It is really frightfully difficult for me to tell from here, how public opinion really is at home - & whether any of the political parties have any set programme for after the war. The B.B.C. is useless - the Palestine Post is pretty conservative (small "c" intentionally) & heavily censored. The last few weeks I have been able to get hold of the New Statesman - always 3 months out of date - & I find it like a breath of fresh air, but also not too cheerful about our manner of running the war or preparing for the peace. Apart from that, I can only speculate according to the news which comes through But the Labor Party seem to me to be very much without a policy, & in any case far too timid & easy going & frightened of real Socialism - or perhaps they are not frightened but do not believe in it. It seems to me that Stafford Cripps is an important key to the situation. You remember, in 1938 or 9, he was expelled by the Labour Party Executive. Now, he is a force in the War Cabinet. he quite obviously has not changed any of his opinions - & equally obviously he will either be the leader of the Labour Party after the war, or

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else they will chuck him out again for having too "advanced opinions". I wonder to what extent the New Statesman represents public opinion - can you help me. I wish I could get my beloved Manchester Guardian out here - I wonder do they still publish their weekly & if so if you would send it on to me - I should really have asked you before. You said in a letter that you wondered if I were to be recognised as a sympathiser with the Jews, whether they might ask for me for some job out here. But I must tell you that that is impossible - at least under our present "Colonial" system, where every body has to pass thorugh the mill of our civil service; & the Jewish Agency, of course, only employs Jews. But under a more enlightened Government it might be possible (& I think it would be an excellent thing) that they would cut away from that old school tie civil administration racket, & decide that somebody like myself who knew Palestone & the Jews & had been able to manage a works & command a unit - would also be able to do a job here. I seriously believe it to be essential, if England is going to continue to administer Colonies & Mandates, that an entirely different type of person is sent out to do the administering. At presnt they are all our wooden headed, privileged, class whose one idea is to establish a little bit of England wherever they happen to be, have their English friends & drinks & games & do their duty, but completely out of touch with the people of the country. In my opinion, our colonial administrators must come out to these places prepared to work hard & work with the people. They must of course command & lay down the law for the time being - but they must do it because it is their job to do it - & not because they are a

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race apart & above. And they must be prepared to win the respect & confidence of the people & by ther work & actions & help & sympathy - & not by means of living a semi-regal life apart. We have been pretty badly shown up in Malaya & Burma & India - the same thing would happen here & in Egypt if the test were ever to come.

Oh dear - I am becoming very very left, am I not, darling? I wonder what you think about me.

You administered a rebuke in your last letter, because I had told you that I had ticked off my offers on account of their table manners. But you were sweet & wise, as you always are, in making an excuse for me because of my bloody life & so many things to get on my nerves. This did have something to do with with it - & although I thank you for making the excuse for me, I do not entirely deserve it. And I must tell you, to my own satisfaction, & I hope yours too that I seem to be developing fairly rapidly & along the right lines. Because, since then , & before your letter came, I have blamed myself for that incident & determined never to repeat it. And my new officer, Laskou, does all these things which we think wrong in England - & I have said nothing, & in fact, they do not annoy me any more. You were prefectly right to be a little horrified - & I am too, when I think of it now. In fact, the soup spoon jammed well into the mouth, & the knife & fork lying wide open in a satisfield looking spread, are very much to be preferred to somebody like Jessie's rather

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