Letter from Harry Massey to Barbara Massey

Letter No 99 Tuesday Feb 17th Major J.H. Massey 6 Palestinian Coy The Buffs M E 7 My own darling BarbaraIt is no easy matter beginning a letter to you. Tonight as on more occasions than not, I feel too much in love with you to write to you - + it seems better that I should allow myself to calm down + then suddenly begin to write about a piece of news, or something quite ordinary that has happened. There is a specific reason of course- + this time, as I have written you in an AG today, is that I had 2 pcs & 2 letters from you yesterday. Jan 22 & Feb 2 pcs., & 75 &76 letters. And it is quite obviously still a fact that you love me, & love me very much - & nobody else at all. And that Maxie is the finest, the loveliest baby boy that we could possibly have. And I have said that I will not talk about it, but I cannot help it - & I really do feel that this time, they may send me home. Tonight is a most perfect, very new moon - & I saw it with my own eyes - I had money in my pocket to burn - & I wished what I really believe you would want me to wish. Oh darling - I am hoping, with all my heart. I sent you off some lipstick today, in answer to your p.c. And it was strange that you should have asked for it, because just about the time that you wrote your p.c., I decided that you might need scent & lipstick, & went into a shop in Tel-Aviv to buy some. But the lipsticks they had were an awful price - & tiny little bottles of Chanel No. 5 were 25L - & so I came out & persuaded myself that you would be able to manage. The ones I have now sent are made in Palestine but I believe they are quite good. Wednesday Feb 18th And that was as much as I managed to write last night - I was too lovesick & happy that you loved me. And so I just sat & moaned about you & had a whiskey & soda - & then hopped into bed at 10-0 o'clock, & read for an hour.

2/ But I must now get on + try + compile a good long + interesting letter- + I will come back to love nearer the end, otherwise I shall never get on at all. Firstly one nice little piece of financial news- + then I can throw away the piece of paper on which I have the figures. And that is that my application for my majority to be further dated back had been more or less successful + instead of being April 10" it will now be Feb 1st, this is a matter of L-26-0-6 L-22-4-0 pay for Martins - L 2-15-6 increased marriage allowance for Martins - + L-1-1-1 increased freed allowance for Jericho for me. Col. L. replied "no" to my first application + pointed out that I had waited one year before applying. I immediately felt furious I replied "with the greatest respect Sir" - that I did not consider that the lapse of 1 year was of any importance at all- that it was purely a matter of army procedure + regulations- + that if he still said no, I should seek an interview with the Military Secretary. Col L then referred the matter to Area- + they have told me , quietly that I am perfectly right + they have recommended it. Feb 1st is the date I was posted to the Coy- + it was really Col. L's idleness that I was not passed on Jan 9"- but Area advise me not to push it as far as that. I hope darling you don't feel lowered off when I write home about having a whiskey + soda. + so on . We really are very fortunate out here, where we are able to buy whiskey at 8/6 + gin at 8L a bottle+ Players at 11d for 20. I have sent you some

3/ cigarettes. + I will send you some more- I do hope they allow them through alright if I do manage to get myself sent home. I will certainly bring 2 bottles of gin + 1 of Palestinian Vermouth with me . And then we shall be able to get quietly drunk together Oh darling I think that your idea of you + Maxie installing yourselves in a sumptuous flat + waiting for me, is marvellous. But not practical, if I do come home in a few months time + while the war is still on- because I shall probably just get 7 days leave, + then have to go somewhere. But it would be lovely if you could know of somewhere, house, flat or hotel where we could go to- because I shall NOT wait to be seeing anyone else at all, except you + Maxie until we can spare the time for anybody else. But I am getting back to love again + I must get on with news. I have not really been keeping you in touch with the Coy. lately- + there is much to tell you. My office staff had changed again- + I now have a Sgt Roth in charge. He was a Hungarian + is now Palestinian - he is tall + quite good looking with fair hair + blue eyes- + he is an extremely pleasant fellow. I sent him on a Gas Course to Cairo in Dec. + he did as well+ he now combines the jobs of orderly Room Sgt + Gas NCO My little L/Cpl has been in trouble. He is so dirty + so unlike a NCO he is such a liar + such a little shit about talking outside the office about what goes on inside. He had numerous warnings + one or two reprimands. all to no avail - + so I finally deprived him + he became a private soldier

4/ again . This mortified his pride very badly- + his pay even worse, as he is now trade tested (he passed his exam so well, that it was apparently thought that he had seen the questions beforehand) + the difference in pay between a trade tested L/Cpl + private, is quite a lot. But he continued to be a little shit, mainly by trying to scare off Sgt Roth when the latter was away on weekend leave. This took the form of looking for small things which Roth had forgotten to do during the week, doing them himself + putting them quietly into my "In" basket. Anyway last week end I decided to take a chance + see if confidence would be repaid. So I sent for little Spitz down to my room + spoke to him as a father + made him a L/Cpl again. He was overjoyed + I am hoping that he will now grow up + cease to be a nasty little boy. He is amazingly efficient + has a memory for letters + things like an elephant. But the most interesting thing about the Coy is that we are now allowed to do our own recruiting. Previously this was all done to the P.R. T. D. + we then received the men from there ready trained. I am short of about 35 - 40 men , on account of discharges, + British personnel being posted away not being replaced - + also a 10% reserve which we are now allowed to have. I immediately took the thing very seriously + had a talk to the Coy + saw all the people I could think of to see - I really believe that I shall have the men in a few days time. The advantages of this direct recruiting are that men can persuade their relatives + friends to join this Coy instead of just joining the

army & being sent goodness knows where. And also, the training will be entirely carried out by Jewish N.C.Os & there will be no question of different languages. I shall then have a recruit training platoon of 35-40 men, & it will be most interesting to see how they come on under Jewish N.C.Os. My information tells me that the other Corps have hardly done anything about it as yet, & that their results to date, are nil , so we are feeling rather cocky & feeling of a slight personal triumph. C.Q.M.S. Hemmings has now gone to the O.C.T.U. - & Sgt Kiley back to his Bn. In each case they have achieved their respective ambitions through my efforts, & they therefore went away, full of thanks to me. I hope Hemmings gets on alright - he is a very able chap & worth a great deal of personality, but he cannot take a few drinks & he is a bit of a devil for women. I shall be furious if they turn him down, considering the number of milk & water officers I have seen turned out of that establishment. Yes, if Campbell is at an O.C.T.U. he is going to be commissioned, provided he passes out. I do not think that there is much doubt in his case. And Anne having a baby - [& underlined] as a lawfully wedded wife. It seems a far cry since Durham, when she hopped into bed with Vernon, on sight. Didn't [we underlined] have a lovely time, darling? I remember so well, you coming across the road from your rooms - Michael sleeping under