Letters from World War II : J.H. Massey

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I will think & alway will, that you are the most perfect lovely woman in all the world & love to Max & all my love to you. There would be the whole position in a nutshell. And this month, I shall have expended over 60 pages & a great deal of time, in telling you just those things. Oh darling - I do hope you like my letters. For example, I shall have written about two pages on this theme & by the time I have exhausted it. And I have told you nothing at all - except to give you an insight into the workings of my mind from one other angle & not a particularly illuminating one either. It is perhaps silly to write in this way. You apologise for your letters from time to time & accuse yourself of being trivial or boring me. But I am always. [?] a part from the thrilling & exciting parts, interested with & charmed by your letter & very often amused too. And so I can only hope that my chatter is enough to please you - that my letters never disappoint you.

Now, what shall I chatter about tonight, darling? I think I will tell you some more about Peter & my officers - the one is a constant pleasure to me & the others are a constant irritation.

Peter really affords me with the only wholehearted laughs which I get out here. He is such a pricelsess mixture - because in spite of obeing a very independent & strong minded little bugger, even to the extent of being positively disobedient - he cannot bear to see me

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go off anywhere without him - & I'm quite sure that all his comings & goings are controlled by the necessity of keeping me in the corner of his eye. Often, when I stride off in some direction or other, I have no idea that he is any where about at all - he comes bounding along beside me with a broad grin all over his face, as much as to say 'oh no you don't' - (my mother could give you the expression to perfection). Yesterday morning, I went off on a bicycle to see the M.O. about half a mile away - & as fast as I went, he kept up - really annoying, while there an alarm went for a fire practice, very much like the air raid "all clear". The poor little chap remembers well the air raids of a few months ago & connects at once each alarm with bombs & A.A. fire & flashes - & away he went under a table: I took him outside & he positively streaked for home, me following on the bike. And he has started two new tricks in the morning now - one to wake me up, which he does by rubbing a very cold & wet nose on mine - & the other to be let out. I have sand fly netting all over windows & the other morning he got up on the table & went straight through this like a circus dog. So I had it replaced with fine wire gauze - he tried the same trick the next morning & literally bounced back off it into the room; he was furious & tried again with the same result after which he leapt onto my bed & dashed at me because I was laughing at him. I hope this does not bore you - but he certainly is a card.

As for my officers - Oh God but they bore me &

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irritates me & infuriates me. I suppose most people would do, anyway - but Hahn, Kalk & Arkin are the pink limit. It is a pity about Kalk, because I made him an officer myself - but he was a good steady N.C.O. & did his duty & being a solicitor in S. Africa is well educated. But he seems quite unable to carry a commission & has just become silly & far too pleased with himself. Perhaps he will improve. But, in addition, he is extremely boring & just has not a word to say for himself - just into there trying to look important. Arkin is too darned clumsy & does not seem able to help it. The complete little Jew, & very shy. In addition, he cannot pronounce 'Th' & so talks about "dey told me to come & do de ding anodder day" which is rather infuriating. But Hahn is the queen of them all - he's such a silly looking idiot & so damned wet. And the trouble is, he has now reached the stage where he is downright terrified of me. I have done my best to help the man & be decent & kind to him - & then he goes & does same damn silly thing again & I lose my temper & shout at him & there we are again. He is quite a problem. The trouble with most of these people is that they got their commissions far too easily - & no matter how much I shit on them, they are still very pleased with themselves to be officers - & no amount of rocketing, & extra duties & stopping of leave seems to make them come down to earth.

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I think they are improving a bit, but it is an exceptionally slow process. And it does not prevent them from being foully dull & boring.

Salaman will always be the same - a nice lad & plenty of guts & hard working - but not at all interesting. Jim Headley is a dear, kind, gutless, old graaay & again very dull. Ben, as you know by now, I like very much, proably more than I would most British officers - but it is a bit awkward for him : for me, as he is just one of the subalterns. It will be better when he becomes second i/c & a captain.

It is now 11.- pm. I must begin the week well & go to bed early. I. I have mapped out quite a strenous weeks training - which will entail about 50 miles marching for me & everybody else. I hope my feet will be able to take it. I am also hoping desperately - for a letter or something tomorrow - it has been blank since last Monday.

I do long for you, my darling Barbara XXXXXH.

Monday, Oct. 27th - I have really enjoyed myself today. I had to go & do a recce for a good place to take the Coy for a long march & some good training & a night out in the open. So Ben & I set off in the Austin at 10.30 this morning, with haversack - rations & water bottles full of cold tea. We made off due east, into the hills which you can see run as a backbone right down the centre of Palestine. We left the main road, & went along a field track as far as Ba Nahala , which I have mentioned before from there we began to climb & from

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There the track became rocky & rough. The rains in winter are so heavy that everything is washed down except the rocks & stones & so this track was equal to a very rough river bed, & also climbing steeply up at the same time. It was amazing how the little car managed about ten miles of this, but it did.

The country was really lovely - wild & rocky & hilly & some trees & when we reached the top, a terrific view of the plain below & the sea beyond. The day was very hot, & very blue & very clear. We passed numerous Arabs, with donkeys & camels on their way to market -& they said ' Saida". I answered the same. Ben, who counts Arabic among his languages, went into more complicated forms of greetings. The greeting business among the Arabs is a highly complicated affair - & it depends on many things: who speaks first - & then there is a definite answer to each particular form of greeting, the Arabs are very pleasant & friendly & it is really amazing that a British & a Jewish officer can go freely together in these parts - when 3 & 4 years ago, it would have meant certain death, to go alone & unprotected. But they are incredibly evil looking, even if they are by no means as evil as they look & indescribably dirty & squalid & lazy. We passed through numerous villages, some quite big ones, such as Beth Nahala, Q'lya, Niidim & Kharhata - all of which can be found on the map & yet this awful track. The Jews would have had a spanking great installed road through there long ago & electric light &

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water & drains & everything else. But I suppose that a hell of a good argument can be raised against such progress, when you have a look round the world today.

We ate our lunch on the side of a hill & thoroughly enjoyed it - & I decided that there must be more days like this. The disappointing part now, is that when we arrived back in camp, about 3.0 pm. I found that a special job had been pushed onto us, & so we cannot now carry out the training tomorrow & Wednesday, which was the idea, but must wait a few days.

Sargeant Major Jack arrived back from S.Africa yesterday, & very pleased with himself & for good reason. He had had five weeks actual leave with his wife & kids. The lucky devil. I'm a bit sorry he is back in a way, he is so blasted thick & I have to be super careful that he has grasped a thing - whereas Kiley is extremely quick in the uptake. And moreover, Kiley is very much better suited to train up my Jewish Sargeant Major elect. I shall have to see what I can do to arrange things.

I wrote a note to Rex last night, asking him to come down & stay a weekend with me. This morning I decided I could not face it & tore it up. It would mean being continuously with him for two whole days, having to talk a spate of nonsense & not be able to write to you at all. We are an odd pair, aren't we darling, with out likes & dislikes & not being able to be bothered. Though really, I think I am taking a step in the right

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direction, by eliminating the silly people & those who are not worth shile. But after the war, we really must make more of an efffort to find some friends who we really like - apart from the tiny circle of yours & mine & ours. I have now finished my Christmas Airgraphs & not counting Wm North people & customers. I have sent three to Bradford people - Gordon, Bill & Miss Anita. And I just would not know who to send any more to! Certainly not those silly Holdsworths, or any of the Emileys or Pullmans & God forbid Sydney Snell, Bluing - what a bunch.

Frank Macaskie's belated letter arrived today- three weeks from Cairo. He said how delighted he had been to see me, as I was the only person he had met out here with whom he had anything in common. That was very kind of him, & I do feel just hte same about him. I hope to goodness he will be careful on his new job, which is highly dangerous - because as I have said before, I am counting on him as a friend of ours when this war ends. But my trouble seems to be that it takes me so long to really get to know a person for that person to get to know me. You remember at Oswestry. I liked Frank but could make very little of him. And all the way to the M.E. Rod was my chief friend & not until the three of us were together in Cairo, did I realise that

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Frank was worth a million Rexs! The trouble is really that it is almost impossible to know a person until he or she has been tested & tried out in some way. In civil life there is seldom time & practically never an opporunity. With the three of us in Cairo & afterwards for those weeks at the I.B.D., Frank & I just carried on in our fixed purposes of getting in touch with our wives as soon as possible & writing as much as possible & seeing as much of the country as possible & generally ordering our lives. Whereas Rex just degenerated - made passes at the first girls to look at him, was idle in sightseeing, slept on his bed in the afternoon & talked a hell of a lot of nonsense & neglected Marjorie. And during this time Frank & I drew closer together & formed a solid friendship & realised that the others ideas & ideals were bored on solid ground. And here we are very close & firm friends. But how can you reproduce all that in civil life?

Maybe the answer is to have more acquaintances, & to be less intolerant. We shall work it all out when we begin again - & it is not a matter about which it is necessary to plan ahead.

But I can promise you that you will like Frank very much indeed. And I hope he will be careful. No letters or anything again today darling. Goodnight sweetest dear XXXXX H.

Tuesday Oct 28th And 11.0 pm - so I will just finish this on the other side of the page & post it in the morning.

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I went to the dentist today, the first time since last December; the man gave me a very thorough look over. I was very pleased to hear that there was nothing to do at all & he just gave me a scrape & a polish. That's good isn't it darling? & shows that I am looking after myself & carrying out at least one of your instructions to me. And I really think my hair is ok too, in spite of my breeze up a few months ago. And my corporation is certainly not increasing. So here I am - fit, strong, healthy, & goddamn bloody miserable. One's capacity for worry & misery & sheer unhappiness & deathly boredom, passes all understanding. Though boredom is perhaps hardly the word. I can never be bored, when married to you & loved by even at so great a distance; it is more the futile, horrible waste of time. I am so longing for more word from you - but the mails seem to have gone completely wrong again. I am not alone in suffering from no letters & no anything. I am enclosing a magazine cutting of Col Leicester for you to see what he looks like. Not exactly a beauty, but quite a pleasant face, kindly & not one of these silly ban Regular Army ones - not yet the lean, clear cut, brainy type, but with nothing behind it all. You will notice that he was a bit warm and with the arms. The Chief Robbi's features are somewhat hidden.

I cannot write sweetheart - I feel far too unhappy tonight - I just long with all my heart to hold you close & tight in my arms & kiss you & look at your lovely sweetness. I do love you so much Love & a big kiss to Maxie, please & all my love to my own dalring Barbara

XXXXfrom Harry XXXX

Letter No 80. Thursday Oct 30th

Major J.H. Massey 6 Palestinian Coy, The Buffs M.E.F.

My own sweet darling Barbara

I am afraid I get very impatient these days when I do not hear from you for some time. It is now 12 days since I last had anything from you at all & I suppose that really is not too bad, as long as it does not go on for many days longer. I can hardly expect your letter opes to arrive like clockwork - but still, I cannot help feeling impatient. Your next letter should contain the snaps of you in a bathing costume. I am dying to have them & also any time now these should be a direct reply from you to my A.G. & b.c. about our plans for reunion. And in any case, I want to hear from you, sweetheart, to know what you & Maxie are doing & that you love me.

Tuesday Nov 4th I'm afraid that this is a far as I have gone since last Thursday. Very bad, I'm afraid darling, but I will finish this tonight & post it in the morning & so keep to my minimum of one letter a week. I still have not heard from you, & I'm afraid to have been having an acute attack of depression & woodeness & simply could not bring myself to write. Also, I have been away two of the four nights. On Friday, I had to go up to Haifa for a Court of Inquiry, to be a witness. I finished at about 3.30 & so called on the Hopkins' to see them & have some tea - I found them out. But the maid gave me a tea - I was just off at 4.30 when Jack came back & insisted that I stay the night & be sent back in the morning in a Navy car. I gladly accepted this, as I felt badly in need of a change of company. I was