Defensive Setups

W.A.C.s - Women's Army Corps

August 1, 1943            
Camp Croft, South Carolina
Friday Nite

Dear Folks, 
Today was about the best day we’ve had down here so far.  It was delightfully cool all day today, with no sun.  It was heaven.  And we didn’t do any work all day.  We just had lectures & classes on various subjects.  This morning we took a walk out to look at defensive setups - (Barbed wire, fox holes, tank traps, etc)  This afternoon we just had map reading & spent the rest of the afternoon on booby traps.  How to make them harmless, etc.  We had dynamite & firecrackers exploding all around us all afternoon.  Very good.  Everything is getting more interesting as we get into the practical work.  Yesterday we had compass & found our way to a certain spot using the compass set on a certain azmuth (I never knew what it meant until I got in the Army).  It rained again tonite, but it only lasted for about a half hour.  Right now I’m waiting or rather we’re waiting to go out on a nite demonstration.  Something about how sound is magnified at nite.

We also had a talk by some of the Chaplains -  Catholics, Protestants, & a Jewish (there’s only one for the whole camp).  Very nice talk on brotherhood & all that.  Just got a letter from the Chaplain today notifying me that there are 3 other Jewish boys from Rochester here.  But as they are in different Battalions, & because I don’t have too much time, I don’t think I’ll get a chance to look them up.  They are - Dave Silver, Nick Archer, & David A. Falk.  Know them?  Say, Bob must look like a sharpie now.  But I don’t have to worry about styles or fashions.  Mine will even be good next season.

We had an air raid sometime last week.  It was awful.  We had just come in from a hard day in the sun & weren’t even upstairs yet, when the alert came.  We had to grab our packs, rifle & a blanket & run all the way out to the woods, way past our drill area.  When we got there, we didn’t care if the airplanes bombed us or not.  Speaking of airplanes.  There are plenty of them flying over head all the time.  Mostly B-25’s (Doolittle Tokyo Raiders).  They’re really impressive when they come over in formation.

Answer Department:
1. No Wac’s, but expect about 150 soon. 
2. Our guard duty was 2 hours, then off.  But regular duty is 2 hrs. on & 4 off. 
3. I have heavy overcoat, dress jacket, field jacket (best part of our equipment) two flannel uniforms, three suntan uniforms & two fatigues, plus hat, ties, underwear, etc. 
4.I have no special pals here.  We’re all one happy family here, except for a coupla kids with short tempers.  Except for friendly feuds between platoons in the Company, within our own platoon, between lst floor & 2nd floor & also between the 4 squads, we’re all happy together.  My squad is judged the best because we won the obstacle course race, even with me on it.

There are 6 Jewish boys in my barracks besides me.  But I don’t like most of them.  They’re all from New York except one & he’s from Dayton, Ohio. Two are from Brooklyn or the Bronx & they’re both loud mouths, especially one of them.  He’s always bragging & shouting & giving his opinion.  The boys are getting tired of him.  He disgraced our platoon today, too.  He was given the opportunity to throw a Molotov Cocktail & he missed the rock.  Were we given the horselaugh.  The other fellow’s fault is staying in the showers too long.  When we come in at nite, we all take a brief shower & then hurriedly dress in our sun tans for Retreat.

Saturday Nite: .........Had to hurry out to the demonstration & couldn’t find time until now.  Tonite we got paid but I’m not going to town because it’s too crowded.  Maybe tomorrow.  Had a lot of fun last night.  Since yesterday, we’re trying to see which platoon can shout the commands loudest.  Our Sarge figured out the best combination of commands & we cooperated by shouting the loudest.  And when we got out to the Area, we sat on the side of a hill singing songs & shouting & arguing.  These times are when we feel we’re not in the Army.  Then they put on a very effective show showing how sounds & lights magnify at night & how to operate at night going thru barbed wire.  When we got back, the good old Mess Sarge had rolls & coffee.

Today we saw another picture on “Why We Fight.”  This was the “Battle of Britain.”  It was about the best we’ve seen so far.  If Germany had only known how little equipment England had in 1940, England would be out of the war now.

Got your box today & the boys sure went for those cookies fast.  Also the bread & spreads.  Delicious!  Well I sorta got off the track about those Jewish boys.  Two more of them are Pre-med & are pretty intellectual.  One kid is only 18 or 19 with two years of college pre-med behind him.  He’s small, thin, with shell rimmed glasses.  Looks the part of a smart guy.  The other pre-med is the one I like best of all, although he’s a little older.  One of the other ones is sorta fat & is always being hollered at for being out of step, or rifle crooked, or something.  It’s really funny the way they pick on him, but he’s pretty smart, too.  The other guy is a goldbrick & is always getting in trouble, too.  He & the loudmouth from Brooklyn are always in the Sunday dice games.  One guy won 17 dollars last week.  Don’t worry!!!!!  I don’t go near them.  Well I think I’ll go to the Service Club & get some watermelon.

Love, 
Ben