10

Canada House
London,
Feb. 17.

Dear Mother and Dad,

Another stage in my military career is just about over. We leave this station on Friday for some more leave so I shall be seeing Jack once more. After leave I don’t quite know what will happen. We all expect to go to what they call second-line squadrons for a while. There we will do such things as towing targets, or ferrying aircraft, it might be anything. But at any rate though we all want to get a bit of action it will be a relief not to be training for a while.

I got a note from Jack Diamond the other day. He has gone to Crail on a T.S.R. course. At the time he wrote he was in bed with a cold but outside of that seemed very cheerful. I may try and get up to Scotland this leave and if so I shall look him up. I am going to try, too, to visit some of these people whose addresses I have.

I have not heard from you lately but got one bunch of Provinces. They were good to get to read all about how they feel in Vancouver. It really is quite a problem to know what to do with the Japanese. If it were the Germans they would make them work the farms for them but I guess we are too soft-hearted for that. However as you say Mother the Mac-King will figure out something. I also got a letter from Pauline today. She seems to be a bit better and happier now that she is at home. I do hope she gets better quickly. She seems to be worrying a lot about her examinations in April. She hasn’t got some condition that is liable to be so hard to get rid of, has she. I can’t tell from letters just what it is.

I feel tonight as if I would not mind another ten days or so at home. We are all a little depressed at the moment by the bad news I guess and just a bit tired of the whole thing. However I must not worry you with things like that. You are having a worse time I am sure than we are. We have had bad news before and survived so what difference does it make. The only thing is that we are all beginning to hope more and more for the end so we can get back to something a bit more constructive.

I wonder if you have started receiving my allotment. They started in January to take it off at this end so you should be getting it by now. So take all I owe out of it won’t you and also don’t hesitate to use it if you need a little extra for anything. I would appreciate it if you would.

Last night I finished Night Flying, thank goodness. It is not the same proposition in this country. You haven’t got lights all over the country to guide you. It was a pitch black night and you couldn’t see any horizon at all. You have to fly entirely by instruments. Things look funny at night. When you are doing a turn the stars seem to be twirling around just below you and the lights on the aerodrome look as if they were above you. Altogether it is very confusing. If you take your eyes off the instruments just for a minute you are liable to go into a turn and never even notice it and unless you correct quickly you might find yourself diving for the earth or stalling or some such thing. Altogether it is quite nerve-wracking. It really isn’t dangerous at all but you have to concentrate like everything and consequently it is tiring.

Mac Ogilvy, a Scottish chap, and I went out riding Sunday afternoon. We got two ponies from a sort of riding school near here. It was a lot of fun but I am suffering now. I am stiff from my neck to my ankles. As you well know I have never been on a horse that I can remember in my life before. This horse I had, had very short legs and they really moved when he was trotting. I could never get the timing right for posting or whatever you call it. Consequently I spent the afternoon being badly shaken around. Another thing about this pony was that he was liable at any moment to break into a terrific gallop and if I hadn’t been holding on very tightly I might have been left behind. When I first got on he went straight to a shallow pond, walked out to the middle of it and started to have a drink. That shook me as I had visions of being thrown off into about six inches of icy water. However the afternoon was very enjoyable in spite of the sore seat I came home with. It was a lovely day and so nice to get away from things for a change. This pony gave me absolutely no chance to worry about anything but staying on his back. We got some pictures which I shall send to you just to prove the whole thing.

I do hope Phyllis is OK. as her time draws closer. By the time you get this I will be an uncle. How I wish I was there at this time. I am going to be an awfully proud uncle. I do hope they will cable immediately. I want to know. I am afraid I have given you the impression I am terribly homesick. I am a bit at the moment but don’t worry about me. It will pass away.

Meanwhile all my love goes to you both.
Hampton.

[postscript added to top of first page:] Our soap has just been rationed. However we get coupons enough for one cube a week which is really ample so don’t worry about me getting dirty.

[Editor’s note: While no year was included with the written date, the letter’s contents indicate it was 1942.]