April 5, 1954

Monday Apr 5, 54

Dear Mom, Dad, and Snapper

Well I guess you went a few days without any mail but I wasn't able to write.  I could ave written but I wouldn't have been able to mail it because the last mail went out last Thursday at 8am.  Wed night I had guard.  I was supervising so I did not have to pull guard.  I did go on a patrol with 2 other guys.  We started at 11pm and stayed till 5am.  We couldn't find anything so we build a little fire up in the hills and took it easy. 

Thursday we packed our duffel bags and sent them to the train.  We didn't do anything on Fri except clean up the area.  Fri afternoon I went to the Bn Hqs and stayed because I was in the real party.  The Co left early Sat morning on trucks to go to the train.  We stayed in the Bn area Sat and Sat afternoon we moved over to Regt Hqs.  There was a total of about 60 men left in the rear party.  We ate our meals at "Triple Nickel."  They were the only part of the 5th RCT that didn't move.  Sunday morning we drove in trucks to Seoul and got on the Red Ball Express and to to Pusan at 10 this morning.  Right now I am at camp 2 where the Regt Hqs and 2nd Bn is located, except for George Co and they are in Masan.  We are waiting for a truck to go there now.  Easy, Fox and Hq companies are going to stay here and George is going to be by their selves.  1st Bn went to Koje-do and 3rd Bn went to Tay-gue.  It is pretty nice here they have almost everything you want.  Snack bars, beer bars, theaters etc.  They live in Quonset type buildings and they have laundry, tailors, showers right in each company area where they are.  The guys say George Co has a nice area where they are.  I hope it is.  Masan s about 25 or 50 miles from Pusan Camp 9. They use to have a Chines PW there.  Pusan had North Korean PW.  There are still some 24 Div men here.  Don U may still be here but I probably won't see him.  I won't be here long enough.

It is raining pretty hard today.  Things look green here.  It isn't cold so it shouldn't be to bad to be here. 

Well we should be leaving in less than an hour so I will close.  I'll finish writing when we get to George Company.--------------------

Well it's Tuesday now.  I got to G co yesterday about 6pm.  It is 47 miles to Pusan from here over a rough road through the hills.  The country is really pretty here.  I was sure surprised when I got here.  The camp is right in the town of Masan.  There are ROCK women here and ROCK soldiers in the same camp.  George Co is here inside the camp by ourselves.  It is a lot better here than Pusan.  You should see our mess hall.  We have tables and chairs, a bar and stage and a dance floor that looks lie a night club.  It is OK.  The food should get better because the officers eat in the same mess hall.  Our quarters are a Quonset type.  We have steel beds.  We don't have mattresses yet.  We still sleep on air mattresses and sleeping bags. We should get some mattresses soon.  In our building sleeps the 57 section and we are not crowded.  The Sgts have a house to live in with about 3 in a room. To tell you the best we have house girls.  They come in at 8am stay till 5pm.  They wash clothes, iron and sew for the guys.  Each bldg has one girl.  This is sure different that what we have had.

I don't know much about the guard yet.  Our platoon has it tomorrow night.  I'll tell you about that later.

We are right on the ocean.  We can see ships in the bay.  I'll take some pictures of the area and send them to you when I settle in.  Today I worked in the area.  I painted a big pentagon in the mess hall and in the morning I will put the motto on  "The Best by George."

Some one told me today that I was put in for Sgt but was turned down because I have only been a cpl for a month.  The Old Man said that there was a rumor around that the 5th RCT was moving back to camp Carson Colorado this summer sometime.  I heard a few days before that they planned to make the 5th a ski unit.  So there may be something to it.  It sure would be nice if they would.

I got a can of cookies from you last night.  They sure were good.  I haven't had any mail tonight or a letter so far but may get some tonight.  The ROCK camp as a loud speaker.  They play oriental music over it after and during meals. 

Well don't have know much more to say.  I like everything fine here.  I'll tell you more about it as I go along.
Lots of Love, Ted

PS  Mail came in tonight.  I got 2 letters from Dad, 23 and 28 of Mar.  Guess everything is going OK at home.  We don't get guard till Sat night.  I am going to be on the main gate as MP, check passes etc.  You probably remember the MPs at the gate at Camp Roberts.  It's on the same order.  Well I got some pictures tonight from Simonie.  He had some made.  I am going to take some color pictures of this place soon.  The guy who plays the piano, you sent clippings out of the Westinghouse News, I saw him at the NCO school around Xmas.