The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1942-11-12
Libby Soldier
Writes From
Australia
Ray Enders Gives
His Impressions of
Land Down Under
SAYS AUSTRALIANS
ARE MOST FRIENDLY


have recently received letter from
soldier friend and Libby young
man, Ray Enders 1t was written
somewhere in Australia and con-
tains so much of interest that West
ern News readers will enjoy read
ing it. It follows.
Dear friends:
was very pleased to hear from
you folks, So pleased in fact that |
am not going to try to thank you
Just ask you to keep on writing
whenever you can. know you have
two boys in the army now, SO you
no doubt have all the writing you
can do, SO maybe it is selfish of me
to ask you to write meASonce in a
while. 1t is SO nice, thoughSto hear
from the neghbors that | do hope
you can keep on writing.
Your letter was post marked July
18th, so you see it does take long
time for a letter to get over here,
and when we do get our mail 1t
comes all in bunch. So it always
takes us week or so to answer
them all.
| am glad that you have heard
from Kenneth because he is not
here with us and have been Won
dering where he was. And do hope
he is still going strong when we
all get back home, which we all
hope will be soon. the same as you
folks do
| wish | could tell you what part
of Australia we are in but the CEN
sor wouldn't pass it SO that is out.
But this is a wonderful country.
Lots of flowers like those you and
my mother take such good care OF
to raise-even in the house-groW
almost wild here. Pineapples, fruit
| had never expected to see grow,
are raised and are pretty cheap. Ba-
nanas grow here too. A lady
in town showed me a tree of them
in her backyard a few days ago 1t
is winter time here now and lots OF
DAYS it is 30 to IS above zero
The people tell me it very seldom
freezes here so no wonder they
raise the things they do. Right here
there's a lot of cattle rased, too
/ happened to be in town one day
while cattle auction was on SO
went to see it and good big white
face COWS and steers were selling
for $40 to $25 head. OF course in
a place like this cattle raising is
much simpler than it is in the states
where they have to be fed seven
months out of the year.
Over here, as you know. the mon
ey is the same as the English mon
ey-it is pounds, shilling and pence
And believe me | sure had some
time getting used to it. One thing
we get paid with it too SO it doesn't
have to be changed, where if i,
did we would really take beating
on it.
The people treat us "Yanks" as
they call us, just swell Lots of the
bows have been invited to the homes
. of some of them and they say the
people treated them like their owr
sons. | can't say too much for the
Australians | have met because they
have been grand to me.
Gosh, I'll bet the young men If
Libby sure are getting few anc
far between, but one of these day.
we will all be back and then yol
will all wonder what manner O
men we are. And how few month:
in the army can change man s(
muchl They say it makes good mer
out of poor ones and vice versa anC
| believe it now. What worries mi
is what I'll do after | get out be
cause I'll have no sergeant or no one
to tell me what to do. One TINS
though, | am a good deal older thar
any commissioned officer WI
have SO | get by pretty good.
/ hope Ralph has got used to thu
army by this time. A younger MAI
gets on to the army lot faster thar
we older men.
So Neils finally bought the A. c
M. timber on the Fisher, did they
That is good news because it mean
a lot to Libby. We may get back il
time to help work up lot of tina
timber vet.
Well, no, | didn't have to fee
the fishes on the way over, but boy
oh boy, | could have at one time
short way out of the Golden Gate
One of the boys who had been o.
the ocean before told me to go la
down on my bunk and that I'd 500
get over it. Well, it worked but mex
morning | still had butterflies i
my stomach but after breakfast
went out on deck and by noon | wa
0. K, and stayed that way all tn
way over.
Yes it was a pretty fine trip onl
that we were pretty crowded bl
that couldn't be helped.
We have our chins up because W
can't let the folks back home dow
when they are really all with us.
Please write again soon and l.
answer sooner. 1t always seems |
take a letter a month or more
come from home SO write when yo