The Durant news. (Durant, Miss.) 1882-1985, 1944-11-23
Dear Mr.. Howell:

HaN0 pNStt
for a long time but it seems that l
could not get around to it. I'm ashamed
that l haven't because you and all the
Rotations have been good to send me
all the news from home. The News Let
ter carries all the things that interest
me most and gets here lots quicker than
the regular paper. l have received sew
eral signed by you, RED, Taylor, Miss
Power and Light Company and the Rev.
Robertson. l want you to know that !
really appreciate them.
The best way perhaps to describe this
place 10 in the words of a war CORES
pondent who was here when we made
the landing.
"The island o., to the eye, Is
strictly . National Geographic Magazine
Island with it's groves of towering CO.
conut trees; its profusion OF brilliant
tropical flowers; its exotic fruits; and
its unbelievable colored birds flashing
through tropical foliage.
"The very things which would de-
light a peace-time tourist, annoy the
very devil out of the soldier. The coco
nuts drop on his head, the flowers are
attached to vines which block his path,
trip him, and force him to fight his
way with a machette. The bananas ana
paw paws are mostly green, and give
him the stomach ache. The insects al
ternate between humming and
on him.
"The mysterious rivers have Just
enough crocodiles to make bathing IN
them suicide. The coral reefs cut his
feet to ~tatters. When he attempts to
swim in the soft warm combers that
curl on the beach, the blistering saho
is inhabited by millions of fleas, the
dazzling sun blisters him, the ram
soaks him, the lush growth OF the Jun
gle contributes to jungle rot. HIS nome
is a hole in the ground just big enough
to provide stretching room for him ana
his buddy. His mattress is a dirty wet
shelter half and his cover is q damp
mildewing poncho, his roof Is anything
he can devise to keep out rain +. . logs
brush. dirt. the discarded top OF a
truck or jeep. His clothes are the dirty
greasy fatigue clothes I. . he Is lucky
IL he can change clothes and boots once
n week he abathes out of a steel
helmet and plods through an open air
chow line to get his food flopped into
his mess gear -. the rain waters ms
cffee and soaks his pancakes.
"There are no natives to do his work,
he works from sun-up to sundown' IL
he isn't on the line guarding against
the enemy, he clears areas OF brush OF
unloads ships, or totes %rations, or puils
KIP or cleans weapons, Tugs water, or
digs latrines. When darkness closes In
he gets in his dirty foxhoie for the
night with nothing to look forward to
until chow call at $50 in the morning
"Yes.-is a lovely, lovely place
We have beer here for some time now
and it is not so bad, We sleep on cots
the Jungle hammock and fox-hole being
a thing of the past. B~ull-dozers and
tractors have cleared a lot OF jungle
and made some very good roads IN
some cases much better than those i've
seen in some parts of the States. we are
housed in tents and our mess nan is
sheltered. Z
There was very little opposition from
the enemy when we took this islana
and the only action ! saw was when a
Jap plane came over our convoy ana
dropped an egg at a troop transport not
over a couple of hundred yards from
where / was standing at the rail on an
other ship. 1t was a near miss but at
the time it was very exciting. We have
an occasional air raid alert but the
damage that has been caused is very
slight.
Again l want to thank you for the
News Letter and wish you and all the
other Rotarians the best. of health and
luck.
Sincerely,
Norman d. Porter.