France

August 14, 1944

Dear Mom,

This has been a wonderful day. I had my first bath in a tub since I came to France. True, the water was cold, but it was a porcelain tub and the water was clear and blue.

Then I had some dinner which consisted of my "K" ration can of Amer cheese, dark French bread, fresh red tomatoes and crisp celery and white French onion. For dessert I had the caramels which came with the candy and Gracie's box of candy which came most opportunely last night.

For a long time I have intended to write about the houses where we have stayed on occasion but as each got progressively better I kept putting off describing it. Now, however, we are in the best we ever have been.

This is an enormous chateau and - like most others we have been in - was formerly a German headquarters. One of the current big shots stayed here for a few days only a little over a week ago.

The place beggars all description. Like all others of its kind, it is set back in a woods of enormous firs, spruces, elms, oaks and other trees with a winding drive up to the house.

I don't know how many rooms are in the place. Each master bedroom has an enormous bathroom as large as our kitchen there at home and across the hall servants quarters for each set of guests.

There are at least five floors with marble staircase and hall. The house has its own elevator, not in use at present. Walls are nearly all padded cloth covered and everywhere is a profusion of pictures, some lithograph prints, some engravings, but mostly original paintings, many of them very fine though the artists are none of them known to me.

The lighting system is still on, which is unusual for us to find.

Much of the house is denied to us for being occupied with refugee French from a town the Germans bombed. He has another house in Paris and must be a man of considerable wealth. Both he and his wife speak excellent English though I have had no personal contact with them.

In rear is an enormous stable with ten race horses. There is also a garden several acres in extent which has everything you might need; peaches, pears, plums, apples, beans, tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, celery, etc. in addition to many striking flowers. The garden is quite formalized and the vegetables are set in like flowers in the beds.

The man had several automobiles, several of which the Germans took with them when they left.

The house is relatively young for Europe, being only 50 years old. Bathroom fixtures, however, are all of fairly recent type.

My continual emphasis on bathrooms stems from the fact that until recently we were convinced the French never took a bath or went to the toilet in the conventional manner. We have found large chateaus almost the size of this one completely devoid of plumbing fixtures of any kind.

As we got farther down we finally found a bathtub and some portable toilets. This place goes all out with numerous tubs and flush toilets.

Whenever we get into something pretty good our stay is relatively short so we make the most of it in ease and comfort. Tonight I will sleep on a bed again, and I suspect I'd better get on with it for I'll be going on duty pretty soon.

Love,

Bob

Thanks for the candy and your letters which came the last several days and today. I don't want any Christmas presents other than to be home at that time.