prettiest girls ef Beleit, Kansas. Cengratulatiens te yeu, Hill axd
Margaret, and may every geed thing ceme te yeu and yeurs. 5ill pleyed
feetball here in 1940.

Maj. Fen A. Durand, Fleet Pesteffice, San Francisce, wrete en Dec. 12th:
"I have been back with my battalion for nearly 4 menth new, and its mighty
é@ifficult te realize that I have spent a merth's leave at heme. After such
a leave its teuzh te settle dewm te this military life again, but it seems
there is no alternative. . . After seeing yeu in Lawrence, we went ex te
Payette, Mee, where Katie and I were married om Oct. 2lst. Her father was
Dr. Merrill Smith of Fayette, whem yeu might have known abeut twenty years
ASGe « « « We flew te Sar Francisce where we spent ten days er se befere I
had te leave fer everseas aghin. Believe me, its hard te leave that secend
time, especially after having just beem married’ .'. . I finally received
word that Dana is in seuthern France. Se far as I knew he has net yet been
in actien, but undeubtedly he will seen have that eppertunity. . . . When
sheulé I see the ether day evt here but Mike Sihlenick, whe is a Lt. in the
U.S.M.C. We had a fine talk together and he asked that I relay his regards
te you and Dean Nesmith. I certainly enjeyed seeing yeu and yeur family
agein and wish that I ceuld have had a lenger visit with yeu alle Give my
my regerds te Henry Shenk and Dean Nesmith, and the best ef luck ite the
Jayhawkers during basketball seasen."

Fen, yeur letter came just after we had received onay ef the passing
ef yeur wonderful dad on December 24th in Jumctien City. I recall with
what animation amd pride he walked inte the effice here with ysou in Octeber.
I ceuld see his fierce pride and leve fer his three fine sens whe are all in ~
the service. Put life is like that. Mr. Durand filled a wexderful mission
in life. Besides having ene of the mest hespitable hemes in Junctien City,
graced with the presence ef the wenderful mether ef his beys, he was knewn
threugheut his extire community as one ef the mest public spirited and ene
ef the mest durable citizens ef Kansas. The plan of tite has been fulfilled.
Our deepest sympathies te his bereaved family.

I have just teday received a letter teen Capt. Clint Kana ce, USMCR, Fleet
Pesteffice, San Francisce, whe says, "Have time fer a nete se 1 a. I'd
let yeu knew that I'm fime as can bee Teday makes a year eur ship has been
eut ef the States amd 13 menths en sea duty fer me. Its gone fast -1944- and
I can't say that its been meneteneus and uninteresting all the time. The
war has gene a leng way in a year - frem England te the German berder in Eurepe,
and frem Kwajalein te Luzem in the Pacific. Maybe a year frem new we will be
in Berlin and Tekie. We have excitement eccasienally but net day after day
under adverse cenditiens like the infantry. . . . Haven't had any mail fer a
ceuple ef weeks se sheuld get seme seen. I always enjoy your newsletter -

_ its splendid fer yeu te keep that up fer I knew everyone overseas eats up every

word ef ite . « Hepe yeu have a geed ball club. One thing sure, when the war
is ever - with Evans, Snelly, and the rest back we'll take them apart again. ."

Well, Snelly is up te his eld tricks! I think many ef you will be in-
terested in this letter frem Capt. Fred G. Heinlen, Asst. Physical Training
Officer at Selman Field, where Snelly has been.

"I theught yeu might be interested im hearing abeut ene ef yeur beys, Otte
Schnellbacher. He has just left eur field te enter Bembardier's Scheel
but while he was here he did a fine jeb as a soldier and as an athlete.
“He was the cutstanding bey en eur feetball team this year. His defensive
end play amd his pass catching ability was the best any ef us have ever
seen areund here. He played the last five ball games we had and made the

149.