Dutchie Darling . . . Love, Bob
	A Love Story © 2021 Patricia Jean Patten Evans All rights reserved

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After months of preparation, the 75th Infantry left Fort Breckinridge, Kentucky and headed for the European Theater on Oct 22, 1944. They went by troop ship to Britian. Jean went to New York, hoping to see Bob before he deployed, but was unable to connect with him. On Nov 2, 1944, he found himself in Wales for intensive training. Because of the move, his mail to and from her was severely disrupted. He tries using V Mail—Victory Mail. The process used forms, on which the person wrote their message, which were microfilmed and then sent airmail. On the other end, the microfilmed letters were then printed off and delivered. The advantage of the V Mail system was that it saved tons of precious cargo space. For example, according to the National Postal Museum, 37 mail bags were required to carry 150,000 one page letters, weighing 2,575 pounds. The same number of letters in V Mail format could fit in one mail sack and weighed 45 pounds. In spite of the patriotic draw of V Mail, the Museum reports that most people still sent their letters first class mail. Bob refers to the party given to celebrate William Edgar Smith’s 25 years with SS Pierce’s in Boston Ma. Bill worked for SS Pierce’s until his retirement.

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