Letters between Malcolm William Keshan and Dorothy Williams, 1941 - Part 8

S.A.G 
Received 4/4/41

37 Byrnes Street, 
Bexley 
Monday Evening 31st March '41 
  
Hullo there Mac! 
How are you? Where have you been - Libya, Palestine  
or where? I can't keep up with you these days - you're  
moving so rapidly. I sit glued to the wireless when the  
news session comes over - especially now that there's some  
news of Libya coming over. But won't it be grand when  
you're back and you can tell me all about it, instead  
of writing. Have you planned it all out - just what  
you'll say when you do get back. I often lie in bed &  
think of what I'll say, but then the next night it all  
seems wrong. Anyhow, most likely I'll howl, and spoil  
everything. Wait and see.  
I've just returned from [[physie?]] - my usual Monday  
Evenings pastime as you know, & a few minutes ago was  
sitting on the floor, reading some of your letters you  
wrote me, before you left. Didn't you know I kept them  
all? They keep me going when I don't hear from you.  
And right on the top of the bundle is the telegram -  
"Leaving Soon - lots everything & great big cheerio". I know  
it off by heart. I'll never forget how wild I was - with  
myself, - because I missed our last night to-gether. I've  
gone over it dozens, no - hundreds of times. Do you mind  
if we change the subject darl. When I think of it, I  
don't feel so good.

2 
Mac, would you think me rather forward if I asked  
you to do me a favour? Would you let me have your  
mother's address? You see, its like this Mac (Don't say  
I'm being morbid, now.) Waiting those five weeks or so  
for a letter from you, I thought all sorts of things had  
happened to you, and of course I had no way of finding 
out.  In the natural course of events, if anything should  
happen to you (Heaven forbid) they would send word  
to your Mother immediately, and I thought perhaps I could  
get word from her, if you wouldn't mind. Oh, I really  
wouldn't pester her Mac, wouldn't be writing every  
fortnight if your letter didn't arrive. But you do understand  
what I'm trying to tell you don't you? Do you think  
Mrs Keshan would mind Mac? Please don't be  
afraid to say so, if you would rather not sweet.  
This isn't a very nice subject either. Lets have another  
try shall we.  
Well my sweet, I've won my  fourpence halfpenny.  
I didn't fall even once on Saturday night! And I even 
went in the fast, too. It was great to be on the ice  
again. (Make a note of it - that's another port of call  
for us - if you like skating that is.) And there was a  
huge crowd there too. A lot of the old faces, some in  
uniform, with lots of the hockey boys & good skaters  
conspicuous by their absence - overseas most likely.  
We're going on Wednesday night next again, so I'll try  
& keep my record clean & have no spills. Let you know

3 
next week how I get along.  
Daddie's working back these nights - at the Showground. 
It's going to be a bumper show this year so he says. 
I'd like to go one night to see the Exhibits - before Easter 
& then again on the Tuesday night after we return from 
the Valley to see the ring events. I wouldn't miss the 
ring events of a night, for the world. Anyway I'll see 
how time & the budget fares. 
We lost our match on Saturday last Mac. We're just a 
lot of mug players I'm beginning to think. That's two 
we've won, & two we've lost, so far. Still, you never can 
tell! 
I suppose you've seen some pretty wonderful sights since 
I heard from you last. That's something they'll never 
take from you - lucky you.  
Outside Mac, the searchlights are like so many shafts 
of silver, piercing a star spangled sky; it's the prettiest 
sight - I wish you could see them. They criss-cross 
and then sort themselves out again, only to form 
weird patterns straight away.  
As I write this, my eyes are attracted by a certain 
brilliant colour moving across the page with my pen. 
You wouldn't appreciate that brilliant colour though. 
You've no doubt guessed it - I've my fingernails painted 
red. Remember the last time I had them done with red 
nailpolish? You hated them. I reckon they look 
gay & sparkling against a coloured frock.  Only the

4 
trouble is, no body else seems to think so. And you just 
should hear from Pop on the subject. He's as bad, if not 
worse than you were.  
There is no news this week Mac. I hate these short  
letters as much as you do, but it's no good filling a page 
with rubbish (more rubbishy than usual I mean).  
I hope sincerely that you are behaving moderately well  
(Of course I know you're no angel.) 
Reading some of your early letters & then comparing them 
with your later ones I can't help noticing how you've grown 
older Mac. Don't think I've gone silly, it's a fact, you 
have got older. Don't ever change will you Mac? 'Cause 
the world needs nice folk around. To make up for all the 
Dot Williamses that haunt the place.  
It's getting late dear Mac & Mum has said I must go 
to bed by ten thirty to-night or else there will be no 
dancing for me to morrow night. Not that that would 
worry me, if I had anymore news to tell you, but 
I honestly haven't. Betty was here for a few minutes this 
evening looking brown & very fit after her holiday at 
Lithgow. When I read her parts of your last letter 
she made the same remarks as I did "It's better 
than a newspaper." So keep it up darlin. 
No horse play - do take care of yourself Mac. Or Else. 
Everyone wishes to be remembered to you. And you 
will write as often as you can, won't you? On account 
of - because. Lots of Love to you. My regards to 
your pal Bullet Head (has his hair grown yet?) 
[*I haven't received her snaps by the way. Your snaps I mean.) xxxxx 
It's time to say goodnight once again m'darl. Sweet dreams to you. 
Auf Wiedersehen. I remain Sincerely Always xxx 
Dorothy xxx*]

BY AIR MAIL 
  
No. NX11067 
Pte Keshan, M.W. 
"A" Coy., Batt 
A.I.F. 
Return to Sender on Military Board Instructions 
  
For O i/c District Records Office 
  
31-3-41 
  
NOT WITH 2/4 BN.

S.A.G 
  
F.P.O 
12 JL41 9-10 A 
E611 
  
NOT OPENED BY CENSOR 

A Coy 2/4th Bn 
A.I.F. 
Abroad. 
2nd April 41 
  
Dear Dot,  
Well darl its taken me quiet a while to write this letter 
I hope you didnt think Im getting to lazy to write or anything like 
that; Im definately not, as Ive said before I get great pleasure out 
of writing to you, and if I could I'd write every day darl, I simply must 
keep that contact, or I'll loose altogether and I just cant do that, it's about 
the only thing in this funny old world of ours, that's worrying me, and 
believe me it does, but you cant say I didnt try. I'd better cut it out or I'll 
be getting you confused darl. Do you know I havent had a letter from 
you since the one with the two beautiful snaps in it, and gosh that 
seems a long while ago, I was going to write this as soon as I came back 
from leave but we couldnt post them so I didnt write it in case it went 
astray, at present Im on a boat bound for, ?, I dont know, but I have 
just been told that we may not be able to send mail for a few week 
after we land, and there is doubt about the Air Mail, it is said there 
may not be any air mail from where we are going, so dont be a 
bit surprised if my mail takes longer to reach you sweet, I'll post 
this as soon as possible, I wish we would hurry and get into the 
fighting that has to be done in this war, so I can get back home, 
right now I'd give anything to be able to see you. I'd just like to sit

Love 2 you 
  
and look at you, and listen to you talk, thats just my bad luck 
though isnt it. Well darl I'm fed up with the army Ive been mucked 
around that much lately and now I dont know what my position is 
at all a whats more, I definately dont care, they call me Pte, Im doing 
a Cpls work, and getting Sgts pay, so you work it out if you can, there 
like a lot of dogs fighting over a bone and Im sorry I didnt take 
the stripes off and throw them at them. They also promised me leave 
to see Cairo if I would do a spot of work for them a few days ago 
and when it was finished wouldnt give it to me, well there was 
only one thing left for me to do then darl, and that was take it, which 
I did. I often think darl, its funny how different some peoples luck is, 
take that Pat Garmin fellow for instance, your cousin sees his photo 
and immediately wants to know all about him, as you said practically 
a case of love at first sight, in other words he's done more without 
even seeing your cousin, than I have in about 3 years right; as a 
matter of fact he dont even know she inquired about him I haven't 
seen him for a long time now. I had a great time on leave we 
flew up to Cairo via Port Said, it's a great trip, the planes good 
and the scenery wonderful, the Nile Valley which is all irrigated is 
a real picture, it's just like looking down on a huge toy farm, we 
only stopped at Port Said for about 10 minutes just long enough to 
stretch the legs then on to Cairo, a car was waiting for us at the 
air port to take us to a Hotel. We hadnt been in Cairo half an 
hour before we were caught by a guide, though through rogue

(3) 
ing us he done himself out of a good client; he started of by saying he 
would take us to an old Church which was the place of places in 
Cairo, then we went through all the dirty smelly narrow streets 
in Cairo finally arriving at a Church that was of no interest 
at all and then he started to spin his yarn, which finally with 
the usual he wanted money for us coming in, also for him 
luring us there and for the chap who kept the place, he was 
bably disappointed however because we flatly refused to give 
him anything and walked out; then we got a guide told him 
what we wanted to see and asked him how much he wanted 
we were not getting caught twice. We had a look at King 
Farouks palace, which is much the same as Buckingham 
Palace, then we went on to the Citadel as you get near it its 
like a big old castel, I wanted to take a snap of it but its against 
the Wog religion to take snaps of it so I was out of luck. Its a 
high building and before being allowed to enter you have to 
wear slippers over your shoes, then you enter the court yard, 
a big white place in the center of which there is a wash stand 
and a well 300 feet deep, before entering the main part the Wogs 
draw water from the well and wash there faces three times 
there hands and arms three times and there feet 3 times then they 
are supposed to be clean and allowed to go in and pray. 
Personally I reckon they would have to be boiled three times to 
make them clean, and even then they might not be clean.