Dearest Betty

Thanks to my Marine Corps friend, Buzzy, I have made corrections to letter #2 and # 12.


Letter #19
October 22, 1950
AT SEA AND I DO MEAN AT SEA

Darling,

I’ll be Damned if we didn’t reverse course again and steamed south. We are now headed north again into Wonsan tomorrow morning. A bit of excitement today. The chief (each Jap L.S.T. has one Navy Chief board) called me up to the bridge this afternoon and said the ship ahead had signaled him they had lost a dog overboard. We watched for him but couldn’t see him when a Jap started yapping “doggie port side” over and over again till we did see him swimming toward us. He came along side and we dropped a life ring to him but he was too weak to climb to it. The Jap captain (a good old fellow) stopped the ship while we tried to hook him, but failed. He was going astern when the “Old Man” backed the ship down & we lowered a small man down over the side. He finally got hold of the dog, who was game by then & we drug them both aboard. Took the dog to the galley & got him warm & some warm milk into him. He is frisky as Hell now, a red chow, well we messed up the entire convoy cause all the ships behind us stopped or turned out past us. It was quite a mix up for about 30 minutes but every one got back into position and every one aboard was quite happy. Of course the word got around that the dog jumped ship because it was the ship with all the Salmon aboard. And lots of jibes at our mess Sgt. About not cooking the dog etc. So some wise guy for a lark, dropped some red hair into one of the fellow’s soup tonite at chow. Was quite a row about that. Every thing is O,K, now.

Marines carry some of the darnedest in a combat pack, rather that is all we were supposed to have. Some one broke out a portable phonograph with records tonite, so every one is here listening to it.

I'll see you later, Darling

Your Bill.