Jon Bouman to the Bouman Family
Title
Jon Bouman to the Bouman Family
Creator
Bouman, Jon Anthony, 1873-1958
Identifier
WWP23144
Date
1927 September 9
Description
Letter from Jon Bouman to his family.
Source
Gift of William C. and Evelina Suhler
Subject
Germany--History--1918-1933
Correspondence
Transatlantic flights
Contributor
Rachel Dark
Denise Montgomery
Language
English
Requires
PROOFREADING
Provenance
Evelina Suhler is the granddaughter of Jon Anthony Bouman and inherited the family collection of his letters from the years of World War I. She and her husband gave the letters to the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum in 2013.
Text
Dearest;
It seems strange that you will be all back home again when you receive this; time has flown very quickly. Of course I will continue to send you a cheque twice monthly as I don’t want you to run short, neither would I want you to have to write every time, that would be quite absurd. The last time I thought I had better put the money into my bank and send you my own cheque, as I imagined the foreign draft might embarrass you out in the country.
Enderis now pays me my salary and also my hotel and living expenses which is to go on until I go back to London for my holiday. I wish I could spend it in some quiet place away from the racket of the town. I might be getting ready for it now, were it not for those cursed flying stunts which are holding everything up, it will be well into the autumn when I get my holiday which will probably be occupied with all sorts of harassing questions, and no good to me as a recuperation.
Enderis thinks if I am coming back to Berlin the office ought to continue paying my living expenses owing to me having to run two establishments; he sees my difficulties, but it is doubtful whether New York would agree to that. Bodker of Reuters and Ruttle of the Exchange are two other grass widowers, and Spray of the D. Chronicle has been for several months too; this prospect does not please me, but I don’t know what else can be done. I have not had a line from Smith since I left London; I suppose he thinks I am safely out of the way, and he doesn’t bother about my case any more. We shall have to go into it again when I am able to get away from here.
Lochner has asked me out to his house on Sunday afternoon after I finish up at the office to get acquainted with his family. The latter have also had to go away by themselves; he was very disappointed about that too, but I told him he had no business to have family ties, and he said that was about right nowadays; certainly Americans are much harder worked than English journalists who don’t have to work when their papers don’t come out. I see from the copy of our London service that they have been pretty hard driven there too; I see Raney had to leave his mail stints and go to Plymouth after the aviators. Thank goodness the season for flying will soon be over now. Then they have had the additional worry about the Channel Swimmers: I have escaped that, at least!
I don’t think I need advise the Aliens Dept as my address is still in London and I am only away and am expecting to return temporarily and expecting to return to London, -- let us say – shortly. Later on, it will be necessary to notify them.
I always thought it was a joke that German fraus, if they were served with a specially juicy morsel, transferred it to their husband’s plate, but I have seen it done! Ha ha! how I laughed behind my newspaper while the fat husband hogged the tidbit, grumbling piggishly.
I am working now from 11 a.m. to 730 p.m. with an hour for lunch, of course. Then at 730 (more often 8) I have my dinner. I went to see the film “Metropolis” which has been, or is, in London too. It is very exciting.
Hoping you will find everything O.K. on your return, with love to all,
Jac.
P.S. I wrote this on Thursday evening but waited mailing to see if anything from you
Friday morning. Yours of Wednesday just to hand. Thanks, Bill for your interesting letter.
I am happy thinking you had a successful holiday.
It seems strange that you will be all back home again when you receive this; time has flown very quickly. Of course I will continue to send you a cheque twice monthly as I don’t want you to run short, neither would I want you to have to write every time, that would be quite absurd. The last time I thought I had better put the money into my bank and send you my own cheque, as I imagined the foreign draft might embarrass you out in the country.
Enderis now pays me my salary and also my hotel and living expenses which is to go on until I go back to London for my holiday. I wish I could spend it in some quiet place away from the racket of the town. I might be getting ready for it now, were it not for those cursed flying stunts which are holding everything up, it will be well into the autumn when I get my holiday which will probably be occupied with all sorts of harassing questions, and no good to me as a recuperation.
Enderis thinks if I am coming back to Berlin the office ought to continue paying my living expenses owing to me having to run two establishments; he sees my difficulties, but it is doubtful whether New York would agree to that. Bodker of Reuters and Ruttle of the Exchange are two other grass widowers, and Spray of the D. Chronicle has been for several months too; this prospect does not please me, but I don’t know what else can be done. I have not had a line from Smith since I left London; I suppose he thinks I am safely out of the way, and he doesn’t bother about my case any more. We shall have to go into it again when I am able to get away from here.
Lochner has asked me out to his house on Sunday afternoon after I finish up at the office to get acquainted with his family. The latter have also had to go away by themselves; he was very disappointed about that too, but I told him he had no business to have family ties, and he said that was about right nowadays; certainly Americans are much harder worked than English journalists who don’t have to work when their papers don’t come out. I see from the copy of our London service that they have been pretty hard driven there too; I see Raney had to leave his mail stints and go to Plymouth after the aviators. Thank goodness the season for flying will soon be over now. Then they have had the additional worry about the Channel Swimmers: I have escaped that, at least!
I don’t think I need advise the Aliens Dept as my address is still in London and I am only away and am expecting to return temporarily and expecting to return to London, -- let us say – shortly. Later on, it will be necessary to notify them.
I always thought it was a joke that German fraus, if they were served with a specially juicy morsel, transferred it to their husband’s plate, but I have seen it done! Ha ha! how I laughed behind my newspaper while the fat husband hogged the tidbit, grumbling piggishly.
I am working now from 11 a.m. to 730 p.m. with an hour for lunch, of course. Then at 730 (more often 8) I have my dinner. I went to see the film “Metropolis” which has been, or is, in London too. It is very exciting.
Hoping you will find everything O.K. on your return, with love to all,
Jac.
P.S. I wrote this on Thursday evening but waited mailing to see if anything from you
Friday morning. Yours of Wednesday just to hand. Thanks, Bill for your interesting letter.
I am happy thinking you had a successful holiday.
Original Format
Letter
To
Bouman Family
Files
Collection
Citation
Bouman, Jon Anthony, 1873-1958, “Jon Bouman to the Bouman Family,” 1927 September 9, WWP23144, Jon Anthony Bouman Collection, Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum, Staunton, Virginia.