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Letter from G. H. Leatherman, International Dental Federation, 22 Devonshire Place, London W.1 enquiring why Charles’s son, who is getting practical experience in dentistry in America, has not applied for a course in that country leading to a master’s degree. The letter includes a pencilled draft of Charles’s reply.

Letter from G. Kraijenhoff, AKZO, 82 Ijssellaan, Arnhem, Netherlands, to Herrema at Ambassador Beach Hotel, New Providence Island, Bahamas. Kraijenhoff is concerned that Herrema will be assaulted by news-hungry people on his return to Ireland and urges him to consider ways in which he could avoid further publicity. The letter also discusses a proposed book deal and Herrema’s new appointment in Holland, which will make it much harder for him to leave Ireland quietly.

Letter from Geo[rge] W. Eades, Carleton Place, Ontario[, Canada], to James H. Eades, 24 Ascot Terrace, Limerick, enclosing a compilation of pedigree charts and other genealogical material relating to the Eades family.

From Gertrud Junge in Nasiedle. Gertrud informs Hella about Günther’s death. On 27 January, Günther chased an enemy fighter from Deelen (Netherlands) to Berlin. That night at about 9 p.m., Günther’s father happened to be outside during an air raid alarm. He saw a seemingly damaged night fighter giving light signals and looking for the Tempelhof airfield flying over their house. A few minutes later, a Bf110 crashed into the nearby allotment gardens in Berlin-Britz. After many investigations, the two dead pilots were identified as Günther and his comrade Schlüter. Apparently, a flight mechanic had also been on board, but no one knows what happened to him. When Günther flew over his parents’ house to symbolically say goodbye, it was still standing. Two days later, it went up in flames. It is uncertain why Günther and Schlüter did not eject before they crashed. His brother Friedolf thinks that Schlüter was wounded, maybe Günther too, and that Günther was confident that he could safely land the plane. Günther is currently laid out in the reserve military hospital in Berlin Charlottenburg, Spandauer Chaussee 1. Even though he was advised not to go and see Günther, his father insists on seeing his son one last time. He will try everything to shed light on what really happened that night and is only a shadow of his former self. Gertrud tries to be a strong soldier’s mother even though she lost everything. She thanks Hella for the love she showed Günther. Gertrud wants to meet Hella and talk to her soon since she hopes to learn more about her son’s innermost thoughts from her. Günther’s last sign of life was a letter of 25 January. By the time it arrived, he was already dead. He also called his father in Berlin on 23 January and told him that he was a little sad that he had not shot any enemies yet and that this would change soon. Gertrud believes that Günther insisted on shooting an enemy fighter that night and that that is what got him killed. The funeral will likely take place on Wednesday, 6 February. Günther’s father will let Hella’s family in Berlin know. She tells Hella to get in touch with him to stay up-to-date. With envelope.

From Günther in Fürstenwalde. Another day is gone. Günther is listening to music in the recreation room and again has nothing to do except think of Hella. Everything went well on Sunday although the journey was long. He thought about phoning Hella’s house in the evening to check that they had not been bombed, but from the newspaper it looked as though they were alright. Thanks to the RAF, Günther managed to spend a few extra hours with Hella. The next few weeks will not offer him a chance to repeat the visit. He is on fire sentry duty next Sunday. When the weather warms up Günther will invite Hella to Fürstenwalde. At the moment it is not very pleasant as all the streets are icy. He asks whether she has passed her certificate of achievement. He then asks if she has any other worries or if she has insomnia. Günther says he has insomnia sometimes but knows who to blame for that. He sends greetings to her parents and thanks them for the invitation to the cinema. With envelope.

From Günther in Fürstenwalde. The past week was busy for Günther. There is a new weekly duty roster, and they have to get up at 4:45 a.m. now. She is right about the fact that he is already tired again by the time she gets up at 7:00 a.m. One day last week, after their flying duty in the morning, they were given rifles and sent into the field. They viewed it as a lovely spring walk in beautiful weather. Normally, they only get to see nature’s beauty from above. At the end of the march, they pretended to fight over a village, which left a strange impression on the residents. The day was a nice change from the usual routine. According to his parents, who he had just talked to on the phone, the attack on Berlin is said to have been one of the worst so far. He hopes that Hella is doing well. Tempelhof is said to have been hit particularly hard. Even some walls of his parent’s house are supposedly missing. Apparently, an aerial mine hit only 100 meters away. He has already set everything in motion to go home and inspect what can be salvaged. Günther thanks Hella for her letter, which has served as a ray of sunshine in the dark for him. Thanks to the practical format of her photo, he can take it everywhere. When he is in a bad mood, he simply looks at it and smiles again. With envelope.

From Günther at the officers’ quarters somewhere near Belgrade. He complains that Hella is always ironic, and he is afraid that it will cause him to become shy again. He does not feel comfortable writing what is on his mind anymore. The weather is not as nice now, so he cannot sunbathe anymore. He is the only one not on duty, so he has decided to answer his mail. A huge coincidence caused Günther to reunite with two old military school comrades. They play cards in the mess every night, drink wine, and lose track of time. They only go to bed at 11 in the evening, which is much too late because they have to get up early. This behaviour must end soon because, in two days, flying duty starts again. To answer Hella’s question about how long he will stay there, Günther estimates his stay to be about four weeks. He would like to know how long his letters take to arrive. He sends them directly to Berlin-Tempelhof with Lufthansa, but her letters take four days to arrive. With envelope.