October 20, 1956

Dear Thom,

It is another dod gam football weekend here.  I have just gotten over an attack of cold
germs, and the weather here is cold, damp, moist, sloppy, and downright detestable.
The girls are not discernible, and life in general is hell.  Outside of the above-mentioned
problems, all is well.

To keep up with my studies, I have taken to rising at 5 A.M.  This unnerves my roommates
no end, but it can't be helped.  The very fact that you are reading this letter is a proof that I
finally caught up on my studies enough to write it.

M.J. has been coming down for the last two home games, but, since no females are
allowed in our hall, she hasn't given me much trouble.  However, she besieges poor F.
in his little room and is driving him nutz.  F. was trapped into taking her to the "Victory?"
dance last week, and things went normally.  F. was P.O.'d.

Your friend and mine, D.P., came down here a few weeks ago looking like the little man
who built his house on sand.  He and C. are theoretically on the mend (she came with him,
if that's worth anything), but I can see a schism coming.  The Goulder noticed D's
precarious position too, and he commented at great length on it.

I saw "War and Peace" last Tuesday.  My only comment is that there was  more "Piece"
than War.   Audrey was very good as usual.

I wrote to "Wild" D.J., and he reports that all is well with the St. Mary's boys.  He is
threatening to send you a letter, but don't let it worry you.  G. also vows he will send you
a letter.  Don't hold your breath until it comes.........you know the Goulder.

I met a fellow here from New Jersey, near Princeton, named J.T., he tells me that all
his friends went to Dartmouth and that the hazing is fairly hard.  He said that in the
middle of winter the Dartmouth fellows would come home for a weekend, run around
in their T-shirts and complain about the hot weather.

Chess move:  KN - KB3

Yours truly,

Bob-o

October 4, 1956

Dear Bob,

I'm sorry I didn't write sooner, but being in college yourself, you know how it is.  I was
very glad to receive your correspondence, for you know what a nice feeling it is to
receive mail from "home".

This letter is accompanied by the second of the series, "Life on the American Scene".
Note the conventional (green) shutters, the brick wall, the climbing ivy, the unopened
Blatz bottle and the opened Hamm's can.  This is probably the most common sight
I see here.  Notice the bottle is on the outside of the window.  This is not to keep the
the amber liquid out of the reach of reveling roommates.  As you may know, it sometimes
gets rather chilly up here and the temperature is usually sufficiently low to keep the life
blood of the school at a thirst-quenching temperature.  (Know of any other school in which
each room is provided with an ice box?)  Don't get the wrong idea!  The school authorities
don't encourage drinking, they even prohibit it---------between 1 & 10 in the morning.  Most
guys have to go to bed early and sleep late or go crazy. it really isn't that bad though, and
I've only had one can of beer since I've been here.

As you may or may not have read our football team (we have one) beat
U. of N.H. 13 - 0.  We 60s had to build a monstrous bonfire Friday evening.  It
was conical-shaped, 40' in diam. and 35' high.  The flames were 100' high and
the fire didn't go out completely until late Sat. morning.  Incidentally we built it
right in the middle of the college green.  There was no sacking of the town or
attacking of elderly women.

I also experienced the forced mass rallies you talk about.  On the Freshman Outing
we were marched out of our cabins at 1 in the morn. and make to stand outside (one
guy had on only a supporter) and sing school songs.

There aren't many girls in town;  in fact there's only one good-looking one I know of.
On the weekends, though, especially football weekends, those who can afford it
usually have girls up here.  (that "have" can be taken in its usually used meaning and
also in the Aldous Huxley "Brave New World" connotation.)

Saturday night I'm going to Smith college, 100 miles distant, to a mixer.  I'll report later.

I've joined the paper here too, but I haven't received any assignments.

I'll be anxiously awaiting a letter from you, so write soon.

Tom



P.S.  My move is King's Pawn to King 4.  Buy yourself a dictionary or stop typing
your letters.

September 23, 1956

Dear Tom,

I received your essay on "The Ways and Wherefores of Greater New York" a few days
ago.  It must have arrived a day after I left.  My family forwarded it along with many words
of wisdom as to how I should conduct myself.

I am in a 3-man room.  One of my roomies comes from Parkersburg, W. Va., the other
from Chicago Hts.  The latter went to Bloom and knows Galkowski's  girl friend.

I know now where the old N.D. spirit comes from.  They drill it into you.   At the campus
shopping center, which contains 300 students at any given time, the N.D. victory march
is continually played over the public address system.  It really sounds strange, that one
record over and over and over again.

And the pep rallies are really something to behold.  About half an hour before the rally,
the band accompanied by a legion of strong-armed men, marches from hall to hall.
The band assumes a threatening pose next to your building and proceeds to shatter
your windows with a cacophonous rendition of the victory march (as if we hadn't heard
it enough).  Just as your windows are disintegrating, a thunderous knocking begins at
your door.  You race for the door but you are not quick enough.  The oaken rail-road tie
annihilates your door and seventeen burly upper-classmen rush in through the aperture.
You are flung headlong into the cold night air where you are caught up in the crowd
headed toward the gym.  Inside the gym, which can hold 5,000 students and does on
this night, you find everyone in an orgy of excitement.  Coach Brennan and his well-oiled,
well-fed  automatons enter and in an instant 5,000 average American boys are
transformed into 5,000 football-crazed maniacs.  Thousands are trampled in a desperate
effort to get closer to god.  Those fellows were so hopped-up at the end of that rally that
they would have sacked and looted South Bend if god-almighty Terrance had hinted to
that effect.  The rally didn't seem to do much good though, for as you already know we did
not emerge victorious.  There  were 4,000 fellows watching the game in the drill hall on
closed-circuit, big screen T.V., and they nearly wrecked the place in their rage when
we lost.  they kicked over their chairs, smashed pop bottles, and turned the air blue
with exclamatory phrases, but to no avail.  Ah well, we will play again.

I suppose we had better start our chess game.  I'll take the white, which has the first move,
and you of necessity will take the black.

Why don't you write to Wipper-Will?  I would but I do not know his address.  If we
could contact him, it would complete the ring of contacts.

I haven't had much on my radio besides the local stations.  The reception is poor and I
haven't much time.

Girls can be found in great profusion in South Bend on Saturday nights.  It is very easy
to be picked up.  All you do is walk up and down the streets and they drive up in their
cars.  I have yet to try this, but fellows in my hall have met with great success.

I think I will write J and H. if I have time.  I've been up here only a week and already I'm
going nutz.  O. is already loopy, completely out of it.  College really is a big change, but
I'm not sorry that I made it.  All the rest of the Carmel guys seem to  be getting along
all right, however write quickly, I may not be here long.

Yours truly,

Bob

P.S. I joined the paper - - - - my first chess move is King's pawn to King 4.

(Back of envelope:  U-NO-HOO, 409 Lord, etc.  "Good Lord")