Letter, Mr. H.L. Williams to Franklin D. Roosevelt

April 10, 1942 25-HH My dear Mrs. Williams: It was mighty thoughtful and kind of you to give the President en opportunity to see a copy of that inspiring letter from your son. He can well understand how refreshing it must be to you end vants you to know how grateful he is for your good. vishes. Very sincerely yours, GRACE G. TULLY B x Mrs. H. L. Williams, 29-55 - 215th Place, Bayside, L. I., New York. cd Williams, Rozer x april 6th 1942. Clarice D. Williams 29-55 215th Place Bayside, L.I. my dear mr. President,- ackyd a 4/1° d I am inclosing a letter which my oldest son, Roger, (22 years.) mote to his brother, sand, (20 years.) in answer to questons askedcon- cerning army. we feel so happy of grateful that Roger feels as he does about his life in the army. He his left us 26th 1 Both Vad & l of I must say had some qualms as to hon he d re act to army life as Roger is a very sensitive, & idealistic type to- - after you read tand read the inclosed, you 'll hor relieved & proud me are. my hustand laughed at me when I said l was going to send hisfletter never He reach said your eyes hit anymay, there's mo the harm in trying this hour of troutle old world & turmoil seems in hope it will refresh you in forg of materiality of greed has to he. I feel sure that when this which this poor as it truly is - fine, good & perfeet lifted me mill find this world Infenite Wiedom- may god these you Respectfully yours- Clarice D. Williams. (mr. H.L. Williams.) Dear Dave,- I am a little late in writing as I am in most of my mail. But I really have an excuse. I was in the hospital for about a week and then worked from sun-up (5:30) to lights every day--so haven't had a moment to myself before now. I am only a soldier--and so don't know much about the army. But I'll try to answer what I can. In the first place--the Army of the United States is the finest army in the world--or will be when it goes into action. It is more thoroughly trained when put in the field than any German or other army ever mobilized. Because they have a system. Maybe, when I explain the system, you see why I can really not tell you how or what to do. I'll tell you what happens to a draftee (in so far as I understand it First, he takes several different tests:-Mechanical, I. Q., Imagination, Radio. the Then he is interviewed by a vocationaleguidanceeman who gets a line on work you have had experience in and want to take up in the army. Finally, he goes thru' at least thirteen weeks of basic infantry training. This is re- quired for all branches. They've taken the classified him completely acc- ording to mechanical aptitude, intelligence, imagination, experience, interests, and the like. In an army of a couple of million---so many men are needed to carry out each particular job that makes the army a unit. And in a combat unit there have to be so many men as replacements for each particular neccessary of thoroughly trained men because the job is indispensible in an operation of job in case of casualities. In certain lines there has to be a vast reserve any size or because the mortality rate in that profession is high. They can practically place you where you will do the most good with the least training, in a glance. And with a minimum of training, they turn out the finest, most thoroughly trained technician or specialist in the world. The man who has a pilot's liscence and whose hobby is amateur phot- ography finds himself an aerial photographer---depending on his experience and his interests. Ted turns up in the tank corps. His intèrests were mechanical, his experience was mechanical, and his aptitude was high. I am on the way to a radio school. My interest was aviation, my ex- perience but my radio aptitude was very high. Maybe I'll end up a radio operator in a bomber crew or navigator. So, you see what you are facing. I might add that by some curious whim we have two men in the barr- acks here who enlisted in the air corps. But that is beyond my experience so I can't explain the situation. If you are interested in the air corps, get in touch with Brownie" right away--at Randolph Field. You'll have to dig "Bill", Ethel, or Jerry for his address. My advice is to let the army place you--because-with a little prod- ding on your part--they're going to place you where you're most valuable. And where you are most valuable is where you're going to do the most good with the greatest degree of safety. No job in a modern army is safe. They all have degrees of safeness which are levelled more or less by the ability of the men who fill those stations. If I'm a lousy scout under maneuver conditions) I'll never carry a walkeetalkee- and if I'm a good scout I'll never sit in a radio room of a military jective. Which is safer? I hope I can cut this last minute uncertainty of your's and save you some of it that I went through. These are the works--- You're going into the finest army in the world---backed by the finest, most imaginative and inspired leadership in the world. And they're And going this---Soldiering is a profession. If you're a lawyer Same to turn you personally into the finest soldier in the world-- and know re- member your law, use your head, and your imagination--you'll never be beat. (2) with a soldier. The man who knows his stuff is going to come out on top. They teach you all the tricks of the trade, offensive and defensive--and teach it a little better than it is taught anywhere else--and if you make it a point to learn, it's better than the bestest rabbit's foot from the left hind foot of a cottontail caught at midnight in a country churchyard under a full moon--on moon on Friday the thirteenth. The American soldier is going to see service in all quarters of the globe within the year he's going to do the fighting, the supplying, and the command- ing. THE REAL THING. And you might mark this down,-The sooner every man learns his job--the sooner this whole business will be cleaned up. Lots of fellows come in never expecting to come out alive. They make lousy soldiers because they have no interest in learning their job. That's the only reason training takes 13 weeks---it could be six. But some men have to be driven, carried and dragged. I really found that I enjoyed even the hard moments since I have come into the service. I'd never live them over but I'd never give them back to Time I cannot in the army life---none that you will ever regret. You can certainly And I know, because of your nature, you will find a thousand things begin right now to look forward to some fun as well as some work. And when they finish scooping the blood out of the gutters you'll probably be mad be- cause you never got there in time. Because probably you won't. I'm gonna do it all myself. I might warn you about one thing. If you have a delicate nature or a del- icate stomach, leave them both home or you'll suffer. Most of the men you'll be in with will be ten years older and they won't spare you for that. The language and the talk is terrific but I imagine you'll end up about where I did---so sore from laughing that I couldn't walk. Well, if you have any special questions, ask. Also give Dick a dig in the -- and tell him I'm beginning to feel like a forgotten man. Affectionately, Rog.