Series 1, Correspondence from various authors 1943 December 31 - 1946 February 7
Series 2, Correspondence from Collet Désiré Maître 1945 May 16 - 1947 March 6
"You will perhaps be astonished to receive a postcard of this type [painting by 'JHA' from collection "Types of North Africans']. I'm certainly not as terrible as this Arab chief from one of the most beautiful colonies of Algeria."
"My illness isn't very serious. In fact, I could tell you that I'm not sick at all and that would be true. Like many of my comrades, I have a skin infection, a malady I've never known before coming to America. It's very irritating because it makes me want to scratch constantly and this produces sores. It's not really serious, just embarrassing." He laments the suspension of his flight training, but his instructor is also hospitalized with the same ailment."We will all benefit from rest as the flights are tiring."
"In general, my married colleagues want to return as quickly as possible to their wives. The single men are mostly of a different opinion. They want to be stationed another year longer in your country, but their thoughts might surprise you: we don't want to marry an American. This is best explained by comparing the French and American ways of living."
"You [Americans] are very open-minded in your spirit and views. If you were to come to my neighborhood where old principles hold sway, you would be butting up against incomprehension and prejudice. . . ." This set way of doing things also comprises "the charm of French life." "The French spirit of family is very developed. I think that the American family spirit (the solidarity of the family) is not your principal quality, each member has his own side and fends for himself; whereas in my household, if any member of the family is humiliated, everyone comes to his aid and there is kinship no matter how distant."
"Why don't the French love America enough to stay here to live, you might ask. After all, the adventurous spirit of young Frenchmen allowed for French colonization. When not satisfied with their homes, they look for better elsewhere; for this reason also your country was colonized."
"In the French colonies, the French manner of living is applied; all live as the French. The American way of life is captivating for its comforts, but we decry its lightness, lack of depth, superficiality. One doesn't know whether what you think and express today will last until tomorrow; there is no profound attachment between people who work together. One is left with the impression, is this real?"
"P.S. I have good news from my family. In France, the county seems to be calm and things are returning to order. The country tends toward the left, toward communism. The only thing that worries people is the value of our money. Too much paper is in circulation….Unfortunately, we are obliged to import to repair the gaps in our industry that were caused by the war."
"You must be terribly busy right now as I have not received news from you."
"Here is my opinion. The American navy's aviation course is the best that we can pursue, from a military and civil point of view. In obtaining my wings, I will almost surely become an officer. Or if I wash out, as many do, I will be a radio or navigation officer which is also a necessary part of aviation. In France, it is very difficult to become an officer and I still don't know the process. In the American marines, for normal advancement a sailor must follow his capacities to become an officer. In the French marines, this possibility is not offered. . . . For me, departing America signifies the dream of a brilliant future."
"In returning to France, I can obtain if I want my demobilization. There lies another problem. You know as I do that France is very demolished. There is no lack of work to be done, but the means to do the work is lacking."
"My father can give me work on the farm. Don't imagine that a French farm in Brittany is like a modern American farm. These farms are generally small. 40 hectares is a superbly large farm in my region. This will make you smile."
"Do not think that I am happy to return to my country. I told you in my previous letter that I would stay in your country, it would please me greatly right now. . . . To demobilize in your country is very difficult. We've been counseled that we could demobilize in Canada, and after six months return to the U.S."
"Actually, I think that I will continue my service in the Marines. I like to travel the world. . . ."
"I do not know if I will be able to see you again...I left the hospital this morning"
"Many want to stay in America, but the conditions are too hard. I have several comrades who promised to marry here to be certain to stay with their fiances at Chapel Hill or Duke."
"My previous letter doubtlessly gave you some surprise and disappointment, I think. I left America without seeing you again, and I am chagrined. The French think that the American heart is generally tough and for this believe that it rarely shows up, and your compatriots returning from France do not hide from us that only money determines love for the majority of young Americans, is this true? I hope it is a minority who think this way"
"My impression is this: American life is all 'business,' French life is the acquisition of the resources needed to live and amuse oneself agreeably. . . .[Americans] don't know how to savor pleasure."
"Please forgive me, I've acquired the annoying habit of constantly critiquing the manners and habits of your compatriots. Why is this? Without a doubt because many Americans, since you are the biggest masters of large parts of the globe, imagine that you are a superior race, analogous to the German spirit in their victorious period."
"As for the atomic bomb, it is an American invention and you have used it militarily. From a humanitarian point of view, it is debatable whether it's a good invention. I suppose that this atomic bomb was close to being realized by the Germans. . . . Are you truly certain that America is the only country to hold the atomic secret. I don't believe so...." Maître describes how the French occupied Stuggart and allegedly found factories where the Germans were researching the atomic bomb, but then Eisenhower commanded them "to leave the city for the Americans."
"Write me always frankly without disguising your thoughts. We are far, far from one another, but you can talk to me about anything that passes through your head, your desires, your hopes, your worries."
"The American soldiers are no longer liked in France, from Marseilles to Paris, they are considered gangsters. In Paris, the GI's of the MP attack passersby, violate women, steal, all wish their prompt departure. . . . I tell you the facts, but am without rancor."