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Nile Kinnick correspondence, June-August 1942
1942-06-29: Page 01
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Monday, June 29, 1942 The Caribbean ON THE OCEAN FROM 37TH TO 38TH STREET MIAMI BEACH Dear Gus, I am writing to you from room 421 of this very delightful little hotel in Miami Beach. It fronts on the ocean itself, sports a swimming pool, a nice beach, and every other luxury dear to the leisure class. But more of this later; if this is to be a travelogue of the past few days, I had best start at the beginning. We got away from the air station in Pensacola about noon on Friday--- Haugebak, Carlson, and I. Following route 90 we drove an uneventful trip to Tallahassee where we stayed all night,getting in here about 5:30 PM. There were more road warnings along this particular strip of highway than there were billboards. Warnings for sharp turns, chuck holes, narrow bridges, bridges under repair, men at work, dips in the pavement, detours, and stock at large were as numerous as the fence posts. As to the latter warning, they could hardly overemphasize it. At frequent intervals hogs, sheep, goats, cows, or pickaninnies would clutter up the highway as effectively as fleeing refugees. Once again the landscape brought forceably home the poverty of the southern Negro farmer of which we have heard quite a bit but seen very little. We passed through mile after mile of country dotted with those single room, unpainted huts that serve as shelter for the colored folk. You will remember that my account of our trip through Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana told of the same thing, and, of course, Alabama and Georgia present the same depressing picture. These hovels are not only distressingly small and dingy, but are without even a window. True, there are openings which might loosely be called windows, but in reality they are nothing but barn doors, no glass or shutters or anything like that. Seriously, I doubt if a northern farmer would consent to having his livestock so poorly housed. In Tallahassee we put up at a very comfortable and reasonably priced cabin camp. It only cost the three of us four dollars total for a well ventilated, clean little cabin with two large double beds, a radio, and bath. While walking around the town looking for a place to eat supper, we found, much to our surprise and amusement, that the soldiers on the streets from a nearby encampment mistook us for naval officers and would snap to and salute as we walked by. It proved to be fun for a little while, and then became quite tiring for there were a great many soldiers in town. After supper we drove out by the campus of the Florida State Teachers College for Women, hoping that there would be a full summer session. Sure enough, there was a goodly number of enrolless strolling about, but, also, there were just about as many soldiers. However, we parked the car and started a little patrol work ourselves. We hadn't been on the grounds five minutes, before we met three de-lovely blondes face to face. There was no awkwardness in getting a conversation started. As a matter of fact they accosted us first, with a "good evening, gentlemen, you look awfully nice and awfully cool in those white uniforms." Rather flattering, and a nice start wouldn't you say? Really sounds good, doesn't it? Are you wondering just how your eldest proceeded from there? Well, rest assured he would have conducted himself with confidence, and, probably, sufficient decorum. However, if you haven't
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Monday, June 29, 1942 The Caribbean ON THE OCEAN FROM 37TH TO 38TH STREET MIAMI BEACH Dear Gus, I am writing to you from room 421 of this very delightful little hotel in Miami Beach. It fronts on the ocean itself, sports a swimming pool, a nice beach, and every other luxury dear to the leisure class. But more of this later; if this is to be a travelogue of the past few days, I had best start at the beginning. We got away from the air station in Pensacola about noon on Friday--- Haugebak, Carlson, and I. Following route 90 we drove an uneventful trip to Tallahassee where we stayed all night,getting in here about 5:30 PM. There were more road warnings along this particular strip of highway than there were billboards. Warnings for sharp turns, chuck holes, narrow bridges, bridges under repair, men at work, dips in the pavement, detours, and stock at large were as numerous as the fence posts. As to the latter warning, they could hardly overemphasize it. At frequent intervals hogs, sheep, goats, cows, or pickaninnies would clutter up the highway as effectively as fleeing refugees. Once again the landscape brought forceably home the poverty of the southern Negro farmer of which we have heard quite a bit but seen very little. We passed through mile after mile of country dotted with those single room, unpainted huts that serve as shelter for the colored folk. You will remember that my account of our trip through Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana told of the same thing, and, of course, Alabama and Georgia present the same depressing picture. These hovels are not only distressingly small and dingy, but are without even a window. True, there are openings which might loosely be called windows, but in reality they are nothing but barn doors, no glass or shutters or anything like that. Seriously, I doubt if a northern farmer would consent to having his livestock so poorly housed. In Tallahassee we put up at a very comfortable and reasonably priced cabin camp. It only cost the three of us four dollars total for a well ventilated, clean little cabin with two large double beds, a radio, and bath. While walking around the town looking for a place to eat supper, we found, much to our surprise and amusement, that the soldiers on the streets from a nearby encampment mistook us for naval officers and would snap to and salute as we walked by. It proved to be fun for a little while, and then became quite tiring for there were a great many soldiers in town. After supper we drove out by the campus of the Florida State Teachers College for Women, hoping that there would be a full summer session. Sure enough, there was a goodly number of enrolless strolling about, but, also, there were just about as many soldiers. However, we parked the car and started a little patrol work ourselves. We hadn't been on the grounds five minutes, before we met three de-lovely blondes face to face. There was no awkwardness in getting a conversation started. As a matter of fact they accosted us first, with a "good evening, gentlemen, you look awfully nice and awfully cool in those white uniforms." Rather flattering, and a nice start wouldn't you say? Really sounds good, doesn't it? Are you wondering just how your eldest proceeded from there? Well, rest assured he would have conducted himself with confidence, and, probably, sufficient decorum. However, if you haven't
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