TO: LTCOL Harvey Olsen, COI-DET66
FROM: LT Torvald Manders, COI-DET66
DATE: 1 May 1942
RE: Paperwork

Lieutenant-Colonel Olsen,

I am not much of a writer but here goes. Today when I got back from dealing with that matter in West Virginia I was asked to fill out a form, a J-19, in triplicate. I was told to account for every penny I spent on my mission and write it all down. Now I am a frugal man but I didn't keep the receipts so I can't fill out the form very well can I? Here is what I bought.
  • 1 box Remington 12 gage shotgun shells, #4 buck
  • 1 roll, 30 feet, chicken wire
  • Wire clippers and lineman's gloves
  • 1 roll surgical gauze, safety pins, and some iodine (for my hand and backside)
  • 25 gallons of gasoline for the car
  • 1 quart of oil for the car
  • lodging for 2 nights in Wheeling, with 2 dinners
  • food for breakfast and lunch I bought at a grocery
  • tip for the hotel porter who rang when our man arrived (one dollar)

If you read my report you'll see it all got put to good use and probably saved Uncle Sam a lot of aggravation and expense. If this is not good enough for you I am afraid your form J-19 won't do any better. Colonel Donovan trusted us to be responsible with the government's money and as far as I know we all have been. I was raised Lutheran and we're pretty good at pinching pennies. I don't know why you want us to fill out all this new paperwork when there is a war on and we've got more than we can handle in the field.

Respectfully,


LT Torvald Manders