Evacuee Boys (21 page)

Give my love to Noni and everyone else.

Lots of love & kisses from your everloving

John

9
December
1941

Dear Mum & Dad,

I was pleased to get your letter yesterday but please send some pocket money as I don’t want to spend the remaining 4/-. Why I have only that left is because I have spent 6/- on presents.

I hope Mum is pleased with her tea-cosey. Please write at once a[s] I want to know if everything is O.Kay about the internment as I am worried. The shorthand that I am sending is for Andrew. I hope you are well and I am desperately looking forward to sing you, and Christmas will be here soon. By the way I’ll need railway fares soon.

I have no more news so I’ll close down.

Lots of love & kisses from your everloving
John

My little money kept diminishing. I could not find work and spent part of my time in the Pop Inn, watching Mum as she served the guests, and partly in the bridge club. Meanwhile, Andrew increasingly wanted to leave his work as a secretary in the Pop Inn in order to go to University. He wanted to become a doctor. We liked the idea, but I had no idea how I could take on such a responsibility in my financial position. I could not even afford his first school fee.

I tried everything, but could not find a job anywhere and I did not have the money to start any kind of business. The bombing had eased, but the Germans were conquering everywhere and the future did not look good. One morning, on Mum’s birthday, December 7, 1941, we woke to the news that the Japanese, without any warning, had bombed a large portion of the American fleet in Pearl Harbor. As bad as this news was, everyone in England was relieved that at last America was involved in the war on our side, even against her will. Out of the German butchery of Jews, British, French and Poles, a world war had broken out. America declared war on Japan and Germany. In Italy, Mussolini felt that the time had come to join the Germans, since he had no doubt that Germany would win. The Germans forced Hungary into the war and suddenly we became enemy aliens. On Germany’s orders, Hungary interned all the British there, and the British interned some of the Hungarians, even though most of them were refugees from Hungarian anti-Semitism. Feri Áldor [a friend] was among the first. He was considered an undesirable alien even in peacetime.

On December 8th they took Uncle Imre as well. Mum was terrified lest they would take me as well. Uncle Eugene was already a British subject and he was not in danger, and I was certain that I would not be interned, since there could be no doubt of my reliability, having been employed in a secret department of the BBC. But she was anxious and I could not calm her down. On the morning of December 13th, the doorbell rang at about 6 or 7 a.m. Mum sat up in bed and began to sob – this could only be police, ‘I knew they were going to take you too,’ she said. I went to the door and indeed there were two policemen outside. They asked if Andrew was at home. I said, yes, he is asleep. Wake him, they said, we have instructions to take him to the internment camp. Mum was standing behind me at the door, completely upset. I said to the policeman, there must be some mistake; you must have come for me and not for my 16-year-old son. They replied, there is no mistake, he will be 17 in another two weeks and in any case, those are our instructions. Don’t be afraid, he will not come to any harm. As much as this pained Mum, that her young son was being taken away, she was relieved that they did not take me. She said that a young lad can bear the discomforts associated with internment and she could bear it better if I were with her. The policemen were very nice, Mum quickly packed the essentials for Andrew, and soon we were all on the way down the corridor with our son. Our hearts ached but we decided that we would do everything possible to free him.

Between December 1941 and January 1942 Andrew was interned as an enemy alien with many others aliens, including an uncle, on the Isle of Man. He even spent his 17th birthday there, but was thankfully released after a few weeks. Neither of my parents was interned. After the war was over, the Home Office admitted that Andrew was interned by mistake.

12
December
1941

Dear Mum & Dad & Noni,

I am just dropping you a line to say that I am quite all right. I was in Chelsea all day yesterday together with 14 other Hungarians & we slept there. I am on the train now on way to a camp near Manchester. It might be some time before you hear again from me as letters will be censored. I shall write to say where I am & if you try to get a Home Office Permit, there is every possibility of you seeing me. I hope you are all right & Daddy is still at home. Please send me a towel as soon as you get my address. In future I shall be restricted to 20 lines twice a week, so that I can’t write much. Don’t forget that to inform the Polytechnic & if possible Mr. Young, 96 Lower Richmond Rd. Putney S.W.15.

Don’t worry about me at all I am all right, food is plenty, beds O.K. Write you more from camp as I am doing this in secret. A nice soldier who escorted me promised to take it to you.

Hope to be out by the time John comes but is unlikely

Lots of love & hundreds of kisses from

Andrew

26
December
1941

From:- Andrew Forbat 95405, RM Camp IOM

OPENED BY EXAMINER 7106

Dear Mum, Dad, Noni & John,

At last I am able to write to you to say that I am quite all right & there should be no cause for worry on your part. I spent my first day in London, & slept there. Next morning we were taken to a camp in Manchester. On Monday we came here to the Isle of Man. The food is quite sufficient & good. Beds, treatment etc. all very satisfactory. Here all the Hungarians are in one house, originally a hotel, & there are about 70 of us. I sleep in one room with Uncle Imre. The weather is surprisingly like spring here, during the day we get quite warm sunshine. We go for a nice walk every day amid glorious scenery. Generally I find plenty to do in the house in helping to keep the house clean etc. Please send me towel, collars, shirts, other suit, & laundry generally. One of you please go to my locker B40 in the Polytechnic (porter will tell you how to find it) & bring send me my biology & mechanics test-books if possible. I hope to speak to the Int. Officer next time but I do not expect to be out before February unless something exceptional turns up. Hope Daddy is still at home?
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I shall write again next week & do not worry if letters take long to come.

Love from Andrew

2
January
1942

From:- Andrew Forbat 95405, RM Camp IOM

OPENED BY EXAMINER 6778

Dear Mum & Dad, Noni & John,

I cannot say how happy I was to get your letter which I got yesterday. I would just like to point out that you can write as often as you like & send a parcel up to 14lb. Thanks very much for the £1 which was handed onto my Camp a/c but I think I will transfer it to Uncle Imre’s as I want to clear the debt (he paid £1 for me to the camp as I wrote last time) as soon as possible. The parcel has not arrived yet but should do so soon. You can be quite sure that I am as cheerful & calm as ever, & there is absolutely no need to worry about my health or well-being. My watch is in a shop at the very end of Blythe Road on the right hand side as you walk up from Olympia towards Shepherd’s Bush Road. In fact it is practically at the corner of Blythe Road and Shep’ds B. Road. The number of the watch is 237999 & the repair costs 7/6. I took it there on 19th September 1941. Please send me also some of the books & files from the second & third drawers of the small chest near the window of my room. Uncle Imre is very worried because he had no news from Edith Néni
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yet. Ask her to telegraph or otherwise quickly let him know of her well being. We had quite a pleasant Xmas time & the food we got was almost luxurious. Both on the 24th and the 25th we got some free beer & I had some too, but do not start worrying I shall not become a drunkard. I am very sorry too that I could not see Johnny during the Xmas holidays & I miss you all very much. Apropos, will you get my ‘Scout’ from Smith’s of West Ken station every Thursday & send it also the 2 or 3 copies, which I did not have since internment. I must close now but I shall write again next week.

Lots of love, kisses & best wishes from

Andrew

6
January
1942

OPENED BY EXAMINER 7106

All my dearest darlings,

I received your letter of the 26th yesterday & was very happy that you are all right although tired. Please write as much as you possibly can. I want to hear from you often. I did not receive the Xmas cards which John mentions, or the slippers. Last Friday we all went to the pictures for the first time & saw Charles Boyer in ‘Hold back the Dawn’. It was quite a nice picture. To-day I wrote to the Principal of Chelsea Polytechnic & asked him to apply for me at t[h]e Home Office, according to §21 of the White Paper issued last year for Germans & Italians. Another young man did the same & it seems most likely that he will be released very soon, & I am confident that my time here will not be too long. Yesterday I received 7/- wages for the last two weeks for the clerical work which I have been doing. The weather here is very nice really & although it often freezes at night, it is surprisingly warm during the day. Please do not worry if you get no news for some time. I write regularly, but it takes a long time for the letters to go through the censorship, sometimes a week or more. Please send the letters I receive from other people after me. I received Tom’s letter and I answered it. I should like to know what steps you have taken to help me & with what results. I am of course doing all in my power. Don’t worry & wait in confidence, as I do here.