The Ring – December 4, 1948
To review: The American Embassy located the ring by September 23 and promised to send it to the Buslee’s.
The Buslee’s must have received the ring around November 17 or 18. They were very prompt in reporting news about the ring and assuming they didn’t wait long to write to Mr. B and Z’s family, their letter of November 18 to Mr. B – as referenced in this letter – must have reported their receipt of the ring. On November 23, Z’s family received their letter with the good news.
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Buslee,
Thank you for your letters, -one from Nov. 18, and one from Dec. 1., -and I am sorry, I did not answer your first at once. We thank you for your regards, dear Mrs. Buslee, which we cordially repeat for you and all your family.
I am happy, Mrs. Buslee, that you finally got that ring. Of course, it is damaged and even Z’s father in his letter try to explain why, as he write in his letter of Nov. 24, which I will try to translate for you. You must excuse all the errors I will make in the spelling, but the meaning will be the same. I mean the meaning of Z’s father’s letter. Well here it is:
Dear Friends:
Yesterday, Nov. 23, I have received your letter with its pleasant content, where you are informing us that you finally got the ring, which belonged to your son and for which you waited so long.
I can’t understand, why your military authorities waited so long and why they promised to me, they will deliver the ring in 21 days. But thanks God, that after 8 months you finally got the ring.
Dear Mrs. Buslee, war is a terrible thing, and it destroy everything and everybody without mercy. The damages of the stone in the ring is a witness, how terrible it is. The ring, as I do believe, is a witness, how terrible it was for the owner of the ring, who in the flames found his heroic death with the rest of the crew.
On the day of All Saints /this is a holiday in Czechoslovakia, when everybody goes to the cemetery to visit the graves of the dead, /I and my wife, we were in our thoughts with you and have thinking about you, how much sorrow you must have.
Now you have a chance, and hope, that your son will be returned to his fatherland and it will a bit relieve your sorrow, if you will be able to visit his grave. Please, excuse us, we did not answer your letter from Oct. 11, 1948. After the informations you gave us, we were looking for another letter, where you will tell us that finally you got the ring and it is so now.
My son Z finally got home from the army and now is working in Prague, where he is a baker. He was very surprised and it took such a long time for your Embassy to deliver the ring. But, after he remembered, how already in 1945 he tried to deliver the ring to the right family and failed and how finally with the help of Mr. B, this was made possible, he was pleased too.
Yours letters are full of thanks, faithfulness and we are happy, it was possible for us to do this little service for faraway family, which done so much for even us.
The package, which you mentioned in your letter, did not yet arrive, but we are sure it will bring plenty of joy to us-! Soon, as we will get it, we will let you know.
About my health; it’s not much good, but when better time will come, I hope to feel better. We have too much worry now, but we do hope, they will be gone with better times too.
We are very satisfied that the matter is finally closed and we are thanking you for all the regards and thanks which we repeat and remain with friendship, yours
Z’s Family
Well, Mrs. Buslee, I hope you will understand that translation and I just can’t think of all those high words in Czech, to put the exact words in the English words, but the meaning is the same.
They have a terrible time in Czechoslovakia now, the same like in 1939-44, when the Nazis were he masters of that country. But now it is still worse, because now their own peoples-the Czech Communists-trained in Russia, are the bloody masters-! Please, if you will write to Z, PLEASE, do NOT mention anything about the situation in that poor country, because, that could mean-and I am sure it would mean-very hard time for Z and his family. About three month ago, Z’s father send me a letter, but more than half of his letter was complete mess; the censor just used his pen so much, I didn’t now, what Z’s father is writing about.
Please, Mrs. Buslee, DON’T thank me for anything-! I am just happy you finally have the ring and it’s a shame, it took so long to get it from our own Embassy–!
Our daughter got married, but Mrs. Buslee, I am sorry to tell you, that we have No daughter-! She done something I NEVER expect she would do and we just have so much sorrow in our hearths-!! I hate New York-!!!!!
To you and all your family, our best wishes and we remain sincerely yours:
Mr. & Mrs. B
This transcription is a careful reproduction of the original except for occasional spelling and punctuation corrections. Some names have been masked to protect the privacy of those individuals and their families. In some circumstances, based on relevancy or a desire to mask locations, some material may not have been transcribed.
Thank you to John Dale Kielhofer, John Oliver (Jay) Buslee’s nephew, for sharing these letters with me.
© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2015
The Ring – September 23, 1948
To review: Z’s family in Czechoslovakia sent the ring on April 8, 1948 to the Buslee’s in Park Ridge, Illinois. Expected arrival was April 29, but the ring had still not surfaced by September.
In an effort to locate the ring, Mr. B had written to the American Embassy in Czechoslovakia on September 9 and had received a reply that the embassy was in possession of the ring.
The Foreign Service
Of the
United States of America
Office of the Military Attaché
American Embassy
Prama, Czechoslovakia23 September 1948
Mr. B
Richmond, TexasDear Sir:
Your letter of 9 September 1948 has been referred to this office for reply. We are indeed happy to inform you that we now have the ring in question in our possession and that the ring will be sent to “Mr. and Mrs. John Buslee, 411 Wisner Avenue, Park Ridge, Illinois, U.S.A.” immediately by registered APO mail.
Trusting this information will be of interest to you, I remain
Sincerely,
Charles J. Knapp
Administrative Officer
This transcription is a careful reproduction of the original except for occasional spelling and punctuation corrections. Some names have been masked to protect the privacy of those individuals and their families. In some circumstances, based on relevancy or a desire to mask locations, some material may not have been transcribed.
Thank you to John Dale Kielhofer, John Oliver (Jay) Buslee’s nephew, for sharing these letters with me.
© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2015
The Ring – Undated
To review: The ring, which should have arrived at the Buslee’s home by April 29, 1948, had vanished.
This letter from Z’s mother is undated and I have no way of knowing when it was written other than it must have been written between July and September based on references in the letter.
Dear Mrs. Buslee:
Before I go further with my letter, I am sending the best wishes to you and your family. Thanks once more for the lovely letter and the photos. Please excuse me that I have not written any sooner.
We were expecting a message from you folks that you received the ring, but so far we did not hear from you. I am sending also a few pictures. Out here in the country we are not very well prepared to take pictures as good as the folks in the city. When we are altogether again we will take a family group and send it to you.
We were hoping that our son would be home in June, but new developments made it impossible, and he will not be home before, if then, October. We will be very happy when the occasion comes that you folks could visit us, and also Mr. B. We would be very happy to have you in our home. We are sorry we do not speak English. My husband talks a little German, but not very much. We are thinking of you every day and every time the mailman appears we are looking for a letter from America.
We were thinking we were doing the right thing and sending it the safest way, but as it turned out, it was not safe at all. We realize that you folks are anxious to get the ring, but there is nothing in our power for us to do so you can get it sooner. When my husband came back from Prague we were very happy because they promised you folks would get the ring in 21 days.
Mrs. Buslee, you are asking me how many children we have. The oldest 24 and the youngest 21. [Two other sons besides Z.] Both are healthy and good boys and the oldest one has learned pastry making. The youngest one goes to electrical engineering school. I am plenty busy to get the washing, etc. ready when they are home. We also have with us my oldest sister and my husband being sick needs good food, so we are raising quite a bit of poultry on our little farm and we are enjoying the living in the country. It is very nice and all we hope for is final settlement and peace. I have written you about our family and do not want to bother you any more with a longer letter. We all are happy to get letters from you any time you find a little time. Write to us.
With best regards, Z’s Mother and Family
This transcription is a careful reproduction of the original except for occasional spelling and punctuation corrections. Some names have been masked to protect the privacy of those individuals and their families. In some circumstances, based on relevancy or a desire to mask locations, some material may not have been transcribed.
Thank you to John Dale Kielhofer, John Oliver (Jay) Buslee’s nephew, for sharing these letters with me.
© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2015
The Ring – August 25, 1948
To review: In his last letter, Z’s father reported that he had sent the ring on April 8, 1948 and that the Buslee’s should receive it within three weeks – by April 29.
Almost four months later, the ring had still not arrived. While the Buslee’s were wondering what had happened to the ring, Z’s family and Mr. B were confused as to why the Buslee’s had not given them any good news and thanks for sending the ring.
Richmond, Texas, Aug. 25, -48
Mr. and Mrs. John Buslee,
Park Ridge, ILL.Dear Mr. and Mrs. Buslee-:
Please, forgive me, that I am writing to you, but I have just received a letter from Z’s father and it is a very sad letter. Well, Z’s father would like to know, if you have received the ring, which belonged to you beloved son John.
Enclosed you will find a Confirmation, which Z’s father, after he gave the ring to the American Military Attaché, received from the American Embassy in Prague, dated April 8, 1948.
It read, that The Office of the Military Attaché received the ring from Z’s father, to be delivered to the family of Lt. John O. Buslee. That prove, Z’s father delivered the ring to the Attaché.
I wonder, Mr. and Mrs. Buslee, why didn’t you write to Z’s father, that you have the ring, so he would be sure, that his service and his trouble, was not useless-!!!
I send to Z’s family two CARE packages, because I know, how happy they were, to do this service for us and because I know, it was a very expensive trip for him, going to Prague with the ring. But, all he would like to know, is, if you received the ring which belonged to you beloved son. If not, please return enclosed letter from the Military Attaché, and I will send it to Z’s father at once, so he can investigate, why the ring was not send to you.
I do hope, you will understand, why I am writing to you, because I just feel sorry for Z’s family.
With best wishes I am yours:
Mr. B
This transcription is a careful reproduction of the original except for occasional spelling and punctuation corrections. Some names have been masked to protect the privacy of those individuals and their families. In some circumstances, based on relevancy or a desire to mask locations, some material may not have been transcribed.
Thank you to John Dale Kielhofer, John Oliver (Jay) Buslee’s nephew, for sharing these letters with me.
© Cindy Farrar Bryan and The Arrowhead Club, 2015
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