1944 V-Mail G.I. in England. Original envelope. Gets to Play Golf, go to Plays.

Description

1944 V-Mail G.I. in England. Original envelope. Gets to Play Golf, go to Plays.
V-mail correspondence was on small letter sheets, 17.8 by 23.2 cm (7 by 9   1⁄8 in), that would go through mail censors before being photographed and transported as thumbnail-sized image in negative microfilm. Upon arrival to their destination, the negatives would be printed. The final print was 60% of the original document's size, creating a sheet 10.7 by 13.2 cm (4   1⁄4 by 5   1⁄4 in). Explanation of V-Mail System in Display aboard USS Alabama (BB 60), Mobile, Alabama According to the National Postal Museum, "V-mail ensured that thousands of tons of shipping space could be reserved for war materials. The 37 mail bags required to carry 150,000 one-page letters could be replaced by a single mail sack. The weight of that same amount of mail was reduced dramatically from 2,575 pounds to a mere 45." This saved considerable weight and bulk in a time in which both were hard to manage in a combat zone. In addition to postal censorship, V-mail also deterred espionage communications by foiling the use of invisible ink, microdots, and microprinting, none of which would be reproduced in a photocopy.
This letter was from M.Sgt. R.H. Harris to Marguerite Harris, Washington, D.C. (Probably his wife).   Complains about the weather in England but says he could be in a much worse place.  He gets to play golf and attend Shakespeare plays in Stratford so it must not have been too tough of a duty.     The envelope is GOOD
condition, some wear and soiling. Backflap is torn loose.  The letter itself is EX condition.    I use a poor/fair/good/very good/excellent/mint grading system and grade very conservatively (see my feedback). This does NOT necessarily correspond to the generic Ebay grading system that we must use. Shipping is .50 in the U.S. If you want a tracking number then shipping cost would be .00.
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On Dec-13-13 at 11:08:42 PST, seller added the following information: