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Erie, Pa.,
Sunday, Dec. 17, '39.
Bab and Rog both under the weather yesterday and today with fever and upset tummies. Dr. Gannon says it's all over the city - not to worry - feed them tea and water until they are okay which should be in 24 hours. Rog was about okay tonight but Bab's temperature was 101+ and she had a headache and sore throat. We are hoping fervently, it isn't scarlet fever.
Most of today, I spent writing X-mas cards a monumental job but I finished it.
This afternoon was the deadline for the Graf Spee to leave Montevideo to be interned. She left on schedule, battle flags flying and the whole civilized world listening to their radios as they would to a great international sporting event about to be run off. But there was no fight. Just outside territorial waters before a battle had time to develop, the Spee crew abandoned her and blew her up - she sank in three minutes! So endeth a very thrilling incident of the war. When she sought refuge in Montevideo harbor, the German radio claimed she had won a great victory and only went in to replenish her stores of food, which had been spoiled by British poison gas shells (a lie). Now the Germans claim she was blown up because Uraguay refused to give her sufficient time to be made seaworthy, also a lie from all we can gather. Truth probably is, one of her two 11" gun turrets was out of commission and rather than sacrifice the lives of most of the crew, the Germans decided to abandon the venture, and scuttle her