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spite of that we have a hilarious time of it with just enough restraint and poise to make for perfect times together. We broke up about 11 PM and at 11:30 I was asleep in my Pennsy sleeper at Penn Station.

En route Washington to Erie,
Friday, Feb. 16, 1940.

Had a talk with Horn about the 75 mm pack howitzer delivery extension and he had never been sent copy of Thorpe's letter to Col. Somers giving our story! So he had requested copy of Thorpe & could do nothing to get an extension until he received it and could then go talk to Col. Gillespie. It looks to me like we are going to get gypped on this and it appears grossly mismanaged from the start. Horn seemed very cordial today - is a likeable, very human sort of fellow although he impresses me as a little easy going and lacking in forcefulness.

Blair took me down to the Navy Dept. to see Comdr. Uehlinger who told us little. But one thing I did gather was that Capt. Evans glowing stories of "filling the Erie Works" with 5"/38 AA mounts must be greatly discounted. Apparently we won't get any money from the Gov't. to buy machinery and we'll have to bid on future mounts just as on these we have. Blair pooh-poohs all this glowing optimism and I think he's right. All this sounds too rosy just as other things have sounded too rosy on this stuff. One of St.L's faults is he's too optimistic and his opinion of customer's opinion of the G.E. Co. is too exalted. All of above applies unless we get into the war. Then no one knows what may happen. My impression of Blair is that all this ordnance business is just a thorn in his side and we who work on it just a bunch of pests to be

Transcription Notes:
Comdr. Uehlinger = Lt. Comdr. A.E. Uehlinger?