“For
today's lesson we learned the Kanji for the place names, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They came a little late. The atomic bombings
created a bigger sensation here than the possibility of peace. The many physics
majors in the school had a chance to strut their stuff in attempts to explain
the principle behind its operation to interested listeners between classes.
“If
it brings the war to a close so soon it may have been worthwhile in spite of
the condemnation from neutral countries, etc.
“The
bombing meant personal tragedy to more than one of our instructors. Several had relatives living there and Mr.
Yamada's parents had resided in the city. (Mr. Yamada was my conversation
teacher for some time.) According to rumor Mr. Eejima's uncle was mayor of the
city. This may have been merely some misinformation spread by jokers; since
Eejima (better known as Iwo jima) doesn't exactly have the students interests
at heart when it comes to passing out conversation grades.”
--Letter
from my father, Boulder, Colo., to his
family, Bloomington, Kans., August 13, 1945.
The U.S. had dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima on August 6 and on
Nagasaki on August 9.
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