12/14/1925 Letter from Ted Surdez

                                                                                                          Skidmore, Mo.
                                                                                                             Dec. 14, '25
                                                                                                                 7am

Dear Doris -

Well it is snowing this morning and I am rather mad.  We were figuring on geting through tomorrow and going to S.F. Wensday.  But it is hard to tell when we will get through now.  I was sorry to hear that you got hurt and hope you are all right now.  My knee has been bothering me a lot lately but it feels pretty good this morning.  I gave it a hot bath last night.  Norman and Dewey went hunting yesterday but I stayed home

all day and sat by the fire.  Went to bed about 7:30 last night and got up at 5 this morning and now we can't work so I guess I will go back to bed.  I would rather start for Sioux Falls this morning than any thing I know of but these folks have been so good to us I think we had ought to stay and help them finish.  I wonder what is the matter with Les.  We have been looking for him every day and he hasn't showed up yet.  Is he still at Kennedy's or (-over-)

has he found some more corn to pick?  I have a chance to get my old job back if I want it, and I would take it if you were here but I would die if I had to stay here all winter with out seeing you.  But I realy don't know what I will do up there all winter.  I don't suppose one could buy a job now and it is a long time till spring, but I suppose I will get by some way.  Well I must close as news are scarse and it is almost mail time.

                                                                          xx     Yours only,
                                                                 xxxxxxxx           Ted

                                              xxxxxx
                                              xxxxxx

12/12/1925 Letter from Ted Surdez

Skidmore, MO

Dec. 11, '25

Dear Little Pal --

I am awful tired tonight but will try and stay awake long enough to let you know I haven't forgotten you.  Listen Doris it made me feel awful bad when I got your last letter to think that you are losing faith in me.  I know I should write more often but it is not so easy for me to write every night, for we have been working hard and are always ready for bed about as soon as supper is over. 

So I hope I don't get any more such letters as that last one.  I sure have been feeling blue today.  I felt like quiting my job and going to S.F. then I thought that would be a foolish thing to do since you don't trust me any more.  But just the same I will be in S.F. some time next week if nothing happens as we will be through here about next Wednesday, and I don't think we will pick any more corn after that.  Then I shall give you a good hug and kiss.  (-over-)

Altho I think a good bawling out is what you deserve for writing such a letter.  But I will forgive you as I know how you feel as I have felt the same way all day myself.  So please forget all this nonsense and keep right on loving me for I love you more than ever and will love you more than that when I get up there.  I can't keep my eyes open any longer so must close both letter and eyes.

                                                                                                Yours Only
                                                                                                      F.A.S.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

12/05/1925 Letter from Ted Surdez

                                                                                              Skidmore Mo.
                                                                                                                 Dec. 5, '25

Dear Doris - Another day of bad weather and nothing to do so will try and kill a little time by writing a few letters.  Yes I think I have been getting all your letters as I get one every day.  And they sure kid me about it too.  It sure is cold here today and there is a little snow on the ground.  So we are going to wait until Monday before we start work again.  Went to a dance last night but didn't have any fun.  The music was poor and the crowd was dead.  Outside of that it was pretty good.  Norman came very near going north today but I talked him out of it because I knew it would be foolish to leave all this good corn when I have no job in sight up there.  But he sure is home sick.  And I guess I wanted to go about as bad as he did, but I knew that wouldn't be a very wise thing to do.  Please excuse this big blot.  I was pushing on the self filler and didn't know it.  So you can take it for a big smacker.  My old girl called me over long distance today and wanted me to come up and see her but I told her I didn't have any way of getting there.  O well I can't be waisting my time and money on her when there (-over-)

is such a long winter and a girl like you waiting for me in S.D.  So your red top gum drop was down to see you again was he.  Well it sure is too bad you were not home.  But don't worry he will be back.  Well you know what happens if you ever go any where with him.  Now I guess it was foolish of me to say that as I know you wouldn't do any thing like that.  Well little Pal news are scarse when I write so often so I guess this will be about all for today.  We are going to stay in town tonight and I am going to take Bernus and Eloise to the show as Dewey has to work.  O boy I am getting some real good stuff over the radio just now.  Do you remember the song that was sung on the night of Oct. 3 on the streets of S.F. by a group of women riding on a truck.  Well that is what I am listening to just now and it sure sounds good.  It is coming from station K.S.O. now if you can figure out what those letters stand for.  You will know what sort of people are doing the bradcasting.  Well I must close as it is geting late and I have to go out to the farm and take care of my mules.  So by bye, keep writing every day.

                                                   Yours Till Concret Walks
                                                                       Ted.

12/04/1925 Letter from Ted Surdez

Skidmore MO

Dec. 4 '25

Dear Doris - Well we are having some winter today it started raining yesterday afternoon and turned to snow last night so we are loafing today.  We have a real good place to work.  Just a mile from where I used to work.  The guy I used to work for is all through picking corn so I am using one of his teams and wagon.  The corn is real good here we are geting about a hundred and ten bu (bushels)

a day and we haul it about a mile and a half so we only put in about six hours a day in the field.  We have about seventy acres to pick yet so I guess that will last us till xmas.  Any way we are going to S.F. when we get through here.  I only got three letters from you yesterday.  You see two of them went to Villesca and were forwarded down here.  We are going to a dance in Skidmore tonight.  Don't suppose it will amount to very much as it (-over-)

is a club dance sort of an invitation affair.  One of my old girls got married yesterday now isn't that sad "Yes I guess not."  We've been having a lot of fun with a couple kids in Skid.  They've been wanting to step out with us ever since we've been here.  They've been asking Dewey about us and he told them we were just dieing to go with them.  Now you should see the way they parade up and down the street when we are in town and they are only about fifteen.  So I think they had better

stay home with their mothers a while don't you.  So Les and Loraine are getting rather thick are they well I guess we will have to spank both of them if they don't behave won't we.  I suppose Les is about throught at Kennedys.  Wish he was down here now as there are a lot of good jobs open.  Well dear I can't think of anymore to write so will ring off hoping there is a letter in town for me now.  Am going down in a few minutes and see.  Don't forget me.

                                                                           "Yours alone"
                                                                                            Ted

11/25/1925 Letter from Ted Surdez

c/o Gus Swenson
R.R. 2

Villisca Ia. R.2

Dear little Pal:  Well we have landed a job at last but we are only about to the Mo. line only about eighty miles from my brother.  We were almost in the notion of turning back when we found this job the corn is all picked between here and Sioux Falls, but they say there is plenty south of here.  I think we have struck a fine place at least they seem nice and I know they feed good

(2)

because we had a swell (sic) supper.  We are just a mile from town but it is only about as big as Renner, and we are only three hundred and twenty miles from S.F.  The corn sure is good here but they havent any elevators so we will have to shovel .  We didn't leave Sioux Falls until four oclock that evening and got in Storm Lake about ten.  Just had two flat tires on the way down.  How did your carnival turn out?  I suppose you made a lot of money.  Is Harry back yet?

(3)

Well I wouldn't advise any one to come to Iowa to pick corn because there isn't much corn left any where that we've seen.  I think I will try and get down to see Dewey while I am this close but will try and be with you Xmas.  Well I cant think of any thing to say except that I love you more than ever.  But I don't suppose that is very interesting so will close.  Answer real soon.

                                                                                       Yours Only
                                                                                       Ted
                                                                        xxxxxx

Ted at Dewey's (Skidmore, Missouri)