To the Bitter End

[Tom Y]

Just picked this up on eBay. Almost passed on it til I noticed the date. It's a little too chickenscratchy for my feeble skills. Can someone translate, please?

[Guest Rick Research]

That's like staring into oncoming headlights from the contrast.

It's from Sch?tze C Droste of 1st Machine Gun Company/ Infantry Regiment 16

to a Herrn Fr. Droste in Kevern, Kreis L?bbeceke, Bezirk Minden

on 11.11.18

and starts out with he's well and hopes same by you,

something about the last three days and retreating in Belgium...

but this is just blinding me. Maybe in daylight and not flaring out into a dark room.

[Guest Rick Research]

Magic:

Must have gone out BEFORE 11 AM--

Geschrieben 11.11.18

Ihr Lieben

Bin noch sehr gut zufrieden

selbiges ich von Euch auch noch

hoffe. Befinde mich seit 3 Tage

in Belgien R?ckzug denken

diese Tage werden wir abgel?st

und (scrwawled word) ganz z?ruck.

Habe auch diese Tag 2 Briefe be-

kommen, wonach Ihr seit

3 Wochen ohne Post gewesen

seit. Bin noch Gut zufrieden

und wohl auf in Belgien.

Es gr?sst Christian

[Ed_Haynes]

Does this help, Rick???

[Ed_Haynes]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[Guest Rick Research]

Yes, but yours came out more vivid and lifelike.

But have learned that I can sometimes tweekify things with the old black and white setting.

I guess my computomasheen has "subjective vision" just like I do.

[Tom Y]

Playing with histograms and edges can work magic too.

[Ed_Haynes]

So, Rick . . .

Anuvad kar dijiye?

Or, as I vaguely recall,

Ubersetzung bitte?

[Guest Rick Research]

Histograms?

Geschrieben 11.11.18

Ihr Lieben

Bin noch sehr gut zufrieden

selbiges ich von Euch auch noch

hoffe. Befinde mich seit 3 Tage

in Belgien R?ckzug denken

diese Tage werden wir abgel?st

und (scrwawled word) ganz z?ruck.

Habe auch diese Tag 2 Briefe be-

kommen, wonach Ihr seit

3 Wochen ohne Post gewesen

seit. Bin noch Gut zufrieden

und wohl auf in Belgien.

Es gr?sst Christian

Written 11.11.18

My dear ones

I am still happily very well

and the same I hope also

for you. Found myself the last 3 days

in Belgium retreating, thought

these days we'd be relieved

and (scrawled word) right back.

Have this day 2 letters

received, according to which you've been

3 weeks without mail (from me).

Am still happily well

and in good health (as in, in one piece) in Belgium

Greetings from Christian

11 AM must have come as a complete surprise. Maybe the false alarms were more than he could hope for any longer. Because when this was written, the war had not ended yet.

[Tom Y]

Histograms? Cat Scratch.gif speechless1.gif

Like pentagrams but not as pointy