22nd  MONTHLY REPORT – 1st June to 30th June 1943 (Extracts)  The football season has opened which has provided a much needed outlet for the men – a number of matches between the Base and ships have been played before enthusiastic crowds…  Musketeer and Mahratta arrived on the 12th June with passengers, mail and stores, anchoring in Vaenga Bay so that transfer of Archangel and Moscow quotas could be made direct to and from Britomart and Jason who had come round from Archangel for that purpose. This was duly accomplished despite bad weather and the destroyers sailed in the evening of 12th June carrying in all between them 105 passengers. I am very grateful to the Commanding Officers for their co-operation in embarking so many.  Mails for Kola Inlet were not released as had been anticipated from preliminary arrangements, so Jason was retained to accommodate mail while negotiations proceeded, Britomart being sailed for Archangel on 13th June with passengers, mails and stores.  On 17th – 22nd June Britomart was lent for Russian escort duty to take icebreakers to the Kara Sea. Jason was to have been lent also for this duty, but was retained at Polyarnoe to accommodate the mail. This was not a popular move with the local Russian Naval Staff, but they were warned that Jason would not be available if the mail were not released. Reluctantly they did what they could to have the mail released but they seem to have little or no influence with any civil authority. Britomart started a second icebreaker escort on the 28th June…  In accordance with the Admiralty’s 1624 25th June the mail was handed over to the Russians on the 26th June. Jason arrived at Murmansk at 1000 after a long, tedious and often farcical meeting, negotiations were completed by 1445. The first batch of officials arrived on board at 1100 but refused to use the British lorry and working party provided by Jason; the Russian lorry and post office working party consisting of three young girls arrived at 1255. The mail was then removed from the ship and loaded into the lorry which was quite inadequate so the British lorry was loaded with the major portion. This did not take long but the Postal official discovered that two mail bags had been at one time torn and sewn up, and the seals had come off two others, and he could not accept them until the contents had been checked over. This was completed by 1400. The Post Office then gave a receipt for the mail but the Customs Officer could not be associated in that transaction and insisted on a separate ‘act’. He disappeared for 45 minutes returning with his statement which was almost word for word for the one he was asked to sign originally. It is interesting to note that during the muster of the contents of the sewn and unsealed bags one of the officials remarked that none of them were there any Anti-Soviet leaflets; any such of course would be quite redundant.  The urgency for this mail to be released was stressed but my representative was informed that the earliest a decision or any of the mail could be expected was noon on 28th June… Timoshenko’s intervention has speeded up the release of mail slightly; 12 bags were received on 30th June as against 6 and 5 on 28th and 29th June 1943. I am sure that it is realised how much all ranks and ratings dislike the possibility that their mail may be censored by the Russian authorities, and welcome the prospect of the mail coming by air under visa…  E R Archer Rear Admiral, SBNO North Russia    30th April 1943