War Diary:

Private Roy F. “Poe” Despaux, 1st Squad, A Company,
29th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division
DOB: 1923/12/23
Place of Birth: Venice, Plaquemine Parrish, Louisiana

23-24 October 1943
Scotland
Re-assigned from Battalion Reserve to Combat Infantry Squad (Introduction to the squad):
Je suis Roy Despaux (pronounced as dee-POE), not yet twenty, am born and raised in a small Cajun shrimp fishing community, comprising of forty-some families, where evah body know evah body and people nevah go noweah. Not even the Great Hurricane of 1915 nor the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 could wash all our folks away; as we are as far down the delta as anyone can go without a boat. Most folks ‘round home are either shrimp-trawlers or orange pickers, or some o’ both. We always have plenty of critters for de gumbo pot. Not much else aside from hunting; mostly feral hawgs, and of course, the ubiquitous “gatuhs.”
My Papa took me gator hunting for first time, when I was 7. It remains the most memorable event of my youth. Sitting in a small boat, dark water, cypress stumps, and vicious danger in the form of teeth and muscle) beneath us. I vividly recall how I held tight to the board seat while watching Papa frantically reeling in a thrashing and gnashing 10 foot long, 450 pound monster. How awesome it was to see Papa with gig line wrapped tightly around his left hand, holding the gator’s head against the boat, and with a single-barrel J.P. Stevens 12 gauge in his right hand, put a slug into the beasts “sweet spot.” That’s the only way to kill a gator, “aim small.. miss small” to hit a spot the size of a chicken egg, just behind the skull. A hit anywhere but __, only pisses him off. Most folks hunt in pairs; one to haul and other to shoot. Papa preferred to go solo – I do too.
Bringing home a gator is cause to celebrate. The Men folk prepare and cook the gator. We do celebrate a lot, ‘round here. Gator fry’s and fish fry’s with lots of spicy treats, spirits, music and dancing. Girls ‘round here are an ordinary breed of critters. I can say so, since I’m related to about half of them. There is this one girl, Cherrita, who though plain to look at, has quite a head on her shoulders, and can shoot the wings off a horsefly with a 30-30 Winchester. I ‘m a right damn good shot with the 30-06 Springfield that Gran’paw Claude gave me on my 13th Birthday.
In my little “free time” I liked to listen to Papa’s short-wave radio and soon became consumed with the events beyond the bayou. The world is at WAR and the terrible deeds of the Nazi’s and Japs all seemed yet so far away from our world, until... the night the Nazi submarine torpedoed an oil tanker. It burned for three days, illuminating the night sky as smoke hovered over horizon by day. The war was definitely “close enough to home” for me – I figured it was neigh time to do my part in it.
Before the war, I aspired to become a Pilot-boat Captain, and ultimately get my own Charter-boat, to take well-to-do city-slickers out to where the big fishes grow. Well, I never would’ve dreamed I would be steaming “off to war” across the Atlantic, with thousands of other guys on the world’s largest ship afloat!
Well guys, I’m big, but not dumb. I read a lot. Our town library is small, but I can honestly say that I have read most every volume of American literary classics. My school-mates gave me hell after reciting Edgar A. Poe on stage at school. After that, they laughed and everybody then after called me “Poe,” (a clever play on my name?). Y’all may call me “Poe.”

(Just don’t call me “Francis”– or I’ll kill y’all ;)








24 October 1943
Inverness, Scotland
The Squad:
Here I am in Inverness, Scotland, and about to embark upon the proverbial “adventure of a lifetime!” Perhaps this will become an understatement - since I am off to war – a half a world away from my home- a stark contrast indeed, to life as I knew it- as a son of a son of a fisherman.
Today me and McKee (from Leadville, Colorado) were finally assigned to a Combat Infantry Squad - Able Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st infantry Division -”Big Red One.”
They seem to be a fine bunch o’ guys. Three guys are farm boys from the Maine woods. They talk kind of Cajun-like, but I barely comprehend their peculiar patois. Sergeant Lewis is from Maine too, but he say he can’t understand none of us, except for McKee and maybe Crowenshield. He insists on calling me “dus-bolle” or sumpthin or another, for some strange reason.
Something big is a brewing according to the local scuttle-but. There are rumors of infiltrations and paratroop activities, indications that the krauts are gearing up to invade- somewhere. Sarge is a real straight-shooter, and informed the Squad that we would be boarding the CENSORED* for a SECRET** Exercise. I reckon it ain’t gonna be a gator hunt.

SGT Lewis After Action Report on Landing Through 9 NOV 42

1st Squad, 1st Platoon, Able Co landed without incident, albeit East (Left) of our intended landing area.

We took up hasty positions getting what cover we could on the beach, while LT Sneiderwine, our Platoon Leader told us to wait while he checked out the area.
The Lieutenant promised us he would return with further instructions after not longer than 5 minutes, but after more than 30 minutes there was no sign of him.

The staff S-2 Officer, LT Potter, came up to me looking for a squad for a mission. In the absence of my Platoon Leader, and Platoon Sergeant, I took charge and volunteered my Squad for the mission. I had no idea if our LT had become a casualty, and since I knew we were not where we supposed to be upon landing anyway, I decided it best to get off the beach and on a mission as quickly as possible.

I asked Lt Potter to relay the where we had gone to LT Sneiderwine when he returned, and reported to CPT Morrissy of Lima Company as instructed. As it turned out, our mission sent us in the right direction.

CPT Morrissy designated my Squad call sign as Able 1, RANGER, and gave us the mission to follow-up on a RECON patrol he sent up to the top of the DJEBEL MURD JADJU ridge. The initial team he sent in that direction earlier had not returned, and he needed somebody to observe the French movements.

CPT Morrissy’s instructions were to proceed up the trail to a designated point on the ridge where we were to observe the French flank, and report any significant movements back to him. Also to keep an eye out for the first team he sent up there. Additionally, when I queried him about actions I should take upon contact with the enemy he said, “Handle what you can handle.”
I brief my squad on our mission, established an order of march, and proceeded up the trail towards Bou-Sfer. It was a significant upward grade in places, and I could tell we were not the first Americans to follow it because after awhile there was discarded American equipment along the trail.

At the limits of our view we occasionally detected what appeared to be Arabs. These Arabs were skittish and did not give us any trouble. They seemed more concerned with picking up discarded American equipment then bothering us. They scattered from view if we made any abrupt move within their sight.

After a mile or so we came under sniper fire from a nearby farmhouse, (about here on the map). I tried calling out in French to the firer that we were Americans, friends to France, and asked that they stop firing upon us; all with no apparent effect. The sniper kept firing upon us, so we were forced to return fire. The lone sniper was killed by our combined rifle and BAR fire. Upon examination he turned out to be a member of the French Navy, (here is his pay book). We discarded the rifle bolt far from the rifle so it could not be used again, and continued on with our mission.

Another half mile and we came to a barn which turned out to house elderly mules. These mules are apparently the property of the French Army, and are tended by a distinguished former French Army gentleman name Clousseau. He is friendly towards Americans, and helpful in relaying local geography.

We reach our designated position on the DJEBEL MURD JADJU ridgeline before dawn, which provided a decent observation point. I dispatched two runners to CP Morrissy, notifying him. These runners accomplished their mission and returned without incident.

Before dawn 8 NOV 42, we started hearing the sound of the report of two large guns within a mile of our position. I dispatched my two scouts, Karras and Greeley to investigate, and they came back with some details about the guns position, crew, and defenses.

The guns turned out to be 75mm, and were being fired against our 3rd Battalion forces. I decided to conduct an assault using my squad to take them out of action using the noise of the guns own firing to cover the sound of the attack and hopefully achieve the element of surprise.
Pvt Crowinshield was eventually able to contact both the 3rd, and our own 1st Battalion headquarters via radio, and I received word that our forces were being pinned down by these guns. Instructions were to notify headquarters when we had knocked these guns out of action.
Details of squad action against the gun emplacement already posted. (Commentary about enemy weapons and equipment, intended actions, and personal remarks about wanting to throttle Crowinshield omitted from report to superiors. General rule is to accentuate the positive in reports).

We captured 7 French prisoners, as well as a 1920’s vintage French truck (wooden spoke wheels, of course), not in running order. At our instruction, the French prisoners were happy to disable their 75mm guns by throwing the breechblocks over the cliff.
We found the gun emplacement position to be an excellent observation point, able to command a view of the entire bay area, as well as the other French artillery positions. I decided to relocate our squad to this position. It was better in all respects to our previous one. I had Despaux, and Keegan watch the prisoners, and sent PVT’s Greeley, and Karras back to our previous observation point to retrieve the rest of the squad, and equipment. PVT Crowinshield and I (SGT Lewis) started scanning for French forces.

It was not long before we picked out another enemy gun position firing on our forces. These guns were larger then 75mm, and Crowinshield wasted no time in attempting to reach our British Navy allies on the radio in order to call the position in. That Crowinshield is a real smoothie with the Brits, and good with the radio too. He got some British navy guys on one of those BIG ships to listen to him, anyway.

I was able to make out the grid coordinates, and read them out to Crowinshield. Before we knew it there were spotting rounds coming in on the enemy gun position. Crowinshield was able to call in the adjustments, and when they fired for effect… WHA-WHOOM !!!! BOY oh BOY! I hadn’t seen anything like it before, even in the first war. The enemies big gun emplacement just disappeared in clouds of earth and rocks. It was like the Earth just erupted where they were. Sure am glad I wasn’t over there.

Well, we kept our eyes peeled, and we were able to pick out another gun position and call in the naval gunfire again. It was fun!! Crowinshield really got a knack for it. I think he was talking to some Brit guy named “Rodney”. PVT Despaux got our attention, and let us know there was something going on back at our old position. I didn’t see what was going on there. You will need to ask one of the others who was there about the action that took place.

1942 11 05 Assault on Gun Emplacement

French North Africa, 9 November 1942 D+1

Squad engaged in second hostile fire action of the war, and the first one we initiated. After digging in on our assigned ridge-line observation point the evening of 8 November 1942, we became aware of the firing of two large caliber artillery pieces within a mile of our position. Privates Greeley and Karas were dispatched to reconnoiter the position.

Upon return, they reported a fortified gun emplacement directed seaward, with two large artillery guns engaging our ships off coast. They estimated these guns were crewed and protected by approximately 20 men, and that they were unaware of our presence to their left and rear.

As squad leader I made the decision to take these guns out of action. The orders from the Major who sent us to this position gave me the leeway to, "Take on what we could handle".

Even with 4 squad members off on detail (Cpl Meister, PVT Dubois, PVT Craig, and PVT McKee), I still had Crowinshield, Keegan, Karas, Greeley, and Despaux, as well as myself. Meister had left his BAR with Keegan, and I had my Thompson, so we had sufficient firepower, particularly in view that we had a good chance of using the element of surprise.

The terrain between us and the gun emplacement using a roundabout half circle to its rear would be treacherous and time consuming but it did provide the best opportunity to approach unobserved. The squad took its time moving out on the morning of 5 November 1942, leaving our helmets covered in our hastily dug positions. We wanted to maintain a quiet approach, and the helmets were the most obtrusive, as well as rattling pieces of equipment we had. I much preferred my khaki bandanna around my head anyway.

We made the fairly long trek, with only Greeley turning one ankle a bit in the rugged rocks we had to cross. I came close a few times, but by taking my time made it, along with the rest of the squad to a good covered observation point.

Crowinshield was fiddling with the British radio he acquired before we departed Scotland. He managed to raise some British fire direction guys on the Rodney once we reach . I pinpointed where we were on the map, and tried to call in a fire mission to the Brits so that they could take out the enemy position with navy gunfire, but they said I must have the position wrong because they were not taking fire from there. They were just lazy, cause I had the position right, those stuck-up Rubes.

Upon close observation, we could see there was a sandbagged light machine gun position facing down the ridge trail (West), perpendicular to our covered position. The men manning it appeared not to have seen our approach. There were also two 20mm anti-aircraft Hotchkiss type machine guns mounted on AA tripods facing towards the sea (North), away from our position,

My assault plan called for me, with my Thompson to try to get as close as I could to the right of the emplacement, facing into the uncovered rear of the sandbagged machine gun position. The rest of the squad was to cover me with their rifles, including the BAR, and be prepared to open up if I was detected upon my approach. If I successfully got into the position I wanted, they were to open up when they saw me do so.

The plan was to take out the machine gun gunners first, followed by the officers commanding the artillery, then the AA gunners, and lastly the artillery gun crew themselves. Each Squad member was instructed to take their first shot to coincide with the firing of the guns. Hopefully the noise from the report would cause our shots to remain undetected. The squad was on line, from left to right, Crowinshield, Keegan, Greeley, Karas, Despoe, and Myself (Lewis).

Before going in, Crowinshield managed to get 3rd Battalion on the radio, and finally our own 1st Battalion. We received official instructions to neutralize these guns, which had our guys pinned down on the beach.

I moved out as planned, but before I could get into the position I wanted, when I was still halfway to the emplacement, Crowinshield got impatient and opened fire. It was a good thing he was out of reach, because if I could have grabbed him by the throat I would have.

Well, suffice to say that the rest of the squad opened fire once Crowinshield did. I ran to a spot behind an ancient truck parked next to the right of the emplacement, and was able to open fire on the rear of the machine gun emplacement. The two Frenchmen manning the the machine gun had already each been hit by squad-members. I think Keegan killed one right away with a burst from the BAR, and Greeley hit the other (gunner) once. The gunner still had enough in him to be a threat, and had his hand on the machine gun, so I dispatched him with a burst from my Thompson. Pretty effective weapon at close range !!

Crowinshield was pretty effective on his running assault. He pumped a couple rounds into the machine gun position, then vaulted past it to the left hand 20mm AA machine gun position and shot into it. As the AA gunners reacted he attempted to toss a grenade into their position. As some kind of luck would have it (bad, then not so bad), the grenade bounced off the top of the sandbag wall surrounding the emplacement and landed down in with the crew of the leftmost artillery piece. They got one hell of a wake up call when that grenade went off ! It really got their attention !!!

I had engaged the right hand AA machine gun emplacement crew while Crowinshield was drawing everybody's attention his way. The guy really is an exhibitionist, and loves it ! I moved closer to the right hand AA gun to be at a more effective range for my Thompson. Fortunately, the AA guns were pointed toward the sea, and although the crews were trying to turn them against us, the guns were heavy and awkward, and our shooting at them distracted them from their purpose.

The rest of the squad, particularly Greeley and Karas were concentrating their fire on the artillery crew, starting with the officers. It turned out the officers were navy, while the rest of the crew and gunners were army.

I put a couple bursts into the crew on the right AA gun, while Crowinshield put a couple more rounds into the other crew. Keegan and Despaux were laying down effective fire into the artillery crew, but there were six on each gun, plus the two officers, and the AA gun crews.

I was just turning my fire toward the right hand gun crew when three of them fired their revolvers at me. I was hit in my upper left arm, and another shot hit me in the abdomen and scraped along my rib, and then exited. Man !!! That one really hurt. Took the wind right out of me, and I had to take a knee.

Both the French officers were dead from our rifle fire at this point, and Crowinshield vaulted over the sandbags at the AA gun position, where the crew had been dispatched and pointed his M1 from down into the artillery gun position. Crowinshield and I both called upon the remaining Frenchies to surrender, and fortunately for me they did! The three with their pistols out who shot at me a moment before had me dead to rights. The range was close, and although my Thompson would be very effective, all three of them were uninjured, and ready to shoot at me a second time.

Furthermore, I realized at that moment that Crowinshield's M1 was empty, as were Despaux's Greeley's, and Karas' M1's. That left only myself and Keegan with rounds in our magazines, and I was hurting pretty badly from those french pistol slugs. Glad they passed through. I don't want to have the experience of being hit again.

The Frenchies were very amicable once we produced cigarettes and passed them out. They spiked the guns, an tossed the breach-blocks down the escarpment. They were old 100mm guns from the first war.

Crowinshield raised battalion on the radio and let them know we had neutralized the guns, and got word they were on the way to us. I applied first aid to myself and that made me feel a lot better. Looking forward to the medic, or maybe even the battalion surgeon looking me over. But I can continue with my duties if I take it real easy for awhile.

We got that French truck down completely impact and untouched. Maybe I can ride in it for awhile, and stay off my feet.

I got a hold of that French Chatellerault machine gun, and all it's magazines and ammunition. It's a pretty close kin to our own BAR, and I am going to try to hold onto it and use it. Unfortunately, it takes 7.5 French cartridges, and unless we find some more somewhere, once the ammo is gone it's useless. Still, it should be as effective as our BAR as long as it's ammunition lasts.

Keegan seems to like my Thompson, and he can carry it, along with his own M1, for the time being. He is a strapping mountain of a young man. Like Gus, but leaner. The squad is fortunate to have both of them.

I am very pleased with the squads performance overall. Perhaps not completely happy with Crowinshield for not waiting until I got into position, but he was more than brave enough to show he had sand, and I respect that.

I was the only one who got hit, and if I had stayed behind the truck, or had a longer range weapon, and stayed with the rest of the squad on line back at the rocks, I would have likely have avoided my wounds altogether. As it is, I will be in for another purple heart, I guess.

Wonder what our next mission will be? I have to get these French prisoners back to Company, and get this action report written up and sent in. Better get the squad back into their positions, cleaning and oiling their weapons. Once that's done they can get some rest.

-SGT Lewis

Training Exercise Terrain

So for visual aids, here is the actual field the Squad faced for the first Training Exercise they participated in. The table is oriented east and west, with the large farm complex being on the East edge of the area of operation.

The scenario presented to the squad was as follows:

They were the advance patrol of a company, they were to expect minimal resistance; and conduct the patrol/advance as a RECON mission. The primary mission therefore was information gathering, and the elimination of only small pockets of resistance.

The enemy forces were three German soldiers in the large Farm complex; one sniping from the stone silo tower; and three other Germans approaching from the south, trying to get back to their parent unit. The first group of enemy were actively looking to delay any Americans encountered; the second were looking to avoid contact altogether.

The first photo is the the view from the American end of the field, the second the view from the German end. Close review shows that Sgt. Lewis did a fine job in the creation of his map.

The GM

Fw: After Action Review - Combat Patrol

Memorandum for Record
RE: After Action Review (AAR) for Combat Patrol

Per Company SOP, this memorandum documents the AAR's key findings and summary critique of the events of DATE CENSORED.

Mission: on DATE CENSORED, 1st Squad of UNIT CENSORED executed a combat patrol in the vicinity Objective FULTON to locate and destroy direct-fire weapons responsible for the destruction of scout elements deployed in sector within the last 24 hours.

Outcome: The mission was an overall success. The squad successfully destroyed an 88mm towed gun, a 20mm Flakpanzer mounted on a wheeled chassis, and an MG34 machine-gun nest, all without taking casualties. The enemy suffered at least 6 dead and approximately 10 wounded and further withdrew in disorder. An additional 20mm Flakpanzer survived the battle but retreated West as the fight progressed. Local gains were not exploited due to the small size of the attacking squad.

Highlights:
- The plan was discussed openly among the squad - everyone knew the mission, the goals, and the concept of the operation. All squad members gave input to varying degrees. Terrain was simulated on a sand table. METT-T was used to round out the specifics of the mission. Ocoka was used to analyze the sand table diagram.

- The plan provided for flexibility as the squad probed the enemy defenses. There was a good deal of flexibility to modify the route and interim objectives mid-stream. Key to this capability was the fact that the squad moved in bounds, but largely stayed together as a unit until dispersing on the objective to destroy individual objectives. Staying together kept command and control issues to a minimum and allowed for leaders to confer on plans as they changed.

- Key tasks were portioned out based upon individual strengths. The notable contributions of the Scout section, the MG team, and the Bazooka team during the patrol all played to their strengths. In retrospect, it is clear the squad worked as a team and acted as a team.

- The squad executed the combat patrol at night, with the goal of locating and then surprising the enemy. The patrol leader decided to conduct operations at night due to the obvious overwhelming fire superiority of the defending force. It was critical to avoid a toe-to-toe shootout with the enemy.

- Conducting the operation at night robbed the enemy of key capabilities:
1. The enemy could not bring effective indirect-fire weapons into play, given the low visibility and poor moonlight.
2. The enemy could not bring direct-fire weapons into play with any effect; they were essentially firing blind off range cards.
3. The enemy was forced to fight local firefights in which the attacking squad had chosen the terms of the engagement.


- Individual courage and initiative were outstanding:
1. The scouts quite notably silently killed 4 Germans manning or relieving the Observation Post, preserving the stealthy approach of the team.
2. The bazooka team took the initiative to maneuver into a firing position that gave them open fields of fire across the German position. This allowed the bazooka to provide direct fire at a critical moment in the battle, destroying one flakpanzer (20mm) and forcing the second to withdraw.
3. The Platoon Sergeant led the charge on the 88mm emplaced gun, personally starting a firefight that forced the enemy to abandon the gun, which he subsequently destroyed via thermite grenade. Because of the Platoon Sergeant's actions, the 88 did not fire during the battle.
4. The machine-gun team staked out and then destroyed a machine-gun nest emplaced at the end of a trench line, successfully taking out a key weapon that could easily displace to cover our line of withdrawal. In concert with illumination rounds, this weapon could have had devastating results if our MG team had not killed the crew.


Lowlights:
- The indirect-fire weapons (large-tube mortars) providing illumination rounds were not located prior to the firefight. Mortars are always pre-sighted for final protective fires effectively on top of the enemy's positions -- thus the squad could have been taken out with one well-placed fire mission. Had the firefight taken more than a few minutes, this would have been a key concern. As it was, the firefight was so fast that the enemy did not have time to fire indirect rounds in the defense.

- Even though indirect fire support was not offered by Battalion, an indirect fire plan should have been developed anyway, with map pre-plots communicated to Company and Battalion. Indirect fire can always be made available under the right conditions. For example, if the squad had stumbled into an advancing Panzer Division, Division or Corps artillery might have been allocated on the fly. More importantly, if the unit had been ambushed, there was no contingent fire support plan to aid in withdrawal. In such an emergency, indirect fires will often be made available.

- Signal was not used as effectively as it could have been. Red lenses on flashlights could have cut down on runner movement between sections (e.g., one flash to the rear for hold position, two for move to me). Star clusters were available but not used. Whistles were available but not used; at night, we should consider using these to signal for medic or evacuation routes. Most importantly, radios were used up to the OP then switched off. Company headquarters was in the dark as to progress until the fight was over. A contact report should have been sent at the start of the battle, even if only to say that the fight was going well.

- There was no plan for diversion of fire should the stealthy approach fail. If resources had been available, a .50 caliber machine gun positioned along the line of departure should have been made available with a minimal crew to lay down an emergency base of fire to cover the withdrawal and to draw enemy fire. A couple of cooks with a .50 caliber on a truck could have accomplished this basic task. Indirect assets could also have been provided to cover withdrawal or to further exploit the enemy's withdrawal, but there was no plan for this.

- Combined arms procedures of putting 3 different killing systems on a given target could not be achieved. However, the dispersal of the enemy and the demands placed on the small squad to engage multiple targets at once forced the decision. The squad was able to simultaneously engage multiple pockets of resistance with devastating results, regardless.


Summary:
The results speak for themselves -- the right mass and weight of force was in the right place to engage and overwhelm the defenders throughout the engagement. The patrol leader will be submitting individual citation awards for the scouts, bazooka, machine-gun team, and Platoon Sergeant for their acts of initiative and bravery.



1LT Levy, Platoon Leader

2nd Excerpt from the personal wartime journal of PFC Max L. Karas, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division:

August 2 1942. continuation of Entry written during the cattle truck ride from Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania to New York City.

Okay, I'm back to journal writing. Boy, it's hot, humid and dusty here in back of this truck, and all those potholes the driver is hitting don't make trying to write any easier.

Swell thing happened a little while ago. Like I said, it's been a long time now in the back of this truck, the initial excitement and chit-chat at the start of the trip is now gone, and the hours have drifted into a pensive silence, for me especially, as I think about where I am and the long journey ahead.

At about this time, Sgt. Lewis spoke up. Like he was issuing and order, he said, "Cpl. Meister! See that duffle back in the corner of the truck? Open it up." Gus went over and did what he was told. None of us had gone near that duffle because we knew it belonged to the sarge. Gus opens it and looks in, right away I see his eyes light up like the Regal Theater stage back home. He pulls out a bunch of sausage and a couple six-packs of beer. He looks back at sarge. Sarge, with just a hint of a smile on his face, just said,
"Pass em' around, Corporal."
Gus did so, and boy having a beer and a sausage hit the spot right then. Sarge took the same share as all of us. He didn't say a lot, but then he didn't have to. We got the message. He seemed to know right when needed this, to boost our spirits. It worked, and got us all talking and feeling like a team again. Someone groused about the quality and temperature of the beer, and I just said, "Hey, when you're in the back of a hot dusty cattle truck, on your way to fight a war, any beer you can get your hands on is good beer." This got a laugh, and we took turns telling jokes and were feeling good again, at least for a little while. Three cheers for Sarge!

Our destination is New York City, but I won't get a chance to see Broadway or a New York Giants game at the Polo Grounds. I hope I can hit those places on my way back home. This truck is headed right to New York Harbor. There we get on a big ship that's going to take us all the way 'over there' as Pop would say. We should be there is another couple days.

SGT Lewis Talks to Squad 19420927 After Scotland Training Exercise

SGT Lewis gathers the squad the evening after talking to the training exercise umpires:

Well, we had a good day as a squad. That means each of you did your jobs, and didn’t screw up to get yourselves, or anybody else killed. Just remember though that sometimes even when you do everything right somebody can get hit, and it takes only one shot to kill a man, or wound him anywhere from slightly to very badly.

When that happens, and it WILL, we need to be sure we are looking out for each other and checking on each other. What if, for instance, instead of Malcolm making the great shot, the guy on the other side did? Who was Malcolm’s buddy keeping an eye on him, ready to apply first aid if he needed it?

See what I mean now, don’t you guys!! I’m going to see if I can get one or two more guys assigned to this squad. We are a little light as it is, and in my experience, no matter how much you wash, or try to stay healthy, anytime you get eight Soldiers together, SOMEBODY is going to either get sick for awhile, or get grabbed for some detail, or else something else will come up to keep him from being an effective member of the squad for some period of time. It never seems to be at a convenient time either.

Remember this too, we may have had a good day as a squad, but it was “in training”. We were well fed, in good shape, and had plenty of sleep the nights before. It won’t always be like that, believe me.

We also had new, nice, clean, equipment, and plenty of ammunition and grenades. Well it won’t be long before the equipment isn’t new anymore, but every one of us is going to keep their equipment nice and clean. That means every night the weapons are cleaned, spotless, and oiled. …and every morning they are checked, and gone over again to be sure nothing got into them overnight, that mean critters as well as moisture.

Yeah Crowenshield, I have seen snakes crawl into rifle barrels to get out of the rain. I have also seen them crawl into pockets of sleeping Soldiers to keep warm in cold weather. Not just pockets either, if you know what I mean… So be careful!

About ammunition and grenades, my friend in headquarters says they are ordering a lot but it isn’t coming through quickly, or in the quantity they would like. What that means to me is we probably won’t have the luxury of all the different colors of smoke grenades to choose from, probably not all the different types of other grenades to pick from either.

Craig! That means you may not get as many smoke grenade launchers to lay down a smoke screen at distance. So when you get a chance to get a few extras, pack some away, or give a couple to each of us to pack with us. It sure is handy to have you putting that smoke between us and the enemy when we need to cross open ground, or are under enemy fire.

Now a word about ammunition. We all know that Gus loves to pump magazine after magazine out of his B.A.R. Yeah Gus, I know that’s what it’s for. My point is that big and strong as Gus is, he can’t be expected to carry all the ammunition he needs, and WE need for his B.A.R. – That means the rest of us need to lend a hand and carry some, two or three magazines each. Yeah, I know that means we are weighted down a little more, but we need to manage it. Pick and choose what personal stuff you take with you carefully. Better to have what the squad needs and be alive instead of taking stuff the squad can do without and not have what we need. Yeah Gus, I know you “need” more food than the rest of us. That’s on you to carry. Good thing you are up to it, sure.

Dubois, I am really hoping we get to ride in some kind of vehicle as much as possible. That’s where I really appreciate your driving skill, and especially your ability to keep engines running. Be sure you keep the tools you need with you. It’s OK if you don’t carry as many smoke grenades in launchers or BAR magazines in order for you to have the tools you need. What?? What?? Say that again more slowly… Jesus Christ !!!
Let me tell you that it’s a good thing you don’t talk much, because half the time I can’t figure out what you are saying when you ARE talking. Wipe that grin off YOUR face Crowenshield, your accent ain’t no picnic for me to understand either.

That reminds me… I SAW you mixing it up with that Brit, smoking cigarettes, and talking “la-dee-da” while the training exercise was still going on. WE all need to train like we are going to fight. I am not going in for extra hardship for the sake of it. We will get plenty of that later. But when the game is on, we need to be looking around for the enemy, and maintain situational awareness. Before you ask what the second part of that means, Meister, it means figuring out what is happening, and what is going to happen next from what you see going on, ESPECIALLY at a distance. …OK, Gus I get it.

Listen, somebody who can see well and pick up things a long way off needs to buddy up with Gus. Yeah Gus, you are right, “if somebody can point ‘em out, you can shoot ‘em.” So, depending on the situation, somebody in the squad who can see and hear well needs to stick close to Gus. That means they will carry some 6 magazines of BAR ammunition on a belt in addition to their own weapon and ammunition. I’ll give you guys a chance to work that one out.


Karas, you seem to be good at concealing yourself when moving through the hedges and brush. You also seem more adept than the rest of us at putting on the soot to take the shine off your skin in moonlight. That’s useful. You are fleet when moving, and it seems you can pick out a route, and detect the enemy pretty well. It makes you a good scout, or it could make you a good spotter for Gus.

Greeley, you are our other scout, especially with your backwoods experience. Craig is nearly as good, but he is our grenadier, and depending how we need him in that role, it should be Max, or Malcolm who goes up ahead with you on missions.

But Greeley, in this last exercise you didn’t take up cover quickly enough after you came through the hedge, and the umpires said you took a shot to the back from one of the enemy. Fortunately, Dubois was there to help you with first aid, but it could have been worse.

As I said, you each did well in this last exercise, but according to the short briefing on our upcoming mission, it will not be the same when we actually land in enemy territory. Somebody is going to have to speak to the locals. Malcolm will probably be that man.

What I want each of you to do is think about what you will carry, and what each will do in different situations that might arise. Prepare yourselves mentally in advance for meeting the enemy. Be prepared to kill him first. The first time is always the hardest. Don’t hesitate when it needs to be done. Don’t make noise to give away our position when we are trying to be quiet either.

I want to say that I am glad to have each of you in the squad, and am confident that if you perform as well in combat as you have thus far in training, and on the ship on the way over we can get through this together and go home together.

One more thing… We have this bottle of port. It is ours as a group, and it is to be shared by the group. It would fetch something pretty good in a trade, or we can save it to share together in a toast after we beat the Nazi’s. I don’t intend to carry it into combat, and have the bottle broken and wasted.

Crowenshield, since you seem to get along well in these British Isles, I think you should see to its safekeeping. I am looking to suggestions from the squad as to what we should do with this special token, and whatever we decide we will decide together. Agreed?

Good! Now, do any of you have anything you would like to say about the recent training exercise, or about the squad, and its members? Does anybody have any questions?

(SGT Lewis pauses and waits for someone to speak up)

19420926 After Action Report - Training Exercise, Scotland

After Action Report
26 September 1942
Training Exercise: Invary, Scotland

Mission: Clear lanes and secure axis of advance as advance vanguard of 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. Secure key terrain and inform parent unit via radio.
This exercise was part of simulated invasion of hostile territory, with main body of regiment 1 mile behind.

Squad Members:
SGT Lee Lewis – Squad Ldr (B team ldr)
CPL Gus Meister – A Team Ldr (BAR Gunner)
PVT Malcolm Craig - A Team (Rifle Grenadier)
PVT Max Karas - A Team (Scout/Rifleman)
PVT Albert Greeley - B Team (Scout/Rifleman)
PVT Pascal Dubois - B Team (Rifleman)
PVT Percy Crowenshield - B Team (Rifleman/Radio Operator)

SGT Lewis received mission order, and briefed squad. Provided code word to entire squad to signal parent unit upon completion of mission. Established challenge and password, and rally points along avenue of advance. Established “A” and “B” teams, and designated team leaders. Designated yellow smoke as signal for “enemy encountered” for use by scout team upon contact once detected, and red smoke as signal for “Lay down suppressive fire here” for use by scout team once enemy position(s) were established.

Terrain was road “A” which ran West to East, with squad entering from western side, covered by continuous hedgerow along Southern edge of road. Small farmhouse and outbuilding within 20 seconds run (2 turns) from line of departure. Road “A” intersected with Road “B” which ran Southwest to Northeast. Intersection a little over one minutes hard run from Small farmhouse and outbuilding (3-4 turns), direct route over flat open countryside. Within short distance of intersection A-B (30 seconds run), terrain gradually rose, and beyond intersection terrain continued to rise for another 100 yards to second intersection where road divided again to run North to South (intersection A-C). Just to east of this intersection, on top of hill commanding view of entire area were several substantial two story buildings, tall farm silo, and other outbuilding which formed a natural defensive complex, and observation position (Key Terrain Objective).

SGT Lewis designated the small farmhouse & outbuilding near line of departure as rally point Alpha, and initial objective to occupy and establish as an over-watch position for CPL Meister, and PVT Craig. PVTs Greeley, and Karas were to scout for enemy positions staying to the South (non-road) side of the hedgerows using the hedgerows for concealment from probable enemy observation from Key Terrain Objective at intersection A-C. If enemy action occurred during this scouting, Karas and Greeley were to signal contact and their own position by using yellow smoke. Any area they wished engaged with suppressive fire was to be marked by red smoke. If Karas and Greeley were able to remain undetected, they were to return with information on enemy positions.

Apex of hedgerows at road intersection A-B was designated as rally point Bravo, and Key Terrain Objective (Two story building at intersection A-C) was designated as third and final rally point, as well as point which once secured PVT Crownshield was to radio parent unit with code word, “Manhatten” to indicate completion of mission.

Upon enemy contact, A and B teams were to employ fire and maneuver tactics to engage and eliminate enemy resistance, one providing support fire while the other maneuvered, with CPL Meister leading A-team, while SGT Lewis took B-team.

SGT Lewis cautioned the squad that although our enemy elements were unknown, and there was the potential that they might be neutral towards American, no squad member should take the chance of being shot to determine this. Most important priority was mutual support of the squad and if potential neutrals became casualties, better them than a squad member.

SGT Lewis also somehow mistakenly read into the Operation Order that the squad was to inform command upon enemy contact, when in fact the Op Order stated to maintain radio silence until achievement of the objective, and inform Command of enemy contact only when determined such enemy contacted was Battalion strength or higher.

Concept of operation as conceived and briefed by SGT Lewis was to use scouts Karas and Greeley to determine enemy positions without alerting enemy to American presence, if possible, and then using the squad as two teams to approach using cover, and take successive objective rally points, overcoming enemy resistance with no friendly casualties.

CPL Meister and A team was to provide initial over-watch and suppressive fire (mainly BAR) from small farmhouse at Rally Point Alpha, while B Team moved on the assault. Once B team was established at Rally Point Bravo, A-Team was to move to join B-Team, which would provide a base of fire. From Apex of hedgerows at Rally Point Bravo (Intersection A-B), final assault on Key Terrain Objective to East of intersection A-C would occur. In actual execution the action proceeded as follows:

PVT Greeley came under rifle fire immediately at end of first 20 seconds of movement from line of departure along Road “A”, before he could reach first rally point. He took up prone position in little to no cover.

Remainder of squad moved up to behind barn at rally point “A”, using same barn to obscure observation from enemy rifle fire from key terrain objective. From this vantage point behind barn, PVT Crowenshield was able to throw smoke grenade with uncanny accuracy, and further than a man normally can throw to land and detonate to provide smoke cover to perfectly conceal PVT Greeley, and at the same time screen the rest of the squads approach and occupation of the small farmhouse which was rally point “A”.
PVT Greeley, and the rest of the squad occupied the vicinity of rally point “A”, which was devoid of enemy presence, as well as civilians. CPL Meister and PVT Craig took up positions in the attic, and dislodged roof tiles for Meister to initiate suppressive fire at long range against windows in structures at Key Terrain Objective. No enemy was yet observed, but squad was under rifle fire from what seemed a solitary enemy rifleman. Bullets were cracking over the head of first Greeley, and then later switched to hit roofing tiles around Meisters position, gradually getting closer to Gus’s self-fashioned firing loophole as Gus sprayed burst after burst of BAR fire at various windows at the objective. PVT Crowenshield, upon instructions from SGT Lewis radioed notification of enemy contact to parent unit, and was tersely instructed to maintain radio silence and “get off this net”. SGT Lewis realized belatedly he mis-read the mission orders instructions.

PVT Craig fired concealing smoke rifle grenades in vicinity of intersection A-B, just East of Rally Point Bravo, which was at extreme range for rifle grenades. These smoke grenades, together with the hedgerow running along the Southwestern border of road “A”, provided cover for SGT Lewis, PVT Dubois, and PVT Greeley to run to the apex of the two hedgerows at Rally Point Bravo, although SGT Lewis had to stop to assess the situation (catch his breath) 2/3rd of the way there, and double-timed the remaining distance, sending PVT’s Greeley, and Dubois ahead.

Cpl Meister fired burst after burst of suppressive fire with his BAR, and PVT Craig moved to successively closer vantage points to lay down smoke grenades during this movement. PVT Crowenshield took a line of advance more Southernly, and eventually made his way through the hedgerow along the Northern side of Road “B”, South and West of, but commanding a good view and field of fire down Road “B” to Intersection A-B, just East of Rally Point Bravo.

Pvt Karas moving parallel to Crowenshield, but along same track as SGT Lewis and his team and thrashed his way through the hedgerow along the South side of Road “A” about halfway to Rally Point Bravo, and stuck his head out to observe intersection A-B.

At about this time it was time for CPL Meister to change magazines and decided it would also be a good time to relocate, as the apparently solitary enemy rifleman’s shots were becoming uncomfortably close to his loophole in the attic of the farmhouse.

At about the same time, Dubois and Greeley came out of the hedgerow at intersection A-B, under the cover of PVT Craigs rifle grenade smoke between, and screening them from view from Key Terrain Objective (intersection A-C).

As soon as they stepped into the road, looking to their right, Southwest down road B, they saw three enemy Soldiers approaching them down the road (range at less than 20 seconds run). These enemy Soldiers were wearing dusty tropical green German uniforms, with the unmistakable German helmets. One was armed with bolt action rifle, and the others with light sub-machine guns. These Germans were caught more by surprise than Dubois and Greeley, and Dubois shot first, piercing the lead German rifleman with a snap-shot from his M1 rifle. Greeley fired a moment later.
The Germans (played by British Commandos) first return fire was ineffective and wild. Crowenshield emerged from the hedgerows at a vantage point further South, and West from these three Germans, and fortunately the road ran in such a way so that he was not in the line of fire of Dubois and Greeley in front of these Germans. Crowenshield had a good position behind the Germans, and after first attempting to order them to surrender, shot the rearmost one when he attempted to open fire instead of surrendering. This shot from Crowenshield caused the German to retreat at a run to the Southeast, away from Crowenshield, as well as Dubois, and Greeley. As he ran, wounded by Crowenshield, he wildly attempted to spray Crowenshield with his MP-40. This fire was completely ineffective, and this German Soldier only ran for about 20 seconds before the cross-fire between Dubois/Greeley/Crowenshild put him down for good. Crowenshield crawled up to take cover behind the “killed” German, and I think I saw the glint of a flask, and then smoke from a cigarette rising from his position. I’ll be dealing with Percy “Pockets”.

The other two Germans on the road tried to engage Dubois and Greeley but in the exchange, their fire scored no hits as they moved, while Dubois and Greeley, who had taken up stationary firing positions made their shots tell, and cut the Germans down before they could make cover of a copse of trees to the Northeast.

I (SGT Lewis) had finally made my way through the apex of Hedgerow at intersection A-B, and stepped out into road B behind Dubois and Greeley, between them and the fast dissipating smoke screen laid down by PVT Craig with rifle grenades.

The smoke screen was still there, between me and the Key objective where enemy rifle fire had come from, and where I had a pretty good idea there were more enemy situated. The smoke screen was fast dissipating, so I took a position behind a tree along the South edge of road B, and as the smoke cleared, scanned the upper windows of the imposing stone two-story building which was our Key Terrain Objective behind intersection A-C.

PVT Craig had exhausted his supply of rifle grenades, reconfigured his rifle to fire ball ammunition, and had been scanning the windows and buildings at our key objective complex for the rifleman who had been taking shots at CPL Meister (Gus), who had relocated out of the farmhouse attic, and was moving at a plodding pace to that same apex of the hedgerows, going up that same damn hill that winded me so badly. I could see it was an effort for Gus as well, which provided me some solace, I don’t mind admitting. He was joined in this run up the hill by PVT Max Karas, who was notably lighter on his feet, and moved with greater ease.

CPL Meister and PVT Karas reached the apex of the hedgerows just forward of rally point Bravo, and started thrashing through them about the same time, towards the road B (Southeastern) side, behind Greeley, and Dubois, who were still facing Southeast (Backs to the Key Objective buildings), and just at the point of finishing off the three Germans.

A shot rang out from somewhere in the cluster of buildings that was our key objective, and PVT Greeley took a hit in the back. I should have thrown down a smoke grenade as a screen for Greeley, and Dubois instead of scanning the windows of the building.
Greeley crawled to cover behind a tree just a few feet away from me, joining Dubois. Greeley applied first aid to himself, but I wasn’t paying attention, as I had caught sight of some movement from the Key Objective Building to a couple trees just a little way to the South, along road A-C. I couldn’t actually see the enemy, but figured they had taken up positions behind a couple trees there.

At about this time, PVT Craig tells me he was somehow able to pick out the enemy “Sniper” on top of the silo at the key objective, and with a truly superior rifle shot put a round right through the enemies skull. The umpire said the shot blasted pink flesh and brains along the top of the Silo. How he determined that I don’t know, but I’ll accept it.

Meister and Karas had made it through the hedgerows about 20 feet from my position, and had taken up good prone firing positions with a view of the objective buildings, as well as the trees where I thought the enemy was.

Craig had a distant position, almost as far away as that first rally point, and I didn’t know where he was, but I had heard his rifle shot to the silo, and hoped he still maintained his over-watch position. I found out later he, in fact, had. Good Soldier.

Greeley had bandaged himself, perhaps with help from Dubois, as they were co-located behind a tree not 10 feet behind me, and both signaled ready to move.

Crowenshield still was in position behind the “dead” German, a good half minutes run away, but still in a good spot to support a rush on the enemy held trees with fire, or take a run at it.

I called out to Meister and Karas to lay down fire on the trees where I thought I saw the enemy move to, then to B team to watch me, and follow me at a run on the assault.

It went off exactly as I hoped. Gus laid down fire, burst after burst with his BAR, and Max with clip after clip with his M1 Garand. Their fire went to the right area.

I had my wind back after taking a knee behind my tree, and with Greeley, and Dubois right with me, and Crownshield keeping apace, although further distance and to my right, we ran right at the trees where I had seen the enemy move.

All the angles were right so CPL Meister, and PVT Karas could lay down effective fire until my team was right on the objective, and PVT Crowenshield too, had a good, safe angle to provide supportive fire as he ran to the objective.

The remaining enemy surrendered under the onslaught of our assault, and we occupied the Key Objective Buildings and Terrain, and Crowenshield radioed the “Manhatten” signal back to our parent unit, signaling it was clear to advance.

The squad worked well as a team. They supported each other through movements, fire and maneuver.

PVT Craig was especially effective at choosing when and where to lay down smoke, as well as his remarkable rifle shot.

CPL Meister put his suppressive fire onto the right locations, and relocated at the right time to continue to be effective just when it was needed.

PVT Karas moved first to good observation positions, and then into the fighting after he had insured the lanes were clear.

PVT Crowenshield likewise helped get the 3 Germans going down the road, (whom we found out were retreating), into a cross fire with base of fire from Dubois and Greeley.

PVT Dubois drew the first “enemy” blood with his shot, while Greeley took the first “mock” hit because his back was exposed to the enemy objective without cover, nor concealment.

The squad responded well, without argument, or hesitation to the plan of actions I outlined as squad leader, and obeyed subsequent orders and instructions from me without hesitation. In the absence of direction from me they took the appropriate actions, and initiative.

LEE LEWIS
SGT,
1st Sqd, 1st Plt, A Co, 1st Bn
26th, Inf Regiment

SGT Lewis Catches Up Gus Aboard the Queen Mary Enroute From New York to England Early August 1942

Catching Up Gus Aboard the Queen Mary - 3rd day of voyage from New York to Scotland (August 4th, 1942)

Hey Gus !!! Gus !!!

Puss got us guys into the crews "Pig N Whistle" where we were treated to a
heaping platter of roast beef sandwiches, and glasses of beer. I got a paper
bag of sanwiches for you and covered two glasses of beer covered with brown paper, twisted down tight and braced them with the sandwiches inside a brown shopping bag.

Knew you would be bummed at missing the meeting, so did the best I could for
ya. When we came back through the interior of the ship we got a few looks
from other G.I. guys, and I got the impression someone was watching us, but
could not pick out anybody specific in the crowd.

Max and Percy distracted a Brit guard and I got a GOOD look inside the steel
long boat, which DOES have a pintle for a machine gun on it. There were lot
of extra life jackets inside as well. Also an outboard motor in the back,
and oars in the bottom. Max had to give away half a pack of cigarettes to
the Brit guy guarding, but it gave me a chance to check the steel boat out.

Malcolm got in tight with some "guy" in the infirmary... Yeah Infirmary.
That's where the medical stuff is. You know, where the sick people are.
Yes, yes. No, they don't have any food dere. Well, only what's been ralphed
on the floor from the seasick guys. Anyway, Malcolm got some medical stuff
out of it, and found out there are some nurses around somewhere.

Puss, and Malcolm met some Brit guy in a bad fitting suit named Owens... No
the suit was not named Owens, that was the guys name. Very funny... Just keep
eating the sandwiches and listen, ok?

Well Malcolm had us all laughing when he told us how he teased this guy,
Owens. Owens is one of those guys with a tiny head, ya know? Malcolm was talking to him, and in conversation the guy said he didn't have a wife, and Malcolm said, "I thought so", just so quickly it was a great insult.

I guess Puss found some kind of electrical wire that doesn't belong coming
out of the dog kennel and up towards one of the ships smokestacks. Puss
thinks it is some kind of antennae that a spy or somebody may be using for a
radio. You know, the thing radios use to send and receive signals. Yeah,
like the coat hangers you see in the radio stores. Anyway, Percy... Yeah, I
mean Puss... thinks this guy Owens is using it to signal the Hitler U-Boats.
No, no. I mean those enemy submarines that are trying to shoot torpedos at
us. Yeah. One of our guys saw the trail of one in the water near the back
of the boat.

Oh yeah, and PVT Dubois didn't miss the boat like we thought, he was just
lost and down in some other swimming pool. He must have been looking for the
engine room. You know that once he thinks there is an engine nearby he
forgets everything else except checking it out and trying to take it apart.
I gave him a note to pin to his shirt so that even though nobody can
understand what he says he can show them the note and they can get him back
to us. Yeah, I know Gus. I'll keep translating so you will know what he is
saying too...

Albert figured out that this ship is going so fast that it is faster than the
clouds. No, I don't really know what that means either, except that it means
we are going fast enough so if the enemy subs what to shoot at us they need
to be in front of us to do it, and even then they only will get one chance
because we pass them so fast they don't get a second shot.

Puss tried to get back into the dog kennel where the anntenae wire was coming
out of, but two Brit guards saw him. Both doors into the kennel were locked
from the inside and the Brits guards weren't listening to Percy... I mean
Puss, when he tried to tell them he saw a guy go in there. They tried to
take Puss to see the captain but that didn't work out. I don't know... The
Captain must have been busy or soemthing.

Anyway they are getting more and more serious about this lifeboat drill
thing. Yeah, they are actually hooking the lifeboats up to the davits and
swinging out over the side during the drills now. No. No. Davits are those
pulleys with ropes through them to lift up the lifeboats. No, No. Here, let
me show you, come with me... See !! There are these hooks here, and they
hook onto the rings of the lifeboats here and here. Then a bunch of British
crew guys pull on these ropes which go through these pulleys... Yes those
little wheels there... and it lifts the lifeboats up, and then other guys
swing the lifeboat out over the side so it can be lowered into the water.
No, we are supposed to get into the lifeboats BEFORE they lower it into the
water. Yes I know it you jumped you would probably go right through the boat
and make a hole in it. That's why they need you to get in first. No not
now...

Anyway, what I want you to do is come with me, and watch and see if anybody is following me and Puss around when we move about the ship. I keep feeling like somebody is watching and following me, but can never quite catch them at it.

Yeah, maybe you can stay at this spot here, and when Percy, (I mean puss), and I walk up and around there on that next deck up, you can spot someone following us.

You got it !!! Thanks Gus !!!

Excerpts from the personal wartime journal of PFC Max L. Karas, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division:

August 1 1942 Entry written during the cattle truck ride from Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania to New York City.

Well, Here I go. Or I guess I should say here WE go, since I am part of a real squad now. It's me and this group of 7 or 8 other guys I've been training with from now until the end of the war, whenever that's gonna be. The guys here in this truck with me are:

-Gus Meister from Brooklyn, a big house of a guy who can carry that big heavy BAR gun he uses around like a baseball bat. Good guy,even he doesn't know when to shut up sometimes, like when the NCO's are in earshot. More on that later.
-Al Greely, a farmboy from Maine, he talks about hunting a lot, and always has a Downeaster joke ready to throw in when you comment about anything. For some reason we got a lot of guys from Maine in our squad.It must be boring up there, so maybe they all enlisted. We also have:
-Malcolm Craigue, our medic, who served in Africa with the American Field Service for the Brits before he signed up for the army. A good guy to have around you when the shooting starts.
-Pascal Dubois,he's from so far up north in Maine he's practically Canadian, and speaks Canadian French. At least he knows enough to shut up when the brass is around. He loves working on jeeps and trucks.
-Percival "Perc" Crown-and-Something(I'm still not sure what the heck his last name is)the mystery man of the squad. He says he's from around Boston, but he talks like a Brit, and throws money around like only those guys that are born rich do. But I will say for him,at least when he does it, he does it to ensure he and everyone around him who's a decent guy has a good time, and not just to show off. We've sure needed that But if he's some rich Brit, what the heck is he doing as a private in the U.S.Army?
-Lastly, we have our squad leader in the truck with us, Sgt. Lee Lewis, a midwesterner like me(he's lived up in Wisconsin and Minnesota). He's about as hard-boiled as they come. He served in the first war like my father did, so he's got to be at least 40, but he's still solid as a rock. He's pushed us hard during training, but says if he didn't, none of us would make it back home in one piece, himself included. He tells us if he gets bumped off over there, its not gonna be because one of us didn't know what to do when the shooting started. I'm very glad to have someone like him in charge, because he knows what he's doing. He's the kind of NCO you don't mind taking orders from, because he doesn't play any favorites, For a squad leader, we could have done a lot, lot worse. I want to make it back home in one piece, and something tells me if we all listen to Sgt. Lewis, we just might. "What would Sarge do?" has become a common phrase amongst the squad whenever we are faced with a decision. Also, the phrase "What would Sarge do to us if we do something really dumb?" seems to be catching on too. More on that later.

The Squad 2

Max Karas, a 23 year old from Chicago. His father, Anton, (Polish by birth) served as a doughboy in WWI, and married and brought back a French girl from the countryside. Max was born soon after. Max' s father made his living as a musician (piano player) and sometimes actor in Chicago's theaters and music halls, and the family suffered hard times when the Depression hit, and many of these places closed.

Max's mother fell sick and died, adding to the misery. Things took a turn for the better in 1935, when President Roosevelt's New Deal programs to get the country working again included the Federal Theatre Project, which employed many theater workers and allowed the theaters to open up again. Max, having accompanied his father to the theaters many times, started with backstage, sewing, and prop work.

It was not long before Max was on stage playing roles, alongside his father on some occasions. Also, his tailoring skills improved, with more and more elaborate costumes needed for plays. But in June 1939, the Federal Theatre Project came to an end, and times grew leaner again. Max received his draft notice, and felt the call of duty to serve his country, his president, and see (and perhaps save) the country his mother came from.

Max Karas reported to Fort Sheridan, Highwood, Illinois in April 1942 for his Induction.


Malcolm Craig

Born in 1918, Malcolm grew up on the East Coast of the United States, spending his days fishing, reading, and working on the nearby Prout Farm. Around the farm, Malcolm was always helping to plant, tend and harvest the crops, which were mostly squash, peas, carrots, and cabbages, and he ran the tractor from field to field picking up the filled bushel baskets.

Malcolm is an only child, and his mother passed away while he was still a young boy. His father is in the Coast Guard, and is away much of the time. When Malcolm was young, he would often stay with an Aunt and Uncle nearby while his father was not at home. Once he reached his teen years, his father allowed him to stay at the family house by himself, taking care of the milk cow, the chickens, and their own small garden.

Malcolm hated gardening. He was so sick to death of being stuck out in the fields all day with a hoe that he dreamed of doing just about anything else. A decent student, Malcolm had a teacher, Mr. Pete Williams, who broadened his awareness of the world beyond their small town by loaning Malcolm books from his own collection. Malcolm read every book Mr. Williams had, and then went through whatever the library could find for him.

The school years passed and Malcolm spent much of his time reading and fishing, and puttering around the farm. There didn’t seem to be an end to the routine, though the rumors of trouble in Europe and Asia were beginning to reach even the fields of Malcolm's world. Malcolm's father was away more and more as the Coast Guard ramped up activities along the coast, spending more of their time investigating sightings of odd boats, and reports of odd people speaking with accents. They hadn’t found any conspirators, but they'd heard plenty of rumors of them. Malcolm's father said that one man swore he'd seen a submarine on the surface when out fishing one day. No one really believed the fisherman, but it did make folks wonder.

Malcolm watched the newspapers and listened to the radio for stories of the British fighting the Germans, and wondered when the United States was going to get involved. Having read all those books of far away places and adventures, such as the Boy Allies and Lawrence of Arabia, Malcolm was sure that he had to get out off the farm and into the real world.

One of Malcolm's friends, Scott Gilmore, had a father who'd served with the American Field Service, an ambulance and first aid corps in World War One, and so Malcolm and Scott listened to stories about the ravages of the trenches, of gas warfare, and of the service that had been performed for the French soldiers by the AFS. Malcolm and Scott decided that this was the way to get started in helping the coming war effort. With letters of introduction in hand, they made their way to Boston and found the office of the AFS.

Without much training, Malcolm and Scott were quickly sent off to North Africa with the American Field Service, which was attached to the British 8th Army. As an assistant driver, Malcolm was at the front lines providing care to the wounded, moving the wounded to field stations and army hospitals, and performing what services he could in a non-combatant role in keeping with the traditions of the AFS. . He was there when the Brits were pushing the Germans and Italians before them, and when running like hell from them. The desert war was a crazy, confusing place to be but it was good to be useful, to see a bit more of the world, and to get out of those damned crop fields.

However, Malcolm is done with being shot at and not being allowed to shoot back. With the United States ramping up wartime production and expanding the army, Malcolm decided it was time to get involved with the US forces. He left the AFS and returned to the United States where he enlisted in the US Army, was issued his rifle and made a grenadier.


Pascal Emile Dubois was born in Presque Isle, Maine to Emile and Lillian-Jean Dubois. Pascal’s father, Emile had served with the 2nd Maine Infantry Regiment (later to be re-designated the 103rd Infantry Regiment). The 2nd had been called up for action in WW I. During maneuvers in France in the early days of January, 1918, Pvt. Emile Dubois was wounded and sent home, where he returned to working in his farm equipment and vehicle repair shop. Pascal was born in November of that year.

When he was six, Pascal’s mother Lillian-Jean was admitted to the Northern Maine Sanatorium as a result of TB. She resided there until her death a year later. After the death of his mother, and being an only child, most of Pascal’s time was spent at school. When not at school, he could be found at his father’s shop. He would also spend the occasional summer with his paternal Grandparents. Pascal’s Grandparents choose to forgo English and spoke almost exclusively in their native Acadian French. To be able to effectively converse with them, he was forced to learn the language through total immersion.

Spending so much time with his father and around machines, Pascal’s natural aptitude for all things mechanical, and his instinctual sense for how things worked showed itself. The elder Dubois was only to happy to encourage his son, showing him the workings of every piece of farm equipment and truck or tractor that came into the shop, to include teaching him some driving and operations skills; even welding. Pascal’s mechanical ability is only surpassed by his complete inability to handle social situations and girls are a complete mystery to him (more so than the rest of us). He places women on a ridiculously high pedestal. They are almost untouchable.

After high school, Pascal joined his father in the shop where he honed his repair and driving skills. It wasn’t too long before he would claim “S'il est fait de métal, je peux le fixer. S'il a un volant, je peux le conduire.“ (“If it is made of metal, I can fix it. If it has a steering wheel, I can drive it.”)

Three days after his 24th birthday, Pascal received one of those infamous brown envelopes from the War Department, calling him to duty. With a silent nod, the elder Dubois helped his son pack up put him on a train to the nearest assembly point. Pascal arrived in Fort Devens just after April 1st, 1942



Lee Lewis seems to always be aware of what is going on in the squad between its members. When there is a practical joke afoot, he seems to know about it, but he is just as likely to look the other way as long as there’s no danger of any physical harm coming to someone.

He has the reputation for having disdain for the younger officers of the Company, especially the, “Wet behind the ears Lieutenants who strut around like they are so smart when they weren’t even born when I was fighting and shedding blood in this regiment.”

This attitude has definitely put SGT Lewis in a position where he has not been popular with some of the junior officers, but the older Non-Coms, and a couple of the more senior officers have been seen to stifle a chuckle, and quickly turn away to hide a smirk, and “not see” when Lewis is teasing, or slightly lampooning one of the “stuck up” Lieutenants behind his back, or making a goofy face when they aren’t looking.

When an officer is competent, and puts the welfare of the men first, then Lewis will fiercely back him, as he will the regiments reputation on any and every occasion. Anybody who bad mouths the “Blue Spaders”, or minimizes the regiments’ achievements within earshot of SGT Lewis is in for trouble. Lewis knows how to use his fists, and will take a fellow who bad mouths the regiment behind the barracks and teach him the folly of that. “Oh, he fell down… Too bad…”

Next to the younger guys, on the tougher confidence courses, and road marches, Lewis doesn’t fare so well. He always carries the required combat load, but will start to sweat, and breath harder sooner than just about anybody else. When the circumstances allow he will strap his gas mask, shovel, field glasses, and bayonet to his pack. If the march goes on long enough he will slow down, and drop to the back of the column. If anybody makes a wisecrack, Lee is stone cold silent, sets his jaw, and keeps on going.

On the range, SGT Lewis is on PAR with anyone else with the M1 Rifle, but can strip and clean it faster than most. He carries a M 1911 Pistol, and can shoot it better than most of the other Non-Coms, but not so well as the ones who are on the competition pistol team. On the automatic range, Lewis seems very knowledgeable with the .30 Cal Browning guns, and has an affinity for the light Browning, which he likes to strip the carrying handle and bipod off of (to save weight). “We didn’t need that stuff in the last war.”

If asked about his vocation, he will say he worked for the Soo Line railroad in Wisconsin, and into Minnesota. Ran a locomotive in his younger days, and did some blasting for the railroad when they were extending their lines through mountains and to mining areas before the hard times of the depression.
When work for the railroad slowed down, Lewis will relay he supplemented it by delivering supplies, workers, and the occasional well-to-do sportsman to remote worksites, mining sites, and hunting areas in Northern Minnesota, Canada, and even upon occasion into upper Michigan by small floatplane, landing in various lakes, and ponds.

If asked how he came back into the army, SGT Lewis will relay how he got an invitation in the mail in early 1941 to return and help train National Guardsman, in newly federalized army units in training exercises in the South for that year. When Pearl Harbor occurred he demanded transfer to his old WW 1 infantry unit, because “Once a Blue Spader, ALWAYS as Blue Spader”.

Lewis will not say so, but he has been demanding an opportunity to have a squad he will take into combat every since he reported to the regiment. Up until now these demands were ignored and he was set to training group after group of arriving trainees, only to see them broken up and sent off with some other Non-Com. Lewis blames the younger officers for this slight, and although gives them proper military courtesy, he does so grudgingly. Then at last there was a series of Officer, and NCO moves which brought someone he knew either in the first war, or just after, during his time in the occupation forces in Germany, into a position where they could do Lewis a favor, because he got a transfer, and it seems like he finally is getting a squad he will keep, and have the opportunity to take into combat.


Albert Greeley is 24 years old so if the year is 1944, he was born on October 3, 1920, in Danville Junction, Maine. He was born, and grew up on the family farm.

He began learning some of his letters before starting school because his grandmother would point to a letter making up part of the headlines in the daily newspaper and tell him what it was. He could recognize many of the letters in printed capital form before starting school, but could not read. Many stories had been read to him, usually children's stories such as "The three Little Pigs, The Little Red Hen, Chicken Little, Little Red Riding Hood”, and tales such as “Jack be Nimble Jack Be Quick, Jack and Jill, Little Miss Muffet”, and the “Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe.”

Al started school in the fall of 1926, walking about a half-mile to get there with an older brother and older sister. It was a one-room school with a single female teacher responsible for all grades from kindergarten through eighth grade. There were four children in Al’s kindergarten class and that was the average number of children in each grade although some had more in some had less. That was a lot of responsibility for the teacher but she seemed to be able to handle it pretty well. School started at nine in the morning and ended for most at three in the afternoon, with an hour out for lunch.

Each morning the teacher gave instructions to her students, usually reading or arithmetic assignments to each of the eight grades. Then she spent some instructional time with the kindergarten children, followed by some focused question-and-answer time with each of the subsequent grades. By the time she finished with the eighth grade, it was noon. There were books in the back of the room that a student could take and read if they had nothing else to do, much better than being bored and tempted to do something that they shouldn’t do. Al liked reading these books.

After completing nine years of public education it was considered that the students had learned everything that they would need to know to have a successful adult life but some, more boys than girls, went on to high school. Al was a pretty good student. When he graduated from this one room school he went on to high school at a building about six miles away from home. He got to and from school riding a bicycle, whether it was raining or not. On bad snow days, he had to stay home.

Al completed four years of high school. He got some additional math, biology, chemistry, and physics, English and history. He played some basketball. He didn’t go out for football or baseball because he was needed to work at the farm after school. Al graduated from high school in June, 1939. Very few of the high school graduates went on to college Al was not an exception to this rule.

Despite the lingering Great Depression, Al was always ‘employed’ on the farm. There was always something that needed to be done for both boys and girls at the farm. He helped with the haying in summer. He learned how to harness the horses. He split wood for the kitchen stove before he learned to cut down trees with an axe or saw, cut off limbs, cut the trunks an limbs into four foot lengths. From time to time Al found work in Maine’s lumber industry cutting Pine trees. These trunks were left in long lengths and carried to a sawmill to made into boards and framing timber. Sometimes these products were sold, and sometimes they were taken back to the farm to construct a new building or repair old one.

The farm was all but self sufficient; with a big vegetable garden, which produced a lot of food that did not need to be bought at a store; and enough cows, chickens, and sheep to produce marketable goods. Al’s father was ultimately able to procure a truck which the boys including Al learned to drive promptly.

Al’s father liked to hunt and fish and he taught his sons, and those daughters who were interested how to do these things. The family owned several shotguns and a bird hunting dog. Al and his brothers usually hunted together, in the early fall for partridge, pheasant, and woodcock, each being found in a different kind of natural habitat. Sometimes they went duck hunting. Later in the fall they took rifles and went deer hunting. It was much easier to track the deer when there were a few inches of snow on the ground. Then one hunter could follow the tracks of the deer, which would keep it moving, while the other could run ahead to a place where it looked like the deer might be going, and where it would be possible to get a good shot at it. Al thought that this was a lot of fun. He preferred following the tracks to shooting the deer.

When Al was older yet, he practiced shooting hunting rifles at targets. Al liked the lever action .30 .30 pretty well, but his father preferred a bolt action .30 caliber rifle, one of the kind he used when he was a soldier during world war one. Al and his brothers and sisters had helped do the work on the family farm for as long as he could remember. When he got his high school diploma, he wanted to do something else. When he learned that the State of Maine was hiring forest rangers he was one of many applicants and he was one of the few to be hired.

Al had joined the Boy Scouts soon after he was twelve years old. He had learned that a boy scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, obedient, thrifty, brave, clean reverent. His motto was “Be Prepared”. He never made it to be a first class scout but he did learn a lot from the scouting manual. Many of these skills fit well into his job as a forests ranger. He had a chance to improve his skills in map reading and using a compass. He enjoyed spending a lot of time in the great outdoors.

Albert Greeley received his Notice to report for Induction, what everyone called a ‘Draft Notice,’ on April 30th, 1942. He

The Squad

Gustav - Call me Gus - Meister was born in Brooklyn N.Y. in 1910, to Bavarian parents who had left the “Old Country” after the Franco Prussian war. German was spoken in the home more often than English, and when Gus’ words are rushed, or when angered he will slip into a very Germanic Brooklyn accent. More than a few times Gus has had to repeat himself because of his combined accents.

A robust young man with a love of his parents food (Sausage, Sauerkraut, and Beer), Gus found work easy but schooling hard. He looks on ‘book smart’ people with an equal combination of reverence and disdain. The former is evidenced by his constant use of “Big” words that he hears, even if their meaning is lost to him; but if anyone better educated than Gus gets to ‘uppity’ that persons nickname will soon be “College Boy, Genius, or even Einstein.”

Gus discovered an aptitude for all things mechanical, and eventually found his way into a New York Transit authority office, where they put him to work driving buses. His fascination with these instruments of conveyance caused him to elbow the mechanics aside, “Yoo don’t know nutin’ about nutin’.” Gus can ‘figure’ out how the mechanics of how it works, and how it goes together, but why an engine runs has only one answer for Gus: “Because it jus does.”

On an April morning in 1942 while driving his regular bus route, Gus overheard several passengers talking about the war going on in Europe. The more complex issues behind all of this are irrelevant to Gus; to him its “da English, against da Nazi’s.” When the bus passengers implied in their conversations that all Germans were Nazi’s the offending passenger soon found himself hurled out of the bus onto the curb. The several bus passengers (who turned out to be Czech refugees) who came to the defense of the ejected passenger only overcame Gus and his anger about this subject through sheer weight of numbers.

Though Gus was angry about loosing his job, that was tempered by not ‘losing;’ the fight. Gus was surprised to find a letter from the U.S. Selective Service local board in his mail that afternoon. It was from “Da President”, ‘GREETING’ it said, you have now been selected for training and service in the ARMY.

Gus found new mechanical things to learn, and soon after being inducted at Camp Upton, it was off to Fort Dix for basic training. The mechanics of Automatic weapons are more fun than Gus could have imagined. His mechanical sense and size led his training officers to quickly conclude this guy was a Automatic Weapons specialist, the B.A.R. because Gus’ newest mechanical wonder, which again he quickly figured out how, but not why it works.

Even his years of bus driving helped, as his idea of “go where the traffic ain’t” became “go where the enemy ain’t” - that earned him Corporal’s stripes. Gus was heard to tell one Lt. as the Lt. explained how they were going to ‘frontally assault’ the enemy position, “Right behind you John Wayne.”

The Squad Diary Blog

This blog is the "War Diary," if you will permit; of a World War II role-playing campaign game. The game being played is Behind Enemy Lines, published in 1986 by the Companions. As with the case in all role play games, real live human beings are assembled at a table, playing the roles of characters that they generated as 'alter egos.' The Game Master [GM] (myself) generates a plot line, or outline of events that the players will become involved with, and the players then create the 'action,' or 'dialogue' to fill in the plot or event points. A helpful analogy to understand what role play is about is to think of it as a novel where all you have is chapter titles, with a handful of character names, or event words as an outline for each chapter, but nothing else. The Player characters then act, or role play their actions and reactions to the NonPlayer characters provided and acted by the GM, or the events detailed by the GM. The GM then moves the plot along, sometimes along its expected path, as the GM planned it, often, along a slightly deviated path, and in some other cases along a widely divergent path. The point is to tell an interactive story, in which the players get to be the 'Hero's.'

In this particular case the players have taken the roles of young men in 1940's America, who in some cases were drafted, in other cases volunteered for service in the United States Army. Historical role play is somewhat different than Fantasy Role Play in that there are a certain number of facts which cannot be changed. Equally however, there is a wide area of historical reality which leaves room for "what-ifs," it is in this level of the historic framework that the players (The Squad) operates. As the GM I present them with historic facts, sometimes a broad framework, such as training time at a particular base in England in 1942; sometimes in a much smaller part of their universe. "You lucky devils have been selected to go on a secret mission to enemy territory." In the former case, the Squad will be provided with only a few historic details, to add 'flavor' (i.e. realism) t0 the game, and may in a four hour game session play days or weeks of game time; while in the latter they might play hours or even minutes of game time, down to very specific detail.

Please note, for those of you who have run across this blog, and are new to Role Playing or War Gaming, (historical Role Play is a hybrid of the two) we are not in any way 'warmongers' or 'glorifying war.' In our case we strive to be realistic, which (in my opinion) video games are not; we strive to deal with the realities of rationing, refugees, and death. In our games if a character dies, he/she is dead. Not like video games where you get back up.... Anyway, what I mean to say is that we are trying to honor the generation that answered the call, by learning in as first hand a way as possible (at least unitl we do develop time travel) what was experienced by that generation; and paying them a respect - as imitation is indeed the sincerest form of flattery.

What will follow, is firstly the backgrounds of the player characters; all of these backgrounds were generated by the players themselves and are remarkabley detailed in all cases. These backgrounds are vital to the game as they invest the player in the character far more than a pixel generated soldier on a screen. The backgrounds also allow the GM to tailor situations that the Squad may encounter to the characters abilities... to provide challenges that require 'thinking and sweating' rather than 'brute force and ignorance.' As an aside one of the most important things about role play is its possibilities as a creative problem solving exercise; too often that is ignored, and its about brute force, and violence is the answer. Well, realistically; violence is never the only answer, rarely the right answer, and often the wrong answer. However, on those occasion where it is the right answer or part of the correct answer to an issue, you better get it right.

Moving on, I will present the character backgrounds, and my hope is that you will eventually hear from the characters themselves in the After Action Reports, War Diary entries, or letters home, that you might have seen from those veterans who fought in World War II.

I should also say, that while the historic events the Squad will be faced with are factual (at least up to the point of their involvement) all the characters are fictional and any similarities or near similarities to any persons living or deceased is purely accidental, and in no way meant to denigrate, attack, defame, slander or libel; in any way, shape, or form. Again we are attempting to extol, and elevate, in our own way.

On to the characters... oh a little context. In the World War II United States Army, the Squad is the smallest tactical unit. On paper, its 12 men, lead by a Sergent (the Squad Leader), with an a Corporal (the Assistant Squad leader), and ten men that make up the body of the Squad. Eight carry rifles, the other two members of the Squad were the 'fire support,' one carries a rifle with a Grenade launching attachment, the other the Browning Automatic Rifle, or B.A.R. In reality the Squads were often under the authorized strength and this is the case in our game. The Squad is short five riflemen. With that context, on to the Squad.