TREE-BURST

THE White battalion Journalist provides this very illuminating little side-light on the action at Hosten immediately after and during the crossing of the river. "Because the radio section had their radios broken while on the east bank of the Kyll there was no communication with the lead elements for over twenty-four hours and rear troops began to wonder what was going on far ahead . . . never had such stubborn resistance met the follow-up troops. As one battle was going on far, ahead these men were engaged in another on the Kyll. Elements of the 1st battalion had come down to the Kyll to follow up the 2nd battalion as a reserve unit but did not cross the river until almost twenty-four hours later. (Not completely accurate. Editor). The Engineers (301st, Company A) had managed to get a foot-bridge across the swirling torrent, losing several men in the operation . . . What the "reserve" units didn't know was that the 2nd battalion had just fought one of its toughest battles--Speicher, Germany--a battle which figured largely in the Third Army breakthrough to the Rhine."
The action against Hosten began very late on the night of March 3rd. The town itself was captured at approximately 0830 on March 4th. The same day saw the battalion cutting almost due north for several kilometers to the left of the town of Preist, almost as if to bypass it--then attacking and capturing it practically at mid-day. It was only an hour and a half later that they received the order to move on towards Speicher, the third town in their route within the space of the same day. Continuously, as these operations proceeded, the battalion found itself out on a thumb with friendly elements neither to the right nor to the left of it. The Kyll curves eastwards at this point and comes closer to Speicher than it does to Preist. There is, also, a natural bridge-site at this spot and the battalion found an entire company of the enemy (complete with commanding officer) on guard here. The surrender of this force was made personally to the battalion commander, Lt. Col. Richardson.

WITH this last town reduced and immobilized the battalion could afford to breathe and feel that the mission of the regiment was close to being accomplished. Hosten, Auw, Preist and Speicher were in our hands. True, a good deal of German resistance had been by-passed. Mopping up still remained to be done. But the distance from one town to the last was a total of some five and a half kilometers and it all represented river front--and it meant that a bridge-head was established and that Task Force Onaway, for whose mission this was the preparation, could take off and begin the push towards the Rhine. In Speicher the battalion remained until March 7th. But the actual action had taken only a night and a day.

The continuation of the artillery diary serves here to fill in some of the bald spots above. Beginning with the 4th of March and continuing until the 7th of March, the running account given by Lt. Singleton is packed with interest and with action. "Continued east after reaching tip of hill for what seemed an eternity and at last came to a halt on the outskirts of Hosten. Lt. Ryder took several men and went forward on reconnaissance for the rest of the company. (While on this mission he captured six Kraut asleep in their beds.) We later joined the rest of the company and moved into the town, then, with no resistance about 0400. Jerry started throwing artillery into the town about then and we took to the cellars to wait for further orders. After several hours wait we received orders to move forward to Preist and join with F Company which had just taken the town. Arrived in Preist at 1200. The battalion was assembled here and the attack order was announced to the company commanders for the taking of Speicher. The battalion moved east about 1630 in column of companies with F Company in the lead followed by E and G Companies. Requested artillery preparation and as Sgt. Kirk could observe the town I requested that he adjust. Kirk adjusted and lifted the fire just as his company moved in for the kill.
"Following our weapons platoon, the section was pinned down by machine-gun fire. Machine-gun was wiped out and we moved into town. Moved up to find company CP and received direct fire from enemy 88s, one hitting the building to the left of us and one in the ditch just beside us . . . (March 5th) Jerry continued to throw artillery all night. At 0200, battalion received shocking news. Four of the officers of F Company had been hit on patrols. The company commander and one officer had been killed and the other two had been wounded. Orders were immediately issued for our company to contact and wipe out the enemy . . . under heavy artillery and screaming meemie fire, the company proceeded south of the town . . . took position just as they reached edge of woods . . . shelled by screaming meemies. Was lucky and saw their position just as they fired. Got location on map and moved back to section to send in the mission on radio. Reaching the section I learned that the last elements of the company were just withdrawing . . . Sent in the location of screaming meemies and asked for unobserved fire. By this time the machine-gun firing had died down and we moved out to join up with the last elements of the company. Moved back . . . same CP.

"(MARCH 7th) Slept good and awakened to find that we were again going on the attack. We were to take the last enemy-held town in that area, Beilingen, and were to move out at 1200. Moved out and when we were within 1000 yards of the town asked for artillery preparation and found out that Captain Brown had already sent the mission in and we were to be granted a Corps Serenade. Fire was lifted just as troops moved into the town. Took the town with light resistance; while still mopping up looked around and saw General Woolfley. That's some guy! This was about 1300 and we received orders to move on and occupy town of Herforst, taken by other American troops the day before . . . (March 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th) My section was relieved on the eighth and went back to the battery for a few days' rest. The company changed sectors and took the towns of Musweiler, Schladt and Plein. They then moved into Wittlich and went into reserve."
The breakthrough had been accomplished. And, even as these men were going ahead with their jobs of capturing towns and clearing woods, the armor and Task Force Onaway was preceding them now and reciprocating by softening up some of the terrain before them. Wittlich was, for all practical purposes, the end of this phase of activities. It was towards this that all the battalions converged, following substantially the same general route. This lay in the comparatively open country to the east of the Kyll River from Schleidweiler to Beilingen and then ran an irregular course eastwards through Binsfeld and Niederkail and Landscheid and Hupperath. Beyond these lay the good-sized town, or rather, city of Wittlich. Beyond Wittlich--that was still a matter of guess-work!

WHAT has been told is merely a scratch upon the surface of all the things which really happened. Mention still needs to be made of many other items such as the progress of regimental command posts, of I & R platoon activities, of the Engineers (without whom rivers never are finally crossed), of the Medics and the glory with which they were covering themselves day after day, of the communication crews, of the kitchens--and of a thousand and one other matters which are relevant and pertinent as well. At the risk of making this appear somewhat of a hodgepodge and a catch-all, a brief review of some of these matters must be interjected here. For example there is the matter of the town of Auw and the K Company aid-man, Henry LeTourneau. Captain Ryan tells his story:
"Auw was the town that LeTourneau took. He had had a few (sic) drinks in Orenhofen, after having worked hard there, and fell asleep. When he came to, he was out on a road being marched away by a Kraut. Henri talked to him and finally persuaded the Kraut out of the idea. So they turned off and approached another town with the agreement that if there were Germans there Henri was the prisoner and if there were Americans there the Kraut was the prisoner. On the outskirts of the town, which looked deserted, they fired a shot--five more Kraut came out and they all surrendered to Henri. He went into the town and found some wounded GIs and some Kraut in a church. They all sat around and waited for whatever Army moved in next. It was one of our battalions (the 2nd). Henri turned his prisoners' over to them, reported to Regimental and was sent to a rest area!"

OR there is the story of the Piper Cubs who did such yeoman service and are mentioned so seldom. Company A had an experience with them here in this sector: "Then we received the order to move forward. One platoon to stay in Bruch as security, while the rest of us moved forward four thousand yards northeast of Bruch, to clear the woods of any enemy we might encounter. We pushed off at noon and slowly and cautiously made our way up the side of a draw. The woods about us were so thick, and hills around us so high that it was impossible to see anything for more than fifty yards around us. Suddenly, above us was the roar of a motor, and when we saw that it was our own artillery liaison plane, every man's face broke into a grin. We were always glad to see him because it meant that the enemy would be very reluctant to throw shells at us and give away his positions. The plane flew over us very low and executed a movement which means 'enemy in sight,' and then dropped us a note in a yellow streamer. It landed on top of a hill, about fifty yards to the right, and in a dense growth of small pine trees. We were unable to locate it so he zoomed lower and dropped another--but misjudged his distance, and, as he disappeared from our view over the top of the hill, we heard a screeching crash! We were aghast at the suddenness of it, and no one even dreamed that the man could have escaped unharmed. But there was the pilot, running down the hill toward us! After delivering his message to our CO, he said he would stay with us because he'd always wanted to spend a day with the infantry, and see what sort of life we led. Before the day was over, he said he was glad he was a pilot!"
Throughout all of the battalion histories and company stories one is constantly coming across references such as these about the medical soldiers who were such an intimate part of the whole picture: The 301st Medical Battalion, for example, though this was not their actual combat mission, were coming closer and closer to actual front lines. It was their formal task to establish themselves in such a position that they would be able to collect the wounded and rush them by the shortest and safest route the were they could be properly treated. Again that was good reading, in the Manual, but time and again because of unpredictable rapidity of movement, because of flow and tide of action, because the 304th was beginning to show a marked penchant for pushing itself out on a thumb and then wiggling the thumb, these medical soldiers were beginning to find themselves closer and closer to the front lines which, in theory, they were supposed to avoid.
If this were true of the Medical Battalion men, how much more intense and rugged was the lot of the company aid-men and the battalion aid stations. More and more as they progressed they were discovering that their Red Crosses were not safeguards. Bullets do not respect symbols. More frequently, neither did the German snipers. In fact, the suspicion was a live one that these characters regarded the large, unmistakable Red Crosses as so many targets--and targets made their trigger fingers itch. Repeatedly throughout the 2nd battalion history we find references to the Medical Corps and the work which they were doing. (This is equally true of the 3rd and 1st but the most complete record we have of incidents is from the White historian.)
Thus, we read: "The attack across the Kyll forced the battalion aid station to establish a forward echelon inasmuch as there was no bridge to cross. The snipers fired at the Medical Section vehicle despite the prominent display of the Red Cross. S/Sgt. Toomer, Pfcs. Acerra and Henneman received the Bronze Star for their outstanding work in evacuating wounded men from this area for over forty-eight consecutive hours. This forward aid station kept moving close behind the troops despite the difficult terrain encountered." Or, when the battalion reached the Salm: "In spite of the practically impassable terrain (the sheer cliffs at the Salm) the Medical Section did a wonderful job of getting the wounded men out of the bridgehead and back to rear areas." Or, in the records of C Company of the Red Battalion we find the following little word etching, symbolical of the work of the entire detachment: "The only immediate cover was a few scattered houses at the end of the trail and some of the men made for them . . . Several men hit the ground in full view of the snipers and were severely wounded. It was here that Pfc. Fralin made a mad dash for the buildings to administer first aid to the two men who were hit trying to reach cover . . . From casualty reports that were taken later in the day, C Company had lost seven more men and the total strength was now little more than one hundred men . . ." Yes, that is symbolical. Constantly exposed to the same dangers, possibly sometimes even more, accordingly as their work demanded it. Aid kits and a Red Cross to protect them! Well, it was a great life if you didn't weaken.
The enemy loved rivers and we hated them. For the Germans, it meant that they could withdraw behind them and destroy bridges as soon as they were safely across; then sit and wait from their vantage point for American troops to heave into site. For them it was more or less the same type of game as taking pot shots at clay pigeons. The only trouble was that too often the clay pigeons turned out to be screaming eagles and the pot shots only served to arouse greater anger.