/<!i ;:<2'0 Z,27< Z Z,? 722227 ;? ?%, .' <?

< / / //; -
V. PASSED FOR PUBLICATION .
V 77TLL L.
BY FIELD PRE SS CENS OR
lsi D.D.S. 1 Feb 45. v
v
//LL/ '/j -,.-,"-7:' ; IZr, <22 I ., I 2 ;- > Z ; Z t < ;-
G-3 I
THIS PUBLICAT ION J1.A.Y BE MAILED HOME
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;.
Sixteen miles due north' of Stt'assbourg-on-the-Rhine lies Hageunau
and above Haguenau lies the Now, in the winter, the' stand black
and always wet with .cold; and on 'the north edge of the HaguenauForest,ten
miles northeast .of tha eity. stands the'village of Hatten. Or iJhat is left
of bloody Hatten,
-- . - .i .
Ap.zio was longer than th.e infantrymen will. teh' you who dug
in on that miserable beachhead for weeK aftetshell-shocked weelt; but for
she.er 'bloody vieioustenseness, hour' S.fter hour and after Ha.tten
was the wO,rst."
. The Kt'aut was in the house next sioor, and the Kraut in the
houses a'qross the street (more than once. he was in the cellar while you were
upstairs) and Kraut was on the north of the town.
i'ihen you moved he fired wi th burp guns; and if you again he
fit-ed a bazooka; and. if you still could move he called in corps Iii-tillery and
registered in on you. ftom the hills. It made no difference. If you were a
lorle man he'd up with you moved a tank he called in baz-
ookas by the squad; mortars .t,anks, .and anti-tank guns -- andtpe'
If you were an infantryman you laid .agB:inst the wall in'
hoping to God no :p.igh explosive would land directly on the house; anq. you
went out to attack, and to fight off the counter-attacks again and
You fought with mortar and machine-guns and grenade and rifle,'and
bayonet, and called in your own artillery -- all to take one mherable house'."
And then the Kraut counterattacked.
.If you :were a. tanker, you sa.t .wi th your eye' glued. t'o
sight and your f00t on the firing trigger -- because if you "looked (Jway you
didn,'t have time to .getyour eye back hefore the bazookas or the anti-ta.:."1.k
guns were on you.
When it was over, it was hard to tell which were the streets and
Which the houses. the artillery had blasted so much. Hard.ly a house a
roof left and' hardly a house a wall. And the dead were lying on the streets
and on the groUnd and in the cellars and in the rubbish. Kraut soldiers and
American soldiers. Civilians. The girl ",rho tried to run out of her' cellar.
and fifteen steps.
A farming village lying on.a gentle slope; two hundred houses,.
perhaps, and with two main. streets. Three hundred yards long and a oouple
of hundred'deep
. .
Hatten.'
The Kraut was stopped at, Hatten. Paratroops he had in there"cocky
from a l?ng rest behind the lines; and SS troops dead in their neat black
uniformsJand crack tankers from more than one Division that hadrolled
over Europe, long a.go. And infantry. Infa'ltry and infantry andinfant:ry..
And he had intended to' break through B.t Ha.tten and, ,;through the Forest t'b
Haguenau! :and then 01.1 to the wldepla1n at Stre;;sb6#rg.
- 1 -
,."
,!,.
." '.',
We movedtlp":fhe' night' ,6:t the 12th.'
,', '" ; <
A'tank battalion.
A tank, battalioILoL_the.. llkth-Armored-"DiviSion- (co:nhiau<led-15yLf:-' - ---
Jcimes W,.--tannof-AIl1.ol'Y. Hississippi. promoted on the field of battle).
minus Coinpany B, still fighting; in 'another enga,gepent near Druss-e'nheim}' '
- , . :..' . ' . 1', ". '<;_ '.
About 25 medium tanks. thirty tons of armor pikte apiece; me/te
than .15 light, tanks, sixte,en tqns each; assault tailks 'anc\ tanks, vehiele'
recovery; mortars; kitchen tt'ucks and 'gas'truckS: and ammo tt-ucks; ',-,
tracks and trailers; :vehicles and wreckers and' welcfers e,nd'
peeps. Compeny A'and Company'C. ,Company D. Compiny a:nd Service
Company. 'Battalion and 'battalion medics. ,Tank' battalion minus.
c _ Blackout.
you lI!ere a driver;. you saw nothing except ve.gueness of the
fields alongside I the de,rk sttip of the rqad a few feet ,al1E!ad, the de8per .
bla.ck of tile w,oods. All the ligh:t in the 1.,rorld WaS the twin red blackG'O,t:": ,.
tail-lights of the vehicle iIi front and the '.indirect. giow'of the dials on
the instrUr.lEmt pa:nel. U' 'you\Jete' a :cpmrriander you stood up , e;very
nOI'; 'and then to check e61.umn .:..- it Was to,o cold, to stay standing. You
CQuld see the long .line of i,anks' be'hinC\..you. creeping omin-
ous1y along' through the bU.dkness, ,bJ,a;ckouilights j.ust viSible .', Every
now' and then yOu heard angry howl of a 500-h6rse, engine.' as "the
shifted fof a bad stretch of road.
::" The 1,i vouae j;fa.rty Anderberg, of Hudson , South' D:9.kotf1,
ahead. It had found a big. house for the battalion.C.P. and'had gorie
down the streeti!', k..rlocking at each door and asking for z:ooms (801daten ,
'sci11affen herein? A.rnericanische soldaten?) and he found places for' all the
:nen to steep in the Alsatian homes,' and in which' to park the' tanks
' ,'ifa moved, the' skY, a. faint' gray of and
the stucco-and-tinber farm houses of the village huddled; together like gray'
stone sheep with slanted red tile roofs. ,just under a ridge of land a.nd
around a bend' in the road.
. . .
The bivouac party WaS waiting for us to show us the battalion C.P.
and the houses where. we were to :Uve;but'the tanks' stayed on the streets
be cause we were fo start' the a. t tacJ.( .a 0530.:; The' che 'the'm' over.
. . .' "
In the dim, darkne$s you could hear a driver rev. up his engine, ,
a:J.d nearby the'artillery was firing, the sha.rp cracks of'the 105's sounding
as if they were in tl).e neJt;t s tre e1:; And, you eouid hear the "'hine'
emptywhooomof incbIi1'ing mail,. somewhere close enough.. , . "
It was To defend, we were to attack Hatten with the infantry
and drive the enemy out. The infantry would pass through us and take uP.
defensive high ground beyond the tewn.
\
- 2 -
..'


In the C.P., .0,)1. La-rm was bending over the !',ap with MaJ.
AltJn S. Kircher<)i' Gle:dstone, Michigan, the exec..Lt'. Pa.ulC. Willis, the
cot:-:':1UnicP,ti'Jns '::;,fficer, ,of Canton, North Carolina, was checking his radios
and Capt. Spivek of Chicago, Illinois, WA,5 ,:setting u!). nap.
- ___'__ -------0- ,_, __ __
A single track French railway east and, west', passed a few hundred.
Y!1rdss,outh, of Hatten and continued on east. Halfway between us f.tYld He.tten,
also north'Qf the ra;ilroad. lay the tJWn ;)fRittersh')ffen. unit was
to clean out Ritte:rshoffen.
, This, then, was the s1tQ.ation:
We were to P8.ssto the sou.th of.Ri ttershoffen. 'a.long the re,ilroad;
we were t.o and driire,into.. Hatten.An 1nfanti:y waG to
be with us; the infantry was to be to the Sl;)tlth of the railt'oRd, and'we to
" . t
nor,th. '
The Kraut could see from the high ground north elf ,F(Jr
the l""nd slopes gently up from the north edge of the Forest to the
erest above the itWel;,$ on. that crest tllat had ,
set up his Satten 1$ about half way up that gentle slope.
Fr.or.1 the ea.st end. of t ;'0, you C?rud. sec into Ra,tten,
"/'!,nd you could fire into RattJ;ln. And. the Kra.u-t h.,eld 'the eEl.stend :)f Ritt.cre-
hoffen with infantry,and, tt.ro captUred Aneric.a.n 57ll',In guns.
. . .
Capt. HA.rold ,D'. Persky of. St'.' Pau.l, Hip.ne.s,Ota.' c,07n,''::'.anded Cm'lpa,ny
C. At leas,t, he did cO)"lT:1and it'-- he cor:1):'.anded it' the,tj 'Darning. Be was to
be'the a.ttack cc:>mpany;and one '3f h;i.'splatQons,. cornr,anded:by Lt. Set'h
of Ringha.I!1, Ma.ssachusetts, 'was to be attached to the infantry ba.ttaUon .
ffi:Jving south of the railroad. At least, Lt. wasin cOI!1Dand )f the
plato'on that- -morning. Or whe,t we,s then the plat,Hm.
: Cotlpany A, COTIunan,ded by Capt. Richa.rd A. of Macon, Georgia,
W<ij.S in'support .Sq' were the assault guns commanded by Lt. ,R,ob.ert ,Co' Harper
of Auburn,Nebraska.In reserve 'was Conpany D, com.t:'lat:lded,by Ce.pt. Heriry P.
of ',Weymouth, '" '
Let us followLt.
.'"
"
.'
,
As the eas tern sky turns frol!l: gray tQ H.,ghter gray I dire ctly ahead
. ,)fhimi his' arestand1ng on narrow street of a sr.lall'Alsatiar.,
('::'1JYL himr-ise the steep-roofed, plaster ahd,ti:mber hous'esi-blE1.ck; in
the,ear1:r tl?I,J?1ng. .The'e)lgine'of his tank !sidlingea.sily and he stpnd-
ing in the't'ur'ret';'na.tch open, muffled in his Q0mbat suit &rna. sCi'l,rf ..!t.is
. .
." '
His rfl,dio. ilt cra,ckling softly and then the yello\,l warning:light
fla.shes on and he hears his call wordcrackling..,
- 3 _..
.


I1Wilc:)," he SR.YS, and switches t:) interphJne. "M v.:.ut," h8
t'.r t .. ..: .-.river. "KJve out."
Tho tank engine roars suddenly in his eRrs and he n.t hear the
driv0I; shift int') sear. The ta.nk lurches a little And pulls nht.'c'd. He feels
its fp.r'!ilipr .:r"ti!1, p,sthe s,teel tra.cks clp.w at fhe ice-hP.rd rcpds.
The cn,;ine r ;!lrs"s"in E'nd the driver shifts tu third. Spra.,';ue's hc:pd is
e"en with the wind',we! )f the houses AIlld he CRn see the r)p.d 1;"t<:cr beLre: hi:-:.
Presently 'he is, )ut: of tcwn e.nd the rjad Jy t!le"h' stly
white fields. On b)th sides.Df .the rjad are lines Jf trees, p0pl"z: ""le.
syca.:.:0re, -AS there "lways p.re in this c:)untry. N,)w he is f'ir the
cr0SS his line of departure. TheFe is a fr0sty mist in the
Visibility is
h0 finds the cross road. It is 0803.
"Crossed line one." he spys, and a v')ice
He c0ntinutJs ()n; slowly. It will.be a.E,rNf. c'lld, niserRble dny.
The is the fields, t&e It is
the trees Jf tile blpckw nds t.) his s';,uth Ft. perfect white.
By 0850 h(; hPs !:wed. 800 Yli!ds. Pa,ssed pM.se line tw').
At 0913.
"Eep.vy enany artillery fire," he sP.,Ys. "Eeavy en.el:ly' fire."
ni/hll re is 1t ? "
"von't .kn')w." he Sf'Ys. "Can't se8. Visibility pur, All I know
is it's in."
The cne::".y iSJU the high gr lu.'1d t) his left: they pre oGhind hiM
n'lw, in Rittershcffen'. F.e is in his; t?nk, the engine r'Jarin,:: h,t behind hi'-1,
Rnd j -)1 tinc;wer the frJzcn e:;r::;und. His turret hp tch is c1'.,sed
n'Jw. He'! CP.nnc.t s.:;,:-; the inf.<1ntry. but. he can hear the hi.:;h-pi tchcc. screa::) of
the p,rtil1ery, hin; and he CR.n see the craters sud.:'enl:T 8Ilpear in
the fr-:,zen ,cr:.mnd ahead )f hin. He can feel the ,lift -If the tank:: s'J"Jetines
1'.5')1113 hitscl:.;se. and. he can heRr the shrapnel smAsh' I'lt the
sic.cs.
He is headed northeast. directly t:)w"l.rd Hatten. Be is wi thin A,nti-
tp.nk r",Ur'C, but he cRnn'Jt see any anti-tank He can .'1c'1.ke 'Jut t._C'
11;USl]S in i-Iptten, the slanted rJofs white frJrl .I.1ist a'sna.1l fp.r::1in:; VL_:';:;C
'Jrl the .slope Rbove hin..
.At 0930.
-4-

,
.'

Capt'. Pe;rslo/ OIl,

IICanlt CJntact' Sprague,'" he se,ys.,"I've:lost,two tanks out :.;f his
ph.t')on..-.\I ,Later it out to .three;F.l.:riCl.-, f'Jurt'e.ep, mE;n.
_____ ____ _Lt. Francis E. b1ar'shal"1 )f Mt .. Pleasan't, .?ennsylvA..niB'.I A:.
isd,i!:lP.'"tChed-tC)go' in:rci-f6wn---fo"-assist--the-'-infantry:.-- -'-,-----
north.' All this'while the bi Her fighting,is going on. By n:j\1/ it is'plain
where gUns are firingfron: ';frop the s::;uth' 'edge of Hatten,
and ,from much farthGr east, so that'wheu }1arshall 't"u.ns north'these anti-tank
gun,s are ;n",hi's ," , .'
" ..,
, , The A;Jerice.n artillery,is' :riot quiet., .As Mars{1all reports,the, '
,locations '1ft-he' 'eattalion aftter battalio'tl..!'lends out,'its. rGaring..
volleys fr;l!l far back. MarShall can S8? the bursts of,thelr,hl.ts. Agal.n
and again it seens the guns knocked out: but ai ther the Ger:-.".ans sen.d up
new crews'. Dr they send up ns" gl,llls. f:.)r presently the ant guns start
firing again.
And" all"along to th,e east the burp guI).S, are firing on the infantry;
and the Kraut e,rtillery cones in again and again; and the ::tortars' fall:al"1:lst
v.rithout st:')'p'ping;'CI,nd sen are hit, and .1:len are blownapart, .and !:'len' ::.n
thefnzen gr:,lUnd in helpless and hear the nurtars And half
laugh when they
So it is nit enr)ugh t,) thP.t Lt. thx:cE:.:',:f his
tanks int:) the western edt:e of that.he went too fA.r east and had to
c.:",,-: back, thfl,t h8 ,t.10k up E1 firj,ng positiori.
..' I
It t.J:k niEi'all ftftern'JI:m. -And 'all aftern'.hmthere.wasfighting;
p,ne. all nay there wA:sdying; and it ia, nO.t possible, to tell t11at
happened. ,There Was ,c:. 'battalion irithere,.- to r.1ention just one
unit;'!':l.nd ea,ch of the Df that batta:U;.on eoulCl, tell you hisown
a.nd a different -- and each nan was afraid-in his own' vvay. f.md brave in
his'O\O'U way, ,)r c)wardly in his Ot1fIl \o]ay.
. .
'Lt. Nctrshall g)t -to the'west edge of' the "3ith' and
t))kup firing positions.
, .
Meanwhile; the of Compa.ny A,. plFtt))ns uf !:lediun t'Ftnks,had
gotten to Hatten, one to the west, and Clne tv the south, to help iut the
inffl.ntrJ' in'the west end of tl)wn.The infantry had decided t:qey could p.old
the ahdthe- tanks'had gone back end brougut up onthe",
oPcl!: decks.
......
Throe were left in town for the n\ght, and, six had been,
kri')cke'Q out.
Thti .fit'st iii bl,oody Hatten had, begun.,
The secund day,CHr.:e the order: "The at,tacll; w.1l1 be continued. Tile
infan:&ry in' the west end Jf town wil,l drive,to the ea_.t and clap,r t.he enesy
frOB the t'Jwn. The tanks wUl e-upport."
- 5-
, ..


There wore the Kraut parf1,tr and the'pfinzers;1. the: S5 'and
tbe infantry; there ''''ere the :,}(jrtl"rs and the artillery. with the lbservers
')n the, hills.
Then bet:l'l.n the bl)ody dP,y bettle in the t )wn.
The Ar.eric<>,n artille.ry laid d)wn preparpti:m. endh:ss thunder-
in( shells lE'nding in Hl"tten. AnC\ the Arlerican infA,ntry car:w)ut.
They tried t,) fi.-sht their way in the s::; !king, s;':nlderi!l.f; rutble;
FmC. the ninute they appeared the Geroan a,ttillery came in. The Ger':an ::;Jrt'U's
l'..l,l:'ed int) the stre2ts; and the burp guns opened up. In tll..: ':Jith:r
c'Jld they'tried t) run "mel cu::;e t:) grips; and the guns cut the str:ct::; end
th2 ::;)rtars exploded.
A GerC'".an tank would move up,e. wreck-strewn stre0t, 'Over
the 'Diles )f r')ck and tiobers; Rnd an A..'7lerican tank w0uld ri:;,ve tr) l'Jeet it.
The GGr",<"n tp,nk w'Juld stop just short of a curve and the Ac.:erican tank i/huld
WRit, just a.round corner. And so they would sit. They wouldtrY t:;-:-::.Jve
tJ ?;et a sh'Jt without being hit - bl<)w holes with }::E thr'jugh the WE'lls:,f
hCJUses to fire thrmgh. And then, the uther would !.:pneuver .JUt )f the. way.
The tW) 9,rrdes grounti against tlF\ch other.
The ple.t,:In WrJuld wait f'Jr a barrage to end. duck JUt
::.f their tAnks, ru..'1 t) the infantry C.P. ,in the cellar''jf <>i.iUildinf";' Lt.
ehe.rles B. 'Iiallf1.cG ::f Cincinnati, Ohio, would run with the::lthers.
Li61l;temmt," the infantry cOJ:'sl'l.nder l\1c)uld sayt "f;1ove your tank
up here. and.firem this house. GerI:lans in hCllding us up.II
And Lt. vlallp,ce w:mld run back to his tank.
"}i'we uP." he would say to, his driver, and he w?uld D'WC into a
p)sition t) fire. The Gernan baz))kas w?uld open up, Rnd the Artillery'
ste.rt to fire again; p.nd Wl'l.llacE:,.,')uld fire into the hou.se Rnd !"love back
from the baz).Jk.n.s. And the GerIJrlUS in the next h0use would hJld up the
advnnce.
But the Gej,,
4
rlans could n:.Jt ['!)ve either. And the depd piled up in
the streets. The, deB,d .in grt1Y,
pnd tqe depd in khaki. A..>ld the civilil'l,ns,
'CPtl
ht in the tJwn by the fighting, when they tried to run down the
.st'!",ots.
The vicious Germarl counterattack ceDe that nL;ht, just /'it
dc:sk. First -- as always -- the artillery. Then the quick 'r:;r<>y shp,pc:s A
.the '::en Ilnd the infl'l.ntrycalled fur artillery end the ;;:pchine-iC-.uns
chp.ttcred endlesslythrough t)18 night. The flru:les C)f the buns streA.ked till
the t Jwn WP.S a li"linfShell; p,nd then the ar'tillerybegan t) Ip,nd.
- 6 -

.You could. hear the,'shouts and the throughthe. gun fire,

..':' the. :)f wOIilen trapped in ofa burning:house; s6t afire
by.. \llp.ite phosphorous. .....
" ,
Up" to the:tOlJ'ln!n the fuw had cone a platoon of Conpany A, led by'
Lt. Sol Rael')f Brooklyn,.l'few York, and Rael had g:one into this.
infernQ,_at _____ _c<mnIL l'Etd----'9y' Ca,pj;._ ,_
you'could,hear :p.is vuice the "
"Can't sBe Can't see anything.," 'he said.. "Srn.6ke is
too.bad: is't.)6 bad.-
n
., Then,'as he t[,ot through the slJoke ,and into the
fire: there are millions. of them up here. They're everywhere,
they're all over the 'place -- Johnny, John, there'sonenowi, get hin, 'get..
hin..! II. And his v:;ice wentaff into abrupt silence... '
Three C:Conpany .tanks were knocked out.
The Gerr:lan infantry'did not get The counterAttacks hE!.d
been st:JPped. The infantry settled d{.)wD. to stopping the nino!" countera.tte,cks
,tha.t caBe a.ll ni'gp.t to test us;,and the. tanks stayed to help. then.'
L
,Earlier, supplies he.dbeen teken up by m,)rtar half-
tr9cks under. the conmand of Lt. Willis :me Harding ,of Lincoln, Nebrnska.' :But
the 'firing all day and doingguerd all ,and. .it was
I _ fUT' half-tracksftnywa:y.
, >
, Capt. Ro"bE:rt C. Pcitts,,)f Oolumbia, Ohio, u:p his supplies 'by
.. tanks.'
o <
The battalion'medics 18 Eien and tw'] officers t:J care.for 700
o4d.,'1en.-:-.:.. ViTent onto' the in peeps to 'ou,t the wouncted, and
peeps came1Ye.ck with bullElthO'les in and the wounded
dame back in half-tracks and on' tanks to the AidSte,tion where William
R.. .Eaton 'Of pi ttsburg, PennsYlva,nia,'",r,s , '!" .'. -,
The r.:l')rning of Jam,1.a.ry 15t the objective was a limited attack. '
", were,-being hurt,--butsQwEl:sthe 'Kraut. ,We.werelosingtanksandtlen;
. was he';' A'priscmer warstp.ted tha.tl!lore tnan'e, hUndr'Pd men:ih his unit
were killed. ih p single day.
The tenseness and the fighting Wollt The 8,rtUlery still CBne
. ";;
its'er:ldless and wh))orip!And the .snal1 arns chattered'endlessly;
the Krauts were ip. then,ext houses .,' _.' .
.
. .Youwo,uld be on one s'ide 'of 8: w.all'rnd ti.le'Krauts. on the other;
ap:ct you w:)uld .try to lob hand grenades over to get .them; and the
would:: set.up a nortar and't8.keoff all the'increnents except .imeand>try to ,(,
lob shells 'over one house and onto the next. the dead lying;in'the
stre\3t!;)Oegan ,to get Dn ,and: IJ:Jl{ing
down Atlways' . and, tb,e'artillery was e,lwo.ysconing'and
you kne"'l it was only question of tioe before one landed on the hC:;l+se you
were fighting had' reached such a "pitch that they tried to
range in.eight,""inch howitzers on a single house, whiCh is sonething'ltk<J
trying'to hit a fly with a shotgun. . , '
- t-
Tfk went :m and :on. Thp.t day and the next day and the
next C.fl.y and the :lCXt day and the next day and the next.
"C;unterattacks in the Hatten were )ff tJday." was the
wP<y taL' news dispatches r0ad. 3ut thl'ft did n)t- tell C)f the fire,
end whnt a c)unterpttqck W[!S. Thfl.t did n)t tell YC)U of the inffmtry staff
serf:;c;<:>nt (test dp"med plp.t-,..:on leA.der in the Arrry) in C)r::Oq.t for rJ mths,
SgheG.ulec. t) Get t) tho rep,r B.t 1930't) a physicfll t) tec":':(; p secmd
lieutenflnt, he was killed at 1530. That did njt tell jf the
deA.th and screq.r.:ins, the in thnt icc c)ld air suffc;rin,-.
It did nJt tell the hours on hours of endless while
hn.ppen'; -- h)urs two hundred ninutes l:.,ng, And. dpys a:ld:1Lh,ts two
hu..'1c.red h;urs, wlitinG, w:=dtint;, till finally you wcmt6d hflppen.
These could tall you -- jr let the ufficial words ,f their
cit2ti;ns tell Y0U:
"8<t. Will ian T. Sur1f:1ers jf Schenectady, New YJrk, C)Erpar:.y C, ,n
the 18th ,f January at Eatten,.Frf'nce, at about 1400 was his
tflnk t; get -,ut r)f rput:eJf an Fl.nti-tank E,"Uil. While so enGAGed s"'w a
li"ht tFmk Get hit pna startto burn. SUl:lI::ers at )nce "'lent t) the liGht
tank's Bid. Upon 'lrrivinb h0 disL::>unted and helped eva.cuate tL.0 crew. The
driver If the burning tnnk was hurt I'tnd. neaded first g,id. hi;]
the necessary treCl.t-cent, Dounted the w'Junded !"len :m the bR.ck deck ,f his
tank pnc. !",;dc pWP.Y ','ith hi!'1.DUring this entire ti:1e SU::lr:lers
entirely 8JCpJsed t) c'.rns and :J:)rtA.T fire falling in heavy
"0:1 tile Jf the 13th ,)f J;:muary at Hatten, FrAnce, plrot.)u
LLmte:19.nt was wr)unded. S/Sgt. PeIminGtJn P. S:1ith)!
Shreveport, L'Juisiana, and. Pfc. Jounes Barbera of Br)lklyn, New Y,)rk, t.;)th -:,f
C_,':lpany A, disr:lJUnted fro:::i their tank int) intense eneoy fire. and shiGlded
the b )f the Li2utcnl'1nt with their Jwn bc)dies while S/Sgt. 8,:i th A,dninister-
ed first aid. When itwas necessAry f Jr s')nc')ne t) ride the rear deck )f the
tank tJ give the 0fficer keep hiD frJD falling Jff. Pfc.
Bart"r& v')lu.'1te",red. Pfc. n )t.ml;v kept up the first <'1io. necessary
::,n the trip, but shielded the with )wn b Jdy against intense s::-:rtll
Arr.,s, ;]Jrtar. and artillery fire; ane'. the LieutenPl,nt was successfully eVAcuated.
S/St;t. Soi th returnee'_ t., his pl"t .J!:" p.nd assw.ed conl::flnd, reori:pniz2cl it e.nd
p, pers)npl f))t tJ discJver the bast route fJr his tpnks.
In the C)UrS2 this rec)nnaissance he directed the eVllcu"l.tion )f p,n inf0ntry
plAt ,n s(;r,;cPtnt. Allthis WP.S accmplished under intenSe sr:1p,-l 'ane'!.
-:'. ,rt"'r fir2. The success Jf the W9.S lar:;,;ely due t) the c_)l It;.9o.er-
.f S/S,t. S0ith."
"On the 17th )f JAnuary, at Fr<'!lct?, Tric 4- J ,hn }'itch2r )f
Alt .t-GYlnsylvania, and Pfc. Richard L. Duvall ",f McBain, rIichL;c1!l,:.,;th
Jf Cmppny D, wei"e l'!eDbersJf the crew .)f H lit:"'ht tank thAt WAS uy an 88
I',,:,: bun. The tpnk t;urst int:; f1<1.;;es. Under snaIl prns fire, Tec 4 ?itcher
and ?fc. Duvp.ll he,d c.isr.:ounted frjm the flaMing vehicle. 1,vhen tiey 8".W their
"ther tW) 'J.w::lJers )f the crew did n)t C')l'le Jut, the tW) men ri:'turne,j, tJ the
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tank and pulled the. wounded gunn'Br, whu was gflane, from the tank. 'Pfc.
Duvall r0l1ed'theburning body on the ground and laid on the blazing clothes
to the franes.' They could not eyp.cuate the fourth nan. Sueeessf\ll
in putting oilt the fire, the 'nen hailed. a passing ne,di'l:lm tl'lnk 8.nd placed, the
gunner 0n the reB.r <teck 'and then laid with him' under smali at:1S fire' until
the sefety)f an aid station was reel-ched. The gunner a fifty;.fifty: hanee
" ,-- . , .. ii.,etion. These men unusual courage in:
tbe fa!!9 great 'thei'i-- ... , ..
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These are the stories of three men. But they are not enough. Lt.
Earl A. AUgTin of 3uffalo, New York., and S/Sgt. 'William R.' Fa'dda if San
Califc)rn1a, b:Jth of Headquarters Company, could tell you h)'"" they
went :)ut onto the battlefield under artillery and imall arms fire to eVl'tcua,te
a tank.
Sgt. Stephen,E. Ratahuck Jr., of Buffalo, New York, and Tee 4
l\i'Jllgo, vf Utica, Yvrk, .b,;)th of Company B,eould tell ;Y,Q,u 'how they walked
on foot thr'ough artillery fire again all-de-gain to fix tank
Lt. Eut;ene W. Marsack of 14,"chigan" a:rtt1 Pvt. Henry J;
Ericksun, of :i3r:))kly, New York; both ofOol:lpany D, tell youh:)1/J, on
, the' n.it;ht )f the 17th )1 JanuP,ry, the Krauts hit a 10aded 'Wit;h
wbu)'lded men,. -and h6w they from all A.nd
hHched the half-tra.ck the ta.."lk and towed. it tC) safety.
- ,
), Thr)se are the st')rie$ 'Jf six nON men. But the S'tory is !l)t told.
'There are a thousand stories. A story for every [1an. ,And' ,)f the,':1n
'are iiving. And many')f them are dee,d.. A."ld perhaps n')t even all th()se
stJries would tell the stary of Hatten.
.' ,'"
The be,ttle ,went on.
That day and the next next day and next day
the 'next.
Company 3 cene. up from Drusenheir.'lt shjrt of from its laE?t
.. cJ.r.:mand __3hilLJ{8,L _,__ ,.
on .the 15th; and th.."),t !light Lo' PerkinS of At1sterdl'li1,Uew York; wa's --
killed outside hh tp'* at Ive found a letter he hRd written t) his
wife, in pencil, and n:)t So w.:; ste,mped'it and sent it Jut. '
Lt. CullisV. Sears of LlimberCity, Ge'orgia; went up int)' that town
thr-t
the 17th, Company A WaS sent back t'j Capt. Tharpe'-
,he.d been wounded; .and,Lt: Rael wae 'back in the ,Bi,
,. to' start, had,lost Lt; ,
. . C"w,as low lIhbert O.
Jones 0f J!tlch'J, Lt. Sprague, .
of Br,ouJdyn, New wounded. Company.c one officer left. '
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The ware still held in Hatten,
If ,you went to the gentle r:;lling field suuth ;f y)u
C see .the burned: (mt hulls -:;f AoeriCFtn sCP.t there. y,u c'Juld
S8, th,; Ger:,:",pn tanks there: t'); Rnd if youwant'ccl tr).fi{ht YJUr ''''1y int'J
the streets If Hp.tten, you sei C'Jre burn-edout:wroc:ks there'" .Ar-,cricRn
-- Rnd
Th,;,S-ivunth ArMY decided to pull It wBsmly p,sh)rt distance,
but tlle t)ld the Seventh Arf!lY bRd v)n :Runr.stedt; h)w it
hAd fJu,;ht pnce f )u{:;ht and f'Jught his c'JUnterattRcks until the very l"st
se.c nd; then when he put all his weit;ht behind his final punch -- tl-18
Sev:nth hRd 9ulled oP,ck, ,qnd he WBS swinging at,air, anc, the Sc'vcnth WPs
waitins'f Jr hi::! aGain a.s he stUDbled off his balance.
We ::loved out, )U' the 20th.
\'le tJ ,'the soutll end tlie wes.t, 8"nd left Efltten behincl
us. We nwed :mt in the nighi', R.ncI the tanks stayed te) c-:;vcr the
'."nd th:.: line Jf the battalion -- nDt as lung, n.;w sl.owly d')wn the
black roa.ds.
Behind Wa$ Hatten, and behind Was the fighting. were-the
endless artillery barrages a,nd the wRiting. 3ehind were the fires find the
dee.d. iiehind the br.,ken GermM )ffensive.

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