Part 10
"D + 106 to V-E: The Story of the 2nd Division" (1945).
World War Regimental Histories. 95.
Wood, Eward W. and United States Army
Small groups of soldiers huddled around fires that could be built by day, and guards stood their posts in snow several inches deep. The forests rang to the sound of axes, as the troops felled thousands of trees for shelters. The Division proved rich in log cabin architects. Despite the weather, most of the men lived comfortably. One company built a day room and furnished it with decorations a patrol had seized in a German hunting lodge in front of our lines. A Ranger Platoon, between skirmishes with German patrols, lived in consummate comfort in a cabin fitted out with curtains, window panes, a hand-painted lamp, rug, tables, chairs, bunks, and even a doorbell- a bicycle bell affixed above the entrance. The 38th Infantry built a log chapel on the Siegfried Line. The big game hunters at the front shot deer in the forest and treated their platoons to venison steaks.
STAFF
SERGEANT HANFORD MAURICE RICE DIARY
1st Battalion of the U.S.
9th Infantry Regiment of the U.S.
2nd Infantry Division
November
18, 1944 (Saturday) “Got back from pass. I had 2 letters. One from
Vicky and one from Agnes (my sister). I had a headache. Snow is
melting. Lt. Hummel was transferred to the (air corps) B-52’s. Lt.
Knoles took over as (3rd) platoon leader.”
November
19, 1944 (Sunday) “I got the bronze star (medal for bravery under
fire). Col. McKinley gave it to me. Got a letter from Vicky. I got
mad and wrote back.” Note: my mother had written him that she had
gone to a dance (in Texas) with Davis, his brother. Davis was
drinking but no hanky panky. This is what made Sgt. Rice, my father,
mad.
November
20, 1944 (Monday) “No mail. Raining all day. Cut a little wood.
(My) cold sure is bad.”
Fall and winter brought low-lying mists as well as quagmire. Units were forced to move about without observation. There were days when the little town Wascheid, Germany, received a staggering amount of harassing fire, simply because no other targets were in sight. Ammunition allotments were small: 60 to 90 rounds per day. Weaned on invasion quantities of ammunition batteries set about accumulating “kitties” of ammunition. As a rule the 15th and 38th Field Artillery Battalions fired on the north half of the Division center, the 12th and 37th in the south sector. Most missions were given by ground OPS or were unobserved due to the poor visibility. (p. 80)
Dear Mrs. Knight,
Your letter came this morning and just as soon as I had the time I started this letter to you. First of all and most important to you you'll be glad to know Charles is all right. I can understand how you may have worried when you failed to hear from him in so long. Just because you have received no mail from him is no sign he hasn't been writing. You see, many times our letters, as well as yours, get lost or misplaced enroute and consequently their delivery takes much longer. Why this trouble occurs at times might possibly be because of the heavy volume of letters all of us are continually sending back to the States.
My folks too, have gone for long periods of time without hearing from me. Then all of a sudden all the letters arrive at the same time. Because of the unaccountable mail system those on both sides, here and back in the States, feel at times that because no mail comes something is wrong at the other end of the line. In this situation the old adage applies because, no news is good news. If anything happened you would be the first to know, but of course as nothing is going to happen you needn't worry about that. When we know our folks are worrying about us it worrys us. Naturally, you are very concerned but please don't worry. If only you could see for yourself how well off we are right now your worries would decrease to none at all. Naturally, it isn't too very pleasant but on the other hand it isn't as bad as you probably have pictured in your mind.
Just because we are in the First Army is no sign that we ourselves are participating in current activities. Any time you read of the First Army I know you must feel that we are right where everything is happening. This, however, isn't always the case although we have, in times gone by, been pretty much in the middle of things.
Where we are now we have made us little log huts and able to keep nice and warm and dry. Really this, right here, is the easiest soldiering I've done since the fighting began last June.
Wood is plentiful and all of us have small barrels in our shacks which are our stoves. If we only had plumbing and lighting we would be as well off as anyone back home. Ha Ha. You'd be surprised to see all the things a soldier can do to make things easier for himself and be more comfortable. The longer he is in this the more things he thinks of how to improve his situation.
The war news is good and shows promise of even better news before long. Our armies are just now getting to where they can deal out to the Nazis what they justly deserve. It's only a matter of time until the Germans have to give up and naturally all of us are hoping it isn't far off. We are on their soil and probably will be farther inside Germany in the future.
We have had some snow and rain from time to time but inside our makeshift homes everything is warm and dry. We have been issued additional clothing for this cool weather and so we are all set for it when it comes.
I sincerely hope that I may have said something to lessen your worries about Charles and all the rest of us. Everything is coming along just fine and shows promise of this war ending before too much longer. Don't lose faith because everything will turn out just right.
Sincerely,
Richard Jones
This is a portion of Battery B of the 15th FAB taken on July 22, 1943 at Camp McCoy, Wisconsin. The complete photo is 60 inches by 8 inches. Uncle Charlie had many of the men sign on the back and write address, then he would write what row and number the man was located in the picture. I have labeled my uncle and Richard who wrote the above letter to Mrs. Knight.
Uncle Charlie and Cpl. Richard Jones were both in the 15th FAB in Battery B but in different Gun Sections. They became friends and spoke often of each other's families. For some reason Uncle Charlie's mother would send post cards or even letters to Cpl. Richard Jones. He was not from Maine or a friend of the family. My grandmother felt inclined to write to him to encourage another soldier.
This letter clearly let us know she wrote to Cpl. Richard Jones since she hadn't heard from Uncle Charlie and became concerned. We know from Uncle Charlie's letters the mail was sometimes held up coming from the States also.
The issue in this letter was more about the worries that families have dealt with for centuries when their loved ones went to war. War doesn't just impact the soldier. It also impacts families and friends of the soldier. The fear of getting a message your loved one had died in a battle has always been a "causality" of war. This includes also concerns about injuries, prisoner of war, or missing in action.
Cpl. Richard Jones tries to relieve my grandmother's worries but realizes no one can guarantee the future. He tries but I wouldn't be surprised if he was trying to convince himself also that everything would be fine.
He hopes the war will soon end, but we know nearly six more months of fighting will happen before the war ends. The "relaxing" period will soon change dramatically.
Combat History of the Second Infantry Division in World War II
Fall and winter brought low-lying mists as well as quagmire. Units were forced to move about without observation. There were days when the little town Wascheid, Germany, received a staggering amount of harassing fire, simply because no other targets were in sight. Ammunition allotments were small: 60 to 90 rounds per day. Weaned on invasion quantities of ammunition batteries set about accumulating “kitties” of ammunition. As a rule the 15th and 38th Field Artillery Battalions fired on the north half of the Division center, the 12th and 37th in the south sector. Most missions were given by ground OPS or were unobserved due to the poor visibility. (p. 80)
The below letter was written by Cpl. Richard L Jones
First Gun Section Battery B
Somewhere in Germany
November 20, 1944
Dear Mrs. Knight,
Your letter came this morning and just as soon as I had the time I started this letter to you. First of all and most important to you you'll be glad to know Charles is all right. I can understand how you may have worried when you failed to hear from him in so long. Just because you have received no mail from him is no sign he hasn't been writing. You see, many times our letters, as well as yours, get lost or misplaced enroute and consequently their delivery takes much longer. Why this trouble occurs at times might possibly be because of the heavy volume of letters all of us are continually sending back to the States.
My folks too, have gone for long periods of time without hearing from me. Then all of a sudden all the letters arrive at the same time. Because of the unaccountable mail system those on both sides, here and back in the States, feel at times that because no mail comes something is wrong at the other end of the line. In this situation the old adage applies because, no news is good news. If anything happened you would be the first to know, but of course as nothing is going to happen you needn't worry about that. When we know our folks are worrying about us it worrys us. Naturally, you are very concerned but please don't worry. If only you could see for yourself how well off we are right now your worries would decrease to none at all. Naturally, it isn't too very pleasant but on the other hand it isn't as bad as you probably have pictured in your mind.
Just because we are in the First Army is no sign that we ourselves are participating in current activities. Any time you read of the First Army I know you must feel that we are right where everything is happening. This, however, isn't always the case although we have, in times gone by, been pretty much in the middle of things.
Where we are now we have made us little log huts and able to keep nice and warm and dry. Really this, right here, is the easiest soldiering I've done since the fighting began last June.
Wood is plentiful and all of us have small barrels in our shacks which are our stoves. If we only had plumbing and lighting we would be as well off as anyone back home. Ha Ha. You'd be surprised to see all the things a soldier can do to make things easier for himself and be more comfortable. The longer he is in this the more things he thinks of how to improve his situation.
The war news is good and shows promise of even better news before long. Our armies are just now getting to where they can deal out to the Nazis what they justly deserve. It's only a matter of time until the Germans have to give up and naturally all of us are hoping it isn't far off. We are on their soil and probably will be farther inside Germany in the future.
We have had some snow and rain from time to time but inside our makeshift homes everything is warm and dry. We have been issued additional clothing for this cool weather and so we are all set for it when it comes.
I sincerely hope that I may have said something to lessen your worries about Charles and all the rest of us. Everything is coming along just fine and shows promise of this war ending before too much longer. Don't lose faith because everything will turn out just right.
Sincerely,
Richard Jones
 |
| Envelopes of Uncle Charlie's Letters |
Uncle Charlie and Cpl. Richard Jones were both in the 15th FAB in Battery B but in different Gun Sections. They became friends and spoke often of each other's families. For some reason Uncle Charlie's mother would send post cards or even letters to Cpl. Richard Jones. He was not from Maine or a friend of the family. My grandmother felt inclined to write to him to encourage another soldier.
This letter clearly let us know she wrote to Cpl. Richard Jones since she hadn't heard from Uncle Charlie and became concerned. We know from Uncle Charlie's letters the mail was sometimes held up coming from the States also.
The issue in this letter was more about the worries that families have dealt with for centuries when their loved ones went to war. War doesn't just impact the soldier. It also impacts families and friends of the soldier. The fear of getting a message your loved one had died in a battle has always been a "causality" of war. This includes also concerns about injuries, prisoner of war, or missing in action.
Cpl. Richard Jones tries to relieve my grandmother's worries but realizes no one can guarantee the future. He tries but I wouldn't be surprised if he was trying to convince himself also that everything would be fine.
He hopes the war will soon end, but we know nearly six more months of fighting will happen before the war ends. The "relaxing" period will soon change dramatically.
Richard L Jones
Born 1 Oct 1920 Los Angeles County, California, USA
Died 5 Oct 1997 Orange County, California, USA
Married Freda L Altic
Buried at El Toro Memorial Park
Lake Forest, Orange County, California, USA
PLOT Section EG Block 16 Lot 31 Space 12
TOP
Dearly Beloved
Husband Father Grandfather
BOTTOM
For Whosoever Shall Call on the Name of
the Lord Shall be Saved. Romans 10:13
TOP
Dearly Beloved
Husband Father Grandfather
BOTTOM
For Whosoever Shall Call on the Name of
the Lord Shall be Saved. Romans 10:13
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