Evening star., 1941-02-28

rainbow.
Tenderfoot's Trials.
The n1aneuvers led over the
toughest roads and trails the bat
talon could find.
The tricycle., just devised and
fresh from the factory. was turned
over to the outfit for experimental
purposes. An officer suggested that
the newspapermen might like to try
1t out. The soldier assigned to drive
them has more than a local repu-
tation as motorcyclist. He has
driven up virtually every sheer sur
face except the Washington Monu-
ment
The correspondents sat down.
crooking couple of precautionary
nngers around the little rods, and
the driver set off.
The tricycle. mounted a hill and
sWerved around an old farmhouse,
scattering chickens, ducks, turkeys
and an outraged goat One of the
passengers made a feint toward the
barn and started swerving off into
the woods in the other direction, but
ended in the lap of his companion.
Then 1t Gets Going.
The soldier then let the machine
out. and she bounded down q pre-
cipitous path. striking every 10-foot
rut mpartially. The machine sort
OF settled, itself, then took of and
flowed across a gully. This reporter
seized the other around the middle,
Don't grab me-" he shouted
I'm Just loose In space"
The tricycle., losing no time, made
q hairpin turn, then bounced up q
hill, skinned it's summit and
hoped and skipped down 1t. The
little rods, after nearly jerking the
wrists on the passengers, had been
forgotten and they had abandoned
themselves to hazard, hoping to land
In a swamp.
But the thing actually came to a
stop. The driver looked around
casually, he seemed little surprised
to fnd his passengers still there.
Except for the fact that they had
changed sides-Quite involuntarily
they were no worse-well, physi-
cally.
Should Have Trained on Tanks.
Nice ride?" asked the captain.
"Oh, swell" he was told. only
we should have trained up to this on
medium tanks, with a little para
chute jumping in between"
Ofiicers of the battalion disagreed
on the usefulness of the tricycle.
one suggested it might haul a gun.
And 1t could transport four men,
he pointed out, where a motorcycle
with side car could take but two.
Well, the Army can have it.
The battalion "maneuvers" were
the most extensive it has held and
the commanding officer, Maj. How
ard r. johnson, pronounced them
most successful. More than a score
OF selectees, some of them from
Washington. were thrilled to find
themselves taking part in this field
service under combat conditions
only few weeks after joining the
Army. They were assigned to the
anti-tank guns, which now has a
strength OF about 500, and is gradu-
ally being filled to war strength of
$50.
The companies were scattered
through the thick woods of the most
remote and widest portion of the
reservation. At the command post.
q little hollow carefully camouflaged
with a wire screen covered with
dead leaves and pine twigs, q port
able table had been set up and
bulletin board with a map of the
terrain. Different colored pins
showed the disposition of each unit,
Guns Kept on the Hop.
maj. johnson set the problems
tanks in force at this point or that
and the anti-tank companies had
to deploy to meet the simulated at
tacks, messages were carried by the
fleld telephone, the portable radio
or by motorcycle riders. Each mes
sage was in triplcate, one CODY 60
ing to the unit concerned, another
to the message center and the third
kept by the &C. P" Each message
was carefully logged. so there would
be a complete record of the opera
tions.
The 81 millimeter anti-tank
weapon, a deceptively slim and
modest-looking gun, can be wheeled
into position by four soldiers and
fired or whisked away and attached
to its truck in the twinkling of an
eye.
The six guns which the battalion
has so far (this newest branch of
the service has not yet been fully
were kept on the hop yes
terday, defending different positions,
concentrating and scattering. The
crews without real guns had wooden
with which 10 practice.
During the maneuvers, conceal
ment against theoretical observation
planes, was emphasized. Even the
field kitchens-which served 8 fine
hot midday meal cooked on gsso-
line burning stoves-were hidden by
leaves and brush.
Snow, still falling this morning.
halted the combat drills. Instead.
most of the troops had prescribed
lectures indoors today. The specially
schools which many officers and
non-coms are attending were con-
tinued.
LARGEST Morse Whuler