davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1944-02-06
Medical Outfit Takes
Operating Tent 200
Yards Into Jungle

BOUGAINVILLE.-Lt. Comdr. w.
c. Meloy, 1920 Edmunds street NV,
medical officer of defense bat
talon, hit the beach with II as
sistants under machine gun fire,
when this island was first attacked
by the marines.
With but four trunks of emer-
gency equipment and one ambu-
lance jeep, they moved into the
Jungle about 200 yards from the
beach. BY noon DR.. Meloy was
ready to operate. The first casual
ties began arriving early, and under
almost primitive conditions they
were treated and evacuated from
the island.
Between emergency operations,
the medical force worked at i'm
proving temporary positions by
placing additional layers of sand
bags around operating tent and
wards. 1t was not until three weeks
later that a permanent hospital
area was set aside and the Navy
Construction Battalion dug it in.
Many marine raiders who were
In the initial assault on this island
credit Comdr Meloy with saving
their lives. He was cool and swift
when operating under fire. He goes
about wearing shorts, jungle boots,
and a favorite long-billed fishing
cap. He practiced in Washington
before entering the Navy early in
1od2
Evening star., 1944-02-06

Thank God, none of them landed too
close to us. We really thought that
we had gotten back into combat
duty with vengeance this time.
After dusk that night we could see
the tracers from both the American
and German machine guns as they
fired at one another. 1t felt good
to be back--to know that we were
no longer rear area Johnnies."
When we left Agriento we left
the plains, all the country that we
were to see from there on was
mountainous. I had thought that
Tunisia was bad country through
which to fight an attacking cam
paign, but Tunisia was mild COM
pared to Sicily. Never have I seen
such abrupt mountains with so few
passes through them. Even though
I was in it, I don't see yet how we
drove the Nazis out-had they been
able to use artillery as the Ameri-
cans do the campaign would still
be going on. Though this country
Is mountainous, and in the States
mountains had always meant beau
Evening star., 1944-02-06
Il. Be||inger Helps Bomb
AtoN in Dusk Raid

CENTRAL PACIFIC.-Lt. Dean
Bellinger, 26, son of Mr.. and Mrs.
C. G. Bellinger, 37l6 Thirty first
street NE, bombardier on a Lib
orator heavy bomber, participated
in a mission at high level over
Taroa on Maloelap Atoll January
a. The dusk raid found the sky
free of Japanese fighters and the
Liberators sent 80 per cent of their
bombs into the target area. The
enemy, apparently caught of guard
by the high attack following pre-
vious low-level strikes, failed to
send up a single antiaircraft burst,
the Associated Press reported.
1t. Bellinger said he spotted q
large fire, and crew members re-
ported three smaller ones which
may have been burning planes.
A brother, Glenn Bellinger, petty
officer. second class, U. S. NJ, also
is in the Pacific combat area.
Evening star., 1944-02-06
D. G. Marines Move Up;
Barely Escape Bombing
By SERGT. BILL BURNETT

10y EAANoAs
OF Washington, Marine Correspondent.
BOUG AIN WILLIE Delayed) -
Twenty-one members of a marine
engineering outfit here probably owe
their lives to the fact that night
advance against the Japs by their
marine mates was successful.
The lucky Leathernecks comprise
a motor transport pool directed by a
pair of Washington, D. c., officers,
Second 1t. A. c. Johnson, whose
parents live at 2125 Tucumcari street
S.W., and Warrant Officer S. H.
Vuncannon Of 1913 Eighteenth
street Sc.
When the marines made large
advance one night" says Warrant
Officer Vuncannon, I'VE also had
orders as usual to move up, keeping
as handy to the front lines as ad-
visable. Early in the morning, We
gathered our equipment and left
the particular part of the jungle
and swamp where all 81 of our men
had slept in the roots of two huge
trees in order to keep out of the
mud.
That was one of four moves we
have had to make, each of which
has meant lot of extra work. But
we aren't sorry we changed loca-
tions then.
The next night, during a heavy
bombing attack by the Japs, both
the trees under which we had slept
were hit. Both were sheared off
2 feet from the ground"
Evening star., 1944-02-06
Marine Catches Horse
Lost on GuuduIcunol

SOMEWHERE IN THE SOUTH
WEST PACIFIC Delayed Ma
rine Supply Sergt. Everett L. Joyce,
"a, son of Mr. and Mrs. Leon Joyce
of $40 Allentown road. Camp
Springs, Md, wonders what became
of the horse he had at Guadalcanal,
and if it is eating Japanese rice. !
Toward the closing days of the
campaign, the marine spotted a
horse wandering through the jungle
and caught it.
Il guess Lady strayed from q
plantation" he said. Before we left,
a soldier offered s25 for her and I
took it. If he'd waited until the next
day he could have had her for
nothing, beca,Se we showed off T."
Sergt. Joyce was graduated from
Mckinley High School, Washing
ton. D. c., in 1887 and worked With
his father before joining the service
in August, 1898. He has been over
seas 18 months
Evening star., 1944-02-06
DC. Area Men Servinu.
Aboard Wounded L5T|

LONDONDERRY, North Ireland.
LIT. q. g. G. M. C. Oulahan, 32l2
Reservoir road NV, and 1t. q. e.
Robert w. Heslop, communications
ofhcer, Mount Rainier, Md, are
members of the crew Of a nameless,
homely LIST docked here getting
battle wounds OF Sicily and Salerno
dressed. She is a 3,000-ton sea-
going garage.
During the withdrawal from the
second Salerno Bleaching, the LIST
stuck in sandbar amidships. and
nothing could get her OF For more
than four hours all hands stood by
in broad daylight with German
shore batteries shooting at them.
when We first headed for Sicily"
1t. Heslop said, I'VE turned on the
radio and heard commentators tell
ing the folks at home that we were
striking at the soft underbelly of
Europe He repeated the glib,
deceptive phrase with a grim smile,
thinking Of the rain of jagged
metal and the roaring lights they
met.
If you write a story about us,
just please don't mention again the
soft underbelly of Europe" he
requested.
1t. Oulahan is the son Of Richard
V. Oulahan. He is a graduate of
st. Adams School and Hayerford
College. in Pennsylvania. 1t. Hes
lop is the son of Mr.. and Mrs. Hal
sey w. Heslop, 3406 Shepherd street,
Mount Rainier. His wife, Betty, lives
at 3348 Sixteenth street NV. He is
a graduate Of Maryland University.
Evening star., 1944-02-06
5 Brothers Wear Khuki-Sixth Joins Novv

Mrs. Ann Kogok, 1928 Maryland
avenue NE, dsclaims family par
tiality for the Army, although five of
her seven sons wear the khaki. Her
sixth son, Fred, 80, recently was the
first to join the Navy.
Fred also was the first of her sons
to be hit by the father draft" He
is now stationed at Great Lakes, Ill.
Jack, 35, the one civilian, expects
an active duty call any day now.
The Kogok contribution to the
Army includes four sergeants: Mas
ter Sergt. Joseph and his twin,
Technical Sergt. George, IS, both
stationed at Camp Gruber, Okla. :;
Staff Sergt. Edward, %, now at
Camp Mccoy, Wis: Sergt. Phil, -,
now in England, and former Pfc. AL
bert, 81, who received a medical dis
charge two months ago.
Evening star., 1944-02-06
CAPT. Flake Awarded
Silver Star for 6aIlaniry

Capt. William L. Flake, U. S. M. c..
has been awarded the Silver Star
for gallantry in action, the War
Department has informed his wife
Mrs. Mary Flake, Of 1841 Columbia
road NV.
The citation said that Capt. Flake
at Vangunu, Solomon Islands, had
personally located three hostile ma
chine gun emplacements and ag-
gressively led his men forward I'M
der fire to destroy them at the
cost of serious wound to himself
in July l, 1943"
The 24-year-old marine, formerly
OF Snowflake, Ariz., received the
Purple Heart award in August. He
has been overseas since February,
during which time he fought under
Col. Jimmy Roosevelt. He entered
the service in June, 1941. after grad
uation from the University of Ari-
zona.
Evening star., 1944-02-06
Promotions
Captain.

Captain.
r. S. Pendexter. jr, q3O Tyenty-siyth
street south. Arlington. Va, somewhere in
England.
r:- 10
Irwin n. Hackerman. 5000 Thirteenth
street NV, at Camp Sibert, Ala. -
Second Lieutenant.
Loren C Lossn, 100 B street NE, at
yale University, Conn.
Technical Sergeant.
Bert Mobiles, husband of Mrs Lillian z.
MOBILES, l1S Third street NE, at Carls.
pad Army Air Field, N. Mex. -
Serx.ant so
William H. Mastbrook. son Of Mrs. Fran
ces c. Mastbrook, 1920 Connecticut avenu.
N NW:, al Army Air Forces Technical Train
ing Command, Greensboro, N. C. ~
Corporal
John II. Flett, 2111 First street, at Fort
Bragg. N. c.
Private First Class.
Esther F. Gaskins, 2722 P street NV, at
Fort Mason Calf. =
Ensigns.
Agnes Sullivan, 1900 Fourteenth strpet
w, at the Naval Air Training CentSr,
Corpus Christi, Tex.
Francis F. johnson, son of Mrs. Mary
at the Naval Air Training Center, Pensa-
cola. Fla. =
Electricians Mate Third Class. 8
=, Bayard 9. Keoush. 5000 Eleventh street
Emmett Charles Rhodes. 17ol PARK
road NV.
Evening star., 1944-02-06

1941. He has done extensive work
in photography both for the Govern
ment and in private concerns. He
also is known as an explorer.
Promoted to captain were Its.
John William Downie, 1868 Kalo-
rama road NV; Raymond Peter
Slater, 337 Thirty-fourth street
NE; James George Burke. jr., 1874
P street NV; Clarence Joseph
Boudreau, 1700 North Uhle street,
Arlington, Va; Dom P. Stausbaugh,
lot West Woodbine street, Chevy
Chase, Md, and George M. Gossett,
GALL Barnaby street NV.
Cathey on Active Duty.
Placed on active duty was Second
1t. James Mitchell Cathey, son of
Mr. and Mrs. John H. Cathey, 1918
Porter street NV. Now stationed
Evening star., 1944-02-06
By Capt. J. P. Fitzgerald

craft come over, then they yell their
heads on for us.
That night the BIC announced
that Nicosia had fallen. Rather
comforting, since we had passed
through it the preceding afternoon.
We felt that we were making the
news.
The following morning three more
planes came over and we did some
OF the worst firing that I have ever
seen In my life. We didn't come
anywhere near those planes. Our
crews even let one aircraft sneak in
on it from behind. I have never
been SO mad. I have never raised
so much hell with my gun crews.
That afternoon two more planes
came over; evidently the boys had
taken to heart what had said after
the mornings firing-we hit one, he
started smoking and apparently fell,
but we can't claim aircraft that we
don't see actually crash.
Later this afternoon we went on
a reconnaissance to a new position
just east Of Cerami. Apparently all
Sicilian towns are on the tops of
mountains; this position was i'm
mediately below the town and just
behind a knoll that defiladed us
from Troina. This position was very
hard to get into, but we couldn't get
clearance from division artillery to
move up that day. The following
day we went up to make an addi-
tional reconnaissance of the same
position, but when we got to Cerami
the Germans were shelling the out
going road and the MPs wouldn't
let us through.
However. 1t. Ballentine wasn't
stopped; he went on through to the
area, and then on the way back a
shell came very near hitting him-a
piece Of shrapnel missed his face by
about one inch. That man really
did catch it in this campaign-his
ship was bombed, he was strafed
and then shelled, but he never lost
an iota Of his nerve. Never have
seen any one so unaffected by near
death, and, because he never showed
the white feather, the men would
have followed him to hell and back
He's married, and in order not to
worry his wife, he has never, even
by inference, let her suspect that he
has left Algiers, either for Tunisia
or Sicily. I've often wondered if
she'll believe him when he goes
home and tells her what he's been
through I really do admire that
man; he's got "guts," and plenty of
them
While waiting around for the
shelling to let up some, I heard a
siren, and when I looked around !
thought was in Heaven, there were
SO many stars. At the edge of
Cerami was wonderful o. P.-you
could see all the way to Troina
where the Germans were making a
determined stand, and it was to this
o. P. that the generals were walking
A three-star led, followed by two
star, then came another three-star
then another two-star. In a few
minutes one star came up and
shortly another tWo-star came UP
And I had always heard that gen.
erals invariably remained on the
rearmost line: the higher the rank
the farther back the general. This
campaign absolutely was not being
run according to the book!
Continued Next Sunday
Evening star., 1944-02-06
(InstaHment t lW

ty to me. these mountains seemed
drab and dull.
All oN Sicily gave me that i'm
preston because we fought through
the latter part Of the dry season
(Now that the rainy season has
started, Sicily is much more beau
tiful place, with green hillsides and
trees.)
Evidently our attack on Capizzi
was successful for the next evening
we moved again, this time to a posi-
tion just southwest of Cerami. The
Germans had quite evidently Just
left this position and quite hur-
riedly at that because their signs
were still in place, but we left them
strictly alone. The Germans have
been known to BOBBY trap such
signs In order to make casualties
out of American souvenir hunters.
But before We moved the Long
Toms" 055-mm. rifles) had moved
also to a position between our old
and this new one. I said before
that I had never heard of artillery
being so far forward, but I never ex-
pected to hear Of the Long Toms"
being nearly on the front lines. In
this campaign the Americans placed
them where you would have ex-
pected to see 105-mm. howitzers, or,
at the largest, 155-mm. howitzers.
But we just didn't use artillery ac-
cording to the old book any more.
(And the results certainly prove
the new theories to be correctD
The following day about six
Mel09s came in to dive bomb the
Long Toms"-they made a slight
mistake, however. and dived at
something about mile away. All
OF my gun sections thought that
they were out of range. except one
section, and that one fired four shots
at one of the planes as it was diving.
1t was at extreme range, but the
fourth shot hit the tail and the
plane never came out of the dive.
That was the first land it proved
to be nearly the LAST shots that we
fired while we were with the field
artillery
After knocking this plane down
their attitude toward us changed
completely. Before this we had been
the red-headed step-child. We were
attached for rations, water, gaso-
line, truck repairs, everything, and
though they were completely fair
about giving us our proportionate
share, they didn't always seem to be
cheerful about it. This was espe-
cially true when time came to
move-they sometimes forgot to tell
US. The loss can get up and away
fast-faster than anything that we
had ever been with before-but we
had to be little faster because we
were always notified after they had
gotten started. But this changed
everything; they were ready to dc
anything for us now. Even their
motor sergeant rushed up to ours
and offered him anything that he
had or could get-from distributor
points to tires. And in the chow
line they insisted that our men have
seconds-we were really the fair
haired child. Because, with one ex-
ception, we saw no more enemy air.
craft, this feeling died away to some
extent as the campaign continued
but we were always held in higher
esteem than we had been previously
It's funny thing about ack-ack
no one wants us until enemy air.
Evening star., 1944-02-06

ahead on reconnaissance after CIV
ing the units march order, and we
would meet and place our guns as
they came up. When we left to 90
on reconnaissance 1t was still SO
muddy that I doubted If the guns
could get out, but somehow every
truck appeared. On this move we
went through the town of Nicosia
and into position northeast OF it.
While we were on reconnaissance
Jerry dropped quite a few shells be-
hind us, so we knew that we were
we'll within range-just after we
moved in We knew 1t even better.
He dropped them all around us. But
each time we heard the approaching
whistle second or so before the
shell landed and that was enough
time for us to bite the dirt. Les
sons learned in Tunisia had not been
forgotten.
While placing my guns had given
Sergt. McCarley the general loca-
tion Of the spot that had chosen
for q CP-just after the shelling
was over went to look for 1t, but
couldn't find 1t anywhere. I walked
around the area shouting, calling
the men, beginning to wonder If one
OF. the shells had hit any of them,
but after about Is minutes ut
seemed to mel one of them an
swered from a culvert; they had
been parking the truck and had
looked up just in time to see the
muzzle flash Of a German cannon.
They swore that the Germans had
bore sighted on our truck, but If
they did they weren't able to blast
their aiming point, though some of
the shells were uncomfortably close
A few minutes after the shelling
stopped the infantry came through
us going up to attack-one OF them
turned to one of our. boys and said
How do you stand all this shelling?
III be glad to get up further, where
It's safe"
This was our real introduction to
the field artillery battalion with
which we were to 60 through the
campaign, it was invariably the
fartherest forward of all the field
artillery, and. as at this time, fire.
duently seemed to be ahead OF the
infantry. knew that, to be effec-
tive, artillery should be forward
never have heard of it being as
far forward as all the 9th Division
artillery was in this campaign and
didn't know that 1t would, or
Evening star., 1944-02-06
D. {. Man Uses Fire Hose
To Scare Off jap Planes

SOUTHWEST PACIFIC.-Comdr
V. K. Busck, U. S. NJ. OF 2l7 Rock
Greek Church road NV, innovated
the use of a fire hose as an anti
aircraft weapon here during 4 jap
anese air raid on an already dam
aged tank landing craft.
He was aboard the ship with q
hose line bringing q fire under con-
troll when three Jap planes swooped
in low. With no cover available
Comdr. Busck directed the stream
upward toward the planes. The
first two turned sharply away. The
third made a direct hit with bomb.
Uninjured but dismayed. Comdr.
Busck was forced to leave the ship
Those first two Japs must have
thought I had new type OF
weapon" he commented.
Evening star., 1944-02-06
Lifelong Friends Meet
Before Tent in Italy


A friendship of three generations
of Hepps and Leverones was re-
newed January 9 when Pvt. Ken
meth Hepp, 25, son of Mrs. Cecilia
Hepp, 5000 First street NV, and
Corpl. Joe Leverone, %, son of Mrs.
Anna E. Leverone, 313 Webster
street NV, met in front of tent
in Italy.
Their grandfathers were fellow
workers at Schneider's Bakery;
their mothers attend the same
church and the boys were con-
stantly together until their Army
induction in May, 1912.
In letter to his mother, Corpl.
Leverone wrote: Guess whom saw
today. That's right, Kenneth Hepp
And he looked fine. Tell his mother
she has nothing to worry about"
Leverone, a former craftsman for
the Coast and Geodetic Survey, told
how he had just missed Hepp in
North Africa. Leverone had been
sent to Sicily and Hepp to Salerno.
Their outfits were only a few miles
apart at the time of Leverone's let
ter.
Evening star., 1944-02-06

could, be placed as far forward as
was the battalion that we were with.
Here, for the FIRST time, we heard
the screaming meemies," a new
rocket gun that the Germans in
troduced in this campaign. It
sounds exactly like Leo the Lion"
at the beginning of . MGM picture
and they come in O series OF six.
Evening star., 1944-02-06

would come across q similar one
that had been wrecked without de-
stroying the tires.
Within three days we moved, with
the motorcycle aboard our truck,
up to a position northeast Of Leon
fort, going back to our old Tunisian
job, guarding the field artillery.
This time, however, we were with
the los nm. and attached to the
9th Infantry Division Artillery in
support of the 1st Infantry Division.
We understood that this position
was pretty close to the front, but
didn't realize how close until I
started moving my platoon into po-
sition. I missed the small dirt road
that we had to turn into and took
them about mile too far, almost
through the infantry watt
ing for dawn to attack. Luckily,
right at that point we could turn
around. But then the dirt road into
our position was extremely poor and
we din't get in until nearly dawn.
Then we had to dig in. That after
noon the sky clouded over, but no
one paid any attention: we thought
that 1t would be like North Africa
in the summertime, where fire.
quently we got all the preliminary
warnings of storm, but never any
rain. But this time 1t fooled US
We had a downpour that lasted
about an hour. No one had taken
any precautions against rain and all
of us were soaked. AS lightly
equipped as we were, many of the
boys had no clothes to change to or
dry blankets to sleep on, but the
following day the hot Sicilian sun
dried us all out.
1t also dried the ground out
enough for us to move-but this
time two gun sections were left be-
hind with the field artillery service
battery-all of my guns went for
ward with the firing batteries. What
tn hell-if you are going to be in
combat duty you might as we'll be
all the way in. Little did I know
how far all the way in we were to
be later. This now gave us for
ward echelon, a rear echelon, a rear
rear echelon and a rear rear rear
echelon.
The first time that we moved with
the field artillery we moved as we
were to do so often later-the F. A.
commander, reconnais-
sance officer, battery commanders
and the platoon officers of the ack-
ack with each F. A. battery went
Evening star., 1944-02-06
Transfers

Joe Coppley. Avis Craft James Crane
John Flanagan. Arthur Ford. James Fox
julius Goldberg. Edward Parker Haugen,
John Jaimes. Raymond Joy, Loyal E. Orn-
dorff, Charles Roberts, Nieolo Sanalitro.
spicer. Hunter spiiian, Albert stefanelii
and Louis Wood.
To Naval Air Training Center. Corpus
Christi, Tex. for Advanced Flight TraininE
Maurice Ray Cutler. Joseph George Mott
Fitzhuah william Helm and Philip Keller
Maloney
To Army Air Forces Training Command
Sioux Falls, s. OAK. for Radio School.
Harold M. Delvlin, jr.: Jack Shulman
Thomas e. Corwin, Corpl. Thomas L.
Creekmore and John E. Donaldson, jr.
Miscellaneous.
John Myers and Malcolm B. Hammerly
to Nashville Army Air Center.
Cadet Donald P. Kyker to Altus Army
Air Field, Okla.
Cadet IRVING B. Portion 10 Carlsbad
Army AIR Field, n Mex
Paul Ioisslls. IT,, % Psac Training
Center, Greensboro, N. c.