Evening star., 1944-10-29

and witnessed that day probably ths
most intensified slaughter in this war
1t was about 10 pm. when 1 re-
turned to the press camp, then in
shattered, dilapidated hotel at Bag
noles, celebrated Normandy health re-
sort in peacetime. There were no lights.
I found the place in a turmoil. My
roommate at the time was John Hall
Of the London Daily Mail. He already
had started to pack my belongings,
fearing I would not be back before
dark. Moreover-a little kindness which
1 will never forget-while 1t was still
light he had written story for me
on the occupation of Paris on the
basis of that evenings army briefing
for release at noon the next day.
We were all to leave for Paris at
dawn. The plan was to proceed to
Rambouilet, the French summer capi-
tai about 20 miles outside the metro
polls. There we were to await the
French tanks, due to assemble at noon.
and accompany them into Paris. Pre-
sumably there would be no opposition.
Immediately behind the correspondents
Press Wireless was moving up its field
broadca sting apparatus. We expected
that evening to send stories directly
from Paris to the United States.
Like a Boiled Egg
At noon or shortly after about Is
1st Army correspondents were as
sembled at Rambouilet. The French
tanks started on schedule. They met
unexpected opposition. AS Gen. LIE
Clerc expressed 1t: Paris is like a
boiled egg-cooked inside but still with
tough she'll" The correspondents at
Sd Army headquarters Immediately
deserted Gen. Patton and rushed to
Rambouilet. The 9Th Air Force cor
respondents trooped in.
Correspondents assigned to the Brit
ish and Canadian armies rushed to
the assembly point Their forces might
have been wiped out in the next "a
hours and the world would not have
known about it. Woman correspondents,
some stationed with the WAC in France,
started at Rambouilet. Correspondents
came, arriving by planes, from as far as
England. The next day Rambouilet
saw probably the greatest newspaper
aggregation in the history of war. They
were intolerably in each others way. All
the next day and most of the following
they waited for word to enter Paris.
The French tanks were meeting in
creasing resistance. The 4th Infantry
Division was thrown against the city
from another angle. A good many
of the 1st Army correspondents scat
tered, joining this division of some
of it's attached cavalry units. Mean
while the field wireless apparatus had
been halted far in the rear. 1t was
obvious that the Forthcoming flood
of copy would be far beyond it's ca
pacity.
How Stories Were Lost
When we finally got into Paris it
seemed as if there were two kinds Of
people there-Parisians and corre-
spondents. The Scribe Hotel over
flowed The Grand Hotel across the
street overflowed. The only way to get
out copy was by plane or courier. Hun
dreds Of stories were lost. For example,
all the New York Times copy for the
first day went astray. Five days later
I was able to rescue lot of Associated
Press copy which courier had been
carrying around, protesting that he
didn't know what to do with it, For
men who had risked their lives getting
into Paris early it was an awful head
ache, an awful heartache. Had the
move progressed according to schedule
all this would have been avoided.
Two or three days disguised most of
the LIST and Sd Army reporters
with Paris. They scattered to rejoin
their units, leaving the city to the sob
sisters and political writer's. Everybody
started out on hts own. I myself cut