The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-09-11
UQ cN& AR NA 3JlA'tcd First Biography oe Americas Great General
 
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His regular working day lasted between i8 and iB hours. He re. marked that this was better than to keep everybody else awake by snoring. If he could wedge in Q few minutes for exercise he went out with . handball and had Q catch" with some of the officers, Originally he had planned to exer- else with a medicine ball. but he lost 1t overheard in transit,
 He was picturesque figure aS he travelled back and forth to the battlefronts by plane or jeep. Generally he wore what he called his "goop suit" his nickname for the tankman's zoot suit" This consisted of Q pair of pants which came up to the armpits with the bottoms buttoned around his shoes. For e coat he wore heavy battle jacket; instead Of the regulation military cap, & heavy knitted hel- met covered his head,
 We can sec him aS he holds irn- portant conferences under the wings of Flying Fortresses or in seanty field headquarters or stand ing in a jeep, travelling over 200 miles Q day. And he covered Q lot of territory.
 He once left his headquarters at 3 a. m. and arranged to meet vari- ouS commanders along the way working until midnight. Then he lay down for three hours of sleer and began again until he returned at noon the following day to head quarters. There he held confer- ences until dinner time, and then set about studying maps and plans until Il p. m.
 While he travelled he allowed himself no privileges and ate the ordinary c or K rations of the troops. These consisted of hard biscuits. chocolate, coffee, canned vegetables, and stew. This he ate cold. Rather than to take the time to heat the coffee, he drank water from his canteen.
 The general did not escape his share of danger. Once his jeep was pushed into a ditch while 1t was threading its way along a road between two long motor conveys in a blackout; he suffered a badly bruised back. Another time he and his party were under heavy ma chine-gun fire. On another occa- sion he slept in a town which was heavily bombed few minutes after his departure. He could see the anti-aircraft guns go into ac- tion as he drew away in his jeep.
 The news was secretly guarded that President Franklin D. Roose- welt had arrived in North Africa, the first time a president of the United States had ever left his country in wartime-and the first time a president had ever crossed the Atlantic in an airplane. He grasped the hand of General Eisen- however as he landed in Casblanca, in French Morocco.
 He had come to discuss strategic plans for the invasion of Europe from its under belly. For 10 days (Jan. 14-24. l940 in a white villa, near the shores of the Atlantic, the conferences which were to make history were held. Prime Minister Winston Churchill sat beside him. Gen. George c. Marshall, Chief of Staff. surrounded by advisers from the Army and Navy, was seated near General Eisenhower. Around the conference table were the British Chiefs of Stan with Gen. Henri Honore Giraud and Gen. Charles de Gaulle, represent ing tine French.
 With military maps and plans spread before them they laid the plans for the coming invasion" i" working from early morning until midnight. American infantry stood guard with fixed bayonets on all roads leading to the villa. The peaceful looking villa, under the waving palms and covered with hougainvillaea in full bloom, was surrounded by emplacement guns and barbed-wire barricades. Here the future was being molded.
 NEXT; FOur-Star General.