Jackson advocate. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1939-current, 1944-07-22
A. U. S. ARTILLERY COMMAND

overseas publlcatlOn.)
A. u. S. ARTILLERY COMMAND
POST, France - Showing uttel
contempt for master race" divi'
siors facing them, U. S. artillery.
men, firing 155-mm howitzers, are
blasting German installations ane
troop concentrations, pounding tt
pieces the Nazi theory of ''in-
ferior" and superior races.
First Negro combat artillery
team to fight in this sector, this
outfit is the howitzer member of 8
four-unit artillery group that in
/ cludeS a battalion of loss and two
of 155mm Long Toms.
They make music horrible to
enemy ears, but to U. S. dough-
boys of the infantry division being
directly supported by their fire it
is the sweetest song this side.
SWUNG IN ENGLAND
A few weeks ago these were the
kids who anlivened English villages
when they swung" cadence drill
on training hikes to the tune of
"Whatcha Know Joe?" Now, then
these cannoneers join in a group
"serenade' the rhythm is not as
regular, but Yanks in observation
posts on the line report that the
ferries are dancing to it. Results
shattered tanks, wrecked BIS,
smashed Notifications, dead Nazis.
tits a hell of different tune, y
observed Technician Fifth Grade
Joe Hodge, a survey section man
from Detroit, land we know those
Germans up there don't like 1t a
Bit
The battalion's unlqueness far
transcends the fact that it's Ne
geo combat unit. It's firing record.
accuracy and output are acclaimed
from corps artillery headquarters
to the foxhole-ridges of Hill 1872
where muddy infantrymen fight.
COMPUTE TARGETS
A fabulous amount of intricate
mathematician plotting and COM
puting-precedes the sending of
fire directions to the individual
batteries. Armed with this data,
computers Staff Sergeant Lawrence
|E. Innis, of New York City; Pri-
vate Van @. White, of East Orange,
New Jersey; Private Otis B. Walk
err, of Passaic, New Jersey, and
Technician Fifth Grade Charles
A. Peterson, of Plainfield, New
Jersey, went to work with their
graphical firing tables (slide rules
to artillery folk and quickly
made their calculations.
A little later the guns spoke
their thunderous language. and
the Germans miles away caught
it's meaning. The end of the mis-
sion came when the number one
man of the 1O-man pulled the
lanyard and the battery computer
at battalion called out Charlie on
the wayr'
Soon it all comes down to where
IL Joes in the unit, known as
number one men, pull down and
out on their lanyards, sending the
projectiles screaming through space.
Very important Joes, these number
one men. BY yanking on their
cords, primers set off the powder
charges which force the shells on
the long trip to the target. They
receive the biggest part of the
conclusion.
ALBANIAN FIRST
To number one man Private First
Glass Arthur Broadnax, of Autauga-
vile, Alabama, went the honor of
pulling the lanyard for the first
round fired by Negro Artillery
against the Nazis. Number one
men seldom go beyond private
first class, but look upon their
jobs with immense pride. One
number one man in Baker Bat
terry, Private First Glass Robert
Lee, from Montgomery, Alabama,
refused a chance to become a gum
ner and go up in rank.
81 want to pull that lanyard
and watch the shells go off," was
his explanation Other lanyard
pullers in the outfit; Private Hor-
ace Jacob, of Kaplan, Louisiana:
Private T. j. Deramus, of Mont
gomery, Alabama; Private Grady
Clay, of Tatum, Texas, Private Ed
die j. Lynn. of Edwards, Massa-
chusetts; Private First Glass Tom
Thomas. Of Stamford. Connecti-
cut; Private First Class Willie
Cannon, of Columbus, Georgia /:
Private First Class Adam Tinnell,
of Waxahachie, Texas; Private
First Glass John Trim, Of Bate
ford, Mississippi; Private NFirs.
Class Jim Leatherwood, of Tupelo
Mississippi; and Private First Glass
John Battle, of Wadley, Alabama.
Lieutenant Colonel Hammond S
Kelsey, the units commander
knows artillery, having been an
artillery officer since 1918. OF his
Negro cannoneers he saws proud
ly: It'll put them against any
J artillery outfit over here" t
49,. ~