Evening star., 1944-06-06
Invasion Paratroops
Say Nazis Are Tough,
But Were Tougher

Dui We 1C iVuynCI
What parutroopers thought
about on the eDe OF the inDnsion
is told BY a correspondent tDho
10ds privileged to interuieW these
fighters in Englund.)
BY B. ]. McQUAID,
War Correspondent of The Star and
Chicago Daily News.
SOMEWHERE IN ENGLANr
May 81 Delayed Il was permitte
today to talk politics" with tn
tough youngsters who will be rainin
down inside Hitler's continents
perimeter. This paratroops grou
was hand picked for my benefit t
represent all geographical section
of America and practically all racis
and national origins.
1t would not be quite fair to sa
It's members were completely unin
terested in the political, social an
economic questions currently agitat
ing the home front. They wer
vehement. as American troops every
where In the world seem to be, OF
the subject of strikes in war pro
duction plants. They declared
unanimously for some kind of long
term police occupation of German,
to prevent that nation from eve,
again building an army, navy, or ali
force.
They had a simple solution fol
the Japanese problem: Obliteratt
all Japanese. Though they thought
Gov. Dewey a smart politician
and admired his vote-getting capa.
bilities, they were without excep.
ton against changing horses in mid.
stream and thought Mr.. Roosevelt
ought to be reelected in appreci.
alton of the fine job he has done ir
this war.
Believe Germans average"
Most of the group believed the
German soldier is just an average
guy who is only doing what hi
leaders tell him to do"
None of the paratroopers had evel
heard of the recent so-called "ful
employment" British White Paper
None of them had heard Prime
Minister Churchill's latest speech
or read excerpts from it. Only one
or two had heard about the mon.
etary conference, and they tool
little interest in it. All had reae
about the Montgomery Ward strike
but they did not adopt toward it the
bitter attitude they did toward Other
strikes and strikers. There wa.
general agreement the Government
should not have bothered with the
mail order business and was guilty
of 'undemocratic" measures ir
tossing out Sewen L. Avery, chair
man of the board.
The paratroopers told me that al
no time during their training
probably the most rigorous in the
world from physical standpoint
had they received anything which
might by any stretch of the imagi-
nation be termed political indoc-
trination.
What were they fighting for?
One of them said, while the rest
looked solemn, he was fighting
for the United States, because it is
the greatest country in the world
and the most worth fighting for"
What was it they talked about
mostly, among themselves?
This reminded some one of story
about a ski-tropper who is alleged
to have said, And the second thing
am going to do, am going te
take off these blankety-blank skis.
Cite Their Gripes.
What was the second favoritt
topic of paratFooper conversations
This got them going. In contras
with the half-heartedness which
characterized most of their politica
expressions.
What kind of jobs will there b,
for us after the war? Why should
officers get s1o0 month extra pa,
for being paratroopers when enlisted
men get only $50? Ordinary grount
troops get extra pay while engaging
In active combat; well then, why
shouldn't paratroopers get extra pay
when they 60 into combat?"
(There was a lone dissenter
from this otherwise universal
grippe, who said that all American
soldiers were overpaid, anyhow,
and they ought to be glad to fight
for their country for nothing)
How did they feel about this sec.
ond front?
The sooner the better" and "let'.
get going and get 1t over with"
On the question of morale the,
talked exactly as the marines tall
in the Pacific: Sure. the German il
tough, but we're lot tougher. Were
the best fighting outfit in the world
Man for man, we can handle any
thing there is
Our officers? They're the bes
there are. Our commanding officer
He's the fightingest commanding
officer in the Army. He goes any.
where we go, and he goes in first"
Those words may seem boastfu
In print, but the tone in which the,
were spoken did not.
(Copyright, 1914, Chicago Daily News, Inc