Detroit evening times., 1945-10-15

Sacrifices One Platoon
To Save Larger Force
Continued from Page onel

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CONTINUED Page onel
Selleck, the list Divisions commander, would be
there.
Binalonan lies just east of the main high
way. An old and rarely used road runs more or
less parallel to the main highway nOrthward
and leads into Binaonan directly. For some
reason or other l chose the old road, and by
doing so just missed being captured or killed
AS was nearing the town, platoon of four
or five tanks rode down the main highway about
200 yards to my left, going south. They were
Jap tanks
My dusty Packard sedan would have offered
small resistance to them if had encountered them
head-on, on the main road.
got into the village aware that at least some
elements of the enemy were now between me and
Bataan, but could not find Gen. Selleck. Nor could
find any list Division troops.
RUT the Goth Cavalry was there, with little Col.
~ Pierce right out in the thick of furious COM
bat with the vanguard of the main Jap force The
26th had been in action since daylight, protecting
the retreat Of the list to the Agno. BY the time
/ reached it, the Goth was reduced to not more
than 450 men.
ordered Pierce to get his truck train and
his uUounded men out as quickly as possible and
hold his position as long he safely could and
still be able to withdraW his remaining men.
When the time came to DithdralD, he lOould
back up TO the Agno, IS miles below him, cross
the bridge, destroy ii and hold the south side of
the riUer
Pierce held that position at Binalonan against
overwhelming odds until $50 on the afternoon of
Dec "a, by which time he had forced the Japs to
depoy the advance guard of their main column
and to begin the deployment of the whole main
assault body
Here was true cavalry delaying action, fit to
make mans heart sing. Pierce that day upheld
the best traditions of the cavalry service, and his
action led to his being raised to the rank of
brigadier general.
7 STAYED at Binalonan with him for two or
three hours and then returned to my Alcala
headquarters. En- route passed along the south
bank of the Agno and as crossed the main north
south highway at Carmen | noted that Jap planes
had bombed the mile-ong bridge over the Agno
between Carmen and Villasis They had destroyed
the south span of the vital bridge, blowing it off
It's abutment
1t was a time for cursing our luck, because
the llth Division would have to cross that
bridge on the night of Dec. 2f-25 in its with
drawal southwark.
But while was standing there viewing the
damage, Col Skerry my engineer chief, loomed
out of nowhere. He was already making plans for
temporary repair of the bridge.
At the same time he was having charges
placed under the undamaged part of the bridge so
he would be ready to blow it as soon as the l1th
got across, or blow it if the Japs got to the river
before the 18th did.
From that point got in touch with my Alcala
headquarters and ordered it moved back to Bam-
ban. short distance south of Fort Stotsenburg.
told my operations officer my signal officer and
few enlisted men to wait at Alcaa for me-
T REACHED Alcala on the evening of Dec. "a.
Christmas Eve always was something of an
event around our home in the good days and now
| found my mind going back over those memories