Evening star., 1948-05-02

le" ileIl lell, out none sought shell
ter.
A German machine gun opened
fire on the Americans from a
church tower in Moosburg. The
American slowed. seemed to stop.
Every prisoner tried to see Moos-
burg as hearts sank at the thought
of another almost" Men began
rushing for the fences before the
tide OF battle could turn.
The boom of an unseen trench
mortar stopped their rush. No one
saw where the first shell hit. The
second took half of the tiny tower
with the mashine gunner. That
was the signal for the drive on the
town itself. Several tanks rolled
past the camp. There was only
sporadic fire for over an hour, then
the little town became silent. Ac-
ton within the camp came to an
expectant halt. All eyes we're on
Moosburg. At 1925, the prisoners
saw a sight which many of them
have since called the most beautiful
and impressive of their entire lives.
Stars and Stripes Appear
Rising slowly over the tallest
building in the town, ripping
against the blue Bavarian skies, ap-
peared the Stars and Stripes.
The last vestige of sanity dis
appeared. This was der tag the
day beyond which no one planned
Men fell on their knees and wept or
prayed. Some stood immobile at at
tention and saluted the nag, but the
expressions on their faces belied the
military rigidity of their posture.
Song welled up-the "Star Span
gled Banner" ,""God Bless America" ,"I
America" In multilingual chaos
they blended into the bedlam. Brit
ishers. some Of them prisoners since
Dunkirk, wandered around in a
daze, incapable of realizing what
had happened to them. Flight 1t.
Danny" Daniels. an Oklahoma
part-Indian who was shot down Oc-
tober l3. l94l, while flying with the
RCAF, the second oldest American
prisoner, suddenly developed q stut-
ter. Prisoners from a dozen nations
sought American backs to pound ad-
mlrlngly. A quartermaSter corporal,
who had ventured too near the lines
at Brest to visit friend, was bub-
bling remarks about making quar-
termaSter history with his story
when he got home. Two sailors,
who had been picked up by a Ger
man submarine while on patrol duty
on the coast of North Carolina,
went around making delirious re-
about the explaining they
would have to- do for the United
States Navy.
Tank Rolls Into Camp
Over in the barracks that passed
Tor hospital, men weak with /
illness and undernourishment yelled
through the windows for news. As
Maj. Robert E. Adamina, now sta
Toned at the Pentagon and living
in Annandale, Va, says, 1--WE were
oemoaning our luck that on this,
If all days, We should have to be
lat on our backs"
A tank rolled into the camp, crash
ng an unopen gate. Needless of
ianger, prisoners swarmed over it
md seemed to drag. 1t to q stand
till. The tank crew dismounted
md generously tossed its rations
o the crowd. The crew. part OF
he l4th Armored of the Sd Army,
vas mobbed. The captain Joined |
n the madness when he discovered
MS brother among the prisoners.
Loaded pistols of the crew were
passed among the men, who wanted
10 see what it felt like to carry a
gun after years of submission be-
,ause they had none.
Still thousands Of men regularly
turned their eyes toward Noes
burg to see if the nag was still there.
You bloody Yanks have done 1t
again." Britishers were yelling Or