Download - 70th Infantry Division Association

The tactical situation did not change the last two days of the month. Enemy patrols were active. Heavy
artillery and rocket bombs fell in Forbach in large numbers. One enemy barrage lasted almost two hours
with an estimated nine to twelve shells landing every minute.
As the month ended, the 1st and 3d Battalions occu ied positions in Forbach. Companies F and E (less
one squad were attached to the 274th Regiment, Company G plus one squad from E Company occupied
defensive positions as Division Reserve, and the balance of the 2d Battalion was in Regimental Reserve.
Training of reinforcements continued. We continued active patrolling across the railroad. Combat
efficiency was rated as: Very Satisfactory.
During the month, the "Bloody Axe" Regiment captured 483 prisoners. From February 18 to February 21
our position remained the same. Action was light, but we took one prisoner and another surrendered at
his own will. My platoon tech. sgt. received a battlefield commission to second lieutenant. I was very
proud of old Heinz getting that commission. We also got a new company commander, Captain Robert
Wiley, and a new man from the reinforcement depot, Joseph Strauss, 2nd Lt. That meant we were
operating without a platoon sgt. I did have a new 2nd Lt. Joseph Strauss and he was going to be my
platoon leader, but we lost our old platoon sgt. The new officer in charge works with the company
commander, so I am left with a platoon.
On February 22, we had a sgt. going to the hospital; two men on the 23rd that were missing in action; two
guys killed in action; and others lightly wounded or sick who were sent to the hospital. Harry Shuman, 1st
Lt., was released from company command to an executive officer and Robert Wiley took over as commander.
We received 18 enlisted men assigned to company duty from the 71st headquarters
reinforcement, APO 776. As I look over the roster I can remember some of the names; one of them,
Layman Heckle, a staff sgt., was in the Air Corps and then transferred to us as a gunner in the machine
gun section. He was in the cook outfit in the Air Force and now he is in the Infantry in the machine gun
section. His morale was shot. I got to like Heckle pretty well. I felt sorry for him. He had no idea what the
Infantry was all about and he had a rank of staff sgt., which meant he could be put in charge of
something. He pleaded with me not to be put in charge of anything until he found out what was going on,
because he didn't want to get his head blown off.
On February 23, a little over two months overseas, I was promoted to a staff sgt.--my first promotion. A
couple of my buddies were promoted, too. Donald Jacobson was promoted to a staff sgt.; he was my first
gunner. Robert Weeks was promoted from a corporal to a sgt. in the machine gun section. Now Heinz
Mush, my old platoon sgt., a Mormon and a real nice fellow, was transferred to the replacement depot in
the headquarters task force.
On February 25, our company commander was assigned to regimental headquarters company and we
got a new commander, a First Lt. Now, new officers are scarce. Things were running kind of high and
February 25 is the day I want to talk about. The company commander who got retired and went back to
regimental headquarters had the cooks make us up some hot meals at the position we were on, which
happened to be in the basement of a house on the reverse slope of the hill. We were holding high ground
and had the town shut off. We had the tanks with us from the 14th Armor. We took the hill with tanks, our
men following the tanks up the hill. The tanks killed the Germans in fox holes and the German casualties
were high. We took the hill with a minimum of casualties. We lost less than ten men. The problem was the
tanks left us on top of the hill to take the counterattack. The Germans always counterattacked immediately
after being pushed off something, but we held the hill.
On that particular day Sgt. Heckle came to me and told me he had to go out. He was brand new and
didn't know apples from peaches. He hadn't heightened his senses to war yet. You learn to hear quickly in
combat. You know when a shell is going to fall short by listening. Of course, it's the one that falls on you
that you never do hear. You learn to smell a German, alive or dead, and you start to smell him a mile
away. Your eyesight grows keen. These are the things that you learn. You are geared up for survival and
you become like a wild animal. Now, Sgt. Heckle was very timid and scared. He was probably about 40-
45 years old. He is not a young man. I am only 19 years old and he wanted me to stand on guard duty