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66<br />
Book Review<br />
A Cape Cod K<strong>in</strong>ship—Two Centuries, Two Wars,<br />
Two Men<br />
Dana Eldridge<br />
ISBN: 978-0-9677008-0-9, 204 pp.<br />
By Dr. Kris Barnett<br />
For many people, war creates bonds that endure for years. For<br />
Dana Eldridge, war created a bond that spans multiple generations.<br />
This bond is evident <strong>in</strong> A Cape Cod K<strong>in</strong>ship—Two Centuries, Two<br />
Wars, Two Men.<br />
To craft this book, Eldridge researched and repr<strong>in</strong>ted key po<strong>in</strong>ts<br />
of Ebenezer Smalley’s personal journal. Smalley, Eldridge’s greatgreat<br />
grandfather, left his idyllic Cape Cod life and his family to<br />
fight for the Union <strong>in</strong> the Civil War. Eldridge, 112 years later, left<br />
his own idyllic Cape Cod life and family to fight with the U. S.<br />
Army <strong>in</strong> Korea.<br />
Throughout this book, Smalley’s journal entries are juxtaposed<br />
with Eldridge’s recount<strong>in</strong>g of his war-time exploits, offer<strong>in</strong>g the<br />
reader a sense of the men’s k<strong>in</strong>ship and the timelessness of the soldiers’<br />
experiences.<br />
Despite the passage of a century, <strong>in</strong> some ways, Eldridge’s emotions<br />
and experiences were strangely similar to those of Smalley.<br />
Not only will readers appreciate the parallels between the men, but<br />
they will also most likely appreciate Eldridge’s perspective and<br />
unique writer’s voice.<br />
For example, Eldridge describes basic tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g: “It was time to<br />
jo<strong>in</strong> the other draftees for the mild endurance test that was to be<br />
basic tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g. Basic tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g is where a lot of human chaff is<br />
poured <strong>in</strong> the large end of a psyche-form<strong>in</strong>g funnel and partially<br />
tra<strong>in</strong>ed soldiers pour out the other end” (p. 64). In fact, each man<br />
depicts tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g as a seem<strong>in</strong>gly endless cycle of drills, the importance<br />
of which is not evident until his mettle is tested under fire.<br />
The stories of Smalley and Eldridge are adeptly and fluidly<br />
woven together, and as each man heads closer to danger and<br />
expresses his anxiety about the unknown, the suspense is heightened.<br />
Ebenezer Smalley wrote <strong>in</strong> 1864: “We soon f<strong>in</strong>d out what is<br />
ahead. We are on the march. What had sounded like heavy surf off<br />
<strong>in</strong> the distance turns out to be cannon fire a few miles away, iron<br />
surf beat<strong>in</strong>g on the soft shores of men” (p. 75).<br />
Eldridge expresses his thoughts on his <strong>in</strong>itiation to combat <strong>in</strong><br />
Korea: “Those first days on the front l<strong>in</strong>es were a learn<strong>in</strong>g experience<br />
and I, for one, felt way beh<strong>in</strong>d the curve. There was so much<br />
we had taken for granted – freedom of movement, sleep, cleanl<strong>in</strong>ess,<br />
even life itself. These all had to be modified or discarded and<br />
unlearned” (p. 110).<br />
Both Eldridge and his great-great grandfather adapt quickly on<br />
the battlefield to face their respective enemies. However, Smalley<br />
does not fare as well as Eldridge, as Smalley is shot <strong>in</strong> the shoulder<br />
by what Civil War soldiers called a ball. The wound, which likely<br />
would have been treatable <strong>in</strong> Korea, becomes <strong>in</strong>fected, and Smalley<br />
returns to the Cape, where he dies of his wounds.<br />
Eldridge, on the other hand, completes his time and also returns<br />
to the Cape. Though <strong>in</strong> good physical health, Eldridge, like so<br />
many others, considers the long-term impact of his Army experience.<br />
He writes, <strong>in</strong> retrospect, “I clearly remember try<strong>in</strong>g to share<br />
some of my experiences with a good friend and came to realize that<br />
I couldn’t. The chasm was too wide, and part of me would forever<br />
be on the other side” (p. 173).<br />
Ironically, there is a good chance that Smalley and Eldridge<br />
would have been able to bridge that chasm and appreciate each<br />
other’s battlefield experiences.<br />
This is a book replete with details for the history buff, for the<br />
military enthusiast, and for the amateur genealogist alike. For<br />
Eldridge, the book no doubt offers better understand<strong>in</strong>g how war,<br />
with all its violence and all its glory, forges a bond – a bond that’s<br />
relative.<br />
Operation Broken Reed: Truman’s Secret North<br />
Korean Spy Mission That Averted World War III.<br />
Lt. Col. Arthur L. Boyd<br />
U. S. Army (Ret),<br />
ISBN- 13: 978-0-7867-2086-6, Da Capo Press.<br />
By Jim Allen<br />
The author sp<strong>in</strong>s a very good story about a secret<br />
spy mission <strong>in</strong> North Korea (NK) <strong>in</strong> January 1952.<br />
The presentation and structure are very <strong>in</strong>trigu<strong>in</strong>g<br />
and quickly draw the reader <strong>in</strong>to the heart of the<br />
story. A team of ten men drawn from the U. S. Air<br />
Force, B-29 pilots, the U. S. Army, the U. S. Navy<br />
frog men, and the CIA are brought <strong>in</strong>to the plan by various means<br />
by a Colonel Brown—maybe not his real name. Their cover story,<br />
<strong>in</strong> case they are captured, is this: they are a B-29 crew that was shot<br />
down on a bomb<strong>in</strong>g mission.<br />
The book’s author was stationed <strong>in</strong> Germany <strong>in</strong> 1951as a communication<br />
officer with access to crypto materials and systems.<br />
Colonel Brown flew to Germany to <strong>in</strong>terview Boyd, the author. By<br />
what means or vett<strong>in</strong>g Boyd was selected is not clear.<br />
Brown <strong>in</strong>formed him this was a secret mission at the direction<br />
of the President of the United States, and without the counsel of his<br />
staff, the Pentagon, DOD, or anyone else. He was advised it would<br />
be a very dangerous mission. Boyd agreed to participate if selected.<br />
Time moves on and the group of ten, <strong>in</strong>clud<strong>in</strong>g Boyd, plus<br />
Colonel Brown, assembled at Camp Drake <strong>in</strong> Japan. Extensive<br />
brief<strong>in</strong>gs were conducted by Brown. Each of the ten had already<br />
been assigned a fictitious name. Lt. Boyd became Sergeant Michael<br />
Baker.<br />
The plan was to move them near the NK coast by submar<strong>in</strong>e,<br />
and from there, with the help of Navy frogmen, on to the shore.<br />
They were to be met by Nationalist Ch<strong>in</strong>ese dressed <strong>in</strong> Communist<br />
uniforms. These Nationalist Ch<strong>in</strong>ese were to be their protectors and<br />
guides across North Korea from the east coast to the west coast.<br />
En route they were to contact a number of spies who were<br />
May – June 2009<br />
The Graybeards