WHISTLE THE DEVIL
by
David I. Garrett, Jr.
To my children
Nancy and David III
and
To the good and brave men
with whom I have served.
At the urging of friends and family, I am setting out herein an outline
of my military service during World War II and notes on some of my more
memorable combat experiences.
Then, as now, the Good Lord protected and guided me and those with
whom I served. Although my unit suffered as high as fifty percent casualties
in one operation, not one of my men was killed in combat.
"Beyond the path of the outmost sun through utter
darkness hurled -
Farther than ever comet flared or vagrant star-dust
swirled -
Live such as fought and sailed and ruled and loved
and made our world.
**********
They take their mirth in the joy of the Earth - they
dare not grieve for her pain.
They know of toil and the end of toil; they know God's
Law is plain;
So they whistle the Devil to make them sport who know
that Sin is vain.
**********
'Barrack - Room Ballads', by Rudyard Kipling
Preamble
With the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and the
entry of the United States into World War II, our role in the scheme
of world affairs, both in war and in peace, was forever changed. The
lifestyles of my generation became just a memory - "the way we
were".
At the time, I was a sophomore at LSU, a member of the ROTC and preparing
to go into the Advanced program, leading to an Army commission. As part
of this program, in April 1942, we were enlisted in the Army Enlisted
Reserve, as Privates. Immediately after Pearl Harbor, I and several
of my classmates had attempted to enlist in one or more of the active
services, but were turned down for lack of parental consent, our being
only eighteen years old. Enlistment in the Reserves got us "signed
up".
We began the Advanced program in June 1942, and were to go straight
through to completion, without breaks or vacations. By September, I
knew that this was going to be a long haul and that I would not see
active duty for a long time. I left school and volunteered for active
duty as a Private, with the hope of getting a chance to go to Officer
Candidate School and get my commission ahead of my class. Also, though
it may sound idealistic, I felt that I could be a better officer if
I had personal knowledge of the life and problems of an enlisted man.
I feel that this proved true, but admit that, at the time, I probably
did not fully appreciate the odds of accomplishing my plan.
Some of my friends and my family have suggested and requested that
I record some of my World War II experiences. Set forth herein is a
chronological record, general and specific, of some of these experiences
which are thought will be of interest to the reader. Some combat experiences
are detailed. Others are reviewed in general.
Preamble | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part
3 | Part 4 | Part
5 | Part 6 | Part
7 | Part 8 | Part
9 | Part 10 | Part
11
