MEMOIRS OF ARNOLD ERBSTOESSER

G Company, 8th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division

PATCH 4TH INFANTRY DIVISION

It was in this village that we called "Chow Town" that someone stole my radio, and I was forced to liberate one from another unit. One unnamed G.I. had the good (?) fortune of finding a U.S. 100 dollar bill that some German had used for toilet paper. He said he would pick up these soiled pieces of paper all day long.

From here it was on over the next hill, through the vast trees just like it always was. "Hey Cal," the boys would yell at me, "What's our next objective?" "What's the latest poop?" Dionne had a bit too much booze and wanted to rest at every tree. He really had to be coaxed to go on or else.

In going down the hills to the next town, we relieved another division that nearly ran over us with their vehicles getting out of the town and area. After the transfer of power, we placed part of our unit in town, and part out on the hills about a mile from town. One night, the Germans attacked, and took quite a number of our men captive.

After all this time, it is quite impossible to keep the events in their proper order. There are so many I remember, and not in the proper order.

ARNOLD ERBSTOESSER AT MARKTBREIT
Arnold Erbstoesser next to his SCR-300 Radio in the Streets of Marktbreit, Germany

It was forever the snow, the cold, the wet foxholes, running the gauntlet through small evergreens across a clearing 30 or 40 yards to the protection of more woods. It was the fear, not so much of getting hit, but of lying in the snow till the medics found you, if they did. One buddy, shot in those very trees, begged me to stay with him. Of course, having the radio, I had to move on with the CO. I told him I'd radio in for the battalion medics right away. I did --several times, and they always reported back, "We can't find him." In correspondence with him later, I found he had lain there all night with a shot in the leg. He finally was found, but lost all his toes, and several fingers due to frostbite.

We were so fortunate to liberate several dugouts with log roofs and straw filled bunks -- a fair night's rest. And from then on, the torment of also liberated lice. Once we got out in the cold, they left us.

From a German pillbox, we were to take a patrol through the village of Willwerath and capture a German for intelligence. Accompanying us was noted author Ernest Hemingway, who was a friend of the 4th Division while serving as a war correspondent. We made the trip, but came back empty handed.

The morning of March 1 we jumped off for the village. It was dark--dark. We had pushed off, made the village main street and walked the entire Company through it. We went up Hill 627 just above Hermespand through some very thick evergreens, got to the top and set up a circular defense. We left the woods at 3 a.m., dug our holes and, about 8 a.m. we had taken 11 prisoners. Not a shot had been fired. We had just walked through the German Army, and now they had us surrounded.

It was late in the day when we discovered this, and immediately the CO set out to check all the troops, set up strategic defense positions, and get the general lay of the area. We were constantly attacked from all sides -- ranges from 3 to 20 yards. Bob LaRevierre, my one-time foxhole buddy, was going from foxhole to foxhole to get a patrol and do some scouting. He was shot through the head as he stooped over one G.I. foxhole. Range of the enemy was about 20 feet. They were close enough to lob potato mashers in the holes, and close enough that the G.I.'s could grab them and toss them back. "Ace" had the good fortune of grabbing his and throwing it back.

MAP HERMESPAND - WILLWERATH

We had many casualties near these villages of Willwerath and Hermespand, and our ammo was running short, as were food and medical supplies. A patrol left to find a way back to Battalion for supplies of all kinds. When they returned, they had a tough time but did get through. They also brought a new battery for my radio.

As I was finishing digging my foxhole, the Executive Officer, Lieutenant Ingersoll, and I were concerned about the return of Captain Devine. He didn't come for a long time, so I finally told Ingersoll to get out the map, and get oriented on what to do next. I would call this report in next time I called Battalion, which was now limited to once every hour on the hour to conserve the batteries. The next G.I. I saw was Devine, sneaking through the trees after getting all the defenses set up.

It was only a matter of time before we broke some patrols through to Battalion and got relief. We lost many men and officers in this area. So sorry. I think it was near here that we almost lost Devine to a sniper.

Orders came to push off, and take the rest of the hill. We had more casualties, but gained our objective. It was after we cleared the hills and trees of the enemy, that several of us were watching the plains through the bushes. All the tanks that circled the hills on the roads were now having a go at it on territory more suited for them. Captain George Devine and I were about 6 feet apart watching from a crouched position and, as Captain Devine straightened up and turned, a sniper caught him where his head used to be, and the bullet raised a cloud of dust as it went "through his 45 holster and gun, making the gun inoperable. It was close, but that doesn't count in this game. I think it was a day or two later that Lieutenant Parsons was killed by a youngster left behind by retreating Germans — just to delay us. After his fatal shots, he gave up.

HORIZONTAL FLOURISH LINE

Submitted by his son David
Many thanks David.


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