The War Years --News July 19, 1945

Turk Wagner joins the Neptune Club. The number of “short snorters” and double “shellbacks” among WAC’s serving in the Pacific is growing fast. A short snorter is a person who has flown considerable distance over water, while the term shellback applies to those who have crossed the equator.

A recent candidate for membership is T/4 Clara L Turk Waggoner, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Oliver B Waggoner of Lawrenceville.  T/4 Waggoner has arrived in the Philippines after serving several months with the Women's Army Corps unit in Brisbane Australia. Assigned to duty with Signal Corps, U.S. Army Forces, in the Pacific, she will continue her duties at her present station somewhere on Luzon. Before enlisting in the WAC’s, T/ 4 Waggoner was registrar and clerk at the Lawrenceville Township High School.

Notified to Report

The Lawrence County Local Selective Service Board has notified Harold Wendell Petty, Ernest Roy Hoh, Raymond Leroy Kasinger, Norval Perl Ulrich, and Earl Osborn Scofield to report in the near future for induction into the Armed Forces.

OUR BOYS AND GIRLS IN SERVICE

Pfc Chris Christakis, a very popular young man from Bridgeport, is now in Guam with the Air Transport Command. Parmer Tewell is out of the hospital in Wells Austria and has returned to his company. James S Tewell, son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Tewell, has finished his boot training at Great Lakes.

S/Sgt Ray L Balding has arrived from overseas having served for 21 months in the European theater. Sgt James Lyle, wife and daughter Susie of Fort Sill OK have returned to the post following a visit with Mrs. Lyle’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Tewell. Corp William Taft Casey, son of Mrs. Annie Casey, Lawrenceville Route 3 returned home last week from Germany. He has been overseas for more than a year and has been allowed a 30-day furlough.

S/Sgt Charles V Tredway reported back to Fort Sheridan after spending a 30-day furlough with his parents Mr. and Mrs. Rush Tredway of Lawrenceville Route 1. Sgt Tredway has been serving overseas as a tall gunner on a B-24 with the 15th Air Force located somewhere in Italy.

Burnse Grigsby, GM3/C, USNR, 22, son of Mr. and Mrs. Burnse Grigsby, of Lawrenceville Route 2, has arrived at the world's largest naval receiving station, Shoemaker California, a unit of the US Naval Training and Distribution Center, for reclassification and further assignment. Grigsby has spent 25 months in the Pacific area. He wears the Asiatic- Pacific Area and Philippine Area campaign bars as well as the American Defense Service Ribbon.

Private Calvin Harrod, Jr, son of Mr. and Mr. Calvin Harrod, Sr, of 1105 Collins Street, is a motor attendant in the 874th Engineer Aviation Battalion, stationed in Manila. He has been awarded the Asiatic -Pacific campaign ribbon, 2 battle stars, the Philippine Operation ribbon, glider wings, and the good conduct medal. At one time when circumstances separated him from his outfit, Harrod hitchhiked 3000 miles by land and air to rejoin it in the Philippines.

Pfc Forest W Singer of Lawrenceville has just been awarded the combat infantryman’s badge of exemplary conduct and action against the Japanese in the Philippines Liberation Campaign. Pfc Singer, who previously was awarded the expert infantrymen’s badge for service in Dutch New Guinea is a veteran of three campaigns. He is a member of Company L of the 123rd Infantry Regiment, and entered Army Service on March 5th, 1941, after serving in the Hawaiian Islands and New Guinea he's been in the Philippines since February.

Olin W Rich, 20, coxswain, USNR, of Birds, is entitled to wear a whole constellation of battle stars on his Asiatic -Pacific Service ribbon. In three years aboard the front-line warship, he has helped make 31 attacks against the Japanese, counting surface engagements, carrier raids, pre-invasion bombardment missions, and support of amphibious landings. He was aboard the USS San Francisco in October and November 1942 in the battles of Cape Esperance and Savo Island. For the latter action the Frisco was awarded the Presidential Unit citation, consequently Rich wears the bar with blue star. From Savo Island the ship went to the Aleutians, to bombard the islands have Attu and Kiska, for invasion. Next came Wake Island, the Gilberts, and the Marshalls. Except when his ship pulled into port for short stays between operations, he found little peace in all his three years in the Pacific. Rich is authorized to wear 13 bronze stars on his campaign ribbon.

The following letter was sent by Captain John Earl Leach to his mother and sisters.

 Dear Mother,

 A lot of things have happened since I last wrote you. Just after I got in my 50th mission they put me on an airline run, which I am on now, and it is really fine. We are taking war- weary passengers that are going back to the States. Of course we don't take them all the way, but other crews take them where I leave them. Excuse the writing because the air is a little rough and I am expecting some of the passengers to get sick. We make the run and then get 24 hours rest before starting back. And this run is not over any mountains or any dangerous country; It is really like the airline runs in the States and of course the planes are in tip- top condition all the time; That's what I really like. I would sure be a happy boy if they would leave me on this for the rest of my stay over here, but of course they won't because there's a lot of other pilots who have as much hump time as I, that would like to get on it also, and I expect they will alternate us, but it’s sure swell while it lasts.

I can get ice cream and cold cokes at every stop, and the food is really swell at both ends of the run. I will probably pick up some of my lost weight.

We really had a deal the other night. We had some trouble with one of the engines and stopped to get it fixed at an airport along the way that we don't use. It was a British base and no Americans on it. Well, they asked us if we wanted to stay all night because they couldn't fix it until the next morning, so we stayed, and expected to be put in an old barracks as usual, but they took us to the most elaborate joint I ever saw in my life.  Now I mean just what I say: it was a maharaja's guesthouse that he had turned over to the British for the duration and believe me it beat anything I'd ever seen anyplace. It was all white marble, had rugs on the floor about two inches thick and the whole place was spotless from top to bottom. I expect it had 100 rooms in it. On the walls were lots of large paintings of the rulers before him, and large drapes all around, and all the furniture was modernistic, just like the states. Well, they took us to the dining room, and I never saw anything so big in my life. It was larger than the large hotels. We sat down and you should have seen the China and silverware. It all had his coat of arms on it and the silverware was real heavy silver with gold inlay and enough food at one place to feed about four persons. We really had a meal, 5 courses. I sure felt out of place but soon forgot that when I saw the food.

Then they showed us our rooms that had twin beds in them with real springs and had rooms with air conditioning, some inner spring mattresses that I have not had since I left the States, way out in the middle of India. The bathroom was the biggest thing you ever saw with white marble floor and walls and a black marble tub large enough to swim in, and it had a real state- side toilet that would flush. Well after seeing all that I was in hopes they wouldn't have our plane fixed for about a week or so.  The next morning, we had oatmeal and fresh milk, fried eggs, coffee and toast; then we went out to see the grounds.  They had a polo field and a lot of tennis courts and a golf course and a large swimming pool.

Now tell me how they could get all these things in India, but the old saying money talks is sure right.  Of course, this old boy must have been ‘in the chips’.

Anyway, when we got back to the port the plane was ready, much to my sorrow, and we had to leave, but I am telling you right now everything better be working tip- top when I pass here again on my way back today or down I go. I must close now and do a little flying myself because it would sure be bad to get lost with all these passengers aboard. So, bye bye for now. Will try to write sooner next time. I feel swell and hope you all do also. All my love, Earl