Camp Adair Sentry
Sgt.McNcimara Is Army
z0M Timer
Page Three
Thursday, March 11,1943,
13
'6th Div. Veteran Was First
With "Hoss7 Cavalry in East
By <pl. Paul R. Kalman. Jr. j hiel Drive and Salient when the
Last year on T November
’
‘
-
____ Germans
-______ tried to
_ blast
___ |
26th desperate
I nst Sergeant John J. McNamara 1 their tormentors away with a final
of the 96th Divis ion Troop was 53 , barrage before beginning their re-
years old; he doesn't look a day l treat.
over 35 and swears that he feels I Sergeant McNamara and other
even younger.
I mounted soldiers stayed with their
The hoss cavalry was his choice . horses throughout the attack and
when he signed up at New Ro­ , quieted the panicky animals while
chelle, N.Y,, in 1913. Possibly it | shells plowed up the dirt all around
Was the exceptionally active life of , them.
riding day in and day out for over t Following a 6 month stay in Lux-
20 years that put his body in the I emburg after the Armistic Ser-
splendid physical condition that i geant McNamara came back home
embraces him to this day.
and re-enlisted in the 16th Cavalry
By the end of his first week in at Brownsville, Texas. He lost his
the army the young rookie learned (sergeancy, of course, but had his
that horses were much different j stripes right back on his sleeves
critters than the lathes and presses six months later.
that he had familiarized himself I In 1922 the 16th was disbanded
with during four years apprentice­ I and he went to the 4th Cavalry,
ship in a machine shop.
staying with that outfit until he
His stiff new cavalry boots be­ came to Camp Adair last summer.
gan to buff at the sides from the
He has some definite ideas about
rub of stirrup straps and his face , the army—ideas that only 29 years
took on a ruddy glow, the effect i of military life can develop. One of
of a torrid Texas sun. His day be­ ; these is that the hoss cavalry will
gan at 5 a.m. and ended shortly eventually show its importance in
before noon. Quite soft, the ser- thia war.
geant commented, having the whole j “There are many places in the
afternoon to one’s self but we were desert and in other areas where
inclined to be a bit skeptical about mechanized and armored columns
this after hearing the work that can't operate,” he opines. “Horse
he accomplished during the morn­ borne light artillery and other
ing hours.
mounted cavalry units can get
After breakfast and physical around on terrain that would be
drill he mounted his charge and almost
u„„„ov impossible to cope with
....... by
-j
practiced cavalry maneuvers forj ____
other _______
methods. . That’s whgQ
when the
three hours when he returned to »horse will come back into his
the stables, unsaddled the horse, ’rightful glory.”
and cooled off the animal with an ( The sergeant also believes that
hoirr s slow walk. Then he d curry fhe Model 1943 Doughboy is twice
and feed the horse and himself.
as tough as the 1918 version be-
A skirmish with a group of cause soldiering that he gets in
Mexican baditos near Mission, Tex- | training is twice as hard and that
as, on the Rio Grande gave him his food, equipment and officers’
his first taste of fire.
are twice as good.
Realizing that they had been i The conversation ended there as
caught in an ambush. Mac and his the sergeant excused himself to
column dismounted and shot it out turn out his troop for retreat.
with the guerrillas. When the
smoke cleared away a half hour
later, 80 Mexican bodies dotted the Sofl of Camp Worker
Texas landscape while only one Wins Hero Citation
American soldier required medi­
cal care.
The proudest mother in this j
In November of 1917, Sergeant
McNamara was divorced from the , Camp is Mrs. Erma Byington—'
cavalry temporarily and went over- [ and the Camp is just as proud of
seas with a horse drawn ammuni-' her.
tion train serving the 19th, 20th I Mrs. Byington has two sons in
and 21st Artillery Battalions which ' the service, one overseas, the other
were attached to the 5th Division. I in San Diego, California.
Three weeks after he landed in j
The other day Mrs. Byington ar­
France he became self appointed
rived for work at the Station Hos­
veterinarian to a score or more
pital at the usual time—6 a.m.
French horses.
Before starting her round of
He described the decrepit ani­
chores, she took time to read a let­
mals as being “half gassed ar.d so
ter, informing her that her son
worn out from trips to the front
Cpl. Byington made numerous trips
that they were hardly fit for any­
as flight navigator, under extreme- ,
thing but the glue factory.
Many times we had to cut the ly hazardous conditions in an air-1
craft having no defensive arma-,
sicker ones out of harness and the
rider would mount the caisson and ( merit to supply combatant forces |
ride there for the remainder of the and evacuate the wounded from the I
combat area in the South Pacific.
trip.”
After reading the letter, Mrs.
The 5th entered its first major
Byington
went on with her work
encounter with an offensive in the
I in the ward.
spring of 1918. Rain came down
in torrents and turned the French j Yes, Camp Adair is as proud of j
Mrs. Byington as Mrs. Byington is
highways into a sea of sticky,
of her sons.
clinging mud that bogged down
the American advance to the
Ah. Death. Old Stinger
point where horses, guns and cais­
York. Pa. (CN8)—After 35 years
sons moved along at a snail's pace.
At night when artillery fire was of careful planning, the funeral of
at it« lowest ebb. the ammunition Howard S. Thoma* has been held
train was busiest. Horses were al­ just as he wanted it following
lowed to rest during the daylight his recent death. He made his
hours but as soon as darkness own coffin of $4 worth of cherry
came they were harnessed to the wood and exhibited it in his bar­
caissons and began the ail night ber shop. He carved his own tomb­
trek to the front lines bringing up stone complete with all inscrip­
supplies of fresh ammunition to tions — except the date of hi«
aeatn. He chose pallbearers and
the big gun».
The 5th received its most ter­ outlived four of his six original
,
rific bombardment in the St, Mi- .elections.
Bingo!
¡Army’s 'Who’s Who'
To Appear in Yank
day
Beware of Ides of March;
Income Tax Deadline
On Monday, income tax
rears its ugly head. Better file that
1 return, soldier.
i Any single person thnt earned
more than 5566 last year must file
an income tax return by March 15;
any married person must, if he
earned more than $1,200. likewise
I must file.
All servicemen below the grade
of a commissioned officer receive
I a specific deduction of $250 -for
single meji and $300 for married
men and heads of families. If
you’re a married man and seperat-
ed from your wife or family be­
cause of military service, you’re
still the boss!
Income tax blanks may be pro­
cured from the Judge Advocate’s
office at Post Headquarters.
Publication Lists
Names of War Heroes
An exclusive “Who’s Who” of
Army war heroes, with the names
of more than a thousand enlisted
men decorated for bravery in ac­
tion since Pearl Harbor, will begin
to appear in the March 26th issue
of YANK, The Army Weekly,
which goes on sale for servicemen
all over the country March 19th.
Such a list of war heroes has
never been published before. YANK
will print in its first “Who’s Who”
installment, the names and home
towns of men who have won the
Distinguished Service Cross, the
Distinguished Flying Cross, and
the Air Medal, with citations de-
scribing what each man did under
“Timberwolves on the Air” pre- fire to win his decorations.
cents the thirteenth in its present
The names of more than 700 en-
series of radio shows. 7:30 to 8:00 listed men who have won the Silver
p.m., over Station KOAC, Corvallis Star will appear in later issues,
tonight.
In the future, Y'ANK will print a
The all-star cast includes the list of new decorations at regular
Divarty band, under the baton of intervals as they are awarded by
Warrant-officer Rubel; Pvt. Ray the War Department, so that sol-
Eisenman, vocalist extraordinary; dier readers in Alaska, for example,
Cpl. Don Chapman in one of his will be able to find friends in
inimitable comedy sketches; and a , North Africa on the Army hero’s
team new to the show -Bob and rolls.
Mary Gregory, singing song-styl­
ists.
Australia, through reciprocal
For a half-hour of music and aid, has furnished American forces
Sooner or later charming Betty laughs tune in to “Timberwolves with more than 26 million pounds
Grable will be seen in one of the on the Air” tonight at 7:30 p.m., j of fresh meats, 20 million pounds
potatoes, 25 million . pounds of
Post movie theatres, so here is a I.t.’ Francis Bowen emcees; the of .,
is
produced by the Divi- fruit, and almost 5*i million quarts
bit of advance billing. Nice of us. i. 1 program
,
......
don't you think?
i sion Special Service Office
Office.
of milk.
JF
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