That was the last daylight we saw until we unloaded at Southampton. When we left the station at Glasgow they blacked out windows and we went through London not even knowing when and where it was. But opening to the light at Southampton was a shock. We saw what war was all about. The waterfront was a shambles. Of course the Germans wanted to deny the use of the port to the Allies so they bombed the heck out of the harbor. By the time we arrived rockets no longer landed in England but the destruction was all about. This was however a pale shadow to what was to come to Germany. See the picture of Darmstadt in 1945 below.
We still had to get across the channel. We marched to a Polish ship docked at one of the docks. Some of the docks were restored but buildings would have to wait. We were in it a while before it finished loading. I cant remember how long. But long enough to learn the food wasn't any better than the QE. The ship was also as crowded. Eventually we sailed for Le Harve. I pretty much expected a decent welcome from the French in Le Harve. But the Americans and British had bombed the city killing 5,000 French and making 80,000 homeless. There were many raids on Le Harve but the bombs had a propensity to miss the harbor and hit the town nearby. The Germans had major submarine pens at Le Harve. But we marched through the town that was still standing. We thought we would be welcomed. But the women looking out the windows appeared sullen and didn't smile and wave. They had seen thousands and thousands pass by here. We were nothing new. The welcome mat was not out. Like it was not out either when I came home with a troop ship load to Ft Meade Md in 1946. It was old hat to the residents. They had had their parades and they were no doubt tired of war. They probably just wished the war to end. Some of the soldiers threw candy and gum up to the girls on the second floor. This didn't seem to cause a response one way or another. They just took it. Maybe they were no longer impressed with marching soldiers. It was later that we learned why they didn't seem to greet us with smiles and kisses. When those who killed were from "their" side. They probably could not forget the 5,000 dead and 80,000 homeless. Now THAT is homeless.
There were several huge replacement depots at Le Harve named after cigarettes. Soldiers arriving in France by the countless thousands came this same path I came. I can't remember the name of the camp I went to. The military genesis figured the name would confuse the German intelligence.
I stayed for just a short time. Next I was to take the train north where there was still some war going on. The depot was on the hill overlooking Le Harve. You walked down to the rail yards. As thousands of soldiers passed by here they had built a wall to shield the soldiers sensibilities from view of the other soldiers who were going in the open air latrine. However just next to the other side where the latrines were the townspeople with a view. It didn't seem to shock them.
The train. Inside the compartment a bench faced another bench seating two or three people. Above was a luggage rack on both sides of the compartment.You have seen many of these in movies. We would have to sit up the entire time. Naturally soldiers tried to find some way to sleep. The French had defeated this idea by putting in rack supports about every couple feet or so. So the only thing was tough it out and stay awake. The favorite thing was to go out of the little room with the benches into the hall and watch the scenery go by. This was strange to me that in England we had to travel in blackout conditions but here we could watch the scenery. In talking with other soldiers on the train we learned that not all were fresh from the states. There were many deserters and AWOL's being returned to units. Not talked about very much is the desertions the US Army suffered. I don't like to keep bringing up the German Army but their desertions were almost non-existent. Which was because: if you deserted you got shot, Period. I am not sure this is a good idea for the US army. I never went AWOL but came close a couple times inadvertently.
The train continued north with an occasional stop for stretching our legs and unwinding. I don't remember Paris on this trip but I suppose we went through it. It didn't make any difference because we could not get off the train anyway. Nothing remains with me about this ride until we got into Luxembourg, or perhaps Belgium I don't remember. American airplanes had been trying it's level best to destroy the railroads and were quite successful. The military had repaired the railroads that supplies had to traverse. The maximum speed would be about 25 miles per hour. Which reminds me somewhere we had to change into box cars from the passenger cars. Probably because the French owned the passenger cars and the Belgiums owned the cars and roads we were on. Being on these cars reminded me of stories from WW1 where they talk about box cars holding 40 men or 8 horses. The reason for the emphasis put on 40 and 8 by WW 1 vets who had to ride in them. Well I rode in them too. . Anyway we were in this box car when all of a sudden the awfullest banging and rocking was going on. What had happened the car had jumped the tracks and we were bouncing on the ties. A good reason we were not going real fast. Of course the military kept the speed down because of just this danger. The railroads of western Europe were in a shambles as the inmates of the concentration camps found when it came time to eat. Without railroads the military comes first. No matter which country it is. Concentration camp inmates can go hungry,
We continued on and it began to get dark as we went into Belgium. Eventually about 11 that night we stopped at a town called Verviers. We unloaded in blackout conditions. As a reader of lots of WW1 books it reminded me of the times I had read of troops marching through blacked out towns. Now here I was doing what I had only read about many times. This was for real. I was living it. We continued through town and out a couple miles to a factory now used as a replacement depot by the US 3rd army. We went in total darkness. Other troops were already there.. Some went out the back to find a latrine. No one told them that there was a big hole there and one man fell into it. Next day I looked into it and saw a lot of debris. It must not have been pleasant to land in that stuff.
We stayed there some being assigned to units. A short time later one morning about hundred showed up for sick call. There was some contaminated food and we got what ever it took to fix it up.
I occupied myself the next few days taking an occasional walk around the country side near the factory. A replacement depot is different from a regular outfit because you don't have time to build friendships. So your amusement is up to you. My method was by taking walks. This is where it might make an impression that you are just a number. You are not even a cog in a big machine. You are nothing. Verviers is in the area where heavy battles went on during the Battle of the Bulge. Malmedy, Bastogne were not far away. Destruction by war unimaginable to the newcomer.
Within a few days we moved again. This time down to Villerupt France.
I had no camera or knew anyone who did. There would not have been any way to develop pictures anyway.
See chapter 11 next..
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