For the first few months all officers received a liquor ration- two bottles of scotch, two of champagne, one of American whiskey, and a couple of bottles of what we called “French moonshine.” Because I preferred champagne to scotch, I was able to trade one bottle of scotch for two of champagne. In the meantime Odie had started to send small packages to me, which included small bottles in which she had transferred some liquids for whisky and small packages of food. Most of this didn’t reach me until shortly before the end of the year while we were in Palenberg, so I decided to host a party for the officers of Headquarters and Company D on my birthday. For me it was a blast. I kept all the champagne for my personal use, and let the others drink and eat the food. I got drunk! I had planned the party for the house that Col. Eaton had taken for himself, (we couldn’t complain.) Late in the evening, I noticed that Joe Forejt was no longer with us, and I went out to look for him. The clearing station was in a school across the street. The walk from the house to the street was covered with ice, (it was mid-January!), and I never got too far and finally crawled back into the house and into a bed I somehow found. Late the next morning when I awoke I went across the street to our office and found Col. Eaton talking to two strange officers- one of them was a full colonel and the other a major. They were in front of a large map pinned to the wall and discussing the situation, I presume. They stopped talking and turned to face me and I asked “What the hell is going on?” Col. Eaton made some mention of me being ill and sent me back to bed, and I went.
Nothing was ever said to me about the party, except how they all enjoyed the food and drink, with one exception. Major Tauber, the division psychologist (and a real quack in my opinion) a few days later said he hoped that I would go in to see him, that we should talk! Of course I never made an appointment!
Incidentally, to back up a little, to get our liquor ration for the month of December, every unit was to furnish a vehicle to be part of a convoy to go to Paris to pick up the liquor. I persuaded Col. Eaton to let me go to Paris on two conditions- that he let me have his driver, PFC Zito, and that I have an ambulance to make the trip. Zito, the driver, was more than willing to go, and with an ambulance, it was a great trip, as the ambulance had a heater.
Our ambulance was the last vehicle in the line, and since the trucks ahead were not speeding, Zito and I slowed down to see the countryside, then we would race to catch up with the others. We arrived in Paris about dark and our vehicles were ordered to a parking lot near a warehouse where the liquor was stored. Then we were rushed to a kitchen near a hotel and we were told that curfew was at 9 pm. It was already 8 pm and we hadn’t eaten. I think a lot of officers expected to do some hell-raising but never did. The next morning after each unit’s vehicle was loaded, we took off on our return trip. Since we were the last vehicle, Zito and I did some detours to see some of the sights of Paris before catching up with the rest.
Since we left Paris quite late we did not go all the way in one day and stopped in some town, I don’t recall the name, and we were told to visit whatever units there were in town for a meal and a place to sleep. I had seen a sign for an aid station so we went there. The Doctor in charge had us fed and then put a couple of cots for our disposal, so we spent a comfortable night. As we were leaving I was handed a copy of the Army Times, and [then we] proceeded on our way. I was only about 4 pages. When I reached the last page, there was a map and an article which described the push by the Germans at Malmedy. While reading, I glanced out the window as we passed an intersection, and I found myself reading a sign, “Malmedy 5 KM”, about 3 miles. I had Zito race ahead of the convoy and stopped in front of the lead truck. A major in charge was a bit surprised when I showed him the paper, so we changed direction at the next intersection to avoid any possibility of meeting up with any Germans!
A~ Weymouth, England
B~ Cherbourg, France
C~ Maastricht, The Netherlands
D~Malmedy, Belgium
E~ Paris, France
Click on the map for a better view.
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