United States Navy Chaplain Corps - Yearbook

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During its stay with the Division, Chaplain John P. Byrnes reports that he administered the Sacra- ments for the Army detachment at Panmunjom once a week, and Chaplain Karl H. Ernst reports that he never worked so hard in his life in the holding of services. Chaplain Ernst also reports on the value of tours to Seoul that gave his men an opportunity to see another side of the Korean people and their culture. It was about this time that some consideration was given to an extension of the period of a tour of duty for the chaplains to 12 months instead of 10. On 26 February Chaplain Meachum wrote to the Chief of Chaplains stating, I am glad that you decided to keep it at 10 months. This is tough going in the dust, cold, heat, mud, 'incoming,' and what with one and two services a day and all a man can stand up to on Sunday? A A glance at the roster of February indicates the following new chaplains, B. Conlon, Catholic, A. Barry, Catholic, R. E. Brengartner, Catholic, E. V. Lyons, Presbyterian QUSAQ, L. F. Rice, Catholic, T. V. Edwards, Catholic, and W. H. Nordby, Lutheran. In March the Division Chaplain indicates that there is a concentrated effort in the promulgation of Char- acter Education Programs underway. In a personal letter fentered in his filej dated 20 March we also read for the first time of retreats being set up for chap- lains. He writes, All of our chaplains are invited to meet Chaplain Bennett at I Corps Chapel on 8 April. In lieu of this trip to I Corps we will not have our regular monthly Protestant retreat in April. We have had fine fellowship at these meetings since I came. Our fellows did not pay much attention to the re- treat before the January meeting. They do not feel that they should leave their outfits. However, I am going to insist that they go. We get a chance to meet the chaplains in the Commonwealth and 2d Divisions. They secure an outstanding missionary or native to speak in the morning and the divisions rotate with the devotional period after lunch. He further mentioned action on the front 18 March, he says, We had 89 casualties the night of the 18th, 9 KIA's with superficial wounds accounting for the most of the others. Our boys QCHCJ are doing a wonderful job. The battles which took place this same month caused a number of chaplains to record their experi- ences. One such account was entitled On a Hill Far Away and was written by Chaplain Allen Newman. Because it vividly describes a chaplain in action it is recorded in full as follows, I couldn't get any closer to the ground which I hugged with all my body. The enemy mortars and artillery shells were landing and whistling around us. How did I, the chaplain, ever get way out here was the question I kept asking myself? It all happened so fast! It wasn't planned that way! The plans were for a show the next Sunday, a choir that was to sing for Easter, a series of Lenten services. A nice and quiet weekend. The men had been rehearsing for the Palm Sunday variety show during the past 4 nights. The choir just 2 nights ago had practiced for Sunday serv- ices. Then last night in the middle of rehearsals the 30 minute alert was given to all troops of the 2d Battalion, 7th Marines. There was trouble on the lines, several out- posts were under attack. With rapid and precisionlike move- ment the 2d Battalion began to ready for battle. The trucks started arriving during the night, their engines roaring out the noise of their coming. In the darkness of the early morning the men climbed into the trucks bound for a destination unknown. There were no bands to cheer them, only the voices of the platoon sergeants and officers piercing the night with curt cries, all right keep movingf' There was excitement in the air and anticipation made many a heart beat faster. One company, then another, pulled out toward the front line in the direction of the 5th Marines sector and away from the security and peace of our reserve camp. We had been in reserve for just 2 weeks and expected to stay there for at least 2 more weeks but the enemy wasn't cooperating with our plans and hopes. All that night the sound of artillery and the light of flares re- minded us that there was crisis ahead-a dangerous oppor- tunity for the battalion. With the coming of daylight the flares and artillery shells stopped their ceaseless flow. Quiet became the early morn- ing hour's song. I tried to take stock of all my men, to locate all the widely scattered companies. All the companies were still waiting the word as to what they were going to do. The outposts Reno and Carson had fallen to the enemy during the night. Rumors were making a rapid tour of the companies- Easy Company is going to take Reno back - Dog Company was to helpf' No one knew just what was going to happen. Easy Company was in a position to move out at any moment. I walked among these men that I knew and loved, talking, joking, just being with them as they worried and wondered what was in the future for them. I wondered too. The morning passed quickly with Easy Company. Early in the afternoon word came that Fox Company had been committed to recapture outpost Vegas from the enemy. They had already started up the hill and were in close range fighting with the enemy. The battle was on! There were four chaplains besides myself in the immediate vicinity. They were seeing the wounded and dead as they came through the medical aid stations. My men were fighting for their lives. I had to go with them. And there I was in the advanced Fox Com- pany C.P. which was set up in a gully at the closest tip of Vegas. It was 1630 on Friday, 27 March when I got out there. I had gone out with a platoon of Weapons Company men who had been organized into stretcher teams and supply carriers. We were waiting for darkness to come so that we could remove the many wounded men who were still up on the hillsides. It was too hazardous to attempt relief during the daylight hours. Bad news travels fast and -166-

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Now the boys and girls were happy and few were afraid. Singing as they left, the children made their mark upon the Christmas of a battalion of Marines, made it one they would never forget! Santa Claus had been there that day! Another Christmas project was that undertaken by the chaplains of the llth Marine Artillery Regiment, Chaplains William P. Lane, Catholic, and Noah L. McDowell, Southern Baptist. Through the courtesy of Minnesota Mining 81 Manufacturing Co., and the Revere Camera Co., 5,000 recording tapes were flown to Korea. Brief messages were recorded by thousands of Marines and mailed to their loved ones back home. In addition the homefolks could record and return reply messages to the Marines. Just prior to Christmas Chaplain Charles T. Dug- gan completed his tour of duty with the lst Division. He was subsequently awarded a Commendation Medal with Combat HV . The citation read in part, During an intense barrage of enemy mortar fire, he un- hesitatingly went to the forward area to give spiritual guid- ance and aid the wounded. On one occasion, he voluntarily went to a forward aid station to be with the wounded during a period of intense enemy action. The new roster of the lst Division for January in- cluded a number of new chaplains. These were Chaplains G. E. Kuhn, Lutheran, W. Rowland, Epis- copal, K. D. Killin, Presbyterian, USA, C. Moore, Methodist, R. W. Shreffler, Presbyterian, USA, K. H. Ernst, Presbyterian, USA, A. S. M. Kirkland, Naza- rene, P. Byrnes, Catholic, R. L. Crabtree, Method- ist, R. G. Hutcheson, Jr., Presbyterian, US, L. W. Meachum, Southern Baptist, E. Kelly, Catholic, W. H. Vinson, Southern Baptist, and T. Moore, Catholic. In a letter of the 29th Chaplain Meachum indi- cated that another visitor was expected on the 31st, Bishop Austin Pardue, Episcopal, from Pittsburgh. Also things were about to happen in Washington. After a long and fruitful period as Chief of Chaplains, Chaplain Stanley Salisbury was turning over the helm to Chaplain E. B. Harp, Jr. This transfer occurred on the lst of February. Chaplain Salisbury had had more than 30 years of naval service. He entered the naval chaplaincy in 1921, but he had served in World War I as an Army chaplain. He served as Chief of Chaplains from 1 September 1949-1 February 1953. His new position was in the service of his denomina- tion in a new post as chairman of a special committee of chaplains and service personnel fPresbyterian Church, USAJ . The ninth Chief of Chaplains, Rear Adm. Edward B. Harp, Jr., was a clergyman of the Evangelical and Reformed Church, and came to his new position with a wealth of naval experience, having served in a num- ber of billets during the course of 23 years. His most recent assignment had been Assistant for Planning in the Chaplains Division. To return to the lst Division, in February Chaplain Calvin H. Elliott was detached from the Division but not without recognition by the Commanding General. His citation reads in part, During periods when the unit was engaged in extensive combat against the enemy, he provided moral and spiritual guidance to all men of the regiment. Expressing complete disregard for his personal safety and comfort, he aided in the evacuation of the wounded. The following month saw the detachment of an- other chaplain, Albert D. Prickett, who was awarded the Bronze Star medal. Of the deeds of this chaplain the following are among those listed, Through his profound sincerity and unerring skill in the administration of the spiritual needs of the command, he was a constant source of inspiration and comfort. Despite the extreme danger of enemy mortar and artillery fire, he expressed complete disregard for his personal safety and made repeated trips to the front lines in order to aid the men. During one engagement, he unhesitatingly directed armored personnel carriers loaded with wounded Marines through impact areas to a place of safety. As a result of his personal courage and selfless devotion, he was instru- mental in saving the lives of several wounded Marines. For something on the lighter side as reported by Chaplain Homer L. Schnick, Southern Baptist, of the lst Service Battalion, who at least on one occasion went on a tour of the various shower units attached to the infantry battalions, he states, It was amusing to think about how men were required to wear helmets and Hack jackets to the showers and then take their showers, .vans everything. In connection with the shower units, it is well to point out that the shower units in operation near the front line positions where the men could clean up occasionally and exchange their dirty clothes for clean ones feven if they didn't always get the proper sizesll were among the best morale boosters the men had. Men came from the muddy trenches and bunkers covered with mud and dirt, and left clean and considerably braced up. Sometimes rear area units may not be credited properly for the part they had in supplying gear and services, but having served with such a group, I believe that they deserve a pat on the back for a job well done. From showers to bread to ice cream fone assistant I had stated that the first meal that he had in Korea after he got to the front lines in the month of February 1953, he had ice cream, among other things, for breakfastlj to shoe, tent, and Hack jacket repair the services of the lst Service Battalion ran. Morale was not as good in the rear areas probably because the sense of mis- sion and glory was not as keen, but they served as did the front line riflemen. -165-

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Jfk... ,AHA 'MA Christmas Day on the Front. Chaplain Allen Newman offers a prayer for all fighting marines at Christmas Day services at the front. I was told that one of the men who was a soloist in the variety show and was to sing for Easter services had been killed early in the fighting. His name was Matthews, Sgt. Daniel P. Matthews. That was the Hrst of much sad news that came to me. The battle was more personal than before. Since there was nothing I could do but wait for darkness, I began to make the rounds of the men who were crouch- ing in the gully. There were menlfrom the 5th Marines waiting to help remove the wounded to the main line of resistance. I talked to as many of the men as possible in between the enemy mortar barrages. During one heavy at- tack a cry went out behind me, Help me I'm hitfl And the word Hcorpsmanl' echoed from man to man in the gully. The man just a few feet in front of me was moaning. i A piece of an enemy shell had hit him in the head. Rapidly the corpsman, James McCrabe HM3, and I dressed his wound. Quickly we placed him on a stretcher and started 'across the rice paddies that separated Vegas from the friendly lines. I had known this particular man for several months as he had often attended church services. He was 1- afraid that something like this would happen to him-and it did. As fast as was possible we rushed him to the doctor, but in spite of using eight men and the speediest route, he soon gave up the fight for his life. More and more of my men were coming back that way. With darkness came thc wounded, carried by their buddies who stumbled in the darkness. Eager hands reached down to pick up stretchers for the long and wearisome trip back to the lines. Names were called out, Smith! Wooten! Ward! as attempt was made to find out who was on the stretcher. Strong and then sometimes feeble voices answered back, I'm all right, one of my buddies is still out thereg take care of him flrstfl I could hardly recognize any of the forms or faces as men I had known before and yet they were the same men who had climbed into the trucks just a few hours ago. They were surprised to hear my voice. The word was soon passed that the chaplain was out here. A few asked me in weak voices to write their mothers. Others were too far gone to say anything. One boy who had his chin hanging far below its normal place needed