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4th .. 25th Divisions Switch Bfigides ~rrrm I!JJ!JI!. ~ FAMOUS FOURTH

Vol. l, No. 40 CAMP ENARI, VIETNAM August 13, 1967

Shaken But Untouched

lvyman Tells Harrowing Story LE THANH-A shaken, but

otherwise untouched Ivyman · told the harrowing story or his platoon during a recent battle with North Vietnamese Army forces in the Central Highlands.

Private First Class John Waldron (Bellville, N.J .) was lert (l

Army Commendation Medal SP4 James E. Spice SP5 Waiter J . Martin SP4 Derry D .. Johnson SP4 James C.McDonaid SP4 James G. Stankiewicz SGT William E. Crider SP4 Harold D. Higgins SGT John D. Henry SP4 Merlin R. Stoddard SP4 George A. Novotny SP5 James E. Suber SP5 Percy L. Custer SP4 David P. Statler SP5 Calvin H.Miller SGT Leonard R. Kennedy SSG Levi Moore SP4 Norton •r . Johnson CPT Harold L. Hunter SPS Gary L. Lloyd SGT Michael E. Gibson SP5 Louis N. Farrell SP5 Karl D. Anderson SP5 Wayne A. Ducrfeldt SGT Elmer Snell CPT Samuel J. Kowal SP4 Eugene C. Kukuk 1LT James A. Helbert SP4 Jerry H. Waggerman SP5 Alex Lisachenko PFC Donell Cambell PFC Richard P . Olson SP5 Elwood Holliday Jr. SP4 Stanley 0. ·Holliday SP4 Eric R. Carlson SP4 Jerry W. Hacker SP4 Salvador Sanchez SP4 James R. Spade SSG William W. Lines SP4 William H. Hawkins SP4 J nm es M. Biebuyck SGT Jerry A, Carey SP4 Alan A. Duyff lLT Lawrence K. Con"nor CPT Franklin G. Peterson SP5 David L. Walker SSG Merle M. Coulson PFC Robert C. Taylor SGT Charles L. Beaver SP4 Manuel Eskamlre PFC Lorenzo G. Lopez SP4 Michael H. Vaughn SP5 Harrison W. Kohler SP4 Frederick W. Vickers SFC Israel M. Mendoza CPL George C. Saunders SP5 Arthur R . Weltle SP5 .John P. Prosek SP4 Willard A, Kna1ip SSG Harold L. Pierce SGT Gary F. Phillips . SPS William Schwarzwalder W01 Charles L. Sanders SP4 Robert C, Foster CPT Frank S. Kowen III SP5 Howard A. Anderson CWO Gerald E. Nash SP4 Samuel K. Hines SP4 Albert F. Prvos SP4 l\yszard Sieradzki SGT Billy Romero PFC Donald Gallagher SSG James A. Strayhorn SP4 J arnes F. Donavon PFC Joseph F. Maimone 2i:r Roger E. Emory SP4 Char les W. Belew SGT -.Jerry C. Romero SP5 Richard F . Neilsen

Co A, 4th Med Bn Co A, 7041h Malnt Bn HHC, 4th Inr Div Co C, -1st Bn, 22nd Inf HHC, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf Co ·c, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf Co C, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf HIIC, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf HIIC, 4th Engr Bn HHC, 4th Engr Bn Co B, 4th Engr Bn Co B, 4th Engr lln HHC, 4th Inf Div llHC, 1st Bn, G9th Armo1· Trp B, l st Sqcln, 10th Cav Co D, 725th ?rlaint Bn Hq&Svc Btry, 2nd Bn, 9th Arly HIIC, 8nd Bde, 4th Inf Div HHC, 4th Inf Div HHC, 2nd Bn, 8th Inf Co C, 124th Sig Bn Hq&Svc Btry, 5th Bn, 16th Arty Co C, 1241h Sig Bn Co C, 1241h Sig Bn 170th Aslt He! Co, 52nd Cb! Avn Bn 4th Admin Co, 4th Inf Div HHC, 4lh Inf Div HHC, 4th Inf Div HHC, 2nd Bde, 4th Inf Div Btry B, 4th Bn, 42nd Arty Hq&Svc Btry, 4th Bn, 42nd Arty HHC, 4th Inf Div Co A, 2nd Bn, 8th Inf Co C, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf Co C, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf Co C, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf Co C, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf HHC, 1st Bn, 69th Armor Co B, 1st Bn, 4th Inf Co C, 1st Bn, 14th Inf Co C, 2nd Bn, 35th Inf 119th Asll Hel Co, 52nd Cbt Avn Bn HHC, 1st Bn, 35th Inf HllC, 52nd Cbt A vn Bn Co B, 4th Engr Bn Co B, 4th E:ngr Bn Hq&Svc, 4th Bn, 42nd Arty Co C, 1st Bn, 14th Inf Btry B, •Ith Bn, 42nd Arty Btry B, 4th Bn, 42nd Arty Btry B, 4th Dn, 42nd Arty HHC, 1st Bn, 12th Inf Co C, 1st Dn, 14th Inf Btry A, 4th Dn, 42nd Arty Blry C, 4th Bn, 42nd Arly 4th Admln Co, 4th Inf Div 4th Admin Co, 4th Inf Div . Btry B, 4th Bn, 42nd Arty HllC, 52nd Cbt Avn Bn HHC, 3rd Bde, 4th Inf Div 4th Admin Co, 4th Inf Div Co D, 4th Avn Bn HHC, 1st Bn, G9th Armor 170th Aslt Ile! C.o. 52nd Cbt Avn Bn IIHC, 3rd Ude, 4th Inf Div 119th Aslt lie! Co, 52nd Cbt ·Avn Bn Brty B, 4th. Dn, 42nd Arty 155th Aslt lie! Co, 52nd Cbt Avn· Dn 170th Aslt lie! Co, 52nd Cbt A vn Bn Co B, 2nd Bn, 8th Inf Co A, 3d Bn, 8th Inf Hq&Svc Btry, 4th 42nd Arly Dtt-y A, 4th Bn, 42nd Arty 4lh MP Co, 4th Inf Div Co A, 3d Bn, 12th Inf Co A, 1st Bn, 22nd Inf HIIC, 3d Dde, 4th Inf Div HIIC, 52d Cbt Avn _B_n ____ _

& llflrt !JJ1liJ!!f;l W . FAMOUS FOURTH ~

{Circulation 7,000} IVY LEAF, on authorized weekly publicat1on, is published by the .

Command Information Division, Office of Information, Headquarters ..(th Infantry Division, for .ilth Division forces and is printed in Tokyo.

The opinions expressed in this publication ore not necessarily those of the Department of Anny. This paper uses lhe facilities of Armed f~f~es Press File and Armed Forces News Bureau to augment local news. Mailing address, IVY LEAF, Office of lnlormolian, ~leadquarters 4th Infantry Division, APO U.S. Forces 96262. Telephcne1 Famous 151 through Pleiku.

Commanding General ....... . Major General William R. Peers

Information Officer .... , . , .... .. ..... Major Richard R. Oyer STAFF

Officer·in·Charge . , ... . ... , . . . . . . Captain lee F. H

6th. Bn, 29th Arty Provides Transportation RECEIVING INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE THE TRIP TO PLEIKU.

Villagers Get Monthly Ride To Town LE THANH - A Jone

Montagnard man stood be-side the road waiting. As the 2%-ton truck drove in-to sight, he shouted to-ward the village nestled in a clump of rubber and ba-nana trees 300-meters from the road.

Men, women and child-ren were streaming towards the truck as it ground to a halt at the edge of the road. The villagers carried baskets . filled with vege-tables, sugar-cane and live chickens.

The truck belonged to Headquarters and Head-quarters Company, 6th Bat-talion, 29th Artillery. Pri-vate First Class Eugene W. Eddleman (Perryville, Mo.) . sat in the driver's seat as Captain Steve G. Brandi (Mt. Airy, N.C.), the bat-talion's civil affairs officer, stood gesturing and shout-ing to the village chief.

Monthly Shopping Trip Today was the day for

the villagers of Plei Toung to make their monthly trip to Pleiku. It was a chance for them to sell their pro-

UNLOADING THE RICE BOUGHT IN PLEIKU.

duce and handicraft while buying rice and other sta.p-les unavailable ill the vil-lage area. The trips are undertaken by the 6th Bat-talion, 29th Artillery's civil affairs section to enable the villagers. to make the other-wise almost impossible trek to the Pleiku marketplace from the Jackson Hole area.

Travelling by convoy, the artillery truck arrived in Pleiku during the late afternoon where it· dis- . charged its carg~ of Mon. tagnards and produce for an evening of bartering.

As the Montagnards dis- artillerymen joined the mounted the truck, t.hey bandy-legged mountainmen immediately s ca t t e re d in unloading the heavy rice

sacks. throughout the marketplace Village children darted to begin their bartering. around the sweating men

Early the next morning, as wives. and husbands the 2%-ton truck returned greeted one another proud-to the marketplace. The ly after the long journey to Montagnnrds loaded 100- ·the outside world. Mean-pound sacks ·of newly . while, th!! bags of rice ly-purchased rice and other ing beside the road assured supplies onto the big truck. full stomachs for everyone Then, jostling and banter- in Plei Toung for the next ing, the villagers climbed month. aboard for the long ride .----------. back to Plei Toung.

After The Journey Arriving at the village,

the brawny backs of the

Story and Photos by

SP4 Jerry Redding

THESE VILLAGERS AWAIT TRANSPORTATION !!ACK TO THEIR llOMES.

ComptinrA Retu1

WHEN COMPANY A GOT THE WORD TO MOVE OUT THEY REALLY HUSTLED AS THEY Sl!ARCHED FOR THE ENEMY AND HOPED FOR ACTION.

rs From la Drong Story by SP4 Mick Jlarsell Photos by SP

Pa9t• 6 IVY LEAF

COUNTING THE SPOILS-"Dragoons" ol lhe 3rd Battalion, 8th Inlantry tally the vast amounl ol weapons · and ammunition taken by the battalion niter a rccenl llghl with a large NVA lorce on a hill later name1l "The Dragoon's Den." (USA Photo by Sl'4 Norman Johnson)

Near 'The Dragoon's Den'

Over- 180 Dead NV A Found LE THANH - It was a beauti-

ful day, unlike any other day of the current monsoon season. The sun beat down penetrating the thick jungle canopy.· The early morning mist had all but vanished. The men of Company B, 3d Battalion, 8th Infantry, under the command ·of Captain John Boule (Monroe, La .), went about their business undisturbed.

Soldiers were laughing and joking, forgetting the war for. a few moments. Others searched their grimy rucksacks for C-ra-tions and · dry cigarettes. CPT Boule's radio sputtered inco-hcrenlly as it had most of the morning.

Just before noon, CPT Bouie . received a call . He was to maneuver his company 400-me· ters to the south and reinforce Company ·C, his sister unit.

. Quickly_and without confusion, the "Dragoons" gathered \hem-selves together and !>egan their column south. Company C was batlling an estimated North Vlotnamese Army battalion. CPT Bouie kept in constant radio contact with Captain Wil· liam Pratt (Edinberg, Tex.), commander ol Company C.

Artillery began splattering the enemy concentration and. gun-ships aided in . the assault. Scv· cral were deployed to Company

S&T Changes Commanders

CAMP ENARI - Lfeutenant Colonel David A. Deville (Fort Wayne, Ind.) has assumed com-mand of the Ivy Division's 4th Supply and Transport Battal-ion.

LTC Deville succeeds Llculen· ant Colonel J. Peter Jacques as commander of the battalion.

During the change of com-maod ceremony. at Camp Enari, Major G en~i' a 1 William R. Peers, 4th DMsion commander presented LTC. Jacques with the Legion of Merit and Major Her-bert L. Aycock, departing bat-talion. executive olliccr, with the Bronze Star. .

Major Hobert G. llaltiner (Hio Granile City, Tex.) has assumed .duties as battalion elccculive ·of-ficer.

By PFC Hugh Massey B's current position. They be-gan flying wide circles around the company raking the area with heavy fire . This ·prevented enemy forces from attacking the unit as they raced to Company C's aid.

"Here they come," one thank-ful lvyman yelled as "Boule's Boys" began poslllonlng them· selves around the perimeter: Ten minutes . latet', American firepower slammed. into the NVA ranks. ·

Several days later, the same clements which had fought for that monsoon drenched hill, counted over 180 dead enemy bodies, 10 POW's, more than 50 individual and crew served weapons, 8100 rounds ol small arms ammunition and two B-50 rocket launchers .

One soldier from Company C said it for all his buddies, "This hill should be named 'The Dra-goon's Den' ".

Young SGT Finds Job 'Lonely & Frightening'

By Sl'4 Uobert Boudreaux YUNG DAT AM-Sergeant Albert P. Gesualdo (Newark, N.J .)

"is not old enough to vote in his native state, yet his decisions have the finality ol life or death to the seven members ol his rifle squad.

. Only two members of the 20-year-old leader's squad have had combat experience. The remainder are re1>laccments filling posl· !Ions vacated by rotating " Red Warriors" of Company C, 1st Bat-talion, 12th Inlantry.

For SGT Gesualdo, hlmsell a veteran of combat in the Mekong Delta and the Central Highlands, it is the lirst time in his life that he has had the responsibility of looking alter someone other than hlmsell. .

11 A squad leader is a lonely and sometimes frightening job," said the young sergeant. "When, for example, you go on an ambush patrol and something breaks loose it's up to you to make the right decision last."

SGT Gesualdo relies heavily on the advice of his machine gunner Specialis t 4 Marvin L. Marshall (Chicago). SP4 Marshall is a veteran of three ol the "Red Warrior" battalion!s licrcest battles.

Recently, the company had set up Its patrol base on a hilltop and prepared for what seemed a quiet night. However, things did not remain quiet for long. As everyone settled down for a few hours of rest a burst of automatic weapons fire followed by blasts from claymore mines and grenades shattered the silence. Instantly everyone was in his defensive position with eyes and ears straining to locate the enemy.

SGT Gesualdo moved up and down his line of men, reassuring them that everything was okay. .More shots rang out from the opposite side of the perimeter.

"Don't fire until you see something to shoot at," cautioned the sergeant. ·

His men nervously held their fire waiting for the enemy to make · their move. Within minutes, artillery rounds from the battalion fire support base began dropping around the company's perimeter. "Spooky soon arrived and the night sky became bright as the plane dropped narcs over the company.

Somehow the night passed and as morning dawned n slccpy-eyed SGT Gesualdo check his line for the last time then sat down for a breakfast of C-rations. .

"Someday," sighed SGT Gesualdo, "the only decision I'll havc to make will be what brand of gas to put in my car. Until then I've got a squad to look after."

August 1~. 1967

Arty Fire Decis'ive· As 6,562 Shells Pelt· large Enemy Force

Uy SP4 Jerry llctldlng LE THANH - Elements of cent battle sent a total of 6,562

the 1st Brigade recently got Into rounds screaming down on thr. one of the biggest fights since· enemy from five locations. the 4th Division moved in\o the From the 3d Battalion, 8th In-llighiands .. With a North Viet- fantry firebase, U1e closest ar-numese Army body' count of 181, tillcry to the lighting, Battery the battle was also one of the C, 6th Battalion, 29th Artillery unequivocal victories for the and Bntlery A, 5th Battalion, " Fighting First." 16th Arllllery pounded suspect-

When in contact with ari ene· cd enemy positions liming the my force, estimated as battnl- contact, throughout the night ion-size, supporting fire plays an and the next day . Battery B, increasing role in . determining 6th Battalion, 29th Artillery und the outcome ol the battle. Sup- Battery G, 5th Battalion, 16th porting artillery during the re- Artillery gave 155mm, 175mm

Choppers Nec·essary To LRRPs

YUNG DAT AM - A team ol long range reconnaissance pat-rol members blended into \he Jungle foliage as they · listened for the sound of incoming heli-copters. Soon, swooping from above the treetops like a hoard of dragonllies, live choppers were on the scene and in min-utes the LRRP members were airborne. .

It was the completion of one of the many Joint missions con-ducted by the 4th Aviation Bat-talion and the Ivy Division's reconnaissance elements. While the nature of the missions vary one thing remains constant. The Insertion and extraction of the Ivymcn are done by helicopter.

"We've had nothing but out· standing support from the sllcks and gunships," said 2nd Brigade LIIRP platoon leader ~'irst Lieu-tenant James R. Bradley (Wool-ridge, Va .). "We haven' t had a ship hit since we began operat-ing, even though we've frequent-ly extracted teams while they were in contac\ with enemy forces."

The lieutenant explained that on each mission three gunships accompany the extraction slick. Hovering above the action, SU· pervislng the insertions and ex-tractions· in the command and control shi1> ls 1LT Bradley and Platoon Sergeant Carl Li\tlejohn (New York) .

"Without the service of the helicopters," commented lLT llradley, " the LRRPs would, lur all practical purposes, be out ol business ."

and 8-inch su1iport from · Due Co. Battery A, 6th Battalion, 14th

Artillery, located at Plei Djer-eng, sent volleys of 175mm shells crashing into the enemy ranks. The 175mm's from Bat-tery E, 6th Battalion, 14th Ar-tillery, located at Yung Dal Am, were also called in. From 1st Brigade headquarters at Le Thanh, 8-inchers from Battery D, 5th Battalion, 16th Artillery rained steel on the NV A.

Coordinating this barrage, which las ted from the time of the inillal contact until the next day, were Captain Joel S. Baker (Schenectady, N.Y.), 1st Bri- . gade adjutant fire support co-ordinator, and Captain Paul E. Titus (Marysville, Calif.), artil-lery liaison ollicer with the 3rd Battalion, 8th Infantry.

Fire missions were originally called in on sighted NVA and as countermortar fire . "Block-ing and denial" missions were fired as the contact withered to keep the NV A boxed in a known a re a to prevent es cap e. Throughout the night and the next day, harassment and inter-diclion missions were fired at suspected. points of NV A re-grouping.

Every gun ·available hurled its message of destruction dur-ing the batlle .

CPT Baker, commenting on the reaction of the field com· manders to the artillery sup-port, had this to say: "They told us that we gave them all the support they needed and that it was placed just where they wanted it."

Alter the last smoke-shrouded round was launched, while ar-tillerymen wiped down their guns and stacked fresh ammu-nition, •miles away infantrymen tallied the results of 'the con-llagration. And it's certain the! a large percentage of the NV A KIAs could be attributing to the big guns of the artlllcry.

Fast Reacting APCs Dash In Combat Help

VUNG DAT AM - "Fast re-acting". ls the most apt phrase used to describe the companies of the 2nd Battalion (Mecha-nized), 8th Infantry. Since the battalion became completely mechanized in May ol this year, the battalion has proven many times that its Armored Person-nel Carriers mean mobility.

When the battalion's Compa-ny B was sent recently to as· slst a~other 4th Inlantry Divi-sion unit their APCs were . on the road Just 20 . minutes alter · they received the first call.

"I was in the company com-mand post when I . got a call that 3rd of the Sth was in heavy contact, " stated Flrsl Licuten-

ant Rlcliard Eaton (Wakelleld, Mass.). "They told me to call battalion when we were ready to go. I called them back 12 minutes later."

The mechanized com pa n y raced west on Highway ~ 9 and soon came into the battle area.

"Con\act had been broken an hour and a half before we reached them and our side had killJ?d a lot of NVA," comment-ed 1LT Eaton.

The . quick dash to assistance wasn't wasted, though, as 1LT Eaton explained later: "We made. them a much . stronger force. The enemy would have had a Hell of a time if they tried again."

August 13, 1967

In Due Pho

3rcl Brigade Helps Bui/cl School System

DUC PHO-Continuing its all-out effort to help the people of Due Pho District, the 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division civil affairs section, working with Civil Operations for Revolutionary Development Support, has drawn plans and begun work on the district's first public school i'n over two years.

During the past years, the people have been dominated by the Viet Cong. Upon the arrival of the 3rd Brigade last April, the civil affairs team found that establishing a school system was an imiiortant project. They took to their task with . as much zeal as the . infantrymen who have loosened the district from the grip of the VC.

Plans were drawn by First Lieutenant John Dickerson (Newport News, Va.), the civic action engineering. o"fficer, and work began, with over 5,000 handmade bricks and lumber, on the five-room school house.

The high school, which will accommodate 250 students, is being built entirely ·by Vietnamese masons, carpenters and laborers under the super-vision of its designer, lLT Dickerson.

Story and Photos

by

SP4 EriC W. Schmidt

I

AN IVYMAN IJ ELPS A VIETNAMESE LOAD CEMENT.

IVY LEAF Page 7

VIETNAMESE MAKE THEIR OWN BRICKS TO BUILD A HIGH SCHOOL.

A DUC PHO VILLAGER BUILDS THE WALLS OF THE NEW SCHOOL.

lLT JOHN DICKE RSO N SUP ERVISES THE CONSTRU CTION.

_ P~ge 8 IVY LEAF

WET JOURNEY-1\lorlarmcn (rom Company C, ls! llaUaflon , 12th Jnlantry cross a monsoon-swollen slream while carrying their 8lmm tubes during Operation Frands Marlon In the Central Jllgh-lands, (USA Photo by SP4 Robert Boudreaux)

Didn't Know The Odds

Squad Surprised By NV A Platoon Pulls Out To Return With Company

LE THANH - "We were only a few meters into the woods when everything opened up on us," recalled Specialist 4 Ron Snyder (Albion, Pa.). "Four of my best buddies were killed in· stantly and there were only live of us left fighting for our Jives."

A nine-man patrol from Com-pany A, 1st Battalion, 8th In-fantry had been doing some s h o r l range reconnaissance when they encountered an esti-mated reinforced North Viet-namese Army platoon. The squad was a few hundred me-ters from their company. Some-how the enemy managed to sur-prise the Ivymen. ·

"My helmet was shot of! at first contact, 11 said Specialist 4 Joe Bauer (Blackwood, N.J.). "I was diving for a rock pile when it w•s hit. Talk about be· Ing scared!"

The .lvymen found the nearest cover and began returning lire immediately to the numerically superior enemy force . Some other squad members couldn't help.

Ordered Pull Back The brush was too thick for

the squad's grenadier, Special-ist 4 Richard Sager (Tidioute; Pa.), to use his M-79. He could

By SPs · George Bel_dler only attempt to lire direct.

Specialist 4 David Miller (Star Brick, Pa.) lost his glasses while scrambling for salety.

Sergeant Arthur L. ·Alvarez (Madera, Calif.) gave the order to pull back to the cover of a rock formation in an elephant grass co v e red field as the screaming en e m y advanced. The squad's radio operator called for artillery support while the rest of Company A maneu-vered to aid the squad mem-bers. ·

Swce11 Of The Arca "We thought the artillery

would drive them out or the woods into our laps," com.ment-ed SP4 Snyder. "However, that didn't happen, so when the com-pany arrived we went back in."

Returning to the jungle, the men pulled the bodies of their comrades onto the field, under ·the cover of fire ·from the re-maining elements 0£ their unit. A firefight continued until dusk when artillery and air support silenced the enemy's guns.

A sweep · of the area. the next morning produced three enemy bodies, one detainee, one SKS and one AK-47 rifle along with numerous items of personal equipment. ·

Mail The IVY-LEAF Home FROM: --

, POSTAGE

3rd Clo11 4 ctnl1

Air Mail a c•nta f'1

TO: __________ J~ ------·-------

--- - - -·--------------- - ·- -

Fold poper three times pnd secure edges with siople or t~pe before m'oiling. Does nol meet requiremenb for "free" moil. --

It appea red that the NVA force had been in the area for a week because 37 well-estab-Hshed single firing positions and three machine gun positions were found.

"In the beginning we didn't know what we were up against," concluded SP4 Bauer, "but knowing wouldn ' t have m a d e mbch .... ..il:liffcrence any-way."

'Regulars' Training FOs In The Field

VUNG DAT AM - Meri select-ed to be forward observers for the 81mm mortars or the 1st Baltallon, 22nd Infantry are get-ting realistic training at . the battalion's forward lire support base. The men go out on patrols from the firebasc and call in and adjust actual mortar fire .

Alter the men finish their training they are . assigned to rifle platoons where they carry out their .duties. Each rifle pla-toon gets one Simm mortar FO. The men act as riflemen most or the lime but if mortar sup-port Is needed their experience aids them in calling accurate fire . ·

"The FOs are the eyes of the mortars," commented Platoon Sergeant Kelly Guillory (Lake Charles, La.). "They go where !hey can see the mortars falling and make changes to put it right on target."

111l'hcse men are all volunteers. We picked sharp, alert people and the fact that they wanted to be FOs means they'll be bet-ter at _it," added the platoon sergeant.

August 13, 196?

Breather Hole Leads Platoon To VietCong

DOC PHO-A small breather hol e in lhe side of a rice paddy dike was the· firs t sign that Charlie was in the area.

First l..ieulerwnl Homer Krout II, platoon leader of th e recon-naissance platoon, 2nd Battalion, 35lh Inlanlry, immediately es-tablished a perimeter and begun searching the area.

Conducting an early morning combat assault, the recon pla-toon was . following an agent who said he could lead them to a tunnel complex where sever-al VC were hiding.

Arriving at the localion it ap-

Association Drive Nears 2,000 Mark

CAMP ENARI-The member-ship drive for the National 4th (Ivy) Division Association is nearing the 2,000 mark.

A total of 1,886 individuals who have or arc serving with the 4lh Infantry Division have joined the association.

The division's 6th Battalion, 29th Artillery has a total of 418 members in the organization.

Following the artillery battal-ion in membership are the 3rd Battalion, 8th Infantry with 363; !st Battalion, 12th Infantry, 205 ; 4th Administration Company, 131.

Annual dues are $4. Member-ship application forms can be obtained from unit commanders or are available in the division information office at Camp Enari.

pearcd that the agent was mis-taken. "My men began sea rch-ing the area," related lLT Krout. HAL first we couldn't find anything. Then one of my mun saw the breather hole."

Aller the perimeter had be