 Proudly, we hail. New York City, where the American stage begins. Here is another program with a cast of outstanding players. Public service time has been made available by the station to bring you this story. As proudly we hail the United States Army. Our story is entitled, The Call of Courage. This is the story of a man who in the exciting and hearty life of the Army regained what he had once lost. As proudly we hail the United States Army's infantry. Our first act curtain will rise in just a moment, but first... You know, a man with a good eye to the future makes a good soldier. And that's why so many bright young men and women are joining the United States Army right now. For Army life is an exciting career. And there's plenty of room at the top. Today, American soldiers get the finest technical training in the world. Every man is a specialist, a master at his job. And we want you to serve in the United States Army. Visit your nearest United States Army recruiting station and find out how you can get in on a career with a future in the United States Army. And now your Army presents the proudly we hail production, The Call of Courage. It's a curious thing how the mind works. Here at the tomb of the unknown soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, I can see the wooden temporary benches filling up slowly. In a few minutes, the President will be here and all that goes through my mind over and over are a couple of lines of poetry that I remember for my high school days. Yes, din, din, din, you Lazarusian heathen gunk of din. Though I've belted you and flayed you by the living God that made you. Now there's another line to that verse by Rudyard Kipling. It's been nine years since I really learned what that last line means. I was in mid-1944 when my division was stationed in an Army camp here in the States. At that time, we were a training division. I was a squad leader in the first platoon of Company D, Heavy Weapons. We'd been there for two years, going through 13-week cycles turning recruits into soldiers. We just finished our eighth cycle. And for us non-coms, it was just about eight cycles too much. Okay, all you squad leaders in my room. Okay, Sergeant Smith. All right, sir. Are you all here now? All right, okay. I've just been down to the orderly room. The first sergeant says to get ready for another batch. What, another one? Yep, Sergeant Jackson, another one. Holy smoke, Sarge. Aren't we ever going to get this outfit into action? Yeah, that's right, Sarge. The invasion of Europe has started and they'll be marching into Berlin while we're still having bed-making drills. Buy the numbers. Dress, pillow, dress, hut, hoe, three. Very funny. Now look, you guys. I know this dry-run drill can get pretty monotonous, but you all know that somebody's got to do the training. Yeah, you're right, Sarge, but you know how it is. Now let's get down to business. The first sergeant says I'll get into my 1,400. There'll be 60 men to a platoon. That'll mean 15 for each of you. Sarge was right and we know it. It was just the let-down feeling we non-cons usually got after the finish of a cycle. Although we knew that once we got over the hurdle of beginning a new cycle, everything would be all right. But when we faced them on that first day, it seemed like a hopeless task as usual. All right, squad leaders. Take a real squad. All right, squad leaders. All right, first squad, follow me. All right, that's good. My name is Jackson, Sergeant Jackson. I'm your squad leader. As platoon Sergeant Smith already told you, this is a heavy weapons company. During the 13 weeks you'll be here, you're going to learn the 30-caliber heavy machine gun and the 81-millimeter mortar until you know it like you know your own grandmother. I ain't got no grandmother, Sarge. Well, it sounds like we got Jack Benny with us. What's your name? Jack Dinkelhoff, Sarge. Well, the name like that, what else could he be, but the comedian of the squad. I finished my welcoming speech and then got down to interviewing each man. Well, my name is Dabrinsky, Sergeant. Where are you from, Dabrinsky? Philadelphia. Dabrinsky. Big-shouldered, husky, must have weighed about 230 pounds. He was a strong man of the squad. Strong but easygoing. I'd need those muscles of his later on, but I didn't know it then. I moved to the next man. Adams, Sergeant. Sea Adams. And I hail from Punx at Tawney and that's not a foreign country. What's the sea stand for? Well, I prefer not to tell, but since you find out anyway, it's Chauncey, but don't any of you guys get the idea the name fits the guy. MacDonald, Goldinson, Jaffa, Margiotti, and the rest of them until I got down to the end of the squad. Up till then, they all looked and sounded maybe a little better than the average Kropper rookies. And I was beginning to think that I wouldn't have more than the usual number of headaches with them until I reached the last name. I took one look at him and I knew my luck hadn't held. Even before he did anything, I knew it. Something about the way they wear their uniform, the way they stand and look at you, something uncoordinated about them that tells you, here's a rookie that no matter how hard he tries, always ends up with the wrong licking on the wrong foot. He was a short, stoop-shouldered, shy-looking guy wearing thick-lensed glasses. As I approached him, he lifted one foot to take a step, just one foot, mind you, and he fell backwards over his foot. Oh! Oh, uh, oh, excuse me, Sergeant. I, uh, I knocked my glasses off. Yeah. Here they are. Thanks, I can't see a thing without them. Um, farsighted. Mm-hmm. What's that you got there? Uh, just, uh, just a mouthpiece. I wanted to check if I damaged it when I fell. Mouthpiece? Uh, yes, from my trumpet. Oh, musician. What's your name? Uh, Jones, Sergeant Jackson. Uh, Albert Jones. Well, Private Jones, I'm not much of a bug on music, but I can tell you this, don't plan on doing much practicing. Oh, oh, I hadn't. I just brought it along because, well, uh, I always take it with me no matter where I go. Yeah. Well, uh, do you plan transferring to the band when you get finished with your training? Oh, no, no, that, uh, that won't happen. Well, then maybe you want to become company bugler. Well, I'd like that, Sergeant, but that won't happen either. I'm, I'm not good enough. Well, that doesn't take that much to blow a bugle. No. No, it doesn't. Well, then how come you're not good enough? Well, uh, you see, it's, uh, it's my lip. Your lip? Um, well, your lip muscles get developed a certain way, and sometimes something happens to them, and you can't hit certain notes anymore. Oh, I've seen. It happened to yours. Yes. Well, don't worry. During the next 13 weeks, you'll be developing a lot of other muscles. That's what I enlisted for, Sergeant. Yeah, yeah, okay, Jones. All right, you guys, everybody down at the supply room, draw your bidding. Let's go. Come on. Come on, lip. Let's go. Lip. It was Dinkelhoff who christened Jones the lip, and it stuck. But the training cycle had begun again. We got to know the lip pretty well during the following days, mostly on the extra duty hours. By the time the other men knew the M1 backwards and forwards, he only knew it backwards, and that's the way he usually put the M1 together, backwards. But he tried, and when they try, you can't ask for much more. There was one day we were making a hike with full field equipment, plus our heavy machine guns and mortars. The sun was blazing hot, and we were just going into the eighth mile. Hey, Sarge. How many more miles, eh? What are you, official mile cutter? No, Sarge, but my tootsies are beginning to ask questions. This tripod hanging around my neck is beginning to feel like a cast-iron gorilla. Yeah, give me it for a while, Ting. With pleasure, Private Adams. Just then I heard some noise at the tail end of the squad. I dropped out a column to check. All right, come on. Let me take that base plate. No. No. Go away, Dobrinsky. I can manage it. The 81-millimeter base plate is a two-by-three-feet heavy cast-iron plate with sharp flanges on the bottom. It weighs 45 pounds, and it's about one of the most awkward pieces I've ever been to carry. The lip was bent beneath it, almost double. His helmet was pushed to the side of his head and his rifle kept slipping down his arm. Look, Lip, you had it for a while now. It's my turn. Now, listen, you big lug. I might be a runt who always gets fouled up, but there's something in this world I can do right. Something, even if it's only carrying something. Okay, that's what you want. But, uh, Dobrinsky, thanks anyway. I saw him in the showers that evening. His shoulders were almost worn raw. After chow, he sat on his footlocker, cleaning and shining his equipment. And when he was done, he got out his brass trumpet and polished it. That was his ritual every night. I happened to look out my door that night and saw him looking fondly at it. He then raised it slowly to his lips and blew softly. He didn't make a sound, but he looked up at me. Oh, don't worry, Sarge. I won't make any noise. Yeah, it lights out soon, but, uh... No, I'd like to hear you blow that sometime. Well, uh, I haven't blown it for over two years now, but who knows? Maybe I will. Yeah. Do you know any of the, uh, Army calls? No, them. But I know some you never even heard of. Let's hear one. Just hum, don't blow it. Okay, uh, let me think. Oh, yeah, you won't know this one. Not an infantryman. Um, dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum-da-dum. Dum-da-dum-da-dum. Now, you got me. Uh, the charge used to be a cavalry call. Oh, no wonder I didn't know it. Uh-oh. There's lights out. Hey, um, how's he? Uh, he's okay. Mm-hmm. Say, look, I got an idea. Take your trumpet and get down there and ask the bugler if he'll let you fill in for him on tabs. Who, me? Yeah, sure. It's Edward's our company bugler who's on duty tonight. Tell him it's a favor for me. Oh, I-I don't know, Sarge. Oh, and it'll be all right. I'll take responsibility for it. Well, I... Well, okay, Sarge, if you want me to, but I can't guarantee anything. Go on, go on. I mean, he would just sound like I'm curious. I guess I am, too. Okay, here goes. He went out, not very anxious about the whole thing, but I had an idea. I looked out my window and saw him go over to the megaphone. He talked to Edwards for a minute, and then I saw the bugler turn around and look up at me. I waved an okay sign to him, and he stepped aside and let the lip move up to it. The lip didn't know it, but this was a crucial moment for him in more ways than one. If he came through with a good tap, so I was going to recommend to the CEO, he'd take him on as a company bugler. I looked at my watch. It was 11 o'clock. I watched the lip slowly raise his trumpet, shining in the moonlight, and then loud and clear. He played it like I'd never heard it until he hit the third phrase. Try to get back on the track, but then I saw him drop his trumpet to his side as Edwards quickly moved in to finish it. Slowly the lip came up the stairs to my door on his way back to his bunk. Pretty awful, wasn't it? You think I'll ever be able to do anything right? You are listening to the proudly we hail production The Call of Courage. We'll return in just a moment for the second act. It shall not happen here. That is the unspoken prayer of every man in the United States Army. That's the unspoken reason for our growing military might. But the time has come to speak. The time has come to tell of that small phrase in five words, it shall not happen here. Let me speak only to those young men of America who've not taken pause to think. Let's shout it in a voice that will reach and do every city and village across the length and breadth of our great land. Young man, you are needed. You are needed to help preserve the peace. You are needed to serve in your United States Army to ensure for your loved ones that it shall not happen here. While you serve, you'll be building a rewarding career for yourself. Everyone who wears the uniform of the United States Army is sharing in a service that is vital to our country. Visit your nearest United States Army recruiting station at your earliest opportunity and ask about a technical career in the United States Army. You are listening too proudly we hail. And now we present the second act of the Call of Courage. Over the bridge of years while I sit here at Arlington National Cemetery waiting for the ceremonies to begin, it all comes back clearly. Things you thought you'd forgotten but which I suppose you can never really forget. But looking back you also see things you didn't see then. Like the night the lip tried to blow taps in the battalion quadrangle. I know now that in those first bars he blew I saw the soul of a man. But I didn't know it then. My pasty faced awkward rookies were now sun brown filled out erect and well on the way to becoming soldiers and men proud of themselves and their outfit. One day in the 10th week we called our squad leaders together. You guys all here? Ah, good. Now listen, I just got back from a meeting with the top and the old man. But no as I hope. That depends on how you look at it. Now here's the dope. Each of you is to look your men over carefully during the rest of the psychome. What for, Sarge? Because some of those men are going to be your babies from now on. What do you mean, Sarge? Just that your wishes are going to be fulfilled. This is the last cycle. No kidding. There? Hey, does that mean we'll be shipping out? Overseas? No, but it looks like it. Well, finally, it's about time, huh? Just about when I was figuring to end up in this town in a soldier's home. When do you think it'll be, Sarge? Nobody knows. It might be months yet. Don't be such a pessimist, Sarge. I can't wait that long. Well, you know what they say. Hurry up and wait. Now, here's the rest of the dope. You each have 15 men in your squads. Now, we're a heavy weapons company that calls for eight men to a squad, including squad leaders. So, uh, we'll have to cut loose seven men. Right. They'll be transferred to a line company in the division. What do you want us to pick, Sergeant? Well, that's something I'm going to leave entirely up to you. You know the men better than I do. Just remember this. These guys might be going into combat with you. Yeah. How so do you have to know? By next Friday. So you better get busy. Yeah. Excuse me, Sergeant. Yeah, you wanted to see me? Uh, yes, Sergeant. Come on in. What's the trouble? Oh, no trouble. I, uh, just wanted to ask you something. Shoot. Um, there's a rumor going around that you're making up a list of men you, you want to keep on the squad. Is that so? Oh, I know you can't tell me if it's true or not, but if it is, I, uh, I'd like to ask you a favor. Okay. Um, could you squeeze me in on it somewhere? Well, Jones... Now, look, Sergeant, I know I haven't been a first-class soldier, but for the first time in my life, I've found a place where I, I feel I really belong. Jones, I've already, uh... Well, I'm, I'm sorry I bothered you. I didn't say anything. Well, that's, that's all right. I, I know. Wait a minute, Jones. Yes, Sarge? I just happened to think of something. Some of the fellas tell me you've been practicing after duty hours on the parade ground. How you doing? Well, a lot better, Sarge, but not like I used to. You still know all the calls, don't you? Sure. Good. Now, here's what I'm gonna do. Edward's the bugler's being transferred to the band at the end of the cycle. Now, so you can stay with the company. I'm gonna recommend that you take his place. Me? Yeah, yeah. Now, don't worry, there's gonna be so much excitement around here that nobody will pay much attention to how you sound. And after we ship out, your worries will be over. Well, I, I don't get you. Now, look, when an outfit's in action, they don't use the bugle. Well, what does the bugler do, then? Well, he becomes a runner for the CO. Of course, I know you won't be with the squad, but you'll still be with the company, and that's better than transferring, isn't it? Well, sure, Sarge, but I, I don't know if I can do it. Don't worry, you will. I hope so. Thanks anyway, Sarge. I went down to the ordinary room and told the first sergeant about how good a musician the lip was, and that he'd better grab him before the band did. The top said he'd do what he could. Somehow I felt pretty good, although there was a little doubt in my mind. Well, it didn't take long for the two weeks to roll around and the cycle was over. I had my squad of seven hand-picked men and the lip was company bugler. It didn't sound too bad. We were here and there, but nobody expected a Harry James. Anyway, as I predicted, there wasn't too much time to spend analyzing the tones of the bugler. He still took us training with us, and if I thought basic training was tough, I was way off, because suddenly we were right in the middle of intensified preparatory to combat training. Hand-to-hand fighting, house-to-house, infiltration courses, all with live ammo. We did a lot of training at night, too, and during one of those nights, I felt justified in turning down a lip for my squad because he read a compass backwards right into a swamp. It took us two days to get the mud out of our equipment. Good old wrong-way Jones. Boy, from now on, you better stick to that horn of yours, eh? How dumb can you get? If you can read a clock, you can read a compass. Oh, lay off him, fellas. Anybody can make a mistake here. Yeah, but why should I pay for hair? All right, pipe down, pipe down, man. Get this stuff cleaned good. Sergeant Jackson. Yeah, Sergeant Smith. Come on. Yeah, Sergeant Smith. Come to my room a minute. Yeah, okay. What is it, Sergeant? We're moving out, day after tomorrow. Oh, swell, where? I don't know. Special orders just came down. The whole division's gone, but our regiment is going first as a regimental combat team. We are? Yep. It looks like they need us in a hurry wherever it is, and here's one guy who's already now. He wasn't the only one. When things happen in the Army, they happen fast. By the end of the week, we were in Boston at an embarkation point. Ten days later, we landed in Marseille, France. Five days after that, we pulled into a small village ten miles above Strasbourg. We knew now why we'd been called so fast. It was the bulge, and we were in the lower end of it. We lay in the village two days, and then we were committed to the support of a company for an attack through the Vosges Mountains. We moved out in the middle of the night up the backside of one of the mountains. This shirt is a steep one. Oh, you're telling me. Somebody must have mistaken us for mountain goats. After looking at you, Dinklehoff, I can't blame you. Very funny. Good on you. Hand me your rifle. I'll take it up for you. Don't think he keeps hitting me in the neck. This snow ain't helping none either. I thought it was cold in St. Louis. All right, well, so be it for the time. What's up there, Sarge? Company A. They're moving out at 0700. Maybe we can get some shut-eye, huh? Yeah, some. Okay, here we are. I don't see anybody, Sarge. Neither do I. Maybe it's a trap. You sound like a B movie, Adam. It's just no movie. This is for real. You're telling me. There's somebody, Sarge. Hulk, who's there? It's me. Who's me? Jones, the lip. Advance and be recognized, lip. Well, I'll be done. What are you doing here? I thought you were with company headquarters. Hi, you fellas. Hey, look, fellas. He's got his bugle with him. How about blowing a nice hot chow call, lip, huh? Later, Dinklehoff. The CO sent me over to be a liaison messenger between you and Company A, Sarge. Well, I'm glad to see you again, lip. Now, we're in a headgear's Company A. There's nobody here. Well, they've moved out to the next hill. Their CO sent me over to guide you to them. Oh, no, not you. All right, at ease, Adams. Let's go, men. Lead off, lip. This way. I think that's the hill, Sarge. Where A Company is. I see somebody moving over there. I'll get my binoculars out. Hold me, Smoke. Huh? What's the matter, Sarge? Get your head down. That isn't Company A, they're Germans. There are more on those hills to our right and left. Well, it's a full of them. We were in a real fix. We were surrounded by the enemy. And on top of the next hill, I could see them setting up an 88 that commanded the road in the valley below. When the squad came up, I dispersed them in the crevices and the rocks out of sight. And we waited. Sarge, their 88 on the hill is firing at something down the road. It must be our troops trying to advance up the road to their flank. They'll never get past that 88. Let's knock it up with our guns, Sarge. Now we can't. Don't have a good feel of fire through the trees. Maybe somebody should try to get through to our men down there. Let them know what's up here. Yeah, that's a good idea. I'll go, Sarge. We'd forgotten the lip. He'd been brooding behind a rock, mentally kicking himself, I guess, for having led us to the wrong hill. You've done enough leading, Lip. I'll go. Okay, Sarge? Yeah, maybe you're right. You're small and quick. You'd have the best chance. We'll wait until the firing slackens off a bit. That's dying down. Okay, Adams, get ready. Right, Sarge. Here's a couple of grenades. Might come in handy. Give me them, Sarge. Lip, what are you doing? Give me back those grenades. I'm sorry, Sarge. I'm going. I got you in this mess. I'm going to make up for it. Some way. Lip, come back. I'll see you later, fellas. Look, he's going the wrong way. Oh, no. Come back, Lip. Come back. But he didn't. He kept on going down the hill across the valley and disappeared into the woods on the other side. After he'd gone, we were too surprised to do or say anything. But I knew each of us was thinking that we'd seen the lip for the last time. A few minutes later... Hey, Sarge, something's happened on the hill. Where? By the 88. See the smoke? Yeah. I want it. Hey, listen. What's going on, Sarge? I don't know. Yeah. Yeah, I know what's going on. Sarge, our troops are starting an attack down there. Yeah. All right. Come on, you guys. Follow me. I'm a tripper. Let's go. We ran down the hill across the plain and up to the 88. It was out of action. And so was its gun crew. And the lip was standing there blowing his bup. Hey, look, Sarge. There's some Germans running over the crest of the hill. All right. You know what to do. Sarge, do be. Bring up that guy. Oh, shit. It didn't take long. The enemy was disorganized by our fire and our troops attacking up the valley swept the Germans before them. The battle was over before it had hardly begun. Well, that didn't take long. What do we do next, Sarge? We're going to find Company A. He did a good job, men. Especially you, Lip. Yeah. Boy, you did a nice job cleaning out that gun crew with two hand grenades, Lip. He sure did. But if he hadn't done something else, we'd still be sitting back there on that hill. When he blew his bugle, I knew the coast was clear for us to move out. What? I, uh, I was hoping you'd remember, Sarge. Well, it took me a minute, but I finally caught on. Caught on to what, Sarge? That call of Lip, Blue, was the charge. And, uh, as I recall, your lip held up this time. It sure did, Sarge. It sure did. I got it back finally. Well, Lip, all I gotta say is you gotta stiff up a lip in more ways than one. Years have passed since then. But not the memory. Well, I see the ceremonies for the unknown soldier have been concluded here in Harlington National Cemetery. It's a long walk to hear from the Pentagon where I'm stationed, but I wouldn't miss this for the world. There goes the volley. And a soldier wearing master sergeant stripes and a silver star ribbon steps up to the dais. He raises that familiar worn shiny brass trumpet to his lips. I remember that last line to Kipling's poem. You're a better man than I am, Buchla Jones. A reminder to our listeners that the Army needs healthy, intelligent men and women volunteers from 18 to 34. And if you've got what it takes, think seriously about an Army career. Drop into your nearest United States Army recruiting station today and get all the facts about what the Army has to offer you. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail, presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center in New York for the United States Army. This is Mark Hamilton speaking, inviting you to tune in this same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.