 From Korea, to Germany, from Alaska, to Puerto Rico. All over the world, the United States Army is on the alert to defend our country, you, the American people, against aggression. This is the big picture. An official television report to the nation from the United States Army. Now to show you part of the big picture, here is Sergeant James Mansfield. How do you do? I'm happy to bring you the second in our new series of the big picture, devoted to the story of America's combat infantryman, the man who wears the blue badge. Today, we are going to tell you a little about the 30th Infantry Division, the old Hickory, a famous National Guard division in both World Wars I and II. It was known as the Workhorse of the Western Front. Later on in the program, Colonel Quinn will show you some of the equipment that our infantryman carries into battle. He will also show you the combat rations that are provided for him. These are his tools for living on the battlefield. These and his rifle. We now take you to the office of Colonel William W. Quinn. Today, we're going to tell you the story of the 30th Division, and afterwards, we're going to show you some of the things that the combat infantryman takes into battle. But until that time, the blue badge presents the old Hickory, the 30th Infantry Division. Workhorse of the Western Front wasn't just a name somebody pinned on us in World War II. In World War I, the old Hickory patch we had inherited in honor of President Andrew Jackson wasn't just a name either. Workhorse, Old Hickory, or any of the other names the enemy called us. In battle, it was the way we fought and lived and died that made us what we are. They said the Hindenburg Line could not be broken, but the 30th broke it. They said the Prussian Guard could not be beaten, but the 30th met them hand-to-hand and crushed the pride of the German Army. History says that this action turned the northern flank of the German Army and paved the way to final victory. In World War I, we came up swinging. The enemy never knew what hit them. But they got off the floor when nobody was looking and started to make trouble all over again. But the National Guard men from North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia, who came to form the 30th Infantry Division, were ordinary Americans who knew they had a tough, dirty, bitter grind ahead. You don't just sit around when the liberty of free people is threatened. We ripped into our work. Major General Leland Hobbs took us in hand in September 1942 to whip us into fighting shape. Led us through the Second Army Tennessee maneuvers. Ironed out the rough edges. But the clock was running out. Every step had a purpose, and there were many things to remember. Few to forget. We thought we knew where we were going, what was waiting when we got there. We had a good idea what the mission of Old Hickory would be. We traded our southern accents for a British welcome and a sociable drink. Hospitality was fine, but time was short. The dry runs became grimmer. Every step had a purpose. We became hard and efficient. The battle had already started on the other side of the channel. Some of us were impatient. No reason to be impatient. There was a big slice cut out for Old Hickory. Still plenty of war to go around for everybody when we hit the Normandy Beachhead on D plus three. Many were in business. A business with high costs and no guarantee of success. The first job was to take the high ground north of the Vera River and tote canal. Two days later the north bank of the canal was cleared. We took our baptism under fire. There was still a long way to go. Our engineers weeded out the death rattles the Nazis left behind. Bad habit the Nazis had. Back home hedge rows were planted around your house to make it look beautiful. In Normandy they became part of the enemy's plan of defense. When 1500 bombers flew over our area dropping their TNT on the enemy we knew it was the jump off on a heavy schedule for Old Hickory. We got the number one spot to spearhead the attack on San Lowe. Working as a team with the tankers we flushed the Jerry's out of the hedge rows in one way or another and put the finishing touches on the San Lowe breakthrough. One of the outstanding achievements of the European war. The French gave us a four-star welcome. Handed out champagne, fresh eggs and kisses for everybody. But the gratitude of the French had to be left behind because we were moving up to the front again. We went in to relieve the first infantry division. When we took over the boys of the first didn't stop to say what was in store for us. Suddenly all hell broke loose. Five German armor divisions were poised to throw stuff at us from every direction and cut off a battalion of 120th infantry from our division before help could reach them. The enemy had his eye on the sea at Avron. Split the American first and third armies. The Germans counted on everything except one small item. Old Hickory. For a week, fate played no favours. The Bonzers had his hanging on the rope all set for the knockout. Our name, Workhorse, wasn't just somebody's dream. We sweated it out the only way we knew how. The holes in our ranks were filled by replacements. Three days later they were crossed off the division roster. We slugged it out toe-to-toe for 144 hours every second a lifetime. And when it was over, the last blow was ours. The Nazi spearhead was broken. The biggest enemy counter-attack since D-Day was stopped at Mortin. August 12, 1944. 1,800 of our buddies were left behind with the memorial of Mortin's first World War dead. After Mortin, everything else could have been graved. It could have been. But de Führer's crack troops, cracking up en route, didn't mean the party was over. Not yet. We were moving up to Belgium, learning a lot of geography, and the names of hundreds of French towns. 520 miles of it. Easier to look at than pronounce. And welcomes with a French accent. Viva la America! The first American troops to hit Holland in World War II. This was the last real welcome to come our way for quite a time. It was a welcome of another kind now. A plunge into Germany where we were warned every man, woman, and child was a deadly enemy. Our biggest barrier? A ring of concrete and steel. The Siegfried Line. Our job was to make a breakthrough in the West Wall defenses before they could be further strengthened. Then swing toward 7th Corps Troop, south of Aachen. Relieve the heavy pressure on corps. Enable them to close in on that city. The fill boxes, dragon's teeth, and anti-tank ditches were built for keeps. The big shells went out 24 hours a day. Time two. This was Germany's last ditch defense. Each blow to pay us back for the ashes of defeat in France. Enclosed in two concrete arms lay the city of Aachen. Watch word of German resistance. But we of the 30th knew the German resistance as a red hot deliberate business. Sudden death was hiding around every corner of Aachen. It was good to meet our old friend the 1st Division on October 16th, and the encirclement of Aachen was complete. Here was the German reward for their loyalty. A pile of smoking steel and ashes and a mighty stench. The first break we got in a month was scrubbing the smell of war from our bodies. We enjoyed the peace and quiet. To the enemy bombs, our address was unknown. With the smell of soap and water of fresh memory, we swung into high gear. We teamed up with the 29th, the drive on Outstor. Took a bead on Versailles, with patrols fanning out in surprise attacks on the Nazis. When we weren't dodging bullets, we tuned in our favorite comedian, Axis Sallie, who gaily announced that the 30th had been wiped out in the Siegfried Line and Aachen Gap fight. The announcement was received with some skepticism. And to make sure old Hickory wouldn't get rusty, the kinks were ironed out. While our Sitzkrieg was going on, von Rundstedt was making plans of his own with the blessings of the German High Command to break the back of the Allied offensive by massing 29 enemy divisions in the Ardennes Sector and smashed toward Antwerp. The elite panzers of the SS had been overhauled with fanatical troops. Desperate, young, ready to die young. The rejuvenated Luftwaffe pilots sneered from their cockpits. Thus began the payoff battle of World War II, the Battle of the Bulge. On a bitter, biting December day, old Hickory was called in to put an end to the Superman myth. The backbone of the Nazi drive, the panzers frantic to turn in a last-ditch recovery for D. Führer. We traded them blow for blow. The SS boys had met old Hickory before and were not too pleased to renew the acquaintance in the Maumedi Stavilo area. Even though our supply depots were not prepared for the surprise attack, we made the most of what equipment we had. The krauts fought until D. Führer's face no longer haunted them. For us, it was the cold proposition of matching teamwork, infantry and engineers, Germans against Tigers, who spread a path of terror for the enemy. At Maumedi, the Nazis had their sadistic field day. Heroic SS troops lined up American prisoners and left a monument of riddled bodies. We would pay them back for Maumedi. The Nazis tagged us with another name after the mauling we gave them. Now they called us Roosevelt's fanatical SS troops. The big brass had plans for the crusher blow. The third army to advance from the south and the ninth army from the north. Objective, the road center at Huffa Leeds. The mouse trapped the enemy in a final squeeze. Before we had a chance to defrost ourselves, we hid out for San Vif, controlling the main road net in and out of the bulge. Rumors that old Hickory was on the march again must have hit the Germans, because their disorganization snarled up the PW cages at every turn. For us, any house where a wall remained was a place to keep out of the cold and warm up for the night. We were able to catch about 39 winks before we hit the road again to make a stab at Roar River, gateway to Cologne and the Roar Valley. H hour, 23rd of February, the pounding began. The biggest barrage ever fired on the western front in World War II. Old Hickory's stinging blow to the Germans' last bitter dream of world conquest. With the engineers doing a job of putting a path across the river at a point where the enemy least expected it. There was still work to do for the workhorse. Our old boss, Lieutenant General Simpson, picked us to spearhead his ninth army's assault across the Rhine. The Germans were proud of the Rhine. It was D. Fuhrer's pet baby. No American troops would ever come close enough to cross its beautiful waters. To us, it was just another river, 1100 feet wide, measured in ponds. We burst open the last natural barrier, the straw that broke D. Fuhrer's back. It was a question now of mileage, gasoline, and geography. Grab up the historic city of Brunswick. Sign and seal the last action of the 30th at Magdeburg. The final stop in the unconditional surrender. Enjoy a few quick ones with the Russians at the Alba River. The workhorse could pack up the M1s for a while, receive its well-earned citations. Six of us got congressional medals of honor. The Belgian forager. There was still celebrating to be done, parading in a chance to look at the records. We captured 53,000 prisoners, collected 20,000 Purple Hearts, five major battle stars, were rated the outstanding infantry division in the ETO. The workhorse of the Western Front was now ready to take a holiday, and then we counted our points so we could get home in a hurry. And getting home was just a way of adding the finishing touches to the victory in Europe. But the job was not over. There was still the mission of nailing down the peace, for which the men of the 30th had fought so valiantly, and just as they gave their best in battle, the men of Old Hickory were ready to plunge into their peacetime activities with the same vigor, the same energy. As part of the National Guard in North Carolina and Tennessee, they carry on a full-scale program of invaluable peacetime service to the people. I believe the best way to demonstrate the equipment that I plan to show you is to discuss the articles one by one. What you're about to see is the infantryman's full-field pack. It's the basic carrier. It is known as the combat pack. It has a harness which fits over the individual's shoulders and keeps it attached to his back. The inside is waterproofed and contains the individual's toilet articles, his socks, his handkerchief, and other personal possessions. Now attached to that is the cartridge belt. This belt houses the ammunition that the rifleman carries. For instance, a clip of eight rounds goes in one of these little pockets. The holes on the bottom are for other articles to be attached, one of which is the first aid pack. This fits on the cartridge belt, and inside is the first aid pack. We'll just take a look and see what's in here. It's a package of sterile dressing, which is used by the man in the event that he becomes hit and will require some first aid. Attached also to the cartridge belt is the bayonet. This is a scabbard. It's attached to the cartridge belt at this point. The bayonet and these are the places here where the bayonet is attached to the rifle itself. Also on the cartridge belt is the canteen cover. The canteen which holds roughly a quart of water, it's made of aluminum, and the canteen cup. The canteen cup is used by the individual in eating and drinking. Now, in addition, we have the mess kit which the individual carries in another article which I'll show you. This has two compartments for dessert and soup, and has the knife, fork, and spoon, all of which collapses and makes a neat package which goes in the individual's pack. We have here, next, the infantryman's friend, the entrenching tool. This also connects to the cartridge belt. This can be used as a shovel in this particular position, or it can be used as a pick when broken like this. It fits into a neat pack and is carried on the man's back on the combat pack. The helmet itself is made up of two parts, the steel portion and the liner. Now, the liner is where the adjustments are made to fit the individual's head. This is made of plastic and is worn normally in camps, poster stations, and when there is no combat. The steel portion, of course, is used when the bullets are flying. This has many uses, can be used as a bucket and carrying water, and it is used as more or less of a wash basin by the men in the front lines. We have the raincoat which goes in the pack of excellent material and very hard to wear out. Last but not least, but one of the largest items, is the cargo pack. Now in the cargo pack, the individual carries a shelter half, or if you will, a half of a tent. He, with another man, getting together, farm a whole tent, and two men live in this tent when they're out in the field. One pole, and here are four or five tent pins to help put his portion of the shelter half up. He carries in here his blanket. Well, here it is, ladies and gentlemen, in one big display. I'm sure you'll agree with me that our rifleman is the best-equipped man, fighting man in the world. In that connection, I am positive that if our men are properly trained, if he is properly led, and in the event that he can develop a pride of unit, individually and collectively, besides being the best-equipped, he's the best fighting man in the world. Well, now that we've taken a look at what goes on the man's back in combat, let's take a look at what he wears in his stomach. In other words, combat rations. I plan to show you two types of rations, combat rations. I'd like you to remember that the soldier in Garrison eats a regular normal diet, and these rations are designed to carry into combat. The first of these is the food packet individual assault ration. It has, I might say, that it's designed to take a man through one meal. It has, in this particular instance, a packet, which I'll show you the contents of later, a can of cookies and crackers, and a beef and pork loaf. Now, inside of the packet is a series of articles that goes along with the ration. First, there's the plastic little bag to carry cigarettes and keep articles dry in. There is the fuel, which heats the meat loaf. Here is a jelly bar, which is for dessert. Two cups of sonnable coffee and the accompanying granulated sugar. A package of matches and a package of cigarettes, which contains four cigarettes. A small roll of toilet tissue, a stick of chewing gum, and last but not least, a little bottle for the purification of water. It contains chlorine tablets. Now, whereas the assault ration was designed to take care of a man for one meal, the combat ration C, which I have here, a box, is designed to take care of a man in combat for one day. Let me show you the contents of this box. There are a total of eight cans, three cans of basic menus for each meal. For instance, corned beef hash, meat and beans with tomato sauce, hamburger with gravy, and a can of fruit in this instance, pineapple. Now there are four other cans, and they contain the following. Here it matches, cigarettes, sonnable milk, coffee, sugar, a can opener, toilet tissue, chlorine tablets, chewing gum, and again, of course, a plastic wrapper. The other cans contain the same thing, four crackers, sonnable milk, granulated sugar, sonnable coffee, and a cake of cocoa, which can be eaten or it can be used as a beverage, and three cans of jam. Now this is the combat ration C designed to take care of one man for one day. If I've made any of you hungry, the Army Recruiting Office is just down the street, I'm sure. Well, next week, ladies and gentlemen, we're going to bring you the first cavalry and the 41st Infantry Divisions. We're also going to show you the many weapons that the infantry must know how to use in combat. So until we meet again, ladies and gentlemen, this is Colonel Quinn speaking for the combat infantrymen who ask you to look twice at the man who wears the blue badge. It's the mark of a man. The Big Picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the Army at home and overseas. Produced by the Signal Corps Pictorial Center. Presented by the U.S. Army in cooperation with this station. You can be an important part of the Big Picture. You can proudly serve with the best equipped, the best trained, the best fighting team in the world today. The United States Army.