 This is The Big Picture, an official television report of the United States Army, produced for the armed forces and the American people. Now to show you part of The Big Picture, here is Master Sergeant Stuart Quain. To anyone who is around in those exciting days of World War I, when the victorious troops were coming home to parades up Fifth Avenue and Main Streets throughout the country, the name 42nd Rainbow Division. Rings a bell loud and clear. In World War II as well, the 42nd Division contributed to the victory in Europe, and nowadays the hallowed insignia of the Rainbow is worn by the crack 42nd Division of the New York National Guard. Our story today covers an exciting span of eventful years, as it looks up at the men of the Rainbow, the fighting 42nd Infantry Division. I had a long drive to make that day, but there was one stop I wanted to make first. It was my first visit to a monument in a small park in Garden City, Long Island, a suburb of New York City. The monument is dedicated to the men of the Rainbow, the 42nd Division of World War I. You see, this morning I was on my way to the New York National Guard Officer candidate school, and if all went well before too long, I'd be an officer in the 42nd Division. All of us in the 42nd know a lot about the history of our outfit, and why shouldn't we? We're proud of our record from the time the Division was formed in the late summer of 1917 at Camp Mills, Long Island. In the very shadow of the monument I'd come to visit. Camp Mills. Old Rainbow men had often told me of those early days. They'd come to those wind-battered tents on Long Island in August 1917 from all over the country. The Division was composed of crack National Guard units from 26 states and the District of Columbia. The many states of the Union, the many colors and shades of thought and points of view brought together here all inspired the name Rainbow Division. Across the Atlantic, the Allies were waiting anxiously as the men of the 42nd concluded their training. Then they were ready to set sail for over there. Through the gray mists that covered the Atlantic in the winter of 1917, the convoy plowed on toward Europe in a raging war. On the decks they sang hymns of prayer and songs of their country loudly, exuberantly, as if to emphasize the words of one of those songs, and we won't come back till it's over, over there. Off the ships and directly toward the front went the men of the Rainbow, covering a good deal of the way on foot. In those days when trucks were few and far between and all day's march was taken as a matter of course. Once in the assembly area at Rollampont, training was resumed with the assistance of French soldiers and officers who had already spent much time in frontline combat. A training course was set up in the use of the Stokes mortar. Grenade practice was emphasized and throughout the freezing winter of 17 and 18, final maneuvers were pushed hard. Then came the review before moving into the lines. The Rainbow men didn't know it then, but they were never to be pulled out of those front lines for an extended period until the war's end. In mid-February they were ordered into positions on the Lorraine Front at a place known as Lunaville. Now years later looking at the monument in the Long Island Park, the Valor displayed at Lunaville, Baccarat, Swain Champagne, so many other battles small and large. The Valor comes alive as if it were yesterday. In my mind's eye, I can almost see the quiet before a fight as the men took up their positions in the trenches. Waiting for orders to move forward into Nomad's land or to repel a German advance. The waiting sometimes went on for days and full alert had to be maintained night and day. Watch was kept for enemy gas or airplane attacks. Patrols scouted the enemy front and when they came in others went out. While a division headquarters at an old chateau, Chief of Staff Colonel Douglas MacArthur estimated the probable course of the fighting and made his recommendations to the commanding general. There was no such convenience as a chow home. Hot food was carried up to the lines and eaten by men who remained in position. Minutes in the front line seemed like hours at first and then gradually assumed normal proportion. After a while, waiting in the trenches seemed like a way of life. The men became used to the silence, the here required. Then suddenly the Germans would attack. Samuel, the tide of war swung gradually irresistibly from the defensive to the offensive. At Champagne Marne, units from the 42nd Division aided the French in completely repulsing the enemy attack. The lines of German prisoners were soon being escorted toward rear areas. They in Marne and San Miel, the 42nd went into the offensive moving forward despite heavy enemy resistance. The Germans were of course the chief obstacles but the swollen streams and hip-deep mud of a rampaging nature made each day's advance an exhausting effort. The word times of course when the men could relax a bit. Almost magically they'd appear from below and let the friendly warming sun play over them. They caught up on their mail and answered eager relatives who wanted to know how it was. It wasn't easy to tell them. They were the inevitable card games. Soldiers learned quickly who the sharks were and avoided them. In pocket-sized form the great book continued to be a source of spiritual strength. Pets were adopted. Meet the crow mascot of Company K, 167th Infantry. Sometimes when off duty the rainbow men would visit neighboring towns and watch the French at work or perhaps play a call on a family. Instead of the angry bellow of the big guns it was good to hear the happy sound of laughter. In France you make Bonomy good friends in all sorts of ways. Giving a young hitchhiker lift is one. On several occasions Secretary of War Newton Baker visited the 42nd. Coincidentally one of the young officers with a rainbow was Lieutenant Wilbur Brucker of the Ohio Regiment, later to be Secretary of the Army. Many rainbow men in future years to become nationally prominent distinguished themselves in combat. Among them was the decorated hero Major William better known as Wild Bill Donovan. But the devil's fortune that his war also snuffed out the lives of many men before they had a chance to carve out civilian careers. 2,950 rainbow division men were killed in combat during World War One and whenever they could the men of the rainbow paused to pay homage to their fallen comrades. A sadly familiar sight to the men of the 42nd a flag draped coffin and a burial in the warm black earth of France where chaplains like the famous father Duffy said the last rites. It is to departed heroes like these that this monument is dedicated to them and to the more fortunate who made it through all the fierce fighting till the armistice. Occupation duty sent the 42nd on the move into Germany. The march was difficult for both men and animals covering a distance of about 250 kilometers. But the rainbow moved on steadily in close knit and solid columns. Certainly the German kids were glad the war was over. Happily life was easier in the occupation mostly guard duty along the banks of the Rhine River. On March 16th 1919 the final big event before the departure from Europe the commander in chief of army forces in Europe general John J. Pershing made a formal review of the division at remark across the Atlantic they came their mission accomplished the enemy rock. They had helped make the world safer democracy and if it didn't work out that way it wasn't the rainbows for through their minds world vivid memories of a fighting the laughing moments and the sad ones. Then with a solemn vow never to forget their buddies living and dead who had shared the past they turned toward the future and the cheering welcoming beacons of home many years have passed now since the rainbow first came home from France hoping the 42nd had seen the last of the horrors of war a hope of course that didn't quite work out for in December of 1944 the ruins of Europe were witnessed to a new generation of rainbow the Germans had pulled out retreating toward the east leaving devastation in their hasty flight and on arrival it looked like the rainbow division had been sent over just to do the cleanup job like so much other army gossip it couldn't have been more wrong because shortly after their arrival the Germans struck back in the battle of the bulge following the German withdrawal the rainbow infantry helped stop the last German offensive in the west near Strasbourg. The post baptism of fire had been on the defensive now it was going to shift to the offensive in an advance it was not to stop until the division reached the border of Austria at the end of the war at 0645 on March 15th 1945 the rainbow attack began as the men of the 42nd smashed into the heart's mouth the area of the division advance was probably the most rugged of the entire front it was entirely wooded the mountains were high steep just walking through them on a hiking trip would be difficult enough the forest and mountains was an engineer's war as well as an infantry man engineers worked feverishly to clear roads of mines and haul away the hundreds of huge trees the retreating Germans had barricaded across every road and trail by March 21st the rainbow men had pierced the Siegfried line now the Germans were on the run and here was the opportunity to catch them day and night the big guns of the artillery hammered at the fleeing Germans on and on into German tank after tank and convoy after convoy roared through the German countryside as the rainbow man headed for Würzburg one of the oldest cities in southern Germany where the Germans were organizing a last ditch defense the division cleared the area and raced on towards Schweinfurt center of the Nazi ball bearing industry kill attacks first pounded Schweinfurt then the infantry moved into the city working warily clearing out hostile elements block by block it was a tough and exhausting grind it felt good once in a while to sit down against a pile of rubble and just take a breather rounded up in the city and its outskirts were 3 000 prisoners which made a total of 6 680 German soldiers captured by the rainbow since it left Würzburg during the same time the division cleared 100 square miles of Nazi territory and captured 50 towns and villages immediately after the capture of a community military government orders were posted and an all-out effort was made to get the life of the city going once more the parade of German towns continued from Nuremberg toward Munich the Nazis had fought a rare guard action briefly defending then retreating to the next hot in pursuit came the rainbow man they were now heading directly south from Munich for the last serious obstacle overcome the root of their advance headed directly toward the most famous of all German horror prisons the concentration camp of Dachau as the 42nd division liberated the prison but 33 000 inmates went wild with joy some yelled hysterically but most just smiled they knew and americans were to find the sorted proof here that thousands of men women and children had been systematically murdered they were weak and sick but alive and that was why they smiled citizens were busy hanging white flags from their windows as they on the move 42nd advanced into Munich birthplace of the Nazi party there was little organized resistance the general feeling was that the war was over so much the better the city itself was battered by bombs and the streets were choked by rubble the railroad yards were almost completely destroyed the station was only a rusted skeleton of twisted steel the first job of the rainbow men as they moved through the city was to restore some semblance of order in the center of the city was the beer cellar where hitler had organized the Nazi party in a sense the american units marching past the birthplace of the Nazi party represented the end to a grotesque tragic chapter in the history of the world the war was over a few days later not long afterwards on the famous kernix plots the munich parade grounds where the ss had marched so proudly before thousands of admiring germans the rainbow division took part in the moving ceremony the occasion was the return of a drum recovered by the seventh army to the scottish fifth battalion gordon hylanders were lost at at duncurt parade loving germans waited for hours to see the ceremony men of the 42nd division served occupation duty in the austrian tiro at zelem z a 42nd division college was established with an enrollment of 400 men selected from among the 8 000 high school graduates in the division the credits they earned would be recognized by american universities and colleges equipment was secured from austrian and german universities from stocks of captured enemy material from nazi laboratories and factories and the soldiers put it to good use at their new alma mater rainbow university soon many of them would be on their way home for discharge for the second time the fighting days of the 42nd were over it wasn't exactly strange that i kept thinking about rainbow university as i left the monument and the little garden city park school was very much on my mind this morning i was on my way to the new york national officer candidate school and also on my way i hope toward a commission as a second lieutenant with a 42nd division at camp smith near pigskill new york the new york national guard runs what is really a leadership school my company commander had selected me to attend the officer candidate program here so that i might qualify for that commission in the rainbow division now one of the units of the new york national guard i had driven for almost three hours and it felt good finally to get out of the car and report in along with the officer candidates were men arriving from all over the state for the non-commissioned officers academy of the new york national guard all of us new camp smith was only the first step toward becoming a qualified commissioned or non-commissioned officer we had no illusions it takes much much more than two weeks to make an officer what the camp smith training is designed to do is develop a sense of duty and responsibility qualities like integrity loyalty discipline that make a leader of men judged by the speed of the processing when we arrived it seemed as though the school could hardly wait to put us through the paces no time was wasted in checking our records in a nearby supply room we were issued the books and equipment needed for the two weeks they would get a good workout before we turned them back after signing on the dotted line we headed up toward the living area i knew it was coming now there's a kind of tradition that new arrivals are welcomed in a certain special way two fellows were walking up ahead when i heard the greeting thrown at them i swallowed hard and prepared for the worst hold mister stop that bag i said drop it mister i didn't say a hundred dollars pick up that bag get over there outside your miserable looking buddy over there get over there speak to me mr people's why do you dickie bird or something no sir you're going to be part of your dickie bird you start jumping if you're a man you start sound on it get out of here oh mister where are you going no it's a thing of bias place what are you a wise guy or something speak to me you little dickie bird you me silent look your front get your beady eyes front and center are you wise no sir if you're wise we'll put you out in the woods with the other owls you got that get out of my sight post the hazing of course is kind of half serious intended as just an indication of the we mean business discipline at camp smith i just about had time to get into my uniform when we were out on the parade ground for some up to three four practice coming as we did from different outfits throughout the state it took us a while to put some order in a close order drill but we caught on fast from then on it was one activity after the next and of course designed to get the most out of us we did a lot of individual weapons work much of it on the rifle range my target was a commission with a rainbow and the 96 hours of instruction in basic military subjects at camp smith would start me on the right road a variety of combat equipment is available for on the spot demonstrations but the bulk of the work was directed at cramming an awful lot of information into our heads after lectures the questions came thick and fast i have a question gentlemen is it correct to command the unit to march to the flank from the hall candidate mercy sir candidate mercy oh sir that is incorrect that command must be given while the unit is in march with the exception that the command may be given from a halt for instructional purposes thank you candidate mercy in our bull sessions we had no time to talk about how the Yankees were doing it was all it says here in the manual any spare time we had was devoted to reviewing the day's work and preparing for exams going to meals at camp smith is always something of an event a marching band accompanies us every step of the way it's amazing how band music puts nap in your step quickly teaches a group of men how to move along in perfect unison it perks up the appetite too they have an inviting-looking swimming pool at camp smith but as i recall i had only one opportunity to take a quick dip and not by choice mind you there was just never any spare time those two weeks shot by like a couple of hours and all at once we were on the parade grounds overlooking the hudson river and a final parade and pass and review as modestly as i can let me quickly report that yours truly won an award for his record at the school all that boning up for exams had paid off i felt good as the president of the academic board of the officer candidate school congratulated me yes i was really riding high because i had the feeling in a small way of course this was the start of my contribution to the glory of the 42nd rainbow and on my mind all the time i was marching with the men of the new york national guard on every side was the monument i had visited on my way to camp smith sure it was a monument to the 42nd rainbow all right but it was really a tribute to the courage and loyalty of all those who have fought for america in the past and who are training and ready to do it again if necessary yes it is a tribute to our whole country because made up of all creeds all colors all walks of life the rainbow division is america colorful shoulder patch of the rainbow is now carried proudly by the 42nd division of the new york national guard these men have reasons to be proud reasons spelled out in glorious victories won the sacrifices and the deeds of bravery by the men who have borne the rainbow into the fire and heat of battle now this is sergeant steward queen inviting you to be with us again next week for another look at the big picture the big picture is an official television report for the armed forces and the american people produced by the army pictorial center presented by the united states army in cooperation with this station