 Infantry Division, the Red One, whose fighting men saw the war through from D-Day North Africa to V-E-Day Germany. Those combat boots, polished now for occupation duty, slogged through eight campaigns and three amphibious landings. But units of the first fought as far back as the Revolution to preserve the Union in the Civil War were first in combat in World War One, when those units were combined into a regular Army Division. Then in 41 there came from all walks of life a new generation of recruits. Boy, do I remember breaking in them first GI's shoes. We learned quick it was a fighting outfit from that rugged training we got here and overseas. Still when we left England along in 42, we felt pretty good. Had a swell CG, Terry Allen, a fighting general. We liked him, and he liked us. So the outfit relaxed, had some fun. Till on a chilly November dawn with the coast of North Africa out there in the dark, we knew action was close. Everyone tightened up, waiting for the water or the feeling in my stomach when they opened up on us. In three days Oran was ours. Easy. Too easy. We thought we knew what war was like, but Jerry taught us different. Those dirty 88s, tough school pal, the kind you got to work your way through. Damn near flunked out at the Casserine. But we learned the score, started to teach Jerry a few things out of our book. We rammed our way back to Gapsa and down Rummel's throat at El Guitare. Where we tore up his cracked 10th Panzer Division. Then we swung north to mature. Inching artillery, hidden mines, walls of machine gun fire. Meanwhile, Montgomery's 8th Army cracked the Marath line. When we shook hands with his patrols, it was over the corpse of Rummel's army. After Tunisia, the crazy rumor got around that we were going to load on boats for home. We loaded on boats, all right. But for Sicily, which, believe me, was no place like home. This time the beachhead was plenty rough. But after we broke through, the Red One moved fast. Took 18 towns in 37 days. But to take it, we had to stop and slug it out in the mountains all along the way. Like Troyner. Pretty mountain town. But after 21, yeah, 21, Jerry Counter attacks. It looked like this. We won, all right. We paid.