With Second Division In Front Of Orsogna

Northern Advocate, 17 January 1944, Page 2

With Second Division In Front Of Orsogna

(Official N.Z.E.F.'War Correspondent) DIVISIONAL H.Q., January 10. The tepid sun had thawed what in the morning had been an ice-bound road into a slushy mess of deeply rutted day, as last evening I set off in a jeep to see how the forward troops were faring. I arrived in time to see the containers of a hot meal being loaded on mules for transport to infantry positions. it was quiet enough then at that spot but it was not advisable to take the jeep any further. .Enemy-held Orsogna looked uncomfortably close, so close that one had on uncanny feeling of every movement being watched from those hundreds of windows and from a battered tower which dominates the town buildings. BelotV the town a haystack was burning. The quiet was broken only by occasional shellfire from a gully behind

us. . . 1 trailed along behind the mules with a captain who had been a Taranaki, Canterbury and Southland representative Rugby footballer. He was more eager to talk of mutual friends than of the fierce fighting which has gained for the New Zealanders positions over the ridge. Carried a White Cross We were joined by a padre. There was no need to ask his. mission. He carried a white cross with black lettering under his arm. We spoke quietly, not because of the enemy but because it seemed to fit in with the surroundings. Snow lay deep on the ploughed land. The light from a nearly full moon was much like that cast by a mercury street light. The only sign of life was the struggling muies ahead of us with their escorts. A tank had left great ruts now filled with treacherously soft snow. We stopped at battalion headquarters to speak, for a few minutes, with the colonel and his officers. They cheerfully told us there had been a lot of enemy mortar fire during the day. By this time we could hear plenty ourselves. but it was mostly to the right and left. \ Mostly Eerie Quiet The mules had disappeared when we started off' again. Our boots crunching through the snowerust made a disturbing lot of noise. When we did talk it was in whispers, for it was necessary then. A quiet, but firm, challenge brought us to a halt:, and we gave the password and went on. We were being watched every inch of the way but it was by our own men. Mortar bombs cracked fiercely as they landed in groups of half a dozen or so somewhere behind us. Our medium machine-guns occasionally sent torrents of bullets into the enemy’s positions and as often, enemy tracers flashed back through the night. Our artillery, too, spoke up at times with many guns, but mostly there was just an eerie quiet. We were challenged often, for men were on the alert against enemy patrols which several times had tried to penetrate our lines. Wo reached some forward infantry. In low voices they asked for news of the war. How the Russian advance was progressing, and what was hap( polling on the coast. They were tired under the constant strain, but sounded to be in good spirits—the weather had been fine for a couple of days and that helped. Their main concern at the time was.' that at any moment they might catch a glimpse of white-clad enemy figures. Dogs, too, were to be shot on sight. I was told that. the Germans were using trained dogs to lead them in to vital points in our lines. ‘Spantlau Alley”

The padre returned and we started back, passing on the way patrols setting off. “Goodnight and good luck,” were the greetings . exchanged. Enemy mortar fire was fierce now and our machineguns and artillery were firing strongly. "That's Spandau Alley we have just come through." remarked the captain accompanying me as we reached the back slopes o£ the ridge. He was referring to an area favoured as a target by enemy machine-gunners. He had not mentioned it on the way up. The mules were already back when we arrived at the point from which we had started. There had been no casualties and many tired and hungry men forward were happier for their trip.