Is this the road to Rome?

[Walt's Daughter]

Dave Wagner, 39th Engineer sent this to me for use in my book. Another great story.

 

IS THIS THE ROAD TO ROME?

 

After we pushed off from the beachhead there were 2 terrible

weeks of battle in the Velletri Gap. However on the night of

June 3rd, 1944 we were told that the Germans were pulling out

and that we would be able to roll into Rome, which was only

about 25 or 30 miles away.

 

The heavy weapons squad of the Second Platoon were all in

our half track and we started rolling out some time just before

midnight along with the rest of "F" Company. About an hour or

two later we found that we had separated from the rest of the

company and had to find our own way to catch up with the

company and join them in Rome.

 

We were not travelling on a regular highway, just little dirt roads

and travelling crosscountry when to our amazement we came

to what appeared to be a very magnificent highway running in

the same direction that we were headed in. We estimated this

concrete slab to be a highway. But we had never seen a road

as wide as this one. We figured it was 70 or 80 feet wide. Very

unusual but since it had a solid white line painted down the

middle we thought for sure that this was one of Mussolini's new

improvements. What else could it be?

 

We started up this highway running very slowly when after

going about 1/4 of a mile or so we heard the unmistakeable

chatter of a machine gun and the white traces came terribly

close to us. Discretion being the better part of valor we made a

quick right turn and got off and started crosscountry. We

weren't sure what kind of rear guard action this was. It might

even have been a tank. But as we departed we happened to

notice some large buildings with arched roofs and it finally

dawned on us that these buildings looked like airplane hangars.

Sooo....putting two and two together we figured we must have

been on a runway of the Rome Airport.

 

We kept running without further incident until some time after

dawn we saw the Tiber River and started running alongside of

it. This gave me a great idea. I told Ronnie, our weapons

Sergeant, that I would like to pull down to the river and stop

there so I could take a bath. When he asked me why, I said,

"None of us have taken a real shower or bath since we landed

on the beachhead. " He laughed and said, "O.K. If that's what

you want, let's do it." So our driver, Arie, took the halftrack

down along the edge of the river where three of us got out and I

got undressed and jumped into the river to bathe myself. I

thought it would be a pleasant experience but when I hit the

water, it felt like I had jumped into the middle of Antartica where

the water was about 150 degrees below zero. I got out just as

fast as I jumped in and didn't care whether I had a bath or not.

 

Just as I finished dressing we saw a slight movement in a

clump of bushes very close by. We grabbed our rifles to find

out what it was and out came a German officer in full uniform.

He was a Major and spoke English. I asked him what he was

doing there and where was his sidearm. He said that after four

months on the beachhead and two weeks in the Veletrie Gap it

was time for him to surrender to the Americans so that he

would live to get back to Germany and see his wife and

children. He said he had thrown away his revolver.

 

I said to him that it was a smart thing that he did that because

Germany was kaput. He said, "Not a big thing. We'll wait 25

years and then do it again." He also said that they could have

conquered the whole world this time if they only had two things

that we had. When Ronnie asked him what were the two

things, he said, "The shoulder machine gun." Here he was

referring to our M1 rifles. The Germans really hated that

because it could be fired so quickly. The other thing was the

American soldier. He said, "The German soldier will do

anything we tell him to, but he must be told to do it. With the

Americans it's different. When you shoot the leader, they still

keep on doing. They don't have to be told."

 

Now he infuriated me to such a degree that I was boiling inside.

He said, "You Americans are good sports. Just give me three

minutes to go and then come after me with your vehicle."

 

As angry as I was I didn't let it show but I said to Ronnie, "Why

not, let's let him go." Ronnie looked at Arie, Arie looked at me

and we both looked at Ronnie who looked at me and then

broke out in a big grin all over his face. He said, "No Dave. I

won't let him go." I asked him, "why not?" and he answered

me, "I can read your mind and I won't let you do it."

 

We put the prisoner in the half track and proceeded further

where we finally found the main highway and shortly found a

jeep with 2 MP's to whom we turned over the prisoner and as

unlikely as it was we found the rest of "F" Company on our way

and we all pulled into Rome together just in time to see the

population jumping for joy and women and girls bringing us

flowers and containers of nuts. We had finally made it to

Rome.