them level the Bouffers and fire horizontally into the woods with Lt. Bauer doing the adjusting. Though
the results were never known, at least it stopped Heinie from running around out in the open and
attacking Headquarters Battery position.
After everything had quieted down around Lucquenieux we moved two and one half miles to
Trieuy. A large settlement of Polish miners were working here, and a few of the men in the Battalion
who could speak the language had a little celebration to break the monotony of speaking English. The
country was becoming more hilly, with occasional pillboxes cropping up, apparently we were getting
into the old Maginot line wherein France had placed her hopes, only to be overrun in 39 days
On the thirteenth we moved to the vicinity of Veremerange, close to the Moselle River and the
German border. Our mission was to clear the town of Thionville, or Diedenhoffen, as the Germans were
prone to call it. It was while in this position that heavy and continuous rains turned our battery positions
into quagmires. One battery pitched their tents, pup tents, inadequate at best in a dry creek bed until the
rains brought a small flood.
On the sixteenth a German, believed to be an artillery spotter, was discovered in an upstairs
apartment. Above the room where the battalion CP was located. He was immediately taken to the rear
P. W. Cage. A fine thing.
In cleaning up Thionville much loot in the form of Nazi flags and German equipment was found
by our forward party boys, who had well "established" themselves in the Hotel Metropole, using the
upper floors as an OP.
Patton's armor had struck towards Metz, elements of which had entered this well fortified city,
and though no heavy resistance had been met, had to withdraw because supplies could not be brought up
to them. All along the front the 3rd Army went into more or less static positions. Our Division was no
exception. We remained in Veremerange until the twenty-seventh.
On the afternoon of the twenty-seventh we moved through Briey, Jarny and Mars Le Tours
coming to a halt outside of Vionville, within 16,000 yards of Metz, but only a short distance from its too
big forts, Jeanne D'Arc and Driant. After a few days of moving around the Battalion finally became
settled in positions that afforded good firing positions and yet gave fair protection against the guns from
the German manned forts that "barked" almost every night. Rainy weather had followed us to this
position, making pools out of foxholes and lakes out of dugouts. On the twenty-ninth a new battery was
added to the battalion, "Dog" Battery, with Lt. Green as Commander. It consisted of three 10.5 cm
German guns. September 30th relieved some of the monotony for the fellows. Twenty-five percent
from each of the batteries were allowed into Giraumont for 24 hours of rest and relaxation, to shower,
sleep indoors, see a movie, or do what you please. "K" rations for the bill of fare. The showers were
located at the mines in the town. Individual tile stalls! As long as we were in Vionville we were
permitted this change from the sameness of battery duty.
Between October 2nd and November 1st, though there was no real fighting going on, the artillery
fired any missions that came in, for our FO teams were out and so were the Liaison Crews. Captain
Culp, Battalion Surgeon, was evacuated to England, and Captain William McConahey was transferred to
us from the 2nd Battalion, 357th Infantry. Sgt. D'Angelo was made a 2nd Lt. and went to Baker Battery.
Major Salisbury became our new S3, replacing Major Conn, who took over the Battalion Executive’s
job. Captain Andrews returned to us from England where he was convalescing after being wounded in
the battle of Foret de Mont Castre. For the past month and a half we had our true share of rain. Our Fire
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