Newspaper Page Text
Thursday, April 13, 1944
It Was His Job
To Stand Up, Draw
Jap Fire At Gona!
rive or six times a day, during the fierce fighting for
Gona Point on New Guinea, it was Pvt. Noble Deavers' job
as a scout to stand up and draw the Jap fire so that his plat
oon could locate the enemy snipers and machine-gunners.
Except for getting his ears burned he always managed to
flatten out unhurt and ready to
crawl forward to another spot
where he’d start all over
But once at Buna—when he
didn't want to draw anybody’s
fire—he stood up to make a
dash for a cocoanut tree and
then he got it—a dum-dum bul
let in each leg.
GOT 25 JAPS
When he crawled back to his
buddies and finally was evacuat
ed he went out of action for the
but
first time in two months.
Don't worry,” says Deavers, "I
got enough Japs to make up for
my wounds.” Ha estimates that
he accounted for at least 25 Japs
—just the 25 that he knows are
definitely dead.
From the very first day that he
landed in Australia in the spring
of 1942 the six-foot-two, 200
Deavers had heavy combat work
cut out for him. He was picked
to attend a special scout school
and spent three months learning
how to lead patrols and compan
ies to the enemy without the en
emy knowing about it in ad
vance. Right after he got his
diploma for map-reading and
compass work he was picked to
attend another three months'
course in Commando School.
SERIOUS TRAINING
"It was kinda rough,” Deavers
admits. “No holds were barred
in our training—we really slug
ged it out when we practised
capturing command posts and
knocking out sentries." Except
for a sprained ankle, though,
Deavers wound up the course in
good shape and eager to get
close enough to a Jap to beat him
at his own game—jujitsu.
He was with the first Infantry
troops to land on New Guinea,
Lutheran S. C. Intimate
Meeting Place For Gls
A little more like home." is
the way a serviceman recently
described the Lutheran Service
Center in Columbus, where the
prevailing policy is to provide
a small, intimate meeting and
recreation place for soldiers,
their friends and families Un
denominational, like most cen
ters in town, the Lutheran Ser
vice Center has entertained more
than 55,000 Gls and WACs since
it was established on Broadway
in June, 1941.
While some centers are open
only evenings or only on week
ends, the Lutheran Center is o
pen all day, a unique service
made possible by the fact that
the Lutheran Church of Ameri
ca has sent two full-time pastors
to Columbus to operate one of
the 67 centers maintained near
military installations throughout
the country. The Rev. Alfred G.
Rausch left his congregation in
Radlyn, la., almost three years
ago to establish the Columbus
Center. He has recently been
joined by The Rev. Otto D. Mey
er, of Kansas City, Mo. Togeth
er they act as hosts for all vis
itors, and as advisors or chap
lains if so requested. Since
there is no Lutheran chaplain
on the post, Rev. Rausch and
Rev Meyer are frequently in-
Orientation Office
Puts Welcome
Mat Out For EM
Have you any good ideas that
you believe should be included
in the orientation program?
Would you like to consult up
to-date battle maps, or tell the
orientation officer about your
experiences overseas?
Lt. John Mayer, regimental
orientation officer, has invited
all Academics to drop in to his
office near Company C to study
the large maps set up there which
show the latest changes in the
battle lines. He is also interested
in hearing more about what the
enlisted men would like includ
ed in the orientation hour each
week
Men with combat experience
provide the most interesting ma
terial for company orientation
meetings, the lieutenant says,
and he hopes that more battle
veterans volunteer to talk on the
programs and answer questions
of men who can profit by their
experiences.
just seven miles behind the en
gineers who had contacted the
Japs in “Death Valley.” From
his first moment of action—
“which at first sounded like a
big Fourth of July"—Deavers
pulled his human clay pigeon
act. Everytime he stood up he
drew a volley of bullets, and
then when it quieted down again
he'd crawl to a new spot and
invite more trouble. The bullets
came close enough to singe his
ears, but the 200 Japs who got
shot down out of the trees by
ted to perform services for Luth
erans at Benning. Lutheran men
in the hospital have frequently
expressed the desire to take com
munion in their own faith, and
one of the Center pastors has al
ways been available for this and
other services for Gls here and
in town.
The Center itself consists of a
large recreation room and a pri
vate office. While soldiers will
be singing around the piano,
reading, playing ping-pong or
other games in the main room,
other Gls take their problems in
to the pastor's study. Since the
Center is open all day, many
soldiers arrange to meet their
guests there. The Center orders
thousands of letterheads and en
velopes each year to satisfy the
needs of men who come there
to write letters.
So broad are the religious ser
vices performed by the Center
that soldiers of any denomina
tion can get information there
about pastors of their own faiths;
consultations have frequently
been arranged between ministers
of other churches and soldiers
who have requested religious in
formation at the Center. Wor
ship services for Lutheran sol
diers are held each Sunday eve
ning.
REGIMENTAL MIRROR
YES. RIGHT THERE. AND IT WAS A TOUGH FIGHT! SOME INFANTRY
School men of C Company. Academic Regiment, consult a map to look up the places where
their new company mate, Pvt. Noble Deavers (standing) fought Japs on New Guinea. (Left
to right) Pvt. Louis Letsche. Pfc. Stanley Czubat. Pvt. Deavers, and Sgt. Joseph Karasek.
(Official U. S. Army Signal Corps Photoi.
his ctAnpany that day more than
paid for his discomfort.
At Buna Mission he finally got
his own say about shooting the
enemy. He came upon a group
of five Japs about 40 yards a
head
“I had to fire my Ml as fast as
an automatic," Deavers says,
“but I got all five of them. Just
six bullets. When we advanced
I verified the fact that they were
all dead—from then on I felt
much better.”
His next assignment was to go
out on patrol with a platoon that
had the good fortune to stumble
upon a whole village of Japs
who were totally unprepared for
attack With a tommy-gun he
personally accounted for 20 Japs
and other men in the platoon
had just as good hunting that
day, Deavers claims.
PINNED DOWN
When they moved on to Buna
there was no need for his stand
ing up to draw fire, so Deavers
was in the ranks as a rifleman.
THE LUTHERAN SERVICE
Center, two blocks north of the
Howard Bus Station, invites all
Gls“and WACs to “make the Cen
ter your headquarters whenever
you are in downtown Columbus.”
A record player, a piano, ping
pong tables, lounge chairs and
writing and game tables are a
mong the features which make the
Center a good place for comfort,
relaxation and recreation.
His squad got pinned down by a
machine-gun and Deavers was
ordered to crawl up and toss a
grenade in the nest. He was
New Summer
Uniform To Be
Issued To WACs
The War Department has
just announced that enlisted
members of the Women's Army
Corps will be issued a summer
uniform of khaki tropical
worsted. They will continue to
wear the khaki cotton twill
uniform while on duty, how
ever, with the new uniform
reserved for off-duty dress.
The tropical worsted uniform
is similar to the summer uni
form worn by WAC officers,
the only difference being that
the enlisted uniform does not
have khaki braid on the sleeve
cuff. There is no change in
enlisted WAC insignia.
PAGE THREE
creeping through a swamp when
he decided that the bullets were
coming closer and that he’d bet
ter make a dash for a nearby co
cocoanut tree. He was brought
down after going only a few feet.
“I lay still for a while,” he
recalls, “and then I crawled back
to one of my buddies. He gave
me a sulfanilamide powder and
some cold coffee and went back
for the medics.”
Deavers was married as soon
as he got back to the states, and
his wife now resides in Galeys
ville, Ala., where he plans to
open up his own night club af
ter the war. With his Comman
do training, and his pre-war ex
perience as a guard at the Du-
Pont plant in Charleston, Ind.,
he feels that he will have no
need to hire a bouncer.
At present he is a member of
a heavy weapons demonstration
crew in the Weapons Section of
The Infantry School. His Com
pany C mates expect that any
day he'll be getting the Purple
Heart from Washington.
