On Desperate Ground

by Hampton Sides

  15 FATTENED FOR THE KILL

  “like a mining camp”: Leckie, March to Glory, 82.

  “a scene of magnificent beauty”: Owen, Colder Than Hell, 197.

  “one break we get from the winter”: Leckie, March to Glory, 43.

  “What casualties?”: See Shisler, For Country and Corps, 184.

  “stirring the air itself”: Olmstead, Coldest Night, 114.

  “It was shrewd of Smith”: Halberstam, Coldest Winter, 435.

  “as if he didn’t care”: Ibid.

  “utterly without fear”: Haig, Inner Circles, 44.

  “Their breath vaporized”: Ibid., 58.

  “hit the jackpot”: McGovern, To the Yalu, 94.

  “outstanding military achievement”: Almond is quoted in Weintraub, Christmas Far from Home, 32.

  killed by a Siberian tiger: Simmons, Frozen Chosin, 40.

  “ ‘vases of this kind’ ”: Haig, Inner Circles, 60.

  “a plush state of affairs”: Bowser is quoted in Russ, Breakout, 76.

  “spare as the Marine Corps itself”: Ibid., 185.

  “High in the bitter land”: Fehrenbach, This Kind of War, 199.

  “fattened up for the kill”: Author interview with Hector Cafferata, Venice, Florida, March 26, 2015.

  16 NEVER TOO LATE TO TALK

  “arrogant imperialist state”: For my description of the Chinese delegation’s appearance at the United Nations, I am indebted to the excellent account found in Spurr, Enter the Dragon, 239–45. Unless otherwise noted, my descriptions here come from Spurr.

  a “face-to-face struggle”: Ambassador Wu is quoted in Spurr, Enter the Dragon, 245.

  “A profound friendship”: New York Times, November 26, 1950.

  create a “constant din”: Spurr, Enter the Dragon, 240.

  a buffer zone along the Yalu: New York Times, November 26, 1950.

  “never too late to talk”: Ibid.

  “like flying blind”: Ibid.

  “The Great Appalachian Storm”: For my description of this historic tempest, I found these two articles especially helpful: Jeff Halverson, “In 1950, an Iconic Storm Blasted Through the Eastern U.S. at Thanksgiving,” Washington Post, November 22, 2017; and “The Great Appalachian Storm in Historical Context,” available on the National Centers for Environmental Information website (www.ncei.noaa.gov).

  17 NEVER A MORE DARING FLIGHT

  “massive compression envelopment”: See Manchester, American Caesar, 606.

  the “very audacity”: MacArthur, Reminiscences, 373.

  “couldn’t lie to the chief”: Manchester, American Caesar, 606.

  “I’ll stick with the plane”: Weintraub, MacArthur’s War, 233.

  “death grip of snow and ice”: MacArthur, Reminiscences, 373.

  “behind the enemy’s lines:” Ibid.

  “a merciless wasteland’: Ibid.

  “like gods in silver armor”: See Weintraub, Christmas Far from Home, 12.

  “phantom which casts no shadow”: Marshall is quoted in Manchester, American Caesar, 607.

  “the highest combat effectiveness”: Mao is quoted in Li, They Came in Waves, 75.

  “highly competent criminals”: Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 263.

  many of Song’s shaggy ponies: Ibid., 66.

  “as you would snakes”: Russ, Breakout, 81.

  “never seen a more daring flight”: Willoughby and Chamberlain, MacArthur: 1941–1951, 391.

  “a Greek hero of old”: Brady, Marines of Autumn, 49.

  BOOK THREE: THE RESERVOIR

  18 EASY FOR US, TOUGH FOR OTHERS

  “the plaything of the old men”: Olmstead, Coldest Night, 108.

  “Easy for us, tough for others”: Geer, New Breed, 278.

  a legendary Marine from Arkansas: My portrait of John Yancey and my description of his exploits on Hill 1282 are drawn largely from the Yancey Collection, on file at the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History. I’m grateful to the members of the Yancey family in Arkansas for generously providing further biographical materials. Also extremely helpful was John Yancey’s oral history, available on the Korean War Educator website (www.koreanwar-educator.org). Another helpful source is Yancey’s entry in the Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture, available at www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net. Finally, I’m indebted to accounts in four books: Wilson’s Retreat, Hell!, Hammel’s Chosin, Leckie’s March to Glory, and Russ’s Breakout.

  “learned his own lessons”: Fehrenbach, This Kind of War, 244.

  “before breakfast”: Parris Island Boot, June 15, 1951.

  “to decapitate me with a sword”: Yancey to Martin Russ, October 2, 1984, Yancey Collection, MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History.

  “we would follow him”: Wilson, Retreat, Hell!, 63.

  “the charisma and the steel nerve”: Marine Ray Walker, quoted in John Yancey’s memoirs, available on Korean War Educator (www.koreanwar-educator.org).

  “a kind of Valhalla complex”: James Claypool to Martin Russ, December 25, 1985, Yancey Collection, MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History.

  “die like Marines!”: Russ, Breakout, 31.

  “no chance of being free”: Mill, Principles of Political Economy.

  “country fella”: Russ, Breakout, 111.

  “rich, crazy Americans”: The account of this incident is richly detailed in the Yancey memoirs on Korean War Educator (www.koreanwar-educator.org). It is also found in Yancey to Martin Russ, October 2, 1984, Yancey Collection, MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History.

  the “platoon delinquent”: Russ, Breakout, 30.

  “Just do what I tell you”: Ibid., 138.

  19 BOON COMPANIONS

  “Their infantry is weak”: Portions of the Chinese pamphlet are quoted in Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 27.

  “candy ass”: Ibid., 25.

  “a well-kept grave”: Ibid.

  “hell of a good infantry officer”: Ibid.

  Pancho Villa’s banditos: See Douglas Martin, “W. E. Barber, 82, Medal Winner in Korea Siege,” New York Times, April 26, 2002.

  “Luck in combat is fickle”: Quoted in Barber’s obituary by Adam Bernstein, “Medal of Honor Winner William Barber Dies,” Washington Post, April 23, 2002.

  “Jesus Christ”: Unless otherwise noted, all battle narrative scenes concerning Hector Cafferata (including recollected dialogue) on Fox Hill derive from my own interviews with him in Venice, Florida, March 26, 2015. I also relied on a lengthy oral history, videotaped June 29, 2000, on file at the Marine Corps Historical Center, in Quantico, Virginia. I found The Last Stand of Fox Company, by Drury and Clavin, extremely helpful. My passages concerning Cafferata and Fox Hill were further enhanced by my personal interviews with three other Fox Hill veterans: Richard Bonelli, Bob Ezell, and Harry Burke.

  “put the bullet where it belongs”: Author interview with Cafferata.

  “The Marine thing”: Author interview with Cafferata.

  20 EASY COMPANY HOLDS HERE

  Son of a bitch, Marines: Geer, New Breed, 279.

  “a witches’ conference”: Ibid.

  “a lunatic’s delight”: Brady, Marines of Autumn, 192.

  “like a pack of mad dogs”: Russ, Breakout, 124.

  the snow had “come to life”: Ibid.

  “There was just so many”: Author interview with Robert Arias in San Diego, CA, on August 20, 2016.

  “Lay it on, Ray!”: Hammel, Chosin, 89.

  “Stay loose, Marines”: Russ, Breakout, 142.

  “Easy holds here!”: Fehrenbach, This Kind of War, 245.

  21 WHERE THE BULLET BELONGS

  “Someth
in’s happening”: As with chapter 19, unless otherwise noted, my account of Hector Cafferata’s fight on Fox Hill, including all recollected dialogue from the battlefield, is drawn from my own interviews with him.

  lubricated their weapons with whale oil: See Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 90.

  “chop suey sandbags”: Brady, Marines of Autumn, 144.

  “Kill or be killed”: Cafferata, quoted in his obituary by Sam Roberts, “Hector A. Cafferata, 86, Dies; Given Medal of Honor for Korea Heroics,” New York Times, April 14, 2016.

  22 GUNG-HO, YOU COWARDLY BASTARDS

  Private Stan Robinson lounged comfortably: Robinson’s return to the battlefield is captured in Leckie, March to Glory, 62.

  “Gung-ho, you cowardly bastards!”: Russ, Breakout, 145.

  cradled his eyeball: Yancey’s eye injury is described in Hammel, Chosin, 94, and Russ, Breakout, 148.

  “Christ, it’s Kennemore!”: Leckie, March to Glory, 64.

  A topographical map in his coat: During a filmed interview conducted on December 8, 1950, from his hospital bed in Japan, Yancey displayed the coat and map for the camera. See www.youtube.com/​watch?v=4if2XXnHJQw.

  23 WHEN THE LEAD IS FLYING

  “Was it this bad on Okinawa?”: This anecdote is from a videotaped oral history with Cafferata, on file at the Marine Historical Center, Quantico, Virginia.

  “You look like shit”: Author interview with Cafferata.

  “lower than whale shit”: Ibid.

  “They haven’t made the bullet”: Barber is quoted in Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 107.

  “Barber was cool”: Author interview with Richard Bonelli in Virginia Beach, VA, on October 15, 2016.

  one thousand casualties an hour: This statistic comes from Li, They Came in Waves, 84.

  shot him twice in the head: Author interview with Cafferata. This story is also vividly recounted in Leckie, March to Glory, 72.

  “tactical necessities”: Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 123.

  “hugging buddies”: This detail comes from Li, They Came in Waves, 87.

  24 A HOT RECEPTION

  “These people were here to stay”: Bowser is quoted in Russ, Breakout, 184.

  “a hot reception”: Ibid., 205.

  a “pesthouse”: Leckie, March to Glory, 76.

  “Maybe it’ll inspire us”: Ibid.

  “Apparently they were stunned”: Oliver Smith, “Oral History,” 222, General Oliver Smith Collection.

  “Until present situation clarifies”: Leckie, March to Glory, 76.

  “I halted the attack”: Oliver Smith, “Oral History,” 222, General Oliver Smith Collection.

  “to know when to retreat”: See Martin Chilton, “Were it not for Wellington, we’d be speaking French,” Telegraph, July 13, 2011, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/​culture/​books.

  “The inference was”: Smith, Korean War Log, 94, Box 34, General Oliver Smith Collection.

  “quite embarrassed about asking us”: Russ, Breakout, 229.

  “pretty much a bastard organization”: Shisler, For Country and Corps, 198.

  “left our perimeter dangerously vulnerable”: Russ, Breakout, 229.

  “stiffen the collective backbone”: Ibid., 195.

  “That man must be crazy”: Shisler, For Country and Corps, 198.

  “That’s impossible”: Appleman, East of Chosin, 106–8.

  “a bunch of goddamn Chinese laundrymen”: McGovern, To the Yalu, 125.

  “What a damned travesty”: Russ, Breakout, 197.

  an “exotic concert”: Ibid., 263.

  “a whole field got up on its feet”: Ibid., 206.

  “surf lapping on a beach”: Ibid., 208.

  “chattering of machine guns”: Smith, “Looking Back at Chosin.”

  a “witch’s clatter”: Leckie, March to Glory, 92.

  25 THE WAR COUNCIL

  “This headquarters is in a terrible slump”: Lt. Col. James Polk to his wife, Josephine Polk, December 9, 1950.

  “couldn’t just passively sit by”: Willoughby is quoted in Halberstam, Coldest Winter, 477.

  “not been taken by surprise”: Whitney, MacArthur, 420.

  “lost face not just before the entire world”: Halberstam, Coldest Winter, 475.

  Almond still held MacArthur’s torch: Stanton, America’s Tenth Legion, 232.

  26 AN ENTIRELY NEW WAR

  “We face an entirely new war”: MacArthur’s cable is quoted in Donovan, Tumultuous Years, 305.

  “certainty of defeat”: Truman, Memoirs, 384.

  “We have a terrific situation”: Hersey, Aspects of the Presidency, 27.

  “His mouth drew tight”: Ibid., 28.

  “We have got to meet this thing”: Ibid., 30.

  “an ancient mandarin”: George Sokolsky, “These Days,” New York Herald Tribune, December 3, 1950.

  “impossible to overestimate the seriousness”: Donovan, Tumultuous Years, 306.

  “the Soviet Union as an antagonist”: Acheson is quoted in “Notes on NSC Meeting, November 28th, 3:00 PM, the White House,” Truman Presidential Library.

  “without an exit”: Manchester, American Caesar, 610.

  “they first make mad”: Halberstam, Coldest Winter, 476.

  “a line that we can hold”: McCullough, Truman, 818.

  “and get out”: Pearlman, Truman and MacArthur, 137.

  “I should have relieved”: Truman, Memoirs, 384.

  “The issues that face us”: Substantial excerpts of NSC-68, including this quote, can be found at the Digital History website (www.digitalhistory.uh.edu).

  one of the “grimmest” times: Margaret Truman, Harry S. Truman, 492.

  “World War III is here”: Truman’s handwritten note, December 9, 1950, President’s Secretary’s Files, Truman Presidential Library.

  BOOK FOUR: RED SNOW

  27 YOU WILL ALL BE SLAUGHTERED

  “Holy Christ”: Author interview with Hector Cafferata.

  “I don’t know why I’m here”: Author interview.

  “no possible way we can be relieved”: Barber is quoted in Russ, Breakout, 223.

  “heavy attacks again tonight”: Ibid.

  Supply sergeant David Smith: Smith’s wounding is described in Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 149, and in Russ, Breakout, 222.

  Captain George Farish: Farish’s risky helicopter flight is detailed in Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 150–51.

  perfect decoys: Benson’s ruse is described in Leckie, March to Glory, 83.

  “You are completely surrounded!”: Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 157.

  “Marines, tonight you die!”: Ibid.

  “He was motionless”: Leckie, March to Glory, 88.

  “There was a flash”: Ibid.

  and killed them all: Ibid., 87.

  much more than a bee sting: This detail comes from Martin, “W. E. Barber, 82, Medal Winner in Korea Siege,” New York Times, April 26, 2002.

  “Captain Barber, will you surrender?”: Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 175.

  “We’re short of warm bodies”: Russ, Breakout, 251.

  “You lay down, Moose!”: Author interview with Cafferata.

  “You damn fool!”: Leckie, March to Glory, 87.

  28 KISSING A BUZZ SAW

  “I am here in the name”: The full text of Ambassador Wu’s United Nations remarks, from which the quotes in this chapter are drawn, can be found online at “People’s China Stands for Peace,” on the Internet Archive (https://archive.org/​details/​peopleschinastan00wuxi).

  “The real intention of the U.S.”: Ibid.
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  “The main burden of my speech”: Wu is quoted in Spurr, Enter the Dragon, 241.

  “there was no need for courtesy”: Ibid., 245.

  “kissing a buzz saw”: Ibid.

  29 MORPHINE DREAMS

  “Hey Moose, when I die”: Leckie, March to Glory, 116–17.

  “a nasty little bastard”: Author interview with Cafferata.

  “would have been a Rhodes scholar”: Ibid.

  “they were haunting me”: Ibid.

  “All right, men”: Barber is quoted in Leckie, March to Glory, 101.

  “Men of Fox Company”: Messman’s loudspeaker announcement on Fox Hill is detailed in Russ, Breakout, 267, and in Drury and Clavin, Last Stand of Fox Company, 211–12.

  they shot every one of them: The shooting of the Chinese prisoners was detailed to me by Cafferata and confirmed by my interviews with several other Fox Company veterans. I have never seen reference to it in print.

  “Man, I was wild”: Author interview with Cafferata.

  30 NO SOFT OPTIONS

  “Where do you put the bayonet?”: See the entry for Chesty Puller in Wikiquote (https://en.wikiquote.org/​wiki/​Chesty_Puller).

  “What the hell do they think”: Leckie, March to Glory, 118.

  “can’t get away from us now!”: Russ, Breakout, 230.

  “The higher brass”: Author interview with Manert Kennedy in Monte Vista, CO, on April 14, 2016.

  “How many Chinese’re”: Ibid.

  a “picturesque” character: Shisler, For Country and Corps, 167.