CAMP WOLTERS

I finally received my induction notice in June, 1944. Ralph Herbst, who was also a member of the Chemistry Department, received his notice at the same time, Ralph was also a Master's candidate working for Dr. Blomquist. We both passed the physical exam, although "feet" were unusually significant for me.

I always had wide, flat feet. Some say that it is probably connected with the fact that I went barefoot during much of the summer in early childhood. However, my opinion is that it's probably more genetic. I wear an EEE width, and my little toes curl up in the same manner as one's pinkie when holding a teacup.

During World War I, flat feet were considered an appropriate reason for military service disqualification. While this was not true in World War II, the examiners paid particular attention to my feet. The examiners asked whether I had any trouble with them, and I replied that I did not. It was apparent that this was a great opportunity to possibly be eliminated from military service, but whether it was a matter of pride in my feet or my early training in truth, I did not take the advantage. Later, at Camp Wolters, I had to go for foot inspection about every two weeks, always with the same results; no problem.

I heard later that Lincoln Diuguid took his physical examination at a different place than ours. He complained about a bad ankle and allergies, which brought him to the attention of a Major. The Major immediately recognized Diuguid as a "black" of some superior intellect, who was able to do more important work than carry a rifle and disqualified him from military service. Linc is now in his upper 80’s and still climbs around on the roof of his chemical laboratory, with his supposed bad ankle.

Ralph and I, along with other inductees from the Ithaca area, boarded a bus and ultimately a train, which took us to Fort Dix, New Jersey, where we were outfitted with the usual military clothing; two pairs of shoes, two sets of fatigues and dress uniforms (involving pants, shirt, hat and jacket), shorts, socks, and helmet liner.

From Fort Dix, we were put on board a train, with destination unknown to us. Ralph Herbst and I had been separated. After some days, the train terminated its trip at a location called Camp Wolters, Texas. On departing from the train, I immediately noticed a sign at the camp entrance, which said "Infantry Replacement Training Center". Most my family already know my concentration on the word "replacement", but for those who may be new to this, the word caught my eye very strongly, reaffirming that this could be a very dangerous business from a personal point of view. I interpreted that whenever one had a replacement, something had happened to the previous occupant, and in this case, it was likely the previous occupant had been shot.

The trainees were assigned to individual battalions, companies, platoons, and squads. If I have my numbers correct, each platoon of about 32 or 40 men were housed in a single barracks. There were four platoons to a company and two companies to a battalion.

A Second Lieutenant was in charge, although he appeared infrequently. Sgt. Watt was our barracks leader and our primary trainer. This was my first introduction to natural leadership. Sgt. Watt was a man of perhaps 20 to 22 years of age, medium build, and   perhaps a bit   shorter  than  average.   He  had a serious personality. He knew his business. He knew where he was going, and he knew where you must be going as well. His first objective was to train us in the techniques of warfare, so that we could kill as many of the enemy as possible and maintain our own lives while doing so. His second objective was consistent with the first and that was to develop our personalities so that we would be emotionally capable of engaging in serious productive warfare.