WE WERE AT SUMMER CAMP AT GRAYLING MICHIGAN THAT YEAR AND ABOUT THE THIRD OR FOURTH EVENING AS USUAL I WOULD GO DOWN TO THE PICKET LINE AND CHECK ON MY HORSE. I THOUGHT THE WORLD OF THIS MARE. SHE WAS SURE FOOTED AND VERY EASY TO RIDE, NOT LIKE SOME OF THE ONES I HAD BEEN GIVEN. THERE WAS A LIGHT RAIN THIS PARTICULAR EVENING. I WENT TO THE MESS HALL AND GOT SOME CARROTS AND I HAD A BLANKET TO PROTECT HER FROM THE RAIN. AS USUAL I WOULD GET BEHIND HER AND WHISTLE, SHE WOULD BRACE HERSELF AND I WOULD RUN AND LEAP FROG ONTO HER BACK. THIS NIGHT SHE COLLAPSED AND I COULDN'T GET HER UP ON HER FEET AGAIN. I WAS SCARED TO DEATH THAT I HAD KILLED MY BEAUTIFUL HORSE. AT THAT TIME IF YOU DID ANYTHING THAT RESULTED IN THE DEATH OF YOUR HORSE YOU WOULD HAVE TO PAY THE ORIGINAL COST. THAT WASN'T MY BIG WORRY, MY HORSE WAS DOWN AND I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO.
I RUN LIKE HELL TO THE TENT WHERE THE VETS WERE AND NO ONE WAS THERE. I FOUND OUT THAT THEY BOTH HAD WENT TO TOWN TO CAT AROUND. THIS WAS BAD BECAUSE ONE OF THEM WAS SUPPOSE TO BE THERE AT ALL TIMES.
BEING GREEN MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS TO GET HELP ANYWHERE I COULD. I FOUND THE SWITCHBOARD TENT AND RUSHED IN. THERE AT THE SWITCHBOARD WAS YOUNG LAD ABOUT MY SAME AGE. I PROCEEDED TO TELL HIM ABOUT MY HORSE BEING DOWN AND THE TWO VETS WERE SCREWING OFF IN TOWN AND THAT I WANTED HELP AND I WANTED IT RIGHT AWAY. I HADN'T NOTICED WHEN I WENT IN THE OLDER GENTLEMEN OVER IN THE CORNER OF THE TENT. HE WAS DRESSED IN AN OIL SKIN RAINCOAT AND RAIN HAT AND HAD TWO IRISH SETTERS SITTING NEXT TO HIM. HE LISTENED TO MY STORY AND SAID TO ME THAT HE NEW SOMETHING ABOUT HORSES AND THAT WE COULD GO OVER AND TAKE A LOOK.
ON THE WAY BACK TO THE PICKET LINE I'M MOUTHING OFF ABOUT THE VETS SCREWING OFF AND THAT SOMEONE WAS SUPPOSE TO BE THERE IN CASE SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPENED. HE WAS A VERY POLITE PERSON AND HE HAD A CALMING EFFECT ON ME. BY THIS TIME IT'S ABOUT MIDNIGHT. HE LOOKED OVER MY HORSE AND TOGETHER WE FAILED TO GET HER ON HER FEET. HE EXPLAINED THAT HE THOUGHT IT WAS COLIC, WHICH CAN BE DEADLY IF NOT TREATED. WE WENT BACK TO THE SWITCHBOARD TENT AND HE PROCEEDED TO CALL POST VET FOR AN AMBULANCE.
WE WENT BACK TO THE PICKET LINE AND WAITED FOR THE AMBULANCE TO COME AND WE WERE PROCEEDING TO GET THE HORSE INTO THE TRUCK WHEN OUT OF THE DARK CAME ONE OF OUR VETS. A VERY LARGE AND ROUGH MAN. HE GROWLED WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE. I TAKE CARE OF THESE HORSES, GET THAT HORSE OUT OF THAT TRUCK. WHO THE HELL IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS. I TRIED TO EXPLAIN THE SITUATION TO AND THAT THIS KIND GENTLEMAN WAS HELPING ME. THE VET BECAME ENRAGED AND SAID THAT AFTER HE GOT THE HORSE OUT OF THE TRUCK HE WAS GOING TO GET A PIECE OF MY ASS.
AT THIS MOMENT THIS OLD GENTLEMAN STEPPED FROM THE SHADOWS AND TRIED TO EXPLAIN THE SITUATION TO OUR VET. HE WAS VERY HARSHLY INTERRUPTED BE THE VET, WHO SAID JUST WHO THE HELL ARE YOU.
I WILL NEVER FORGET THE NEXT FEW MOMENTS, THEY WENT SOMETHING LIKE THIS...
THE GENTLEMAN IN THE RAINCOAT WITH THE TWO IRISH SETTERS AT HIS SIDE SAID MY NAME IS BUCKNER, SIMON BOLIVER BUCKNER, GENERAL U.S. ARMY. AND YOUR NOT GOING TO GET A PIECE ON THIS TROOPERS ASS. I MAY JUST GET A LARGE PIECE OF YOURS. IF IT WASN'T FOR HIM THIS HORSE COULD BE IN REAL TROUBLE. OF COURSE THE CAPTAIN WAS AT A LOSE FOR WORDS AND SO WAS I. COULDN'T BELIEVE THAT HE WAS A REAL GENERAL.
YEARS LATER ON AN ISLAND IN THE NORTH PACIFIC I WAS A GUN COMMANDER IN AN ANTI-CRAFT BATTERY. THE ISLAND HAD BEEN SECURED TO THE POINT WHERE CIVILIAN ENGINEERS WERE THERE TO CONSTRUCT A NEW RUNWAY FOR THE AIRFORCE. THE CIVILIANS COULD VISIT THE DIFFERENT UNITS ON THE ISLAND IN THERE SPARE TIME. WE WELCOMED THEM BECAUSE THEY HAD ALL THE NEWS FROM HOME. ALL THEY HAD TO DO WAS SIGN IN AT THE GUARD POST UPON ENTERING AND ON LEAVING.
THIS ONE PARTICULAR DAY WE WERE TOLD THAT THERE MAY BE AN INSPECTION BY ARMY BRASS SO WE WERE ON THE GUNS CLEANING AND MAKING EVERYTHING LOOK SHARP.
WELL IN THE MEAN TIME A GENTLEMAN LOOKING LIKE A CIVILIAN CAME TO THE GUARD POST, CHECKED IN AND SAID HE WAS JUST LOOKING AROUND, WHICH WAS FINE. HE PROCEEDED TO VISIT ALL THE DIFFERENT UNITS IN OUR AREA, TALKED TO THE MEN AND PROCEEDED TO THE NEXT ONE. WHEN HE ARRIVED AT MY GUN POSITION I CALLED ATTENTION, EVERYONE SNAPPED UP AND THE GENTLEMAN SAID AT EASE MEN. THEN HE SAID TO ME WHY DID YOU GIVE THE COMMAND ATTENTION. MY ANSWER WAS WE ALWAYS DO THAT FOR OFFICERS, GENERAL. YOUR GENERAL BUCKNER. HE KINDA GRINNED AND SAID HOW DO KNOW I'M A GENERAL. I EXPLAINED ABOUT THE YOUNG TROOPER WITH THE SICK HORSE MANY YEARS AGO, AND THAT I WAS THAT TROOPER. WE ALL LAUGHED AND HAD A NICE TALK AND AS THE GENERAL LEFT HE SAID GIVE ME TIME TO CLEAR THE AREA AND THEN TELL YOUR COMMANDING OFFICER HE HAS A GREAT AREA AND GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU.
SIMON BOLIVER BUCKNER WAS THE FIRST GENERAL KILLED IN WORLD WAR TWO AND A FINER MAN I'VE NEVER MET.