Cornelius Ryan WWII papers, box 010, folder 06: Ralph R. Smith

101st SMITH, Ralph R. Fla 5 Box 10, #6 501 101 F. C. [?Song?] he has a "belly - twisting fear, impossible to describe" at his first taste of ack-ack + tracer bullets Saw 2 burning planes Talks about "the peculiar ripping sound of German machine guns." F Co. Very good story about a machine gun manned by Ostrowski, Lenz, Miller. German mortar killed Miller + Lenz, [?Shony?] of Ostrowski's eye. Man named Keiller + Smith fixed him up - but he died later

St. Petersburg, FLORIDA For Cornelius Ryan Book about D-Day

THOUSANDS OF MEN, ON LAND AND SEA AND IN THE AIR, PARTICIPATED IN THE INVASION OF NORMANDY BETWEEN MIDNIGHT JUNE 5, 1944 AND MIDNIGHT JUNE 6, 1944. IF YOU WERE ONE OF THEM, PLEASE ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.

What is your full name? RALPH R. SMITH What was your unit and division? 501st PARACHUTE INF. REGT, 101st AIRBORNE DIV. Where did you arrive in Normandy, and at what time? SHORTLY AFTER MIDNIGHT. ABOUT 0030, JUNE 6, or 0100. What was your rank on June 6, 1944? PRIVATE What was your age on June 6, 1944? 21 Were you married at that time? YES What is your wife's name? BARBARA Did you have any children at that time? ONE What do you do now? CLERK, POST OFFICE

When did you know that you were going to be part of the invasion? When we went to England in January, 1944. Of course it was not "officially" announced until May.

What was the trip like during the crossing of the Channel? Do you remember, for example, any conversations you had or how you passed the time? Mostly quiet, smoking and thinking. Some dozed or slept. The planes noise made conversation difficult.

What were the rumors on board the boat, ship or plane in which you made the crossing? (Some people remember scuttlebut to the effect that the Germans had poured gasoline on the water and planned to set it afire when the troops came in). No rumors. We knew where we were going and what to expect. Of course, the troops that landed [?next?] morning probably worried about the gasoline rumors. A few said, before takeoff, that the Germans feared and hated Paratroopers because they had met the 82nd Airborne in Sicily, and would execute them. I do not think many believed this.

- for Cornelius Ryan 2 - Your name R.R. SMITH

Did you by any chance keep a diary of what happened to you that day? UNFORTUNATELY, No.

Were any of your friends killed or wounded either during the landing or during the day ? YES. HUSTON, JOHNSON, LENZ, OSTROWSKI, MILLER, AND OTHERS. MANY ALSO WERE WOUNDED.

Do you remember any conversations you had with them before they became casualties? NOTHING EXTRAORDINARY, THAT STICKS IN MY MIND.

Were you wounded ? NOT UNTIL JUNE 25.

Do you remember what it was like--that is, do you remember whether you felt any pain or were you so surprised that you felt nothing? I was stunned by it for several minutes. A rifle bullet struck me in the side of the head. When I came to it burned, but morphine stopped that.

Do you remember seeing or hearing anything that seems funny now, though it did not, of course, seem amusing at the time? One thing in particualr- a boy named Paddock, from New Mexico, slept through a fierce fight which raged across a field over his head, and was unharmed. He was exhausted and simply couldn't stay awake. When the trouble started he was out cold and slept right through it.

Do you recall any incident, sad or heroic, or even simply memorable, which struck you more than anything else? Mostly impressions. Our first taste of ack-ack, tracer bullets, then fear brought on by these. Belly-twisting fear, impossible to describe. Then two burning planes, the darkness, looking for the outfit, the fighting which followed, the deaths, the wounded, the noise of a shell, the peculiar ripping sound of German machineguns. I remember many incidents quite clearly, -over-

but none which would make a good story. Just a series of events which took place. Advances, skirmishes wounds, deaths, prisoners, capturing a town. Just a series of small events following each other. Taken together they comprise the ordinary working day- odd though that may sound.

The thing which most forcibly impressed me that first morning was Ostrowski's death. He, Lenz and Miller had a machinegun several yards from me. We were firing at some German positions near a barn, where their machinegun was fired upon and struck by a German mortar. The shell killed Miller and Lenz immediately. Ostrowski's eye and cheek were turned out and hung down over his jaw. The whole side of his face was open. Reiller (later killed in Holland) and I each gave him a shot of morphine and poured sulfa powder on the wound as an infection precaution. Then we folded his cheek back with his eye where it was supposed to be, and bandaged him. During this time one of us had to sit astride him to hold his arms down, as he kept trying to scratch or touch the wound, even though he was semi-conscious and dazed with shock and morphine.

We then tied his hands together with a bandage and tied them to his belt. He moaned softly for a few minutes, then lost consciousness before he was taken back to a church which was serving as an aid station. We did the best we could, but he died a short time later.

I think this incident stands out in my mind more than some much worse sights I saw later due to its newness.

- for Cornelius Ryan 3 - Your name R.R. SMITH

In times of great crisis , people generally show either great ingenuity or self - reliance; others do incredibly stupid things. Do you remember any examples of either? Nothing outstanding. Everyone seemed to be doing just what the situation called for, as best he could.

Where were you at midnight on June 5, 1944? Aboard the plane. Where were you at midnight on June 6, 1944? In the division area, somewhere in the vicinity of St. Come du Mort, in the woods.

Do you know of anybody else who landed within those 24 hours (midnight June 5 to midnight June 6) as infantry, glider or airborne troops , or who took part in the air and sea operations , whom we should write to? Of those who survived the Normandy campaign, many were killed in subsequent battles in Holland, Bastogne, Middle Europe. Very few went the distance, due to the law of averages. I have lost touch with even these, except for one whose address I happen to know. NICHOLAS SCHMIDT 3659 E. AURORA RD. TWINSBURG OHIO

PLEASE LET US HAVE THIS QUESTIONNAIRE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, SO THAT WE CAN INCLUDE YOUR EXPERIENCES IN THE BOOK. WE HOPE THAT YOU WILL CONTINUE YOUR STORY ON SEPARATE SHEETS IF WE HAVE NOT LEFT SUFFICIENT ROOM. FULL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT WILL BE GIVEN IM A CHAPTER CALLED "WHERE THEY ARE NOW; YOUR NAME AND VOCATION OR OCCUPATION WILL BE LISTED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP.

Cornelius Ryan Frances Ward Research, The Reader's Digest