Bastogne: The Story of the First Eight Days - US Army Center Of ...

162 BASTOGNE
pinned them down with heavy riRe fire. The three then crawled
back to the woods, circled south through a little valley and re-turned
to Hemroulle.
As they came out of the woods the second time, they were fired
on by artillerymen of Colonel Cooper's 463d Parachute Field
Artillery Battalion who had formed a skirmish line in case the
enemy broke through the infantry. But Colonel Allen was getting
tired of all this and he waved his handkerchief vigorously
until finally the gunners lowered their riRes and let the party
come in.
Colonel Harper, on getting the phone call made by Allen just
before Allen had to dash from his headquarters, realized that
there was now no control over the 3d Battalion, 327th. So he
sent his own S-3, Major Jones, with his radio to Colonel Cooper's
artillery command post and Jones got there just as Allen did, and
he got through at once to the companies with the radio. 29
In the meantime the forward line had held (Map 21, page
163), partly because of the quick thinking of Captain McDonald
of Company B. He had heard Colonel Allen's urgent report to
Colonel Harper over his own telephone and he at once called
Companies A and C by radio. 'The battalion commander has
had to get out," he said to them. "I can see you from where I am.
Your best bet is to stay where you are. Hold tight to your positions
and fight back at them."80
That was what they did. The main body of the German armor
rolled straight through Company A's lines-I 8 white-camouRaged
tanks p10ving in column. The men of Company A, 327th (First
Lieutenant Howard G. Bowles was the acting commanding officer),
stayed in their foxholes and took it, replying with their
rifles and whatever other weapons were at hand. After the tide of
German steel had passed over and through them, 4 men of the
company were dead and 5 lay wounded. But the 68 survi\fors
were up and fighting, and in the next round of the battle they
captured 92 German prisoners. 81
Having crashed through ,Colonel Harper's 327th front, the
German armor split as it came on toward the ridge and half of it
swung north toward Rolle where Lieutenant Nickels saw it and