Chapter 14 excerpts.docx.docx

Chapter 14 excerptsThe Story ofBill Harvey StoryIt was now the end of June. We had been down in France for over two months. We were on our own. No help from the Maquis now. So, we did what we thought was best just head west. More days of walking, passed many Germans. If it seemed necessary, we would say Bon jour or Bon soir. Finally, south and east of Paris, we came to a river but no bridge could be found. Finally, decided to swim, but just then we saw a farmhouse down the road. So we agreed to go there and ask for help. As we approached the house, something did not seem right and we walked on. Found out later that the biggest collaborator in the area lived there. Luck, just plain luck.We had many premonitions such as that and they usually proved right. All this time Dick was really worried about his new wife. They had only been married a very short time when he was sent overseas. He hadnt had time to arrange insurance. Didnt know how she was doing financially and as a result, we took chance after chance that we probably shouldnt have taken, only because he was so anxious to get home. What she was doing however, is another story.We stopped at the next farm and, as soon as we got in the courtyard, I knew we had made a mistake. There were four big blond-haired men standing there talking. It was too late to turn and run, so I just asked in English if the patron was home. One of the men spoke a little English. Hes in town and should return anytime. Do you want to wait inside? Nothing else to do, so we sat in the kitchen and told the English speaking one who had come in with us, that we were American pilots. He told us the patron spoke good English. Here he comes now. In walked another tall blond, somewhat older than the rest. Hello, I said, extending my hand, We are American pilots. He gave us a great big smile, took my hand and said, My name is Jacque Dykstra. Im Dutch, but have lived here many years. Are you hungry?We stayed for a week. His housekeeper, Renee, soon to be his wife, kept us well fed. As Jacque was a dairy farmer, he had plenty of butter, milk and eggs. Boy did we eat. The only problem was that there were no screens on the windows and the kitchen was filled with flies. Oh, well, we could brush the flies off the food and pop it into our mouths. Thank God, flies go to sleep at night. I remember thinking, After the war, Ill come back to France and sell window screens. Ill make a Fortune.This was a dangerous place to hide. The Germans came every day for milk and butter. So we stayed hidden most of the time.Jacque told us one night that it was too dangerous to stay at his place any longer and that he had arranged for us to stay in an abandoned hospital in Brienon, a nearby town. A friend would come tomorrow to take us there. He came the next day with a horse and wagon filled with hay (and me with hay fever). Something, by the way, I had never bothered to tell the Army Air Corp. The friend took us to his house and we found that he had a bathtub. This was something unusual in rural France in those days. When we told him we would like to take a bath, he said, ah, oui, but come with me. We walked into the bathroom, sure enough a tub, but filled full of straw and the home of four baby ducks and their mother. Eventually we got our bath, the first in ten weeks. It sure felt good even though there was no hot water.After feeding us, we were taken over to the hospital. It had been abandoned because it was directly across the street from the railroad station and the French thought surely, the Allies would bomb the station and the adjacent marshalling yards.The following day we found out how right they were. That morning, we explored the hospital. We were on the third floor. In the next room there must have been fifteen or twenty stretchers for use after a bombing raid. Although, there had not been a bombing raid here, since the beginning of the war. The rest of the hospital was completely empty. After we finished checking the place out, a woman brought us some breakfast and said shed be back around noon. We had just finished eating when we heard the bombers. We went over to the window to take a look and up there at about 20,000 feet, we could see the contrails of a stream of bombers. Wonder where they are going? Dick said. I dont know, I said Lets hope its not here. Just then we saw a Wing of sixty planes break off and head toward us. You know, Dick said very seriously, they are going to bomb that damn marshalling yard. By now they were overhead and suddenly we heard the swish of the falling bombs. My God, lets go. And we headed for the stairs taking them a flight at a time. Believe this or not, by the time the bombs exploded, we had gone from the third floor to the basement. I bet that record is still standing today.As the sound of the engines faded away, we decided to go back upstairs. We couldnt see a thing. The smoke and dust completely blinded us, but we made our way up to our room. Looking out the window, it was much clearer by now. We could see people running around with red-cross armbands on. Theyll be coming up here to get those stretchers. If they look in here, were dead. I think we both said it at the same time. Lets grab a couple of stretchers and bring them here to our room. If they come in here, well rush out as they come in. Looking out the window again, we saw men approaching the hospital. Again seeing the white armbands, Dick and I both reached for our handkerchiefs and tied them around our upper arm. We stood ready to rush the door if anyone came in. No one did. They went next door, picked up the stretchers and left. We were safe, at least for now.A little while later, the stretcher-bearers returned, carrying bodies into the hospital. It was to be the morgue. Later that afternoon, our French friend came up and told us it was much too dangerous now to stay in the hospital and that he would come back after dark and take us back to Jacques. He did and we rode back in the same wagon we had arrived in the day before. Well, it had been an adventurous couple of days. We had been in a bomb raid, had survived and were now back where we started. By the way, our Flying Fortresses missed the marshalling yard altogether, but destroyed part of the town and killed a lot of people. How could they be so bad? We thought. It had been a perfectly clear day and no anti-aircraft fire at all. We learned that day that bombing is not an exact science.That night we returned to Jacques farm. Believe it or not, Jacque really appeared happy to see us. He didnt seem to have any fear of the Germans at all.The next day, July 4th, 1944, American fighter-bombers arrived in the late morning, attacking the marshaling yard again. This time, doing the job! Now they were circling over our heads. There was an ammunition train, which could not get into Brienon, parked on the tracks in back of Jacques farm. What a target! I said, Jacque they are going to attack this train in a minute or two. Weve got to get out of here. I could hear Dick say, Amen, behind me. There were six of us, Jacque; his housekeeper Renee, her daughter, Deena, another young girl, and the two of us. We left the house and ran down the driveway to the macadam road and jumped into the ditch on the far side. I was on the end, Dick next to me, then Jacque, Renee, her baby Deena, and the young girl. Thank God, it was a deep ditch because here came the fighters strafing the train, then flying right over us with empty shells falling all around. Then after making a 360 degree turn, back they came firing at the train as they crossed over us. Again, empty shells were falling all around us. What a sight! I noticed Jacques cows were still out in the field. I said, Jacque, they are going to kill all of your cows. He looked at me and said, Dont worry, it is but nothing at all. Ill never forget that expression and have used it many times since.By now the train was beginning to explode. Every third or fourth car was an oil tanker and they really blew. What a Fourth of July! About then a German truck careened down the road and stopped right beyond us. Two Germans piled out and jumped in the ditch right next to us. Jacque whispered, Dont say anything. So we just watched. What a show we were watching! First, the dive bombing of the marshalling yards in Brienon and now the strafing of the ammunition train back of Jacques farm. The Americans finally finished, reformed and were gone. The explosions went on for hours. The B-17s might have missed their target, but the P-47s didnt. Jacque leaned over toward Dick and whispered, You two casually get up and walk into the woods back of us. Ill handle the soldiers. We did and the Germans never ever looked at us. They were staring at their burned out truck.Well, we couldnt stay any longer and we knew it was time to go. This time, we were heading toward Paris. The Allies were finally starting their breakout from the beachhead and we knew they would first head for Paris.It was hard to say goodbye to Renee and her little Deena. Renee had been wonderful, along with those big blond Dutch boys who worked for Jacque. Jacque took us to Brienon and said his friend had purchased two railroad tickets for Melun. He instructed us to: Get on the train, dont say anything, and then pretend to go right to sleep. We said goodbye to Jacque and told him we would see him after the war. Once more, I had tears in my eyes.Please feel free to use any part of the attachment or the above chapterin your publications.