ARMY: Lost Battalion, 1941

For 72 hours last week the Army had a lost battalion and 700 members of the 40th Infantry were glad there were no Germans around to make things worse. Even without that they agreed with Sherman.

The losing happened in the Deep River wilderness of southwest Washington, into which the battalion marched briskly one night on Blue Army maneuvers. In those unfrequented wilds, maps proved almost worthless; compasses led them into blind alleys. Rain poured down almost constantly. Cigarets ran out. Food supplies ran low (even though eked out with berries and crawfish). One man broke his arm; practically everyone had torn uniforms, wrecked shoes, bruises, scratches.

Seventy two hours later they saved themselves with an old woodsman’s trick —finding water, going doggedly downstream until they stumbled out of the wilderness.