Nova Scotia/Nunavut Command of The Royal Canadian Legion www.ns.legion.ca 97 “His arm is broken in two places,” the doctor remarked, being careful to keep the German between himself and Hank. The doctor was still muttering as Hank led his captive out to the jeep and started, this time in earnest, for the 40-mile trip back to headquarters. Although the prisoner was now visibly subdued, Hank was taking no chances. And well he might not. A thought had just struck him. When he left headquarters that morning there hadn’t been a single solitary prisoner brought in since the landing in France and if that situation still existed when he got back, Hank was going to have something to about for the next few days. So he re-cocked the revolver, mounted his perch on the front seat facing the rear, and proceeded to cover the moaning Nazi. From time to time he urged the driver to take it easy – Hank didn’t want any accidents with that revolver. He was going to get this fellow back alive. Slowly and carefully they entered the headquarters area. In front of a gaping audience they pulled to a graceful stop and Hank – as nonchalant, he hoped, as an old campaigner – motioned his prisoner out of the jeep with a curt swing of the revolver. For good measure he threw in a few words of what he hoped were German. The alacrity with which the prisoner obeyed did a lot to send Hank’s stock soaring in that particular outfit. Two armed guards who came on the run, Hank regrettfully turned over his prisoner. He looked at his departing back with mixed feelings. The canteen had been nothing beside this. When, if ever, would he be able to capture another German with his bare hands. One side of him said he hopes it would be soon – another little voice whispered: “You were lucky this time.” Hank still had another job to do. At administration group headquarters he turned in the map references of the spot where he jumped the Nazi. A couple of hours later the area was being combed and the answer as to why a lot of D.R.’s hadn’t been getting through was solved when a whole group of snipers was rounded up. The intelligence officer came back to report to Hank. The captive was one of the ill-famed S.S. Troops. He had been told that all the Canadians were dead and that, if he was captured, he would be shot, if not on the spot, shortly afterward. He had hastily added, the intelligence officer said, he knew better now. An evening show was pretty tame stuff to Hank that night, but the show and the supervisor’s work must go on. He found only one difficulty really. It was hard to operate a movie projector when your trigger finger insisted on staying curled. continued ... Up to October 17, 1944, 610,541 German soldiers surrendered on the Western front. 250,000 POW’s were captured between October 17 and February 5 at a rate of 65,000 a month. Between October 17 and February 5, 1945, the total of German POW’s taken in north-west Europe increased to 860,000.
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