WEBVTT 00:00:01.520 --> 00:00:07.106 This is broadcast number eight in the 158th regimental combat team series. 00:00:07.139 --> 00:00:14.886 Ada are feeling 00:00:14.919 --> 00:00:20.236 I am speaking to you now directly from the 158th regimental combat team 00:00:20.269 --> 00:00:27.447 headquarters. The home and office of General Mcn Eider. General Hanford 00:00:27.480 --> 00:00:31.506 muk Neider who presently commands the 158. 00:00:31.539 --> 00:00:34.917 It's a privilege to have this opportunity to speak with the general 00:00:34.950 --> 00:00:40.516 privately and to bring to you his expression of interest in the 158th as 00:00:40.549 --> 00:00:45.086 Arizona holds that interest and to refer with pride to the current 00:00:45.119 --> 00:00:48.796 accomplishments of the 158 as well as the past accomplishments of this 00:00:48.829 --> 00:00:52.307 combat team. I want to tell you a little bit about general mcknight. 00:00:52.340 --> 00:00:56.807 Before we began our informal interview. 00:00:56.840 --> 00:01:02.116 He is a native of mason city Iowa and one of the oddities about it all is 00:01:02.149 --> 00:01:06.417 that it develops that we now have more Iowa man in the 158 than we have. 00:01:06.450 --> 00:01:11.147 Arizona man. I don't know whether we should call that sabotage or by some 00:01:11.180 --> 00:01:16.956 other term. But anyway, the islands seem to have taken over the 158. But 00:01:16.989 --> 00:01:21.486 with real credit, I might add to the brilliant record of the group in 00:01:21.519 --> 00:01:26.016 civilian life. General McN Eider was president of the northwestern state 00:01:26.049 --> 00:01:30.217 cement company. As far as I know, he still retains that post except for 00:01:30.250 --> 00:01:35.967 the fact that he is an absentee at the moment and without pay. He voices 00:01:36.000 --> 00:01:40.236 in my ear here a little historical data. General Mcknight who was 00:01:40.269 --> 00:01:44.107 Assistant Secretary of war. Under Calvin Coolidge. He was the Minister to 00:01:44.140 --> 00:01:47.837 Canada under Herbert Hoover. Which means that he must be a republican, 00:01:47.870 --> 00:01:52.096 which pleases me mightily being from Arizona a Democratic state and a lone 00:01:52.129 --> 00:01:56.426 republican in most circles. I welcome him politically as well as 00:01:56.459 --> 00:02:00.186 professionally. He was at one time National Command of the american legion 00:02:00.219 --> 00:02:05.286 , I think it was in 1921. He was a World War veteran and came out of the 00:02:05.319 --> 00:02:09.767 conflict a major, he was wounded at Buhner when serving with a 32nd 00:02:09.800 --> 00:02:14.547 Division. He is legendary with his man for his knowledge of the situation 00:02:14.580 --> 00:02:19.307 at any point and his close proximity to the fighting. Under all conditions. 00:02:19.340 --> 00:02:23.147 He had coffee with the mayor of Batangas about two hours before the 00:02:23.180 --> 00:02:26.406 infantry took the city. So, you know, he works well out in front of the 00:02:26.439 --> 00:02:31.307 boys. He took his aide de camp to a small town northeast of the tangles 00:02:31.340 --> 00:02:35.126 and asked his aide if he knew where he was. And the aid didn't know, says 00:02:35.159 --> 00:02:39.886 you are in Lanka, the infantry is going to attack here tomorrow. The 00:02:39.919 --> 00:02:43.707 infantry did attack and killed 83 Japs and destroyed three artillery 00:02:43.740 --> 00:02:48.186 pieces before it could reach the town. The general is self styled as the 00:02:48.219 --> 00:02:51.827 best all gone jeep driver in the United States. And from what the boys 00:02:51.860 --> 00:02:59.136 tell me it's about 99% truth. Uh, there is some debate on that, he adds, 00:02:59.169 --> 00:03:03.136 but we won't discuss the point here. He puts down here in his own 00:03:03.169 --> 00:03:07.997 handwriting, that he's bald and homely but tremendously proud of the 158 00:03:08.030 --> 00:03:12.837 and his association with it. That gives you a thumbnail sketch of the 00:03:12.870 --> 00:03:17.686 background and personality of general, handwritten igniter the present 00:03:17.719 --> 00:03:23.566 commanding general of the 158th regimental Combat team. Uhh, General Mcn 00:03:23.599 --> 00:03:27.747 Eider. How do you think the 158 compares with other groups with whom you 00:03:27.780 --> 00:03:31.207 have served? 00:03:31.240 --> 00:03:36.807 The 158 is a unique organization and as much as it is the only permanent 00:03:36.840 --> 00:03:41.707 infantry regimental combat team now in the army, 00:03:41.740 --> 00:03:47.036 it's built up to have a tremendously heavy striking power and with the 00:03:47.069 --> 00:03:52.636 spirit of those men of Arizona who put it together and the inspiration 00:03:52.669 --> 00:03:58.777 clear back to the days of general title. When he put it into shape, it is 00:03:58.810 --> 00:04:04.726 going on. It's way still bringing fame, I hope, and a good name to the 00:04:04.759 --> 00:04:10.707 state which gave it its inception. It is a cracker, Jack of an outfit and 00:04:10.740 --> 00:04:15.986 of course the infantry regiment which does the fighting all the rest of us 00:04:16.019 --> 00:04:21.156 are here to help it. And two give it the backing that it needs when it 00:04:21.189 --> 00:04:25.106 puts on our battles for us. 00:04:25.139 --> 00:04:31.286 Um, holds a very deep place in the hearts of everyone I think, who has 00:04:31.319 --> 00:04:35.967 ever been connected with it. I hope it has a good name with those who have 00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:41.577 fought alongside with, I hope it has a very bad one with a nip. We try and 00:04:41.610 --> 00:04:49.176 make it a personal matter to see that the point in the line where the 1 58 00:04:49.209 --> 00:04:54.906 meets him is the sorest one for the whole little 00:04:54.939 --> 00:04:59.007 cringing star of japan 00:04:59.040 --> 00:05:05.056 general. I have heard it said that the japanese have learned by the hard 00:05:05.089 --> 00:05:10.817 method that there is no more savage fighting team in the american ranks 00:05:10.850 --> 00:05:15.906 over here than the 158. Would you say that is true? Well, we'd like to 00:05:15.939 --> 00:05:20.366 think it was true. We certainly have got the men who try and make it that 00:05:20.399 --> 00:05:24.507 sort of an affair every time they meet them. General, perhaps you could 00:05:24.540 --> 00:05:29.467 explain just a little bit what is meant by a combat team. As I understand 00:05:29.500 --> 00:05:37.027 that there are only two. I'm a tad combat units in the entire theater. And 00:05:37.060 --> 00:05:40.286 I think it's rather a mystery to a lot of people why we should have 00:05:40.319 --> 00:05:45.866 outside of the divisions, groups of men operating as the 158 does 00:05:45.899 --> 00:05:50.027 unattached except on occasions when it is adapted to a particular 00:05:50.060 --> 00:05:54.087 assignment and moved in. Perhaps an associate command with one of the 00:05:54.120 --> 00:05:58.207 divisions as was the case once upon a time. I believe in the 32nd Division. 00:05:58.240 --> 00:06:02.726 What is the real purpose for maintaining a regimental combat team of this 00:06:02.759 --> 00:06:05.007 type? 00:06:05.040 --> 00:06:08.806 Well, the regimental combat team is an infantry regiment supported by a 00:06:08.839 --> 00:06:14.996 battalion of artillery, battalion of engineers, armored force, all the 00:06:15.029 --> 00:06:20.546 other branches that go to make a complete little army in itself. It takes 00:06:20.579 --> 00:06:26.087 on any job that any division takes on and is used in places where it's 00:06:26.120 --> 00:06:31.986 impossible because of transportation and other difficulties to put in a 00:06:32.019 --> 00:06:37.627 whole full size division 1 58 has got is saying, and it's always relieved 00:06:37.660 --> 00:06:41.387 by a complete division. And to tell the truth, it has been in the last 00:06:41.420 --> 00:06:45.937 three operations and I think they found that they needed most of the 00:06:45.970 --> 00:06:49.906 people that they had when they got there to take the place of this tiny 00:06:49.939 --> 00:06:57.106 little army of ours. When did you join the 158 General? Just about a year 00:06:57.139 --> 00:07:02.017 ago. But long before that, I had heard of their reputation and took pride 00:07:02.050 --> 00:07:05.676 in knowing that they were a part of our army. How do you think the Legaspi 00:07:05.709 --> 00:07:09.906 operation, which was your last one? Compares with the other assignments 00:07:09.939 --> 00:07:15.577 that have been given to the 158? We thought we had caught a lot of bad 00:07:15.610 --> 00:07:20.346 country down in New guinea. We thought probably that we were out of that 00:07:20.379 --> 00:07:24.606 and the jungle was left behind us. But we found when we got to Legaspi 00:07:24.639 --> 00:07:29.267 that the nip had holed himself up in one of the worst pieces of 00:07:29.300 --> 00:07:35.267 mountainous jungle. It was ever conceived anywhere in nature. It was a 00:07:35.300 --> 00:07:40.587 tough fight. There's a mean fighter. It was one of these blind fights and 00:07:40.620 --> 00:07:45.027 we were fighting Japanese naval personnel who were left here to die and 00:07:45.060 --> 00:07:50.916 who had all the necessary armament to put on a first class battle. It took 00:07:50.949 --> 00:07:57.746 us nearly two and three weeks to do the job completely. And there were 00:07:57.779 --> 00:08:01.827 times in that thing when we had to cheer the jap ourselves because he put 00:08:01.860 --> 00:08:08.397 on such a grand Children. Thank you Gentleman Neider. I think that it is 00:08:08.430 --> 00:08:13.296 my place as a representative of the people of Arizona and more personally 00:08:13.329 --> 00:08:19.337 General Tuthill to congratulate you as the present commander of the 158 00:08:19.370 --> 00:08:24.197 for the brilliant job of leadership which you have instituted not only in 00:08:24.230 --> 00:08:28.887 the rest areas, but likewise under the actual combat conditions. I want 00:08:28.920 --> 00:08:33.177 you to know that General Tuthill met with me a few days before I left and 00:08:33.210 --> 00:08:37.526 he made me promise almost on an oath, but I would not come to the pacific 00:08:37.559 --> 00:08:42.226 without being absolutely certain to visit the 158. There were two 00:08:42.259 --> 00:08:46.886 assignments I had especially one was to reach if possible. The crews of 00:08:46.919 --> 00:08:51.087 phoenix, which I traveled a long way to accomplish and the other was to 00:08:51.120 --> 00:08:56.986 reach you and the 158, sorry to find so many of our Arizona boys absent 00:08:57.019 --> 00:09:00.047 glad to know that they have gone home and that that is the reason for 00:09:00.080 --> 00:09:05.587 their abs So I know that those fellows who are at home, Colonel Wood and 00:09:05.620 --> 00:09:11.187 perhaps Colonel stopped who has a long memory of associations with the 158 00:09:11.220 --> 00:09:14.287 and the other boys in the ranks who will be listening to this broadcast 00:09:14.320 --> 00:09:17.736 when it's presented at home, will welcome the opportunity to hear your 00:09:17.769 --> 00:09:20.876 voice. And I wonder if you'd like to say just a word to them knowing that 00:09:20.909 --> 00:09:26.547 they're there and probably list. Well, all I want to say is that they and 00:09:26.580 --> 00:09:32.547 I think every one in Arizona, you can be sure that the men of this outfit 00:09:32.580 --> 00:09:37.356 will do their best to keep the high reputation of this grand old Arizona 00:09:37.389 --> 00:09:42.256 regiment where it belongs. Thank you very much. General Mcknight are 00:09:42.289 --> 00:09:47.606 friends. We've been visiting informally with General Hanford Mcknight er 00:09:47.639 --> 00:09:52.646 who now is an active command of the 158th regimental combat team. Point of 00:09:52.679 --> 00:09:57.476 interest to me is the fact that the general has three sons and the 00:09:57.509 --> 00:10:01.557 youngest one is too young still for military service. The next oldest is a 00:10:01.590 --> 00:10:06.197 private in the marines and was on evo Jima and tom who is 18 is an air 00:10:06.230 --> 00:10:09.496 cadet. So it may be said that they are following in the footsteps of an 00:10:09.529 --> 00:10:13.236 illustrious father and will ultimately take his place no doubt in the 00:10:13.269 --> 00:10:16.986 ranks of the Armed Forces of the United States. Again, thank you General 00:10:17.019 --> 00:10:22.207 McN Eider and especially thank you for the courtesy of the treatment 00:10:22.240 --> 00:10:26.407 you've given me during my visit here at the 158. I'm positive that Arizona 00:10:26.440 --> 00:10:31.067 will never forget you and that General Tuthill particularly will be glad 00:10:31.100 --> 00:10:34.356 to have had this opportunity to hear from you personally. And now this is 00:10:34.389 --> 00:10:41.187 howard Pyle returning you from the area occupied by the 158 to phoenix 00:10:41.220 --> 00:10:46.850 Arizona and the entire state through fred macpherson.