“It was the Fourth of July in this joint British and American Officers’ training camp,” said an Associated Press report from “an officers’ training camp” in North Africa on July 5, 1943. No announcement, however, was posted concerning a Fourth of July celebration. “The camp was to follow its regular routine. There would be a route march at five o’clock.”
The hour of five came and the men fell in on the parade ground, and started up the trail. It was observed that the American general was making the march, but no British officers were seen. “It’s our holiday, and they get the day off. Can you beat it?” Thus murmured the Americans.
“The trail led through a grove winding up and down the slopes of the mountain,” said the correspondent. “The sun was nearly down when they emerged into a clearing.
“Just ahead, in an open space among the trees, the British officers were lined up in two files. They were singing ‘The Star-Spangled Banner.’ An American flag waved above their heads.”
Such was the tersely vivid account of a dramatic moment in the lives of British and American soldiers in North Africa during an important period in the history of World War II.
“America the Beautiful” Heard at Arlington
“The Unknown Soldier and his legions of sleeping comrades were honored anew in this national cemetery today—with fresh flowers and a solemn promise,” said an Associated Press report from the Arlington National Cemetery on May 30, 1943. “The Memorial Day crowd,” it added, “came from every direction through the oak-shaded walks of the cemetery, sobered by the sight of fresh graves among the sod-covered resting places of earlier veterans.”
Taps were sounded by a marine corps bugler, and all conversation ceased. President F. D. Roosevelt’s wreath was laid on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Representatives of veterans’ organizations and their auxiliaries, dressed in vivid uniforms, then deposited wreath after wreath at the base of the white monument.
The “solemn promise” mentioned was given by Lt.-Gen. Brehon B. Somervell who made this declaration: “To the nameless soldier here before us in this marble tomb and through him to all his comrades, wherever they may lie, we make this promise:
“With them we enter into an earnest covenant that we will carry on the fight, against whatever odds and however long it takes, until justice and decency and human liberty are re-established throughout the earth.”