MEN AT WAR: Don't Worry

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At a U.S. command post in Korea, an infantry captain returning from fallen Taejon ran into a major who was on his way back to Japan. The infantry officer asked the major to take a message to his wife in Tokyo, was told: "I'll do better than that. Talk into this recorder and I'll take your voice back to your wife." The captain's message, punctuated by the noises of the command post, was broadcast last week by the Columbia Broadcasting System. This is what he said:

"I don't know where to start on this. These last three weeks have been pretty rough. We're getting help here now. That's something we sure didn't have when we started. What makes it so difficult here is —[the captain halted for a second, then resumed]—that you, can't tell the damn North Koreans from the South Koreans. That caused a lot of slaughter . . .

"We had a narrow escape here about two or three days ago. Lost a lot of good men. Hope we never get into a scrape like that again. Present time we're trying to regroup.

"There's no question how this will come out. We'll come out on top. It's going to take a lot more—a lot more than we have over here. This affair is more than a police action. It's something—[the captain paused, and millions of radio listeners heard him exhale]—gigantic. I know it is. Been through the Pacific and part of the European campaign, but I never ran into anything like this before.

"And you can believe me this time, baby, there'll never be another separation. I know I've told you that, time and time again. But it seems that the six years that we've been married, I've been here and you've been there, and it's getting so that I don't even know my own son. Wonder if he remembers.

"... I want you to tell Peg that Bob's all right. He's losing a lot of weight. She should be happy about that. Give my regards to all the neighbors there. Please, please don't worry. And if you don't get my letters, understand that things aren't quite up to snuff yet. Okay? Au revoir! You know that I love you very much."