Page 7

The Account of "Sniper" Scoot

DAWN June 6 Circling around our H.Q.craft waiting to go in. Warships
shelling the beaches, hundreds of planes going in. Hooter signal, we’re
off. In line abreast making for the shore as fast as we can go. Couple
of hundred yards out a machine gun burst just above our heads, my very first
experience of being fired on. Touched down, going to be a wet landing.
I am detailed for the port gangway but chaps are milling about there, some
sort of obstruction I guess. I cant wait and decide to take the starboard
gangway. An explosion on the port side direct hit by a mortar all the
chaps thrown into the sea. Sliding down the ramp on my backside, too
unsteady to run down. Start swimming and wading ashore, beach is only a
few yards long. Lot of chaps lying under the sea wall, fairly safe there,
must reach it. Just like a dream, I want to run fast but I can't, I’m
soaking wet, my equipment is ten times as heavy than when I started. Still
not there yet, seems like I’ve been running for hours, at last I sink down.
"Stand by to move”, but wait, who’s that lying by the water’s edge. Its
Wally and Yorky, no time to investigate, we’ve got to get off that beach.
As we move off I can see somebody swimming ashore, must be about 700 yards
out. He’s coming in, only another 50 yards but now he’s gone, disappeared.
French-Canadian of the famous North Shore regiment sitting on a pile of
ammo boxes, day-dreaming with his eyes wide open, not moving a muscle, or
could be? A terrific bang behind us, knocked me flying, back aches,
another couple of yards, who knows? We turn left here, off the beach,
at last, between two white tapes through the minefield up to the coast
road, a bit quieter here. Into the ditch, officers going forward, another
briefing. A few yards up the road a hastily erected compound, french
civvies hered inside looking dazed and bewildered, bet they’re wondering
what hit them. We’re off again, through the village, one or two hold-ups,
our forward troops winkling out snipers and machine gun nests. Through
the village into the wood, a few stretcher cases coming back now, must be
jerries in the wood, no not jerries, our our navy shelling the wood, bad
organisation there. They stop, we go on. An old French couple come from
their cottage, not one tile on the roof, they have a couple of bottles of
wine, that went down well. Through some fields with cows laying on their
backs, legs extended, bellies bloated. Haven’t seen Jordie since we touched
down, where's Joe, has anybody seen Joe Langlands? No! Gould do with a
smoke, lost 50 Players when I lost my big pack somewhere along the way and
the rest I had in my pocket are soaking wet. Thanks chum, why didn’t I
put mine in one of those little rubber packets, too shy to ask for one I
guess. Machine guh fire, mortars, all hell has been let loose again. We’ve
hit Langrune. Deploy, 1 and 2 sections follow me, remainder stand by.
Houses just like Brighton here. Not so bad here, better than the open
beach, but I’ve still got that horrible feeling in my stomach. If I get
in close to this house it’s a million to one chance of any mortar bomb
coming within lethal distance. Dig in at the bottom of the garden, but -
well, ours is not to reason why. ”Sniper”, a call for the troop sniper,
I go forward. A jerry sniper at the end of the road, get up in the attic
and try and keep him down. In the attic it is dark except where some tiles
have been dislodged. I move a few more to get a better view, must be
careful, if jerry sees the tiles moving he’ll open up with everything. That's
better, I can see right down the road but that sniper isn’t moving, its hard
to find mim amongst all that rubble. Yes, there's movement in that tower.
I can’t see him but if I send a couple of shots there it may move him.
Ashore for five yours, the first shots I’ve fired. I feel better. A movement
in that garden, jerry runs out, I get off a snap shot, toolate I missed him.
I go back down to report. I see Taffy Sourbee crying. He tells me Captain
Perry has bought it. Taffy was Jim Perry’s 19.0.A (batman) they were very
close. We pass his body, the back of his head is caved in. I have no
feeling unless numbness can be called a feeling. I might have been looking
at a fallen log. Our tanks - here they come.
For several hours more we fought to capture the strong points at Langrune
and finally did so the following day. Much more happened up to midnight,
including my first kill. I wasn’t shocked or disgusted. I suffered no
remorse. I was neither proud with myself or angry.