I recall we once got some civilian bearers. This is all they were used for.
They carried such things as canisters of ammunition, and mortars and their
base plates. They didn't like our C Rations very much (but who did?), but that
is all we had to feed them. They didn't stay with us long, and they disappeared
as mysteriously as they appeared.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Wednesday, October 02, 2002 9:07
AM
Subject: Re: South Koreans in the 7th
Div.
More like tragic - but it really did happen. And American combat
officers had no choice in the matter. U.S. forces needed fillers, and
the agreed solution was ROK troops. Unfortunately, there weren't enough
of them so South Korean civilians were essentially impressed, given a few
days (sometimes) of a sort of orientation and assigned to American
units. This began in August, 1950. Obviously, the ROK
fillers generally lacked English language skills, and had no
uniforms or weapons. In fact, most had never touched a rifle.
Because 7 ID had been stripped to supply fillers for other units it received
the most ROKs and felt the most effects.
That particular phase of the experiment
was generally disastrous and for a while it looked as if no more
ROKs would be assigned to American units, but manpower requirements never
let the program be abolished. There were ROKs assigned to American units
into at least the mid 1960s. However, by the middle of the war
most of them were receiving at least some training that could
legitimately be recognized as basic military training, and their quality
improved.
This sounds rather ridiculous. The ROK Marines were pretty good troops,
but the ROK soldiers (or the ones that were assigned to us) really weren't all
that great. I can't believe that any combat officer would go along with arming
untrained, reluctant civilians as a means to augment his forces. Sounds like
one of those "drying a poodle in the microwave" tales to me.
Bob Dove
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