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wounded and injured. Warren told the injured and
wounded men ‘We do not have the capability to take you with us. You
will either have to surrender to the Germans or hide until friendly troops
get here.’
When the group left, Oscar Prasse carrying me piggy-back
tried to keep up with them. Then the troopers deployed as a firefight
started.
When the fight finished the group assembled and continued
toward Hill 30, I was left behind.
That night Prasse came back for me. He carried
me about a quarter of a mile to an unoccupied house alongside a road.
We moved into the third floor of that house and had a view of the road in
both directions.
During the night, we heard an approaching motorcycle.
Prasse was at the window and killed the rider with his rifle. He went
out, dragged the cycle and rider out of sight, and returned with the German's
Schmeisser (machine pistol).
Still later that night, we heard another motorcycle
on the road. Prasse killed the second cyclist with his newly acquired
Schmeisser. He hid the dead rider and his cycle and brought the German’s
Schmeisser for my use.
I suffered terribly from my broken ankle and frequently
used morphine to kill the pain, which caused me to have severe dysentery.
Oscar left to get medical help for me. He returned
alone and told me Germans were all around the house. The Germans even
searched the house but failed to find us.
About three days later, the Germans left the area.
However, each night the German activity on the road increased. One night
Prasse went out, shot another German, and from his body obtained cheese, bread
and ammunition. About D + five or six, 90th Infantry Division troops
arrived in the area. Oscar Prasse carried me out to the road and left
to find the 508th PIR. Soon an ambulance picked me up and
I was evacuated to Omaha Beach and to England.
Prior to boarding our planes in England, each man received
200 francs, including a 100-franc note with their name penciled in for distribution.
As Oscar and I had lived in the farmhouse for almost six days, eating food
and sleeping on the beds, in gratitude, I left one of 100-franc notes under
a flower vase.”
The story of Joe Bressler leaving his 100-franc note
behind has become legend in Normandy. The farmhouse owner, Leon LeGrand,
still has the note his father found.
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