October 18, 2017 The Julian News 7
by Bic Mountblanc
In a few short days the fate
of an American deserter will be
determined at his court martial.
Bowe Bergdahl isn't the first
in American history guilty of
the crime and as long as we
fight wars he probably will not
be the last. In the 18th and
19th centuries, punishment for
desertion was swift and severe.
The last time an American soldier
was executed for this crime was
during WWlI. This is the story.
Twelve soldiers from the 109th
regiment were armed with M-1
rifles and eleven rounds and one
blank. They stood in formation in
a courtyard surrounded by high
brick walls in Sainte-Marie-aux-
Mines, France. Before them was
a thick post. It was January 31,
1945.
Fighting in the freezing
temperatures in the Ardennes
and the Hurtgen Forest was
fierce. Casualties were
horrific. American soldiers
were frightened but fought with
tenacity of animals that they were
reduced to.
The convicted soldier, Eddie
Slovik would not fight. He was
court martialed and found guilty
of desertion. He was led into
the courtyard. His uniform had
been stripped of any insignia or
sign of rank. He was strapped to
the post across his chest, under
his arms with a webbed belt.
The belt was fixed to a spike at
the back of the post to keep the
convicted soldier from slumping.
He was strapped around the
knees and ankles.
There was little doubt about
the accused cowardice. When
he landed in France in August
1944 his unit came under artillery
attack and took cover in a small
town. All the men were scared
but when the time came tO move,
they moved. Slovik did not. He
decided "right then and there that
he was not fit for combat." He
and a companion wandered until
being picked up by Canadian
Military Police unit and stayed
with them for the next month and
a half.
With the massive troop
movements across France,
things were hectic and confusing.
A lot of troops were separated
from their commands. But a letter
to the company commander
paved the way for Slovik to rejoin
the 109th without charges or
punishment for either of the two
AWOLs,
Slovik was not a stranger to
crime and the criminal justice
system. He served numerous
sentences since his first
incarceration at twelve. He was
not considered fit for the draft
initially because of his criminal
record but as the war progressed
he was eventually reclassified
and drafted.
After rejoining the 109th, a
part of the 28th Infantry Division,
he approached his company
commander and requested a
position in the rear rather than
a front line position because
he was "too scared". He told
his commander, Captain Grotte
that if he were assigned to the
front he would run and asked if
that would constitute desertion.
Grotte responded that it would
and assigned Slovik to a front
line rifle unit disregarding his
request. Slovik ran.
He reached the rear several
miles behind the lines and
presented a note to a cook. "1,
Pvt. Eddie D. Slovik, 36896415,
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Robots in movies often look like humans, while
real-life factory robots usually have only one big
arm to do the work they are built to do.
Robots have computers for "brains." People
can program them with a set of directions to
"teach" them a job. If something goes wrong,
played by human
actors. Remember
C-3PO and R2-D2
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Star Wars? Many •
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robots can't teach themselves how to fix it - yet! robots. But, more and
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Can You Figure it Out?
Check out my robot! Can you fill
in the number where he has:
1. cameras for eyes
2. feet for moving from place to place
3. computer "brain" area; panel for repairs
4. bendable, flexible arms to reach
and stretch
5. microphones for ears to pick up sound
6. a loudspeaker for "talking"
can help humans directly -
are being built
and put to use.
Have you heard about
NASA's Mars Exploration Program?
Robots, like this one, are sent to
Mars. They help scientists study
the planet by sending photos and
data from Mars to Earth.
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Fill in this puzzle to show how much
you know about robots:
1. working, moving or acting by itself
2. machine that automatically does a job
3. set of directions put into the computer
to tell the robot what to do
4. business, work that produces things
we use, such as cars and bicycles
5. field of work designing, building robots
6. the "brain" of the robot
7. able to move from place to place
8. fun stories that show how a real or
imagined scientific thing such as a
robot might change our way of life
Beep!. .. Identify
These Robots
Here are some favorite and famous robots
from cartoons, toys and real life! Can you
match each one to its definition?
Is There A Robot in Your House?
ILB = Bright Blue K = Black-'
D = Dark Blue
G = Dark Gray W = WhiteI
G = Light Gray Y = Yell°w I
A simple "robot" is an automatic machine that will
complete an easy task, such as a microwave oven and dishwasher.
Follow the color key to see a smart "robot" that people use to vacuum:
1. Baymax
(Big Hero Six)
A. robot dog that can play
fetch and recognize you,
2. Mars "Curiosity" rover
B. colorful robots that you
can build and program yourself
3, Asimo (Honda)
C. medical robot in "San Fransokyo" who
wears a suit of armor to save the
4. Chip (by WowWee)
D. car-sized robot that helps NASA
explore space and complete
its science missions
5. Mindstorms (by Lego)
E. robots from the planet Cybertron that
can take the shape of cars or airplanes
6. Transformers
F. real-life walking and talking robot,
can climb stairs or serve you drinks
Robot Fire-Fighting Competition! At this competition the 2 robots must find the house with the candle flame inside it and put out
the flame. To get there, each robot must find its way "in and out" of the other 4 rooms first. Can you help each robot find its way through the maze? .,.
Solution Page 12
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confess to the desertion of the
United States Army".... "1 told my
commanding officer my story. I
said that if I had to go out there
again rd run away. He said there
was nothing he could do for me
so I ran away again and rll run
away again if I have to go out
there."
Slovik was taken into custody
by an MP and brought to the
cook's company commander
who read the note and told
Slovik to destroy it. He refused,
was placed under arrest and
he was brought to Lieutenant
Colonel Henbest who read the
note and again offered SIov, ik
the opportunity to destroy it. He
refused. Henbest had him write
on the other side of the note that
he understood all the implication
of his actions and the note would
be used in a court martial against
him. Slovik wrote as he was told
and was taken to the stockade.
Maybe Slovik was playing the
odds. During periods of intense
battle, in all wars, desertion
numbers increase and it was
no different during WWII and
especially at that specific time
with fierce fighting about to begin
in the Ardennes. All soldiers
knew that the ultimate penalty for
desertion was execution. Murder
and rape were considered capital
offenses as well during that time
and all the executions that had
taken place in the European
Theater up till then were for that
reason. The fact of the matter
is that there were over 21,000
cases of desertion during WWII
and only 49 instances of the
death sentence imposed. Of
those only one was carried out.
Slovik, was most likely counting
on time in the stockade and a
dishonorable discharge as his
fate for the crime. The desertion
rates were increasing though
as the Bulge raged and some
historians feel that Slovik may
have been an easy scapegoat
and example for the issue at
hand.
SIovik's court martial was on
November 11th 1944. He was
found guilty and sentenced to
the firing squad. His sentence
was approved by the division
commander Major General Cota.
He said "Given the situation...I
thought it was my duty to this
country to approve that sentence.
If I hadn't approved it...I don't
know how I could have gone up
to the line and looked a good
soldier in the face.
SIovick appealed to General
Dwight Eisenhower and in all
capital offenses he had the final
say. He approved the sentence
on December 23rd.
As he was being led to the
firing squad some of SIovik's
last words were "They're not
shooting me for deserting the
United States Army, thousands
of guys have done that. They just
need to make an example out of
somebody and I'm it because I'm
an ex-con. I used to steal things
continued on page 12
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victories as a pitcher for the
Detroit Tigers: Jack Morris or
Justin Verlander?
2. Between 1972-79, an Angels
pitchers led the A.L in strikeouts
each season. Nolan Ryan did it
seven of the eight seasons. Who
did it the other one?
3. Who was the youngest
coach to lead a football team to
the college Division I national
championship?
4. Name the first European-
born player to win the NBA Most
Valuable Player Award.
5. When was the last time the
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the NHL's Eastern Conference
finals?
6. Who holds the record for
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Indianapolis 500?
7. Earlier in 2017, in three
different events, Rafael Nadal
won a tennis tournament for the
10th time. One was the French
Open. Name either of the other
tWO.
Answers on page 12
