Survive as a World War II Soldier - Chapter 66



Only Noblemtl

#066

In the history of the Yuan Dynasty, it is said that up to 25,000 people gathered.

Although the number was halved thanks to the faster timing, it still exceeded ten thousand.

If suddenly more than ten thousand people gathered and formed a shantytown, does it really make sense that there were no problems?

Even the amount of feces and urine excreted by that many people was enormous.

Among those ten thousand people were women, children, and even pregnant women.

From the moment people began to gather, the Rainbow Foundation actively stepped forward and carried out support projects.

“I have also been to Europe. How could I not know the difficult circumstances of my former comrades?”

Fortunately, Washington, D.C.’s police chief, Glassford, was one of those veterans.

“There will be no problem in temporarily living here. However, the most important thing is to maintain order.”

“Yes. We will strictly follow the police officers’ control.”

He strengthened patrols inside and outside Hoover Village and did his best to help those who had flocked to Washington settle down. With the Rainbow Foundation added to the mix, it wasn’t too difficult.

“But aren’t they all people who have served in the military?”

By using the ranks before retirement to organize and manage the organization, things started to run quite smoothly.

And they also looked for people who were good at speaking and had popularity and chose them as their representatives.

Thanks to this, Hoover Village was running without any major problems, contrary to its appearance.

But not everyone thought so.

There were some who sympathized with and felt sorry for the Bonus Army, but there were also quite a few who did not.

“How long are we going to leave them like that?”

“What kind of official position is going to war? There are people who go to war and come back and live well.”

“That’s right. There must be a reason why it looks like that.”

“I heard that the bonus was supposed to be given later from the beginning, but this is just a tantrum···.”

Washington residents in particular were growing increasingly frustrated with refugee camps and sporadic demonstrations nearby.

“No, wouldn’t it be better to do some work rather than holding a rally like that?”

“Really. I’ve been feeling anxious lately···.”

“They say the police are patrolling more, but honestly, who knows what they might be hiding in there?”

It wasn’t just the residents.

“It has already been rejected in the Senate. If you know that the government cannot do anything, you should go back on your own. You can’t just leave them like that, right?”

Government officials, including Hoover, were also bothered by the existence of the Bonus Army.

What was most disturbing to them was that there were over ten thousand people gathered together without any accidents.

Such an orderly organization, doesn’t it look like the military?

“Is it really true that there are no accidents or incidents?”

“How can you say there are no problems in a shantytown with ten thousand people?”

“What? The Rainbow Foundation?”

“Is General MacArthur really involved?”

Hoover’s face twisted when he heard that the Rainbow Foundation was among those supporting the Bonus Army.

Immediately after the Bonus Army incident occurred, the Democratic Party used it as an excuse to launch a fierce political offensive.

Along with criticism that the Republican government was incompetent, there were also accusations that they were turning a blind eye to those who fought for the country.

Democrat Wright Patton introduced a populist bill without any thought for the national finances.

The bill eventually passed the House of Representatives, swayed by public opinion favorable to the Bonus Army.

Fortunately, it was blocked in the Senate, but…

“If it ever gets to the point where I have to use my veto power···.”

It was dizzying just thinking about it.

Hoover was deeply resentful. How could the panic be his fault?

That fucking Black Thursday and Black Tuesday happened less than a year after he became president.

At this point, Hoover was even suspicious that Calvin Coolidge had known about this situation and had run away because he had not run for reelection.

Otherwise, what reason would there be to turn down the presidency?

Anyway, the author who irritated Hoover more than anyone else these days, who had become increasingly sensitive, was Roosevelt and his son-in-law, MacArthur.

“Wasn’t MacArthur involved in the Bonus Army?”

The mouths of those gathered were shut at Hoover’s question.

Hoover’s question was not simply a question of curiosity. It was an expression of his hope that the answer would be yes.

I hated the sight of MacArthur using the Foundation to his advantage while he and the Republicans were racking their brains over that damned Bonus Army situation.

No, to be exact, I was anxious.

MacArthur’s position within the Army was currently at its highest.

Those who disliked MacArthur had already left the military, and those who opposed him were only a handful.

MacArthur enjoyed tremendous support among the young officers, NCOs, and frontline soldiers.

If MacArthur really has Napoleon-like ambitions,

Ten thousand people was more than a brigade.

If the Bonus Army sided with MacArthur and took action, would the military really be under the command of the executive branch?

Hoover’s imagination ran wild.

And Hoover wasn’t the only president who imagined the worst.

“Mr. President, the Rainbow Foundation is a foundation that General MacArthur has been involved with since its establishment. Currently, his wife, Anna MacArthur, is in charge of the important work. Also···”

Someone interrupted FBI Director Edgar Hoover’s remark that all of the foundation’s key figures, including Minoh, the foundation’s chairman, and Marcus, the executive director, were MacArthur’s people.

“That’s enough. The Rainbow Foundation’s name comes from the 42nd Division’s nickname, Rainbow. If it’s not related, wouldn’t that be stranger? From the very beginning, everyone knew about it.”

“Yes. And has the foundation done anything stupid?”

Aside from MacArthur’s strong influence, there were no minor problems in the foundation. If there had been problems in the foundation, would those who opposed MacArthur becoming Chief of Staff have remained silent?

MacArthur also knew that there was no problem, so he made a large donation right after the wedding and publicly promoted the foundation.

“The foundation is fine, but that doesn’t mean everyone who works within it is fine.”

Edgar Hoover pulled out a file containing information on several people.

“What is this···.”

“Hoo.”

Some of the people frowned, while others looked interested.

“There’s a communist among the foundation staff.”

“Yes. That’s not all. Just before the Bonus Army incident, there were people who went around the country and encouraged people to get involved.”

A smile appeared on President Hoover’s face at Edgar Hoover’s comment that they too must be commies.

“Can’t we keep such important facts to ourselves?”

##

“Honey, honey.”

“What’s going on?”

Anna, who had gone to get a newspaper to read while eating breakfast, came running back, making a fuss.

And when I checked the newspaper she handed me, I could see why she had been so excited.

-The Reds are targeting DC,-

The front page was covered with an article claiming that communists were involved in the Bonus Army incident.

“This is a ridiculous accusation.”

“I know.”

Of course I know it well.

The reason MacArthur and Patton, in the original history, turned their backs and sent tanks and cavalry to push back the Bonus Army was their excessive fear of the communists.

Even MacArthur believed to the end that he had saved America from a communist plot.

“I’m going to meet with the Bonus Army representatives soon anyway. There will be quite a few reporters there then, so I can just reveal that this isn’t true.”

The Hoover administration’s actions were clear.

At present, public opinion toward the Bonus Army is generally favorable. Of course, there are those who dislike them, but most sympathize with the situation of the Bonus Army who went to foreign lands to fight for their country.

however,

“There’s something really strange about this.”

When Anna came back from work that evening, she greeted me with a very angry face.

“What happened to make you do that?”

“You shared the food with them, didn’t you? They’re not beggars, so don’t give them to them for free.”

“That’s right.”

This was also for the Bonus Army.

There are over ten thousand people, so there can’t be any problems. And how much would people hate it if a refugee camp suddenly appeared around their house?

So, the Rainbow Foundation’s cafeteria provided free food to the elderly and the injured, but not to those with able limbs.

Food was distributed only if people participated in tasks such as collecting a certain amount of trash, catching harmful animals like rats, or maintaining the Hoover Village.

The fact that public opinion on the Bonus Army has been positive so far was also related to this.

After the demonstration, the protesters diligently picked up trash and caught rats in the area to exchange for the street food that evening.

Naturally, the places where protesters passed by are bound to be cleaner than other places.

Many citizens were moved by the sight of the protesters picking up trash and donated food and other items.

“Those who were picking up trash were attacked.”

“what?”

“He threw stones at the commies, telling them to get out.”

“this.”

Somehow, the way things were going seemed unusual.

It was the aftermath of the story that the Bonus Army was communist that had been dominating the newspaper pages for a few days.

As a result, the number of people who cursed at or spat on the protesters, as well as throwing objects like rocks and trash, was increasing.

Naturally, the protesters’ reactions are bound to become more violent.

Who would laugh and say it’s okay if their colleague next to them is hit by a rock and is bleeding?

And the next day, when I went to work, a shocking report was on my desk.

The Bonus Army are communists, and they’re trying to occupy the Capitol and foment communist uprisings across the country.

This is it, fart.

“Are you sure?”

I tried to pressure him by deliberately putting on a face, but Colonel Conrad Lanza, who brought the report, had a confident expression.

“That’s for sure. Not all of the Bonus Army are communists. But it’s definitely true that there are people with clear anti-communist tendencies among them.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, and above all, seeing that the Bonus Army’s protests have become increasingly violent recently···.”

Wow, that’s awesome.

And the one who put the finishing touches on it was none other than the appearance of Secretary of War Patrick Hurley.

“The President has made a decision. Washington, D.C. can no longer be exposed to the threat of communists. They must be disbanded.”

“How do you say that?”

“yes?”

“How can we disperse these people who number over ten thousand?”

Rather than being flustered by my odd question, Hurley gave an unexpected answer.

“There’s Major Patton, right? If it’s the tank unit he leads….”

“Who is it?”

Why is Patton here? He must have purposely sent that kid far away for fear of causing trouble.

At this point, I’m not stupid, so I couldn’t help but realize that this wasn’t just a bonus army thing, it was all aimed at me.

If you leave the Bonus Army alone, I’ll be branded a communist too, that’s it···.

“We must save America from the red conspiracy.”

“It’s impossible with just the police or the Marines. Ten thousand people would be more than the size of a regiment.”

“That’s ridiculous. How can you deploy combat units against civilians…”

“No. If we show them overwhelming force like a tank, wouldn’t they lose their will to fight and surrender quickly?”

The meeting was a mess.

Those who opposed the crackdown, including Secretary Hurley, Lanza, and Drum, also raised their voices, along with Bradley and Marshall.

However, the basic argument that the military cannot attack innocent civilians in order to prevent communist plots to overthrow the state and wage civil war was very weak.

During this period, the United States of America (China) did many things that were worthy of its name.

For example, it was a time when it was natural for the National Guard to fire machine guns while dismissing workers’ strikes as communist riots.

And the report that came in during that time was shocking.

“Major Patton reported that he would be moving his tank units.”

“what?”

The one who answered my question in a moment of confusion was none other than Minister Hurley.

“Even though tank speeds have improved a lot compared to the old days, doesn’t it still take quite a while to get going?”

So you’re saying that they told us to leave the unit in advance?

President’s orders?

Even so, he passed over me, the Chief of Staff, and gave direct orders to the frontline units. No, he may have even used my name.

Anyway, let’s have a go at this, right? Ha, I guess I saw MacArthur as water.

“Ha, ha. A conspiracy by communists… Yes. It seems like there really is a conspiracy.”

Secretary Hurley and others flinched at my cold face.

Even Patton can stop it.