European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 4, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Cd Alamein continued from Page 15 he infused the army completely a a Ellis said. Quot he was an army general who when Churchill said a you must make an attack a Montgomery said in a the commander and ill attack when i m ready and i la not attack until in a ready Quot he was truly a supreme commander and politics was out Quot Ellis said. Quot he was a soldiers general that a what Monty  Quot Montgomery did no to sort the army out from the Bottom he sorted it out from the top Quot Devaux explained. Quot he had such Beautiful Blue eyes. When his senior officers came in front of him it was obvious what he wanted was what he  Devaux said that if Montgomery saw a problem with one of his line officers he would Send him Back to England and replace him. Quot he had some sort of special gift to put Victory in our minds and hearts Quot he said. Devaux said Montgomery was an expert tactician. He remembers when Montgomery needed to create a convincing diversion South of the actual attack Point. Under operation Bertram Dummy pipelines were created and Dummy tanks and trucks were placed in positions to indicate buildups where none were occurring. A Dummy water pipeline was constructed 20 Miles South to 700 stacks of Dummy supplies. Quot he Montgomery created trucks to look like tanks and water pipes looking like guns and real guns looking like nothing Quot remembered Devaux. Quot we had everything fixed. His camouflage was excellent. The gun positions and All that were much much misleading. A Cha had tank tracks leading All Over the desert so i Don t think Rommel knew which Way we were coming from. Quot i think the German army was the Best trained and equipped army in modern times Quot said Devaux. Quot the German Soldier is a Good Soldier. I think now that Rommel was outgunned and  Devaux said that Montgomery tended to soldiers Little needs thus helping Lead the army to Victory. Quot a British commander has a mixed Force of new sealanders British australians and even a greek brigade Quot he said Quot there were certain Indian tribes that had to have their unique fish. The South africans had to have bigger cigarette rations. The australians had to have their own air Force. I m sure Montgomery passed these responsibilities Down to his line officers but he Veteran Peter Weeton from Perth Scotland returned to Egypt for the ceremonies marking the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Al Alamein. Gave us what we  but Alec doll who was a signalman with the 1st army div and was 21 in 1942, attributes the Success to the armament. An Elk Alamein Veteran la moved to tears by the playing of taps. Quot Montgomery was the first British general to bring adequate supplies with men guns and american Sherman and Grant tanks Quot doll said. Quot before that we had crusaders matildas with pea shooter guns. They were British tanks against very Good German Mark 3 and Mark 4s. The British tanks  touch them. They a get shot out of the ground. Quot i still remember the first time seeing the tank tracks in the Sand from the Tiger Quot doll explained. Quot when we saw this enormous track we could visualize the horror of the vehicle that was on those  on nov. 4 the British finally broke through the line. More than 1 million rounds of artillery and ammunition were fired in the 12 Days of Battle. Rommel was in full Retreat. Montgomery pursued him into Libya through Tunisia and saw the final surrender of the afrika Korps. The British had won. Back on this desert Plain 50 years later these veterans held their Heads High not worrying about sniper fire or German advances. The relics of this Battle Are displayed at the Al Alamein museum and pose no threat. Devaux reflected for a moment then wiped a tear from his Eye. Quot we lost a lot of Good men Quot he said. Quot but we won at  Quot the British Soldier is a Good Soldier too and he Sticks around a lot longer Quot Devaux  american looks Back by Craig Martin staff writer fifty years have passed since the famous Battle on the desert Frontier along the Mediterranean sea but tears still come to the eyes of the outsider who saw the fighting from a different View. He Wasny to a Soldier but often found himself on the front lines an american navigating through a Field of 5 million German mines known As the Quot Devil s  although the Battle was fought primarily by Commonwealth forces from great Britian Australia new zealand and India on the Allied Side and the German and italian Axis forces some americans were involved As non combatants in the fight for Al Alamein. One such american was William Kahlo one of about 60 ambulance Drivers assigned to the american Field service who were sent to Egypt to assist the British 8th army the ass which is still in existence was founded in 19t 4 the purpose of the new York based organization is to promote International understanding primarily through the Exchange of students. Kahlo who lives in Van Guys calif., was a 26-year-old Section Leader who joined the ass for a one year stint shortly before Pearl Harbor. His was a different View of the Battle. Quot part of the time we were in the front lines part of the time we were just Back of the front into the main dressing stations Quot Kahlo told the stars and stripes during the 50th anniversary commemoration of the Battle at the British War cemetery oct. 25. Quot occasionally we d take the casualties to the big dressing stations Back in  during the 12>day Battle Kahlo said there were two ass companies assigned to the 8th army. Quot i was on the second company coming from our Headquarters in new York Quot he said. Quot we arrived on an egyptian passenger liner that was supposed to be  he remembers clearly the Day the Battle started oct. 23, 1942. Quot what Sticks in my mind the most was the barrage before the ground attack Quot he said. Quot it was so tremendous that it boggles the mind. Quot the flashes in the sky made it seem just like a Dawn Quot he explained. Quot it went on for hours actually. It just kept you on Edge All the time because you knew you were going  Kahlo knew that at any moment he d be called upon to Inch his ambulance through the Devil s Garden and Rescue soldiers. Quot wed been Given maps of the lanes through the mine Fields that we had to negotiate Quot Kahlo explained. He said the paths were marked with three tracks. Quot boat bottle and hat we called Mem which were marked with Oil Drums Quot he explained. Quot and we had to stay within those through the mine Fields because they were cleared by the engineers. Quot they were very narrow paths Quot he said with a laugh. Quot one time before that attack one of our ambulances did wander into a mine Field Quot Kahlo reflected. Quot the Driver did no to get killed but we had to go into the mine Field to get him and the vehicle out. It was kind of  Kahlo continued with Montgomery s forces into Benghazi 600 Miles West of Elk Alamein. Quot my year was up with ass at that time Quot Kahlo remembered. I could have stayed on and gone right on through to Tripoli Quot he said. Quot but i Felt that i should get Back and get into my own  he later joined the Navy serving until the end of the War. His most vivid memory of the Battle is the attitude and spirit of the men. Quot i went and picked up this one Soldier who was wounded pretty badly Quot Kahlo said. Quot i told him a hey you re going to go Home now and he said i Don t w ant to go Home. I just got  Quot Kahlo smiled at the recollection. He Shook his head looked off into the desert Down the strip that he knew As the Alamein line then wiped a tear from his Eye. Quot they were All like