Record of 03 Failure in WWI

[Jim Tarleton]

I found one!

Ever wonder what happens when you blow up an 03 in the Marine Corps? You pay for it!

Jim

Information

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[stryker]

Sounds more like operator failure. I'm sure the rifle was just fine until he jammed mud into the barrel and then discharged it! He lost a third of his whopping $33 a month for three months for his trouble. Interesting to note that 25 years later pay had risen to a generous $50 a month!

[Jim Tarleton]

What is amazing is that this is from the 6th Regiment in combat, about 1-month before Belleau Wood. Surely under the conditions they lived the Corps would have made an exception; but no, they were still as strict as ever.

Jim

[Dan Shapiro]

Reminds me of the soldier in Vietnam, wounded and MedEvac'd. Someone threw his gear into the chopper. While the medic was working on him, the medic's foot kicked the rifle and out the door it went. After the soldier recovered he found that he'd been charged for the 'loss' of the rifle. Took the intervention of a US Senator to get the nonsense stopped.

[lovemymilsurps]

I found one!

Ever wonder what happens when you blow up an 03 in the Marine Corps? You pay for it!

Jim

lol that sucks

some one grab me another 03

[DANCESWITHEMPTIES]

Were there conscripts in the U.S. Marine Corps at that time? If so I wonder if the poor bugger was one of them to boot?

[warning5]

In 1969 we lost a m16 out the door of a chopper,all 6 choppers landed and we found the weapon, ROTC training!

[BEAR]

In 1973 a unit from the Canadian PPCLI was training with us at Ft. Wainwright, AK. One their troops lost a C1 submachinegun. They searched but did not find it. He paid for it. However, the next year, same unit, same AO AND the same troop found it. Just had a light coat of rust on it. Story was carried in all the post newspapers. Wonder if he got to keep it since he had already paid for it.

In 1974 we jumped into King Salmon, AK for a field exercise and one of our mortar maggots lost his .45. After the company, on line, made four sweeps of the DZ and we didn't locate it, we continued with the FTX. I think he paid for that also. The DZ was all muskeg so chances of finding it was slim to none anyways.

BEAR

[Jim Tarleton]

Now gentlemen, with all this furor over lost weapons, be it in combat or no, how on earth was Cpl. Alvin York armed with a 1903 Springfield while the rest of his company was armed with M1917's?

Please do not tell me that the powers that were just "overlooked" his obviously improper unissued rifle. That just didn't happen. Sharpshooters were a dime a dozen in WWI.

I have never believed that story that Col. York defied military protocol and carried a 1903 that would have stuck out like a sore thumb. I believe he was carrying his issued 45 and his issued M1917. If you review the path Sgt. Early took that day, York had no opportunity to pick up a 1903, because no AEF unit armed with 1903's had preceded them.

Jim

PS
I lost an M16 in RVN in combat and I paid for it. I am getting long in the tooth, but I think the price was $333.16.

[Rick the Librarian]

"Col. York"? That was some promotion he must have got!!