[Qcwa] fixed staion operation

[Henry Schickler]

Man, you fellows bring back some funny memories of mine.
I got int the signal corp because I had my ham ticket. Was lucky because
they weren't forming a division. Was sent to Camp Crowder in Missouri for
basic training. After basic I was ent with a train load to Fort Momouth.
When we got there they found out the whole train load did not have any
radio training except for a few hams. Off to signal school we all went. I
hurt my ankle and spent 19 days in a cast. I was transfered to a
different company and they told me I was training to be a fixes station
operator. I wold have to copy 25 wpm and type 40 wpm on teletype
machines. Help I didn't touch type. They didn't even consider that. One
day they said I had to take the 25 wpm sending test, I said you guys are
crazy, I can't copy 25 yet and I don't know the sound. Well, this was a
prelude to sending us back to Crowder to the Unit training center. One
man in my company was a qualified fixed station operator. Momouth was
getting even. Off we went to the Central signal school. Got out as a
mobile operator copy at 20 wpm.
Got shoved around and ended up inEurope as a motor messaenger. Never saw
a radio in the army again. Some of my buddies I understand wound up at a
fixed station outside of Paris. These guys had made it as fixed station
operators. One was a ham named Gil Rink the other was named Murray
Cummings. I wonder if anyone ran accross them in the WAR days?  

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