World War Two, saving private ryan, Second World War, W.W.II

[bottom]

Location: Verrières Ridge

Personality: Private Bider

Private Rubin Bider: Verrières Ridge   July 20th, the 2nd Canadian division was headed in to attack Verrières Ridge, and in with them went the new recruit Private Rubin Bider. It was his first live action. The attack made progress slowly up the hill, but the German counter-attack suppressed them, and drove them back down. Suffering terrible casualties, the last step before retreat was to try to carry out the wounded, and Bider helped with this task. His company commander was dead, his platoon officer was wounded, and his section leader was dead. There was no one left to give him specific orders. "I just stayed around and found some fellows who had been wounded. Among the last was Pte. V. A. Aston, he was hit in the leg and had lost a lot of blood. I gave him a smoke. I was told to stay there by a Major, and I did, till another Eastern outfit came to re-take our position, four hours late. I was alone till then, cut off from our own lines. I got myself a Bren, two Stens, and two rifles. Some Germans were advancing. I shot at them with the Bren and saw some fall. I then saw a German tank move up, and their soldiers pull back. I crawled to another position near where I could see our tanks advancing. Some troops from Ontario came along and I joined up with them and stayed there that night. I didn't get back to my unit till two days later. I got a clipping in the Winnipeg Free Press , and I got put in for the DCM, but I didn't get it. I guess if my name had been James M. Smith, I would have got a ribbon." Bider was young, small, and Jewish.