orders,” Truman said. “If he does, I want to know about it. Would that be a problem for you?”
“No, sir.”
“Okay. This will go out tonight,” Truman said. “I want you to work closely with Ralph here, but you both have the authority to communicate directly with me. If there’s a disagreement between you, I want to hear both sides, and I’ll decide. Clear?”
“Clear,” General Howe said.
“Yes, sir.”
“General Howe wants to pick your brain, Captain McCoy, ” the President said. “I want you to tell him everything you know.”
“Yes, sir,” McCoy said.
“McCoy gave us a briefing tonight you might find fascinating yourself, Mr. President—”
“Us? Who’s us?” the President interrupted sharply. “Who else have you let in on McCoy’s assessment?”
“Sir, when you ordered my recall, General Cates assigned two officers to me, officers who had been with me in the OSS in War Two. Colonel Ed Banning and Marine Gunner Zimmerman.”
“That was very obliging of the Commandant,” the President said.
It was a question. Pickering decided he could let it pass, but decided not to.
Is that a courageous decision, or is the Famous Grouse talking?
“Mr. President, General Cates is afraid that when the Marine Corps can’t perform the miracle everyone will expect it to, it will reflect badly on the Corps.”
“What miracle won’t it be able to perform? And how will the assignment of these two officers to you keep that from reflecting badly on the Marine Corps?”
“General Cates hopes that whenever I have the opportunity I will inject ‘the First Marine Division is at half wartime strength.’ ”
“Half wartime strength?” General Howe asked incredulously.
“Half strength,” Pickering repeated. “And in the entire Marine Corps, there are only about eighty thousand officers and men, plus twice that many in the reserve.”
“God, I knew there had been reductions, but I didn’t know it was that bad!” Howe said.
“It’s that bad,” Pickering said.
“It would appear General Cates got what he wanted, wouldn’t it?” the President said. “I’ll keep that unhappy statistic in mind, along with many others.”
Neither Howe nor Pickering replied.
“McCoy gave a briefing to these two officers?” Truman asked.
“And to me, sir. I thought it was brilliant.”
“I’d like to hear it,” Howe said. “Can you do that for me, Captain?”
“Yes, sir,” McCoy said.
“Not tonight,” Truman said. “We have other things to talk about tonight, Ralph.”
“Where can I find you in the morning, McCoy? Say about eight?” Howe asked.
“I’m here in the hotel, sir. But if you’ll tell me where—”
“The hotel’s fine. I’m staying here myself. Where are you? With General Pickering?”
“No, sir. I’m in the American Personal Pharmaceuticals suite.”
“The American Personal Pharmaceuticals suite?” Howe asked, with a smile.
“He’s like you, Ralph, he doesn’t need the job, he just likes the uniform,” Truman said, and immediately added: “I shouldn’t have said that, I suppose. I meant it admiringly. ”
“I’ll call you at eight, Captain,” General Howe said.
“Aye, aye, sir.”
“Ralph, why don’t you walk down the corridor with General Pickering, and deliver a message from me to Mrs. Pickering?”
“What message, Harry?”
“His recall to active duty was my idea, not his.”
“I’ll be happy to.”
“Thank you both,” the President said. “I hope there will be a chance to see you both again before you go over there.”
He went to the door and shook the hands of both men as they went through it.
VII
[ONE]
OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY COMMANDING GENERAL CAMP PENDLETON, CALIFORNIA 1130 5 JULY 1950
Brigadier General Clyde W. Dawkins, USMC, was annoyed—and his face showed it—when the telephone on his desk buzzed. He was in conference with Brigadier General Edward A. Craig, USMC, who until two days before had been Deputy Commanding General, 1st Marine Division, and was now Commanding General, 1st Marine Provisional Brigade, and he had, he thought, made it clear to Captain Arthur McGowan, USMC, his aide-de-camp, that he didn’t want to be disturbed.
“Sorry,” he said to Craig, a tall, lean officer beside him, a tanned man in his early fifties who wore his thick silver hair in a crew cut, and reached for the telephone.
“Sir, it’s the Commandant,” Captain McGowan announced.
“General Dawkins, sir.”
“Dawkins,” the Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps said, without any preliminaries, “this is a heads-up on an Urgent TWX you’re about to get from the JCS. In essence, it says by Direction of the President, Brigadier General Fleming Pickering, USMCR, will shortly be in San Diego. Give him whatever he wants, and tell him anything he wants to know.”
“Yes, sir?” General Dawkins said.
“Do just that, Dawkins. Give him whatever he wants and tell him anything he wants to know.”