National Defense: Brother Rat

In Washington's Munitions Building last week there was a new pair of legs under old William Tecumseh Sherman's ornately carved desk. Bald, 60-year-old Brigadier General George Veazey Strong, long overdue for duty away from Washington, had been transferred from the top of the General Staff's War Plans Division to command of the VII Corps Area at Omaha. His successor was a 52-year-old, brand-new brigadier general: straight-lipped, shock-haired Leonard Townsend Gerow (pronounced jehr-oh').

When Infantryman Gerow reported to Chief of Staff George Catlett Marshall for his new detail, the greeting was brief. General Marshall handed him a sheaf of papers to which was...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!