February 1990 - Volume 1 No. 5

A look at our members...

Ben Martin

Ben Martin was a bushworker in his youth. One could tell by the gripping strength in his handshake that he was not only a war-veteran but also a veteran of years of earnest work. Ben recalled those good old days back in the bush and said, "if that kind of work was still there I'd still be doing it." Those days were long but that kind of living was nice and healthy according to Ben who enjoyed every bit of it.

He remembered turning seventeen and leaving the bush to enlist with the Canadian army during the Second World War. Ben did his basic training in Dundurn, Saskatchewan. Immediately following that he proceeded to Camp Borden for advanced training.

However, the you lumberjack was not to see combat duty because the war in Europe was coming to a close but things in the Pacific hadn't quite settled. So Ben volunteered for the Pacific forces but the campaign was dissolved as the Second World War came to an end.

Although Ben was almost too young he felt he had joined up too late and as a result wasn't able to go overseas or anything. Ben had an older brother and a sister in the army so he figured that he would do his little bit too. The young soldier got his discharge and returned home to Nipigon.

Ben was back in the bush when the Korean war began. There wasn't a second thought to consider when he left again to join the army. Soon he was in the 1st Battalion of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry. The battalion was sent to Rivers, Manitoba for paratrooper training. Once this was completed the boys were ocean bound for Korea.

Before they reached Korea the Canadians stopped in Japan. They took a train across the country. Ben remembers seeing the land of Hiroshima where the atomic bomb had been dropped. He said, "there was nothing, everything had been flattened and not a thing growing". They arrived at the other side where they took a boat across to Korea.

Again they boarded a train that took them part way to their destination. The 1st Battalion had to walk the rest of the way. It took them two week of walking and climbing, up and down, the hilly terrain of Korea. "I'm telling you it's something....it plays you out", Ben recalls. It was a tiresome trek for the Canadians but they reached their destination and relieved the 2nd Battalion of the Princess Pats.

The 1st Battalion took their positions on commanding hills from where they could see the enemy. Ben remembers, "you could see the enemy plain as day over on the next hill". The men spent much of their time in slit trenches which reduced exposure to enemy artillery shrapnel and gun fire. Duty watch consisted of two hours on and two off. Combat action was eminent at any moment. "You could tell when they were ready to attack us guys. You could tell when the enemy were all set to come and have a go at us. They'd be playing music, yelling and screaming. We just waited and we were ready for them."

The enemy forces would attack in waves of three. The first would be well equipped with rifles and grenades. The second would do the same but weren't as bad. Finally, the third would come in but they'd be picking up equipment and casualties. This tactic was used steady but it wasn't successful as far as Ben was concerned. When the boys were not in the trenches fending off the enemy they were engaged in another aspect of the war, the fighting patrols.

Ben was a section commander for the snatch patrols or what he called the fighting patrols. They were reconnaissance units whose sole purpose was to engage the enemy. They would send or bring back vital information for army intelligence. Units would leave at dusk and return by dawn.

Many Indian boys went out on these patrols. They all went through a three week snipers course in Korea. Many were from Manitoba and "those boys were all good and were pretty cool under fire too", Ben recalls. With all due respect to his other Canadian comrades, Ben believes, "there was certainly no two ways about it that Natives played a vital part in these missions".

The lost of comrades is often difficult to accept but it was part of what it meant to be a Canadian soldier on combat duty. Many good men, Native and Non-native, did not return to see another day.

Ben remembers the memorial services they had for their fallen comrades. He felt lucky to even be there to lay a wreath for the boys. He was more than happy to lay one for a very good friend.

Ben was able to pick up a bit of the language but just enough so that the people could understand him. "The Koreans were really good to us. We'd go out of our way to help them. We always gave them our extras. The kids were the ones that suffered the most. These tiny children between 2-4 years old hung around the kitchens for leftovers and any extras we had. Them little fellas were hungry, they really were".

He was known as "Benny" to his comrades but he was known as "Marty" to a young Korean boy. Ben recalls a 14 years old boy who helped with the chores around the bunkers. His name was Kim-Kob Yung and he was treated like a King. He took a liking to Ben and his comrades. Ben says, "we gave him all the extra grub he could carry which he took back to his people". "He was a good kid".

Ben wasn't too fond of the weather in Korea. In the summer he couldn't stand the heat because it go so hot "you couldn't sleep". Then the monsoon season came and "you were soaking wet for a month". This resulted in a lot of flooding and washouts. The water would rise at about four feet per hour and on one occasion a nearby river rose 32 feet in one day recalls Ben.

The winter season wasn't too bad for Ben and the boys. There was hardly much snow buy it would get pretty cold. The mink however did enjoy it. Ben recalls a lot of mink running all over the place. It was something that reminded him of home. There was other game such as pheasants and deer with small tusks. The deer and pheasants supplemented the diet of the Canadians with fresh meat. There was snakes of all types and sizes. The worst of them all way the mosquito. More than often they transmitted malaria which Ben had to be treated shortly after his return home. After 15 months in Korea, Ben's tour of duty was up and the 1st Battalion headed home. He made it home in time for Christmas. He brought back some unique gifts that included Japanese crafted jackets with dragon designs on them. "Boy did we enjoy our Christmas", Ben recalls.

Ben returned to duty after his leave but spent the remainder of it in Canada. The war was over for Ben Martin. He finished up in Calgary and returned home in 1954. he married shortly thereafter and began raising a family. Ben started to work for the Canadian Pacific Railways where he has happily remained since as a foreman.

It has been felt by veterans and people alike that Remembrance Day has been losing its importance with the general public. Ben Martin is one of the veterans who feels this. "People don't seem to know what went on. They don't know what we went through. It just seems people don't give a damn or anything like that. The people shouldn't have to be reminded about what November 11th is for. They should know. Anything we get is Remembrance Bay, one day of the year that's all".

Ben's message to the Native youth is to believe in themselves.