One Horse To Give

In 1985, I was a young LCpl, 5811 at Camp H. M. Smith, HI (Now Marine Base Hawaii). My boss, the Provost Marshall was a former Marine Recon LT who had been reassigned due to a mishap during training in the Philippines that left a Marine dead.

The 1LT hated being in garrison, hated wearing mod blues everyday and he especially hated being assigned as the PM at this staff & command base. The PM and the Base CO, a Colonel near retirement were like oil & water, they did not get along.

The 1LT took every opportunity he could to make the CO’s life a living hell. He would have us write tickets for every minor vehicle infraction we could find, even driving just a couple of miles over the speed limit. He would sometimes come into our morning briefings, open a brand new case of ticket books, hand each of us one and then tell us no one was getting off duty that day until we had issued every ticket in the book. We would be writing tickets for lack of tread on tires, windows tinted too dark, etc. He took great pleasure in standing outside the traffic court office every Thursday watching these staff officers arguing their tickets in front of the traffic judge. I am sure the CO got his ear bent every week by fellow officers because he couldn’t keep his PM in line.

The PM was a big softball guy. If you played softball for him you worked day shift and was always available for tournaments. Usually after games there would be a few beers drank before everyone called it a night. After one particular game I left early as I had duty the next morning. When I left the ball field the LT and several NCO’s were still there drinking.

After checking out my patrol vehicle the next morning I received a call to report to the base stables and contact the mgr. When I arrived she told me a horse was missing. I asked to see the stall the horse was kept in and found the door to be closed and the hasp secured. Growing up in the country I knew that sometimes horses figured out how to open a stall door but I had never heard of one closing and locking it behind them.

After taking a report I drove around the base expecting to find the horse grazing on the athletic field when I received a call to report to the Duty SNCO. Arriving at the admin bldg. I was met by the SSgt on duty who told me there were strange noises coming from the CO’s office. After the SSgt unlocked the door I opened it to find the missing horse inside. That horse had destroyed the office, shitting everywhere,  tearing the curtains, etc.

In less than 24 hours the LT and the NCO’s involved had either turned themselves in or had been identified by CID. The NCO’s were given bad reenlistment codes. The LT was given the choice to either resign his commission or face a General CM. He resigned his commission less the cost of the repair to the COs office.

Over the next year I made Corporal and was assigned to the CG, FMFPac’s office as the CG’s driver/bodyguard. The CG was a LtGen. who was a legend in the Marine Corps. He had been wounded in Korea and still walked with a limp due to his injuries.

When an officer resigned his commission, part of the checkout process included a face-to-face with the General. One day, a young 1st Lieutenant stood at attention before him. The General asked, “What do you have to say for yourself, Lieutenant?”

The officer replied, “Sir, my only regret is that I have but one horse to give to my commanding officer.”

The General turned to his aide and growled, “Get this 1st Lieutenant out of my Marine Corps. Now.”