Page 27 - Excerpts from the diary

The most sad in the war, the most dreadful at the time of fight to sit in a trench, in a crack, to observe smoke
from a row of the breakingoff shells, to feel trembling of the earth, to catch a smell of burning and to feel uneven
heartbeat in the breast. At liberty, in fight, at the time of the fight with the opponent, you forget both fear and
danger, and you never feel such unpleasant feeling as sitting in one place, in inaction, having like the notion of
compulsion about the inconvenient neighborhood with sheer hell fatally angry and ruthless [...]

From a company there was a person 30. There were 70. Two commanders of platoons are killed, one is wounded.
I was present when they received a task. Those that are killed Uzbek lieutenants or Kalmyk were pale and on
their face I read a deadly shadow of dead persons. I was frightened at a view of an indifferent pale face of one and
of his equal, impracticable answers, of hasty and uneven inquiries of another and the scared blinking of eyes and
understood that to them not to live. I wanted to cry, shake hands then with them and to calm before fight of their
heart, but I did not dare to make it, not the child I. The second lieutenant answered quickly, slightly scaredly, but
is sure, and in his words the life and ability was felt to fight for it. I do not know whether he is alive, but,
apparently, is well.
The third platoon commander, the second lieutenant Yeliseyev, I did not see before fight.
Met wounded. They were indignant with artillery preparation and blamed this 'god of war' for everything. Yes,
today god of artillery was ungracious to people and from here results, probably. I, of course, am inclined to
believe that here exaggeration, but the grain of truth, a big share is felt in testimonies of infantrymen.
A lot of weapons remained in the battlefield. The infantrymen who survived showed big heroism. One such hero
who, obviously, and will remain unknown and not the winner, I saw today. He was wounded in both hands, but
wounded hands tied up another wounded (there were no hospital attendants), took out the same hands of 10
automatic machines and the eleventh. More he did not have enough forces and when I met him, he bled profusely.

08.27.1944

Really events advance imagination. Yesterday Romania dropped out of the war. Today it is already at war with
former 'ally' Germany and even sends delegation to Moscow with assurance about granting the territory,
transport to us and dedication of all prisoners... In a word, full turn of policy on 180º. Bulgaria expels Germans
from the territory and suddenly declares the full neutrality.
And our troops go west further and further, destroying and taking prisoner all new and new enemy divisions and
regiments. Romanians give in divisions without a fight. In France the largest cities Lyon, a part of Paris,
T., Bourdeaux and others are cleaned with patriots, and allies take and clear of the enemy the whole areas and
areas in the French territory. Almost all France is cut up and whipped by troops of our allies. In different places of
the French territory, in different corners of the country the Germans are powerless something to undertake for
deduction of the base. So I would call a position of Germans in France now.
Italy half in hands of allies, Yugoslavia too. Situation in her, even more catastrophic for Germans, than in France
though the value of Yugoslavia is incomparably less high.
From the East our troops closely approached Prussia, and in the West one more heavy breakthrough and who
knows how far they will manage to promote, maybe to Berlin is necessary to allies! Events it is difficult to foresee
the course now. But the fact is obvious Stalin's words that our blow coincided with blow to the enemy by troops
of our allies, come true as well as possible. And also and his predictions which characterize Hitler's allies as very
unreliable material of the help to our enemies.
I will respond to letters now.

On the road by us pass infinite chains of bessarabets: the britskas loaded with a junk, black fancy attires, fantastic
hats and bare feet of residents of Bessarabia all this reminds old pictures from children's books or school
textbooks of geography. Roma! At Pushkin it is well told: 'Roma noisy crowd across Bessarabia wander'. But
now the last words do not approach bessarabets come back home.
Continuous chain flows of captured Germans still since yesterday move. On the highway. Colon behind a column.