I had been in Boot Camp for about 11 weeks.

That was the week that our Company spent firing the M-1 rifles we had been cleaning, drilling with, and sometimes sleeping with since our first week.

Also in that first week of boot, we were told that we needed to learn the “Eleven General Orders” before the end of our 12 week recruit training.

We began the week at the Rifle Range learning the appropriate firing positions, setting the windage and distance and then firing the rifle or marking targets.

On that first day, at noon chow, we were in line and the Company Commander stood at the head of the line and asked each recruit to recite one of the general orders. Of course, none of us had given a thought about memorizing those general orders since the first week of boot.

So, we all had to take an empty ammo box and run up and across and down a hill at the range. We were told that if we didn’t know the general orders the next day, we would run with full ammo boxes.

Needless to say, we were up most of the night memorizing those General Orders. The next day at the Rifle Range…you guessed it. Not one of us was even asked to recite an order.

The rest of the week went by and we were never asked again to recite those orders. Our leaders had achieved their goal, we had memorized the “Eleven General Orders” and they had gotten to us once again!