radio, advanced alone for towards the Germans while they continually fired directly at him. Around from the Germans' location, he relayed firing orders by radio to the artillery, and remained at his position alone for an hour directing his men. When Murphy's men finally took the hill, 15 German combatants were killed and 35 wounded. Murphy's actions earned him an Oak Leaf Cluster for his Silver Star. Murphy was awarded a battlefield commission to second lieutenant on 14 October, which elevated him to platoon leader. Operation Dogface was the 3rd Infantry Division's support role for the VI Corps in securing Bruyères and Brouvelieures, with the goal of getting the U. S. Sixth Army Group through the Belfort Gap by November. While en route to Brouvelieures on 26 October, the 3rd Platoon of Company B was attacked by a group of German snipers. Murphy captured two before being shot in the hip by another sniper whom he in turn killed. The wounded waited at an aid station for hours for their turn with a medic. After the 3-day delay caused by the weather, they were transported to the 3rd General Hospital at Aix-en-Provence, where they were met with more delays before treatment and hospitalization. Gangrene developed in Murphy's wound, for which he was treated with penicillin and multiple surgeries to remove the dead tissue. He remained hospitalized until 28 December 1944. As a result of the injury, Murphy received the first Oak Leaf Cluster for his Purple Heart. Colmar Pocket The Colmar Pocket was in the Vosges Mountains and had been held by German troops since November 1944. Murphy was still hospitalized on 15 December when General O'Daniel moved the 3rd Infantry Division into the area. Murphy described it as a huge and dangerous bridgehead thrusting west of the Rhine like an iron fist. Fed with men and materiel from across the river, it is a constant threat to our right flank; and potentially it is a perfect springboard from which the enemy could start a powerful counterattack. He rejoined his platoon on 14 January 1945, the date Lieutenant General Jacob Devers ordered the 3rd Division reinforced by the 28th Infantry Division. The 3rd Division engaged in sixteen days of battle to secure the bridgeheads west of the Rhine at the Colmar Canal. After crossing the Ill river through the Riedwihr Woods on 24 January, the 3rd Division was ordered to