Sept. 28, 1962 - U.S. sources reported that South Vietnamese Government troops routed two companies of Viet Cong guerrillas in fighting today near the mouth of the Mekong River. In the northern region, rangers destroyed a Viet Cong installation near a Government area above Da Nang. The commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, Gen. David Shoup (pictured), ended a four-day visit to South Vietnam with a request to his fellow countrymen to show more patience in trying to understand the complex and frustrating war against the Communists. “Americans are impatient in comparison to other peoples,” General Shoup said. “They want to progress faster than the vehicle in which they are riding.” He added: “Our attitude here is that we ought to get this thing over and done with overnight. I am sure that no panacea will eliminate this Viet Cong enemy overnight.” The general said he had found plenty of the main ingredients for success in Vietnam — spirit, good training, and “plenty of bullets.”
