"I will hold."

During the Battle of Belleau Wood, 1st Lt. Cifton B. Cates, USMC, sent this message on 19 July 1918 to his headquarters:

"I have only two men out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold."

Lt. Cates is saying here that he only has 2 Marines left out of an original company that would have been about 100 to 120 Marines.

"Lost Over Laos" and "Farewell to a Hero"

In 1971, as American forces hastened their withdrawal from Vietnam, a helicopter was hit by enemy fire over Laos and exploded in a fireball, killing four top combat photographers: Larry Burrows of Life magazine, Henri Huet of Associated Press, Kent Potter of United Press International, and Keisaburo Shimamoto of Newsweek. The remoteness of the crash site made a recovery attempt impossible. "Lost Over Laos" provides an inside look into these events against the backdrop of U.S. operations in Laos during the Vietnam War. Starting around page 166, this book includes the story of how Associated Press correspondent Mike Putzel and Major James Newman made a flight over the crash site.

While the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation...

One of my favorite quotes from the movie "V for Vendetta":

"Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth.