During combat training at Camp Pendleton, when on extended outings in the field, which was often and regularly we were provided with C and K rations. These rations were supposed to provide all our nutritional needs. However, coming from numerous ethnic groups our definition's of good food varied considerably so it was natural that the rations provided did not satisfy everyone.

Some liked the eggs and meat, others the cheese so there was considerable trading among the men in each group. The nutritionists who devised these rations must have known that the trading would take place and whether this made any difference or not we never found out. To supplement the rations we ate berries when we could find any and when we ran unto cactus plants bearing fruit in the hot desert we ate the cactus fruits.

Surely the cactus don't have these fruits on them year around, but they had them in the late summer of 1943, when we were on these field exercises. The fruit were about the size and shape of chicken eggs and were attached to the upper edge of the flat cactus pads and covered with needles about an inch long, just like the needles on the cactus plants.

It was impossible to remove a fruit with the bare hand. At first we attempted to harvest the fruit by sticking our knife into the fruit and with the aid of the rifle barrel wrestled it off the plant. Later we found it easier to swat the cactus pad with a machete just below the fruit. Either way the hardest job was yet to come, that is to get the needles off so we could eat the tasty interior.

We accomplished this usually painful task by steadying the fruit with the hand and cutting the skin away, unto which the needles were attached. As I recall it was not an easy job. When the needles were finally removed a bright reddish purple meat was exposed for eating. Biting into the flesh found it was but a thin layer covering thousands of seeds similar to those in grapes. The flavor was sweet and tart but definitely delicious. To this day my mouth waters just recalling how good they were.

Note: The following has nothing to do with Cactus Fruit but the incident occurred on one of these field exercises at Camp Pendleton. We were passing in single file through the bottom of a deep revene. The ravine had been cut by running water during the rainy seasons over decades. Where water once rushed through the revene, the bottom was now dry and the weather was hot, dry and dusty. As we picked our way over rocks and tree roots suddenly there was a Marine officer perched a few feet up on the side of the canyon wall with his pistol at the ready. He was motioning for us to be quiet and careful, not to do anything to disturb the creature stretched out on the rocks below. As we passed, there lay a diamondback rattle snake, seemingly 6 feet long. It was perhaps getting ready to shed its skin. I for one was happy that it had not been coiled. We suspected we might hear a pistol shot after we had passed and kept our ears alert for one but heard none and assumed the rattler was granted an extension of its life in the bottom of that revene in Camp Pendleton.