Eight Days?

ARMY & NAVY

With in warships and 400 airplanes, Admiral Arthur Japy Hepburn, Command-er-in-Chief of the U. S. Fleet fortnight ago sailed westward from San Pedro. He was going to surprise the Hawaiian Islands and try to capture them, as the opening phase of the Fleet's annual maneuvers.

The "surprise" was handed Admiral Hepburn readymade. He was to come upon the Islands like the admiral of an enemy fleet who had achieved a surprise, catching them while the U. S. Fleet was theoretically in California ports. Time--eight days--was the essence of the problem. If the Island's defense force of small vessels, 400 planes, 20,000 soldiers and coast defense guns, all concentrated on Oahu, could hold off the attackers for eight days, the U. S. Fleet would have time to arrive from the continent. If the attackers could land troops, capture the island of Oahu and the great naval station of Pearl Harbor in less than eight days the fleet from the mainland would arrive too late.

One day last week defending plane scouring the skies caught sight of a small squadron of the attackers, one battleship and a few fast cruisers, which had steamed ahead of the rest of the fleet. They were heading not for strategic Oahu but for the island of Hawaii, largest of the group which lies some 200 miles southeast of Honolulu. Hilo, second largest city of th Islands, situated on Hawaii, received warning an hour in advance. Its airport was evacuated. Within a few minutes bombers from the fleet circled overhead dropping hypothetical explosives. In short time the squadron standing off-shore was firing salvos of blank shells. In half an hour Hilo was in "ruins," the attacker "landing" virtually unopposed. Next da when the main fleet of attackers descended on Oahu, the island of Hawaii served thei as a base.

Whether the main attack on Oahu we successful only the umpires knew. The inhabitants of Honolulu were undisturbed save by distant sound of heavy guns, the droning of airplanes, searchlights scanning the skies at night. Nonetheless they thought it pretty grim. After the "destruction" of Hilo they did not find it hard to imagine what was happening to them.

The grimmest fact was that in event of a real war, no imagination would be needed, and eight days would be a long stretch in Hell. When hostilities suspended, the fleet sailed into Pearl Harbor and Honoluluans turned to happier thoughts as 8,000 officers & men came ashore on leave.

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