No Peace in the Solomons

How the Japanese behave when they have lost face--as they did when the Marines took their Solomon bases--was told last week when correspondents described the powerful Jap counterattack made on Aug. 24. It was a naval engagement on a scale only slightly smaller than the Battle of Midway.

On a morning as bright as a picture post card, a Japanese carrier force of some 40 warships--three carriers, two battleships, 15 to 20 light and heavy cruisers, with destroyers, seaplane tenders, gunboats and transports--appeared north of Tulagi, approaching in a great arc spread out over almost 1,700 miles of the tropic sea. U.S. ships and U.S. planes went out to meet it.

One of the first Jap casualties was a four-motored patrol plane, shot down by a stub-winged Grumman Wildcat. From then on, the August sky was filled with U.S. planes and the bombers and fighters of the enemy, wheeling around each other in no-man's-cloudland while again the opposing surface fleets never once came in sight of each other on the broad ocean.

"Here I Go." With a grandstand seat on the bridge of a warship, the New York Times's Foster Hailey watched the battle, listening to the disjointed radio talk of the young U.S. pilots at the scene of action:

"Here they come, Hank.". . .

"I see them. Very good. I think you got him, Lou.". . .

"There are about 26 bombers.". . .

"Peel off, Barney.". . .

"Here I go.". . .

The cold voice of a squadron leader ordered: "Hit the sons-of-bitches."

Occasionally a squadron of Jap bombers broke through the U.S. fighter screen, reached the Allied warships, but in almost every case were driven off without doing serious damage. Allied planes also broke through. But they accounted for one small carrier (set afire), damaged a bigger carrier, landed heavy bombs on a battleship and heavy cruisers.

Meanwhile, on Guadalcanal, U.S. Marines fought off Zeros and bombers that were attacking there. With the loss of only three planes, Marine pilots destroyed eleven Zero fighters, five two-motored Mitsubishis, five carrier bombers. By the time the battle ended and the Japs had withdrawn in the light of a bright moon, U.S. pilots of all the services had shot down a total of 96 enemy planes. U.S. losses: eight pilots missing.

Well in Hand. This was only one Jap attack. A week later the enemy made a landing attempt near San Jorge, off Santa Isabel, north of Guadalcanal. U.S. planes strafed their barges, sank their vessels, caused "heavy loss of life." The persistent Japanese returned and under the cover of darkness put men and supplies ashore on the northern tip of Guadalcanal, to reinforce their guerrilla bands in the interior. Day after day, vengeful Jap bombers with their fighter escorts drummed overhead, dropping their explosives. Even submarines crept in close to Tulagi, tried to shell the Marines.

Last week U.S. planes replied in kind, dive-bombed Jap installations in Gizo Island in the New Georgia group.

The seizure of the Solomons had been only the beginning of a long and stubborn campaign.

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