EYE-WITNESS IN MILNE BAY

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 287, 2 September 1942, Page 5

EYE-WITNESS IN MILNE BAY

Eerie Jungle War HOW ENEMY WERE SURPRISED Fairly Small Force (By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Received September 1, 9.50 p.m.) SYDNEY, September 1. The first eye-witness account of the Allied victory in Milne Bay has come from the only war correspondent on the spot, Mr, Waltet Lucas, of the London “Daily Express.” Mr. Lucas was in the Milne Bay area when the enemy attack began. He stayed there till Sunday morning, when he returned to an Australian base. The first phase of the battle, he reports, consisted of an attack by a swarm of Zero fighters, which pounced down from low clouds on patrolling Kittyhawks. This sally cost the Japanese five planes. On the same evening the Japanese landed on the northeast coast, and Mr. Lucas attached himself to a tough Australian patrol. He said: “The land units moved in complete silence, with the troops manoeuvring stealthily for position in dense jungle a few miles from the landing point. It was a bizarre battle, and I reached Australia yesterday without having seen a single Japanese. I heard much bombing and saw much air activity, but apart from artillery explosions and the sounds of machinegun fire, I saw no signs of land fighting.” Enemy's First Shock.

Mr. Lucas says the Japanese evidently did not expect to meet with resistance. The first landing party, comprising about 500 troops, brought ashore medium tanks and three-inch mortars, and they started down the track toward Giligili, the soldiers chattering and laughing. They received a shock when about 400 yards down the track an Australian patrol opened fire. The tanks immediately switched on their searchlights, while the troops disappeared into the jungle on each side of the track. The enemy party had native guides. . Un the second day the Allied air force was very active, Mr. Lucas said. Bombers destroyed nine landing barges and set fire to supply dumps, while fighters strafed the tree-tops for snipers and dropped anti-personnel bombs. Warships Shell Jungle. Three enemy tanks were destroyed in desultory jungle clashes, and the enemy was compelled to retire. On the next night Japanese warships revisited the bay, ineffiectually shelled the jungle for three to four hours, and departed after landing further men and supplies. Meanwhile the Japanese troops in the jungle came to life in patrol clashes, and advanced Australian units often found themselves cut off. The Japanese used the same old tricks in the jungle blackness in order to advance. Commands were shouted in perfect English, and one Australian unit almost fell into a serious ambush. It was a war against an almost invisible army. Short, sharp bursts of machinegun fire were the only sounds breaking long periods of silence, giving the whole battle a macabre quality. One Japanese cruiser and eight destroyers were seen approaching through torrential rain on Saturday afternoon. During Saturday night no sound was heard except an occasional burst of gunfire, blanketed and ghostly through the mists. Not a single light (shone in the Australian lines, and smoking was forbidden, and it was certain death to wander in the darkness. , . Dawn revealed the bay cleared of ships, while an early morning reconnaissance showed no enemy anywhere. According to Mr. Lucas, the Australian casualties are not likely to bo high. The enemy appeared (o take most of their dead and wounded with them. Probably tho enemy cruiser and destroyers arrived to extricate the Japanese land forces from a position which they regarded as untenable.

ENEMY INITIATIVE HELD LOST

New Guinea Area

(Received September 1, 10.30 p.m.) NEW YORK, August 31.

The “New York Times,” in a leader, says: “The Japanese have taken another hard blow in their defeat at Milne Bay. Their landing was an attempt partly to retrieve their expulsion from Tulagi by establishing a new bridgehead for a two-way offensive against Port Moresby and eventually against Australia itself. Now the Japanese have Deen driven into the sea. They have lost the initiative in the New Guinea area and the waters washing its eastern shore. “A Japanese base at Milne Bay would command the approaches to Rabaul, threaten Torres Strait and menace Port Moresby, but General MacArthur foresaw these strategic possibilities even more clearly than the enemy. When the Japanese landed troops and tanks on the beaches, they were already surrounded by Australian veterans hidden in the undergrowth at the foot of the mountains. The invaders hoped to take advantage of the tropical storms, which kept our planes away, but they marched into a trap.” Yesterday Tokio radio broadcast pleasant items about an art exhibition at the capital and a new Japanese swimming record, but there has been no reference to Milne Bay.