The Dominion TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1942. THE SOLOMONS AND NEW ZEALAND

Dominion, Volume 36, Issue 21, 20 October 1942, Page 4

The Dominion TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1942. THE SOLOMONS AND NEW ZEALAND

Much that has been written during the last day or two, concerning the new Japanese offensive in the Solomons, is purely speculative. Factual news from official sources is notably scarce, and what there is of it has come—at least up to the time of writing—from New York and Washington, where United States Navy Department communiques are issued. It is to these brief reports that we must turn for a reliable picture of the fighting, always bearing in mind that, at a time like the present, events are moving fast and probably, keeping ahead of the record as conveyed to the United States public and the peoples of the United Nations. The position, as set out by the U.S. Navy Department on Saturday last was that large numbers of Japanese troops were on Guadalcanal Island. “The land, sea and air forces of the army, navy and marine corps are engaged in meeting a serious enemy assault, the outcome of which is still undecided. . . This announcement caused much discussion during the weekend as to the position of. the Henderson airfield on Guadalcanal—the mainspring of local, air operations against the enemy. It was even reasoned in Australia that the airfield “appeared to have been neutralized by the enemy attack.” . But the facts, as presented in a later Navy Department communique, published this morning, go to show how misleading such speculation can be. “The Japanese,” states this later report, “are continuing to bomb our airfield and shore positions on Guadalcanal,, and it is believed that enemy troops and equipment are being disposed for a strong assault against the airfield.” These words clarify the position as it stood two days ago. Jhe picture, however,, still is undeniably an anxious one. The fact that enemy troops and equipment are on the island in force, coupled with the official statement that “heavy concentrations” of enemy ships are in the vicinity, is very significant. Plainly, the control of the vital sea approaches to the island is in serious dispute. The battle is developing in two ways—a struggle for mastery of those approaches by the use of both naval and air forces, and a fight for possession of the airfield between the opposing forces on land. The contest as a whole promises to be extremely bitter. Much may depend upon its. outcome; indeed, the entire course of the war in the Pacific will be influenced by it. , The people of this Dominion should not permit themselves to be deceived, by the remote origins of published reports from the Solomons, into a feeling of detachment toward events in the islands. These events are taking place, strategically speaking, on our very threshold. The Solomons are part of the South Pacific war zone, and New Zealand is the centrepiece of that zone —the headquarters of the United Nations command in it. The fate of this country may m some measure be determined by what happens, in the Solomons this month; our particular war task in the Pacific will certainly be fashioned for the future by these happenings. It is for us as a people to act on the clearest understanding that now, perhaps as never.before, we owe it to ourselves and our allies to spare no effort which will contribute in the slightest or most indirect way to the strengthening of the forces massed and massing in our protection.