JOCKEYING FOR POSITIONS

Dominion, Volume 36, Issue 23, 22 October 1942, Page 5

JOCKEYING FOR POSITIONS

Fleets In Solomons PRESENCE OE BIG ENEMY FORCE (By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Received October 21, 1 1.20 p.m.) SYDNEY, October 21. No further enemy landings on Guadalcanal are reported, stated a United States Navy Department communique received today. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps aircraft bombed enemy troop and supply concentrations on Guadalcanal throughout Monday and yesterday. Large numbers of enemy warships and auxiliaries are stated to have been sighted in the Solomon Islands area, the communique added. '

" Informed circles believe that the American and Japanese naval forces are now jockeying for position for a decisive battle in the Solomon Islands,"’ says the AVashington correspondent of the "‘New York Times.” ' . . . .. ‘‘A compilation of reports received in Washington indicates that the Japanese forces are probably concentrated north and west of Guadalcanal, and principally round New Georgia.

‘■The enemy "could steam overnight to the battle area off Guadalcanal from the region between New Georgia and liabaul, the principal Japanese base. 'The ships in this locality are too far away for steady attacks by aircraft based on Guadalcanal, and likewise, arc quite distant from the American heavy-bomber bases in Australia, New Caledonia; and the New Hebrides.

Two Possibilities. “Qualified observers express the opinion that either of two factors may have cheeked the Japanese on Guadalcanal after their landing near the American positions and the temporary successes in bombing and shelling the airfield. Firstly, the enemy may have encountered more air, land and sea resistance than he anticipated. Secondly, the Japanese may not be planning to conduct an immediate land campaign, but instead may be seeking a naval victory as a prelude to recapture of the airfield by a land attack. “The number of enemy vessels which have already been sighted indicates the possibility that he has anticipated a sea engagement. The reference in today’s communique to auxiliaries is significant, since a task force sent out to make a fast attack on the island position would not hamper itself with auxiliaries other than a few tankers. Auxiliaries normally mark relatively ponderous fleet movements. “If the Japanese are seeking a naval engagement it is obvious that ViceAdmiral Ghormley and Admiral Nimitz will atte'mpt to out-fnanoeuvre them and to decide the conditions and time at which such an engagement will be held. Hence, Observers are watching with keen interest the operations on Guadalcanal itself, but none omits consideration of the possibility that what began as an island raid may eventuate into a naval engagement of record proportions.” Heavy U.S. Units. According to some Washington reports, . heavy. American -warships have moved toward the battle zone, steaming unopposed through waters previously dominated by the Japanese fleet. A Pearl Harbour report estimates that at least 15,000 Japanese troops landed on Guadalcanal last month. No new Japanese landings on the island have been reported since last Thursday. The massing of Japanese sea, land, and air power indicates that Japan intends to concentrate in the Solomons one of the greatest striking forces she has ever sent to any territory and build up the most powerful umbrella of planes she has ever assembled, despite the continuing and heavy losses. The reports' from the New York newspaper “P.M.” that the Japanese on Guadalcanal outnumber the American forces 10 to one are accepted with considerable reserve. The numbers of the enemy land troops are regarded here as of secondary importance in a battle in which the major issue must be decided at sea. Further damage to the Japanese fleet in northern Solomons waters and to the enemy airfield at Buin, on Bougainville, is believed to have been caused in a raid by medium bombers of General MacArthur’s command early this morning. The raid was on a smaller scale than the earlier attacks by Flying Fortresses. Reconnaissance has shown that, enemy ships were lying beached apd still smoking from the big attacks on Sunday morning.

BATTLE PROBLEMS Public Misunderstanding Claimed NEW YORK, October 20. “In the effort to make the position of the Marine Corps in the Solomon Islands secure the United Stateg Navy is up against one of the toughest tasks in its history, but the difficulties involved' have been foreseen from the very beginning,” writes David Lawrence in the New York “Sun.” “One thing which is causing navy men concern is the public’s apparent Inability to understand the real nature of the job and the reasons for the manner in which news from the Pacific area is handled. Thus criticism of the army forces in Australia under General MacArthur not being utilized to help the marines is a misunderstanding of the nature of the operations. “To assume that the army forces in Australia, or anywhere else, have not been permitted to do something which they ought to do is to say that General Marshall, Commander-in-Chief of the Army, has not the opportunity to express himself or influence the strategy that is finally adopted. This, of course, is unfounded, because it is well known that there has been substantial agreement right along between the members of the High Command. “Deception as to losses is practised by all navies in the world as an integral part df their strategy. Policies differ with the situations arising. “One thing can be stated positively. The High Command of the army and navy is not holding back news because of any relationship to the problem of morale on the home front. The reasons are strategic, and the American people must trust the High Command which knows what it is doing and is interested only in victory, not in politics or problems of morale away from the fighting fronts. “There is unity of command and purpose today among the United .States chiefs of staff.”