JUST BEGINNING

Wairarapa Times-Age, 28 September 1942, Page 3

JUST BEGINNING

BATTLE OF THE SOLOMONS JAPANESE REINFORCED & SUPPLIED. TRICKS OF JUNGLE WARFARE. (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) NEW YORK, September 26. The battle of the Solomons is just commencing, while the marines who recently received supplies and reinforcements are tenaciously clinging to the beach head at Guadalcanal says Mr Hanson Baldwin, in the “New York Times” iri a dispatch from somewhere in the south Pacific.

Against the only airfield in the southern Solomons, the Japanese are concentrating their attacks, shouting: “American marines, you die.” Bombing from planes and shelling from submarines are deceitful, cunning, ruthless, well-equipped and the best jungle fighters in the world. They use all sorts of tricks, particularly at night, to entice the enemy to reveal his position. For example, there is the “musical trap.” Some Japanese whistle the Marine Corps hymn or the American Reveille, while others in the dark jungle call “Smith,’ or even the correct name of the directing American officer. If the marines incautiously expose themselves in compliance to supposed orders of their superiors, they are immediately killed. The Japanese also imitate bird calls and animal noises, covering their rustling progress through the jungle. On other occasions, they inch their way through the grass, almost noiselessly, and wait patiently for hours lashed to tree-tops or neck deep in swamps.

Japanese equipment in Guadalcanal is well adapted for warfare in the green hell. They do not possess artillery and tanks, but automatic rifles, knives and an ingenious little grenadethrowing mortar which one man can carry. Their grenades are much more effective than ours.

Though tough and confident, the Japanese show at least one great weakness on Guadalcanal’ —regardless of circumstances -or the hopelessness of a particular plan of action, and regardless of opposition, they stubbornly and fatalistically adhere to the plan of sneaking infiltration. Being completely unable to improvise a new plan they keep coming till they are dead. That is the reason why Japanese casualties on Guadalcanal’ are . extremely high.