Unterrified

Most important of the islands of Hawaii is Oahu on which Honolulu is situate. Eight miles to the west of the city, the land recedes in a sinuous curve and ten square miles of Pacific Ocean rolls in through a channel, mountain-flanked. This is Pearl Harbor where ships may ride, safe from storm, safe from hostile view. Behind it rises the impassable Koolau and Waianae mountains. As a naval base, it is unexcelled.

All for this the tropical tranquillity of Honolulu clerks and merchants has been rudely broken these past two weeks. Searchlights have staggered the dusky night; airplanes have hummed through the garish day. Tanks, tractors, guns have rattled through streets. Officers in motors, men on the march, tents on the outlying sugar and pineapple plantations--it has been war of very war.

Was Governor Farrington alarmed? He has ruled only two years over the white and yellow populations of the delectable isles. But as resident of long standing and publisher of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, he is no stranger to its customs. He was not to be taken unawares.

True, the war men now marching through his dominion called themselves "The Black." They were "The Enemy" in occupation. But their speech be trayed them--they were countrymen.

Neither was he alarmed when, early one morning, a "Black" scout plane reported six destroyers, one battleship, four cruisers, anchored off Molokai, the island nearest to Oahu. That was merely the advance contingent of the attacking U. S. Armada, coming to rescue Pearl Harbor from "The Enemy."

Last of all, were old Hawaiian-- terri fied? From the cradle, they had learned that their home islands were "key" positions to be studied and fought over by naval and military men. An occasional maneuver, an unusually big one -- it was old stuff to them. Even the local Japanese smirked unconcernedly.

Yet for three days the battle raged. One of the Black airplanes on reconnaissance was shot down. Two Blue destroyers and a minelayer unwarily came within range of the land batteries, and one of them was sunk. A Blue submarine caught sunning itself on the surface was sent to the bottom by a Black submarine tender . When the Blues pressed the attack, the umpires described the casualties as "very heavy"; in other words, the carnage was great. Tn the final attack, the Blues succeeded in capturing Haleiwa, a commanding position over the Pearl Harbor base. Promptly they were con ceded the victory, while the umpires and their assistants began, to reckon up the cost, to enumerate the lessons learned.

Thus closed the tactical exercises. The fleet has yet ahead of it various practices, before a great part of it churns its wakes westward and south ward to Australia and New Zealand.