Slow and Merciless

Allied naval forces last week met a German ship in one of the few surface engagements with the Nazis in this war. The engagement took place, not in the icy waters of the North Atlantic, but west of Australia, probably in the tropical Indian Ocean, where one of the small Allied units under command of General MacArthur caught a ship described only as an "8,000-ton auxiliary." The Allied guns--probably Australian, perhaps American--opened up, scored a hit. Then the Nazis scuttled the ship. But 78 of them were captured. It was the first time General MacArthur had captured any Germans since 1918.

It was also probably more prisoners than MacArthur's forces had captured in the entire campaign to blast the Japs out of New Guinea. There last week General MacArthur's Australian and American ground forces moved forward toward the Buna beachhead, yard by yard: the Australians killed 150 Japs in charging one gun position, lost 66 of their own men. The Japanese defenders held an area of only four by ten miles, occupying a position roughly corresponding to that of the U.S. Marines during the worst of Guadalcanal. From concrete strongholds and jungle-covered machine-gun nests the Japs fought with a desperation that precluded capturing prisoners. Besides, Japanese are taught to choose death--even self-inflicted death --rather than surrender.*

Just how important the desperate Japs considered their toe hold on the north coast of New Guinea was indicated by the price they were willing to pay for reinforcements. In ten days MacArthur's planes sank a cruiser, six destroyers and two landing boats. Some reinforcements did land. The advancing Allies found among their newest slaughter Japanese Marine shock troops with new uniforms and well-filled bellies.

Just how savage the Japs could be in their determination was revealed by the bombing and strafing (with newly arrived planes) of field hospitals which were well marked with several 18-foot red crosses. Marked hospitals are not protected by antiaircraft, and the strafers flew so low that survivors said they could see the Japs' faces. Five Americans and 20 Australians, including two doctors, lost their lives. Until the last Jap had been pushed back to the sea, the going would be tough, bloody, merciless.

*U.S. forces captured fewer than 100 Japs during the entire Bataan campaign.

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