Fanatics?

The big news from Japan was what had not happened. A desperately small force of U.S. troops (100,000 by last week) had landed in a previously uninvaded country populated by the most fantastically nationalistic people on earth; yet not an American had been killed, not a demonstration had occurred.

Terrorists still sought some of the leaders who had surrendered Japan (see FOREIGN NEWS). Efforts persisted to preserve Japan's national pride against the admission of full defeat. But these were not typical of occupied Japan. Cabled TIME Correspondent John Walker from Tokyo:

"I can only conclude that we considerably underestimated their exhaustion and willingness to cry uncle. One may legitimately doubt the sincere willingness of the national leadership to embrace the permanent role of a peaceable fourth-rate power, but here in the midst of it one can scarcely doubt the sincerity of the people's relief over the war's end and their willingness to obey the government in submission to the occupation."

"No Greater Gamble." As this attitude was borne home, MacArthur and his staff became openly optimistic on the progress and prospects of their duty.

Said MacArthur: "No greater gamble has been taken in history than the initial landings, where our ground forces were outnumbered a thousand to one."

So successful had the gamble been, said MacArthur, that within six months the occupation force might number 200,000 men instead of the scheduled 400,000.

This, he declared, would "permit complete demobilization of our citizen [draftee] forces which fought so long and so nobly through to victory," leaving the occupation to the regular army.

Official Washington, already startled by the optimism of Lieut. General Robert L.

Eichelberger (see NATIONAL AFFAIRS), was jarred. Said a worried State Department official: the statement would probably create the impression abroad that the U.S. would soon withdraw completely and leave Japan to manage her own affairs.

While the State Department fretted over the reactions of other powers, many in the U.S. wondered about the Japanese themselves. Would this encourage them to plot a comeback?

Outwardly, at least, there were no signs of such a thing. The Japanese continued docile, polite, reasonably eager to please. G.I.s were beginning to fraternize with Japanese civilians.

While MacArthur's statements, made for U.S. consumption, radiated confidence and hope, his orders to the Japanese were still stern and strict. He had started rounding up war criminals, had cracked down on propaganda agencies (see PRESS), announced plans for re-educating the Japanese in democratic ways, and demanded from the Japanese Government details of looting in occupied countries.

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