The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-12-16
By FRANK HEWLETT Limited Press staff Correspondent

Dec. IA - (Delayed) - (U.P0 - Eager young American soldiers, bayonets glistening in early morn- ing sunlight, stormed and captured Buna village, a key Japanese base today in the first all-American chow of the New Guinea campaign
 The attack was opened at 2 a. m with an artillery and mortar bar rage only 100 yards ahead of the advancing infantrymen.
 It's climax came at 9 Q. m. when the colonel in command received this succinct message from the unit commander which stormed the vil- lage: "Buna busted"
 Tn face of direct enemy fire which surprisingly, caused only small number of casualties. the Americans fought through pill boxes and machine gun nests to attack the main enemy force from two sides They joined in the village. The firing dwindled gradually until there were only spasdomic machine gun bursts and single rifle shots. The rall of smoke over the front lifted.
 A few hours later the colonel had to tell his soldiers in the village to stop hunting souvenirs and start hunting Japanese stragglers and snipers in the surrounding country.
 Now, at 8 D. m, some Tanks are wearing Japanese shirts and trou- sers. Others have Japanese leather belts and mess kits. Most popular are the hubber- -soled tabis, the Japanese canvas shoes with spe- Gial big-toe section designed eSpe- cially for tree climbing,
 The colonel has suggested that we had better leave the village because we are in plain view of Japanese mortar observers across the bay at Buna Mission.
 The victory today was no punsh- over. It was possible only because lt was well planned and executed.
 Particularly outstanding in the jays before the assault was the counter -sniping of the Americans Our marksmen shot down many Japanese from the Banyan trees The Americans have little respect fer Japanese snipers' craftsmanship and are not falling for the enemy booby traps and other tricks.
 T1R capture of Buna means much moro than the half dozen native huts and the score of cocoa palms which are the principal features ot the village proper.
 Strategically 1t means that the Americans now hold a substantial beach head at the river mouth, the best landing for boats In this area Moreover a substantial number ot troops have been freed for a new drive on nearby Buna Mission ano the final cleaning out of the enemy In tlais area.
 The victory came after three weeks of fighting in which both sides suffered substantial casualties and nine days after a small Amer tcan party punched through to the sea and isolated the village from she Japanese forces at the Mission.
 accompanied the main storming sorcO after living in the front for 3hreO days awaiting the kill. The only other correspondent to witness the attack was George Strock, pho- Lographer for Life Magazine, who kept his camera clicking throughout despite malaria which has since sent him to hospital.
 It rained even harder than uSual last night, eve of the attack, ano the track to the rear was knee deer
 Going up to the front were many in mud at some places.
 lean. tired, dirty soldiers, luggtne heavy cases ot hand grenades, mor- tar shells and machine gun ant rifle bullets to replenish the sup. ply, depleted by day of heavy fighting
 Exactly at ' a. m, today the mortar men put down barrage aS precise as that of fixed field guns on the enemy positions and the American doughboys moved out
 As they stormed and overwhelmed the pill boxes and machine gur nests the mortar barrage rolled ahead of them. and then began blasting the village proper.
 Within 10 minutes nearly 400 heavy sl-millimetre C31D inch shells ralned on the village.
 While the mortar shells archet high over our heads, the machine gunners and tommy gunners chat cred from in front, punctuated by the occasional explosion of Q hant yrenade thrown into Japanese pill oox or machine gun nest.
 About half nn hour after the at. .ack opened, tagging the colonel ilI command, was kneeling In the mud behind R clump of bushes lodging snipers, wren c blast near y knocked me over. Then came mother blast. A young lieutenant ell on his face in the mud lesS han l5 feet away. He wat wounded only slightly and was able yo walk to dressing station.
 Artillery joined in the fire, pep. 1er!ng the Buna nilsson to make he Japanese keep their heads down here.
 Japanese mortars fired from across the buy were causing some trouble.
 We moved into the village behind the shock troopS, past hte enemy pill boxes at the edge of the trail
 The village was filled with bomE craters. It had been bombed fol four months and all the coeoa palmS were scared.
 Before the battle. the Japanese forces had been split Possibly some Japanese had evacuated the village, but plenty remained, and i saw an occasional freshly killed en- emy soldier.
 The Japanese equipment was not their best, but the fixed defenses including the pill boxes built to dc. fend tho village from attack by land or seq were excellent. Some were strong enough to survive di- ect hit by a mortar shell.
 The defenses wers built largely n the cover of the cocoa palms.
 in several pill boxes were clean blankets, spread out, and numerous n t.A -Aft tmmsaA a.ARaAm FFstaARa 0yu |