Evening star., 1942-11-09

and into kind of cave. Without
any first-aid kit, I did the best l
could for him. He was still alive
but apparently suffocating because
Of his damaged lungs. l moved him
slightly, raising his back a little.
He breathed freely then. I was
certain he was going to die and did
my best to make him comfortable
both physically and mentally.
Fifteen minutes passed and In
stead of dying he was getting
stronger. I called for volunteers
from a group of Filipinos who were
passing by and We rigged q make
Shift stretcher and gently shifted
the sergeant onto 1t. He was one
of the bravest men I ever knew
or saw. Bouncing and pumping,
though carrying him as gently as
we could. we carried him to the
hospital while shells burst all over
the island. We detoured on the
rocky trails around our own artillery
positions, which were bursting and
burning up under the heavy bonn
bardment we were receiving. AT
last we got up the hill to the tun-
mel hospital.
Once the Filipinos were out OF
step and the marine sergeant was
bounced terribly. Despite his pain,
he had a big grin on his face when
he said to the men. Gee, boys, come
on and march like marines, not
farmers" He lived in the hospital
for about 10 hours. The last thing
he did was to call in the commanding
officer to thank him for what had
been done to save his life, and to
request that his personal belongings
and best regards go to the men who
had helped him to reach the hos
pital. He was true marine, typical
of all the gallant blue-water army
men we had on Corregidor.
Corregidor's Last Day.
For five days we couldn't do any
cooking while the tremendous bonn
bardment ragged against us. We
couldn't wash or shave or bathe and
we spent nearly all of our time
underground 1t was the most ter
rible, horrifying, destructive mass of
steel I have ever seen or known to
be hurled against one small island.
Artillery shell fell all day. with the
Jap bombers lending their eggs to
the barrage. At night the big guns
kept up an incessant pounding.
The morale of the men OF Cor
regidor was wonderful-an inspira-
ton to any and every one Of us who
felt fear Not a person on Corregi-
dor knew how long it would be before
the shell or bomb with his name
on 1t would arrive, yet each man had
the same smile, the same determine
ton, the same fighting spirit. The
pummeling never ceased for a Sec
ond; it roamed Systematically from
one end of the island to the other,
seeking out and destroying every
thing within reach.
This is the story, as I know it. of
the last night and day of Corregidor.
I believe I am the first American to
be able to tell it.
On the night of May 4 we were all
expecting a Japanese attempt to
land under cover of their big guns.
About o'clock that night every
battery and every unit on Corregidor
was suddenly alerted by orders from
Gen. Wainwright and Gen. Moore.
We knew that the cat-and-mouse
game was nearing its climax.
Japanese artillery continued to
roar unabated until about 2 am. the
morning Of May S. AS suddenly as
it had started week before, it ceased
and quiet we had not known in
months settled over the island. Men
poked their heads up from fox holes
and dugouts. their eyes wide with
wonder over what new game the
Japs were playing. The silence
lasted for almost an hour. Then,
from Manila, a whole armada of
japanese planes appeared. They
swooped low over Corregidor, their
exhausts belching out great smoke
screens. Within minutes the entire
island was surrounded by smoke.
, We couldn't see a hundred yards
offshore. Corregidor stood gaunt
and still and burning from the days
bombings and shellings as we waited
for the next round.
Invasion.
About dawn a faint breeze drifted
across Manila Bay and the smoke
began to lift slowly. Directly in
front of our battery a fleet of 200
small native boats landed, loaded
with japanese soldiers. Seconds
later the Nips appeared. racing in
toward Corregidor. We held our
fire until they were within machine
gun range. Then it seemed as if
hundreds of .50-caliber machine
guns spit death as one.
The Jap invasion fleet faltered
and broke, retreating in chaos back
to Bataan. Still the artillery 81
lence from Bataan remained un-
broken and the men felt confidence
that they had repelled the first
phase OF the Japs invasion plans
for Corregidor. and they almost
screamed with Joy. We laughed and
roared and slapped each other on
the back. It seemed almost too
good to be true.
I supervised the reloading Of guns
| for what might come next and
shortly before 7 O'Clock I was
awakened by a series Of tremendous
almost subterranean blasts rocking
the island. 1 ran to the battery Sec
/ tor to see the hundreds Of sea
mines protecting Corregidor ex-
ploding- sometimes singly. some
times In groups, throwing big
clouds of spray high into the early
morning sky.
The breathtaking spectacle Of the
whole sea seemingly erupting was
only outdone by my own bewilder-
ment. I sent q runner to headquar-
ters. Breathlessly, he returned to
the battery with the news that
sealed Corregidor's doom. While the
Jap invasion fleet we had thwarted
was occupying the attention Of oul
eActnr NJ Cnrre0idor 4 crack fOrce