The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-09-17

groups of prisoners, however, un- able to withstand the whitening fire, ran out with their hands raised and surrendered.
 The Japanese were memberSr Of the Imperial army-the first army troops the marines had met. The previous opponents had been Jap- anese marines.
 Pollock told me about the early stages of the battle.
 "The Japanese used the same tactics here that they employed in Singapore and the Philippines" he said. They attempted to sneak in behind our lines, and, by using snip- CTS and small groups of infantry men, to weaken our position and make us vulnerable. They covered their sorties with grenades, heavy machine gun, automatic rifle and mortar fire"
 Was PIaSn Hell
 ''In the early stages it was plain hell.
 "You couldn't tell friend from foe. Several Japanese jumped into fox holes occupied by Marines and were killed. Our main trouble was with snipers. They were everywhere = in the trees, behind logs and all around us. It was worse than ever when the moon set. Tracer bullets were flying back and forth, heavy shells from Japanese mortars were exploding all around the place. We had one artillery piece which the Japanese had put out of action with a rifle grenade and every time we attempted to man it the enemy opened up with a machine gun.
 "The fighting got heavy about 2:1O a. m. when the Japanese pre- pared to launch their assault and at 3 a. m. over they came, yelling and hollering. We gave them every thing we had. The toll was ter- rife and every Japanese that started to cross the bar was felled, some of them falling practically in front of our guns"
 At dawn I turned the front and found our Marines III their original positions with the Japanese on the east side of the river, inland about 300 yards. The battle had died down for the moment, except for the Japanese sniperS who poured a steady fire into our lines. Most of the Marine casualties were caused by these SniperS and the crack or their high-powered rifles could be heard all along the river.
 About g a. m. the Japanese started to fall back, only to find Cresswell's forces in their rear.
 Continued All Morning
 An morning the battle continued with our fire turning the Japanese position into a hell. Many Japan ese tried to escape by swimming out to sea. I could see them from across the river as they ran out of the coconut grove and jumped into the surf.
 Marine sharpshooters, such as Gunnery Sergeant Charles E. Angus, Nashville, Tenn, lay behind palm trees and picked them off, one by one.
 About noon I saw one Japanese, probably an officer, waving a Rising Sun flag. apparently trying to rally his men around a dugout.
 Meantime Cresswell's forces had killed i4 Japanese in a group Of buildings as the Americans swept up the beach from the rear.
 we finished off their rear guard in short order" he told me. And then We closed in cautiously. beat Ing the Japanese out Of trees and bushes as we went along. They never gave up. They fired until we had either killed them Of it got 90 hot they had to faIl back to q new position"
 The knockout blow was admins. tered by the tanks under command Of Lieutenant Leo D. Case. syras euse, NY.
 "It was . hslluya good show." case said, As hls sweating and RFlmey crews emerged lnsehihed after their mission, We didn't have any trouble except with one hQeYy mortar which We ground 70 pleees, our only casualty Was one tank, We took the erev out and brought them back with lis,"
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