Evening star., 1943-05-08
Far Eastern Trends

Aiio dlllllFel Sally VI SOIleSluoI
surrender, the end of organized re-
sistance in the Philippines, which
/. fell on May 6, offers a useful
perspective point from which to sur
vey the course and prospects of the
war against the Japanese end of the
Axis. The theater in which that war
is being waged is inconceivably vast.
1t ranges over land, sea and sky from
the borders of India to the sub
Arctic islands off Alaska and the
antipodean South Pacific That is
large segment of the planet. 1t is
the biggest and most diverse battle
ground in military history.
On the whole, the overall picture
is one of uneasy balance. The tidal
wave of japanese aggression, which
reached its peak a year ago, has been
stayed. The double threat to Aus
tralia and India, which looked so
menacing in the black spring of 1912,
has not materialized. Yet, though
the japanese flood has been checked,
it has not notably receded, and the
dikes raised against its further ad-
vance are none too strong for the
task. Despite heavy losses in war
vessels and merchant shipping, and
a notable whiting down of it's air
strength, Japan's striking power re-
mains great. It's potentialities have
been shown this week in three ways.
The first of these was the surprise
air attack on Port Moresby, the main
Allied base on New Guinea, which
took heavy toll of our planes. The
second is the rising curve of sinkings
in the Japanese submarine campaign
of the east coast of Australia, aimed
at our communications line across the
Pacific. The third was the opening
of a fresh drive in Central China
south of the Yangtse, with the ap-
parent object of destroying crops in
Chinas famous rice bowl" Against
these japanese activities, we can set
only the unopposed occupation of the
Russell Islands, a small group near
our base at Guadalcanal, and fur
ther nibble at japanese outposts on
the northeastern New Guinea coast.
There is no indication that we and
the Australians have at present the
strength to do more than locally i'm
prove the lines we now hold in the
South Pacific area.
Toxic made the most of "Corregi-
dor day. by staging mammoth
celebration in Manila. The star ora
tor of the occasion was none other
than Premier General Hideki TOTO,
who made one of his characteris-
tically saber -rattling speeches, boast
ing of Japan's conquests and assur-
ing the listening Filipino multitude
that: 1--WE are now in readiness to
deal a thorough and crushing blow
at the enemy's armed power. 1 wish
to give expression to the conviction
of Japan that she will so effectively
crush America and Britain that they
will not be able again to extend their
baneful tentacles into East Asia
Coming from the head of the Jap
anese octopus, that simile is anus
ing. and, of course, TOTO has made
similar boasts before. Yet one or
more major Japanese offensives in
the near future are far from i'm
possible. During recent weeks Cen
eral Macarthur and the Australian
leaders have issued warnings to that
effect. However, in at least two war
areas. campaigning should be handi-
capped by weather conditions. The
monsoon is about to break in Burma,
while in the South Pacific this is the
hot season." when sweltering calms
punctuated by tropic downpours of
rain combine to. produce perpetual
Turkish bath That is just about as
hard on the Japanese as it is on our
troops. So ground action may be
slowed down somewhat. Yet fight
ing even under such handicaps is
possible, if the incentive makes it
militarily worth while.