The Michigan chronicle. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-current, 1943-02-13
Harlem HellcatS Swing
Somewhere I'm Hawaii


.kins. and Pfc. David Afford, who
VAS with Cabs sister. Blanche. -
Wait For Japs
AS members OF Hawail's only all
Negro combat unit. they sill in the
sugar cane fields beside anti-aircraft
guns not 100 FAR from Pearl Har-
Dor, waiting for planes pilo;ed by
Japs.
When such planes ;ppear. Hoop
er's Troopers viii be plenty tight.
Tha; means all rect fire as line.
How DO they like the islands? q
In general. almost. everything ~
down with action tOKN Let lAl6e
understood however that KinE
stree, al Bishop heart Of lHsNolulu,
IN no way can compare MeTh. Lenox
avenue at i25;h street y, Manhattan
The latter is. as the1 &oopers put II,
the core Of the. ppp.e
Here there " 10 A Trains. no
Day-Breax Express ;ha; lc's YOU
of neaT9a juice joint C;avern> Here
no one has heard Of southern fried
chicken. and G.. grease is not
nearly as cd bic as the staff a, Joe's
Place.
Once IN while, after week or
50 on the guns, II is possible 20 pitch
/ the ball little up a: Midway which
refers 20 downtown Honolulu, not
fthe island of the same name. But
when the duration ~ SIX months
have ended. most Of Hoopevs Troop
e-s plan 10 dock Up 10 our pad
or fall back 20 our dominic In the
less colortul language Of hose I'M
minated in 1--WE iabber,, they'll be
Eoirg home
4 All that's in the future Jus, now
there is work "a be done in the
AsuEar-cane fields.
/, isa job that began in January
i94l, when many of-the Troopers
first donned KHAKI and Cd, After
hat they trained IL the snow in
upstate New York and in theJmaggy
sprinE weather Of MaSsas husct's
For four months they isbored in
heavy overcoa;s. learned how 10 lic
with their guns in drifts Is feet
/ n Eh. learned how 70 keep warm
in below zero temperatures. They
were slated. every guardhouse law
yer assured them, FOR Iceland, or
perhaps Alaska.
Then they we're shipped "destina.
iior Unknown" 10 port on the
West Coast; few days later steamed
y into Honolulu
Dead Eyes"
Now they believe they know how
~ operate any an,i-alrcrat; gun in
TIC Y s army. and they know how
d, clean = gan ard take 4 apart and
put il together gain. What is more
important their officers believe
t,hcry arc few men in TIC outfit
vita possible exception ot.the ham
SPANS Who prepare the grease. who
do not know how TO hit mark
with their first shot.
They're dead eyes" says It John
Woodruff, who made name for
himself as an athlete al the Univer-
sity OF Pittsburgh, and in the Clym-
! pics And I don; mean with tho
4 ga,lopirg dominoeS."
Not that any q! the Troopers arc
anything less than deXterou- with
be two fiery squares. You gotta
have quick ffngers=te handle =them
dice" said Pc. Dclos Flores. a pro-
Tess onal trumpc.cr before the arm
came along Same with the gJn
You warm il up seven comes clever
FOR you, ard the Jap is Jeff hish
and dry Mighty dry
The Troopers first weeks or tho
islands were hectic After day q!
training in tho tield-a day tina, be
gan at 5:+S for men accustomed q
rising a, noou-thcy q mate horn
or so and swing on. with 81. Louis
Blues" Native girls ;r.od 20 hula
10 their music. and "a Troopers
themselves lived tho Hawaiian
War Chant" ard Aloha Oc.' The
results made island history.
UnimprcSsed With Guitar
Mos: 81 tho musicians were un
impressed with the Hawiian guitar