Evening star., 1943-11-14
(First OF a Series.)
BY CARTER BROOKE JONES.

(FirSt OF a Series)
BY CARTER BROOKE JONES.
1t was 3 am. Chesapeake Bay
was chill and placid. Of through
the Solomons area not a shore light
was visible. Even the lighthouse on
the far point was dark. The silence
that clung to the bay was strange,
ominous.
One ashore couldn't have seen the
darkened shapes that slipped
through the middle of the quiet bay,
nor could he have heard the wake
they stirred. But he would have
felt there was something wrong with
the night, and he would have waited
uneasily for something to happen.
Nothing relieved that vague ten
sion as the hours dragged toward
dawn. No reassuring ships whistles
were heard. But just before sunrise
a series of staccato explosions rolled
over the water somewhere in the
distance.
AS light filtered gradually over the
bay two waves of powered boats,
miles apart, swept up to beaches
on the western shore. Soldiers
dashed out and into the woods
fringing the shores. The crackle of
small arms drifted back from be-
yond the beachheads. Flares shot
up from spots miles apart.
Troopships at Anchor.
Daylight disclosed bay seething
with activity. Big troop transports
were at anchor, not too close to-
gether, and cargo ships completed
the group. About these ships
swarms of boats of a dozen designs
and purposes churned-going ashore
and returning constantly, carrying
troops. munitions, supplies.
We stood, some IS correspondents,
on the dop deck of a LIST Qanding
ship-tank> on which we had
cruised up. the bay from Norfolk
during the night Our ship was not
involved in the landing maneuvers
it was acting as an obseryer-but
we were circling about close to
everything. Through glasses we
could see what was gong on ashore,
see the whole panorama of the COM
plicated operation.
BY 7 am. several assault waves
had landed, and the two beachheads
spotted in this dress rehearsal for
war had been firmly established.
Each wave had its specific missions.
Some boats brought only troops, but
others followed closely with the
munitions, food and medical sup
plies they would need at once. The
larger craft and the landing ships
took in jeeps. trucks. They could
have delivered tanks and tank de-
stroyerS if these had been required
Planes Circle Overhead.
Squadrons of planes-Army and
Navy craft-were circling. One of
them loosed smoke screen. 1t
settled over the water, then lifted
and hung like dark clud. Another
plane zoomed low over our ship,
almost scraping the masthead. A
cf - fOroJy n oI S,o
later learned, that the Navy planes
were friendly, the Army's hostile.
The sun climbed higher, revealing
serene autumn day. The operation
continued methodically. Each of the
transports must be unloaded. Re-
serve troops went over the sides and
down the nets into LCPs. Jeeps,
trucks, ambulances, ammunition
boxes and provisions were hoiste6
out of holds and into the landing
craft. Four of our sister ships
LSTs-pushed into the shore, opened
their bow ramps and disgorged We
hicles of various types. The fast
LCIs-trim, ocean-going warships
that carry infantry-dashed in with
their doughboys, who piled out of
the twin ramps on the forward
sides.
Toward noon we boarded the flag
ship and learned from the COM
mander of the task force details OF
the plan. The flares had meant, In
effect: Made landing Pushing in
land" Indicating that everything
was o. K. so far. The blacked out
flagship had pushed in at 2:30. The
other transports and selt-sufficient
landing ships had gone during the
night to their designated areas.
Objective Is Crossroads.
The immediate objective was q
crossroads settlement called Bertha
some miles inland. The troops land
ing on the beach to the north ano
those who went in at Drum Point
far to the south, were to converge
on Bertha from opposite directions
The ultimate theoretical objective
the task force commander explained
was washington, and it was to bt
presumed that new conveys woulc
reinforce the troops constantly until
they were in sufficient strength tt
move on the CAPITAL.
And it was thus a real enemy
might have Notwithstanding (s
sizable assumption) that he coulc
have eluded the mines and the all
and surface patrols and got from the
ocean. through Hampton Roads ane
into the bay.
No detail was spared to make the
operation realistic. The Navy hae
taken over the whole area. routing
regular bay traffic to the other side
Shore lights. even the lighthouse
had been extinguished. A score O.
large landing craft and a myriad o.
small ones unloaded the transport