Evening star., 1943-11-26
We Killed Every Jap
In Sight Summarizes
3-Day Maxim Battle
BY RAY COLL, Jr.,

0y kAY COLL, Jr.,
hspres'nsins the Gcmeined Combine United States
Distributed BY the Associated Press,
HICKAM FIELD, OAHU, Hawaii
Nov. as Delayed lieutenant
wounded by q sword-swinging Jap
anese onicer described the three day
battle Of Maxim Island today In
these words:
I'VE killed every Jap in sight"
The 27th Division sent its first
wounded from Maxim in the Gilberts
hack to Oahu by air evacuation
transport today. I came with them
These men had a story to tell that
was filled with typical Japanese
hysterical, fanatical defense of the
island they had held nearly two
years and on which we landed No
vember 20.
Maxim is now In our hands after
three days of hard, tough fighting.
So is Tarawa, another Japanese
held base in the Gilberts just south
Of Maxim.
The wounded lieutenant didn't
succeed in taking the Japanese
ofncer prisoner, as he was trying to
do. The Japanese was killed.
Shelled for Three Hours.
'The Navy began shelling Maxim
about dawn and poured a heavy
barrage Of shells into their shore
positions for more than three
hours" the lieutenant said.
Then the troops moved In to
shore. I was in the first wave. We
had to wade through the surf waist
deep and had no opposition until
after hitting the beach. Then the
snipers began operating from high
In the cocoanut trees which fringe
the island.
They let us move up well on shore
before they opened up, then began
picking US OF.
Il was heading a machine-gun
squad. We managed to get some
distance inland when I saw 4 jap
oficer come jumping over fallen
cocoanut trees toward US. He had
q sword held high over his head and
kept shaking his head in what I
thought was token Of surrender.
I advanced cautiously toward him
and motioned him to drop the sword.
He kept coming and so did I.
Two Of my men were on each
side Of me. The Jap suddenly
lunged forward and brought down
his sword with q sweep. I put up
my arm to ward of the blow and
he slashed me across the left wrist.
The power of the blow continued
until the point of the weapon struck
me on the left foot. Before I knew
what happened one Of my men let
the Jap have it, right between the
eyes. He was deader than a mack
ereI"
Suicide Snipers In Trees.
He said the japanese put suicide
snipers in the trees and dug deep
underground zig-zag tunnels with
auxiliary OF Shoots.
Americans had to go into the tun-
nels to knock of the Japanese one
by one. That was why 1t took three
days, the lieutenant believes. al
though q comparatively small Japa-
nese force defended the island.
They were just as treacherous as
we'd been told they would be and
just as ruthless" he said. ut was
our first action but it didn't take our
men long to get trigger happy once
they saw their buddfes dropping
around them. The men Of the 9th
went to town.
= Although I was struck down q
little more than four hours after
hitting the beach, I learned from
others before was evacuated that
we took very few prisoners. We
killed every Jap In sight"
There was no air opposition over
Maxim. The lieutenant said some
tanks were put ashore along with
artillery, but the Japanese were dug
In 50 deep 1t was hard to root them
out.