Evening star., 1943-02-15
Says Pacific Front
Has Served Purpose
Military Writer Declares
Operations ImmobiIized
japan in Siberia and Chino
Ru Mai Gpor0e Fieldin0 Eliot.

principle requires Lndt. ldVlIS CIloSeIi Vic
main object, all possible force should be
concentrated on it.
Detachments for other objectiveS
should be kept to the absolute minimum
required for security purposes-that is,
for preventing the enemy from injuring
some vital interest of our own while we
are concentrating on the vital interest
of the enemy which we have selected for
attack. This is the ideal. The realities
of war frequently compel compromise.
Today the United Nations are con-
centrating their main effort against Ger
many. The Russians, for example, are
putting everything they have on their
western front, leaving only security
forces to watch Japan.
They have carefully avoided giving the
japanese any excuse for making trouble
In the Soviet Far East The japanese
may have desired to do so, but they
have not been able because their air
force and airplane production has only
been sufficient to deal with the troubles
we were making for them in the South
west Pacific For the same reason, they
have not been able to attack India, and
have had to give ground in South China
Thus our operations in the Southwest
Pacific have served the purposes properly
assigned to a detaChment-they have
contained a much more powerful (totaD
enemy force, they have kept the japanese
immobilized on the continental Asiatic
- II
modern operations require air superiority
and the japanese cannot achieve air
superiority in Siberia Burma or even in
China while the whole replacement
capacity of their aircraft industry is re-
quired to make up the heavy losses they
have been suffering in the Southwest
Pacific
On this ground alone, all that we have
done and all that it has cost in the
Pacific is amply justified from the point
of view of sound military principle.
We have suffered casualties in men,
but We have kept 80-odd japanese divi-
sions twirling their thumbs on front
from Manchuria to Burma for lack of
air support. We have suffered casualties
in ships, and have kept good deal of
tonnage tied up on the long ans-Pacific
haul, but we have put anywhere from
chant fleet out OF action, so that propor-
tionately we have inflicted far greater
damage and loss than we have suffered
AS for naval losses, the mere fact that
today we are on the offensive against g.
fleet which was superior to us in the
Pacific theater after Pearl Harbor speaks
for itself. We have suffered losses in
aircraft, but porportionately we have so
reduced the japanese air power as to
immobilize it on a single distant front
and render it practically helpless every
where else.
Rarely in military history has a detach-
ment so thoroughly justified itself as the
detachment OF Allied power which has
been assigned to the Southwest Pacific.
There is a school of thought which
believes that every heavy bomber, every
soldier, every ton Of shipping being used
in the Pacific is an unnecessary deduc-
ton from the sum total Of the force
which ought to be used against Germany.
But those who argue in this fashion
must examine their IDEAS in the light of
the alternative.
Suppose We had taken the strict
defensive in the Pacific. Suppose we had
stood on the famous Dutch Harbor-
HaWali-Panama line. We would have
lost Australia and New Zealand. we
would have left the japanese free to
consolidate their holdings in their cap
tured territories and to exploit the
resources thereof
There can be little doubt that by this
time the japanese would have launched
an attack on the Soviet Far East with
unforeseeable results on the Russian
campaign against Germany. They might
even have attacked India, and they would
certainly have been able to do far more
IN China than they have done.
In other words, when we think of the
Russian victories now rolling up so i'm
preSSlve score against Germany, we
must realize that in part these victories
nave been made possible by the fact that
lhe russians have not had to fight a
war on two fronts. When we view with
satisfaction the accomplishments of the
BRUSH 9th Army in North Africa. we
must remember that this army has been
aoIe TO drive forward from Egypt with
out looking over its shoulder toward
india and we must remember that for
these blessings, the immobilization of
japanese air power, naval power and
shipping N the Southwest Pacific has
been largely responsible.
1t now seems likely that we have q
new opportunity of taking the offensive
IN the Pacific, with the mopping up of
Guadalcanal completed and with Papua
fully in our hands. To do So we shall
need men, ships and planes-not in vast
numbers, but in sufficient numbers.
We shall hear again that these are an
unWarranted detachment. Let us draw
instruction from the lessons of the past.
No more crucial decisions must be made
than those which allocate our forces to
the various theaterS of operations of this
global war. But on the whole those de-
clSlonS have so far been wisely and
prudently made, and the results obtained
are a strong suggestion that they will
continue to be So
Copyright, l943 by New York Tribune, Inc)
Rule Against Drink Declared
Suited to General Application.
To the Editor of The Star:
we pilots are not allowed to drink"
has special significance at the present
time 1t raises the question. How ran