Evening star., 1943-06-25
CHAPTER 26.

The American oftlcerS IN Brisbane
wanted to know something about
the Japs, and I tried to tell them
what had learned.
A few days before we sailed away
from Bataan, Macarthur had talked
to Jacoby and myself about the jap
anese soldier.
The JAP" he said. "is a first
class fighting man. These troops
facing me on Bataan may not be as
good as the best troops in the World
War, but it would take the best
troops to beat them.
Their officers spend lives heed
lessly, even for unimportant OBJ
tectives The individual Jap is a |
fanatic. He will throw himself on
land mine to explode it and clear
the way for others. Or he will fling
himself on my barbeu wire and let
those following him climb over his
body"
1 recalled to the general an inter
view which had two years before
Pearl Harbor with 1t Gen. Masa-
haru Homma, then commander of
Japanese forces at Tientsin, whose
troops had blockaded the British
Concession in the North China port
and stripped British men and wom-
en- and slapped their faces. told
Homma that the blockade appeared
to me part of deliberate plan to
drive the white man out of the
Orient, but he disclaimed any such
purpose on the part of Japan and
denied responsibility for the mex
cusable assaults on Britons-blam-
ing them on "gendarrneS whom I
am unable to control"
Our talk touched Japanese Amer
lean problems and drifted to the
Philippines, where two years later
Homma was to turn up as COM
mander of the invasion forces op-
posing Macarthur. Homma said he
hoped the United States would rec
ognlze Japan's true mission" in the
Orient and would not cut off Japan's
sources of needed materials. If the
United States tried to oppose Japan,
then war was inevitable. Many jap
aneSe, he said, had considered it
inevitable for years.
Il think I understand your Amer
lean psychology very we'll" he said.
I think that every American be-
lieveS he can handle any two Jap
anese soldiers. Is that not true?"
replied: We'll, we have our own
ideas"
Homma went on: II think am
right in my analysis. At any rate,
we are proceeding with this in mind
and are prepared to lose 100000
men in our war with America. How
many are you prepared to lose?"
Macarthur, at the time, and later
Admiral William Halsey. as COM
mander of our Southwest Pacific
naval forces, both gave the only
possible answer to Japan's willing
ness to fight to the death for vic
tory. They said: There is only one
way for America to win the war.
and that is to kill Japs, kill more
Japs. and kill still more Japs."
I also recounted to Macarthur on
Corregldor an interview with Rear
Admiral Kanazawa. whom I knew
first as japanese Navy spokesman
in Toxic and later as naval attache
In occupied China. Ten months to
the day before Pearl Harbor, Kama
zawa had received Russell Brines
and myself at his headquarters in
Shanghai. After some preliminary
pleasantries Kanazawa pointed to
large map on the wall and out
lined in startling detail Just what
Japan intended to do if it became
necessary" to fight the United
States.
America has triangular defense
system based on a line from Alaska
to Hawaii to Panama" he said. 1T
is generally overlooked that japan
has a similar triangle running from
Yokohama to her -" he pointed
--"and here" The last two places
were New Caledonia and Singapore.
which were then respectively French
and British territory. That didn't
bother the admiral
IF the United States attempts to
take back one inch of territory which
we have already taken or which we
may be forced to take in the future"
he said slowly and seriously. I'VE will
put up an impregnable defense with
airplanes, ships and soldiers.
we will fight inch by inch. We
will fight to the last man. We will
make the cost in blood, ships and
planes so frighteningly great that.
we believe, America will eventually
become discouraged. The American
people will decide that the cost is
not worth the gains. They will
say that, after all, the Orient is
long way off and perhaps Japan Is
the logical nation to govern it. Then
our war will be Won"
The japanese won the first part
hf their uaf. IN nva ntl1, fun r,nn,nthr