The Ely miner., 1943-05-13

officer of the squadron. There's a
war on, and I've spent all the time
I intend to nursing a sore finger
"That afternoon BuIkeley came
over to tell me the story of the en-
gagement. When he was through,
Kelly he said, we need you.'
Let's get ahold of that DOCTOR
I said, and you tell him that This
time it worked. The hole in my
finger was still almost three inches
long and about an inch wide, with
some of the tendon exposed (but in
a month it was healed, except that
I can't move my finger joints). !
had to promise them faithfully I
would show UP every other day for
treatment, but the point of it was I
got out of that place.
1.-Two days later took the "a boat
out on my first patrol from Corregi-
dor up along Bataan toward Subic
Bay-Bulkeley, who as squadron
commander rode all boats on patrol,
of course was with me. It was a
calm highland chilly. Sweaters
were comfortable over our khakis,
although in the daytime we wore
only shorts or trunks. The rest of
the men were burned black as ma
tives, but I was still pale from the
hospital.
Everything was going well, in
fact it was monotonous. But when
oh 4rx,0 g.
the coast, hell suddenly started pop
ping. Our own batteries were shoot
ing at us. Bulkeley explained to
me that was the main excitement
these days-to keep from being sunk
by your own side-and calmly al
tered course to get out of their
range, which we could tell by the
light of their tracer bullets.
Half the time those dumb das-
tards don't know friend from foe
he explained.
Five minutes later we saw a dim
light, low in the water, and headed
toward it. Was it Jap landing
barge, trying to get ashore behind
General Wainwright's lines? Then it
occurred to us that it might be En-
sign Plant and the two other men of
Belongs boat who had disappeared
in Subic Bay. They might have
stolen a boat and now be headed
home-we couldn't take chances. So
without firing we drew nearer,
watching the light.
Presently it began to blink-dots
and dashes, all right, but no mes
sage that we could read. Bulkeley
ordered general quarters as a pre-
caution, and the men were crouch
ing behind their machine guns. It
was about twenty-five yards away
nova queer-shaped boat, low in
the water-and suddenly its light
went out.
"Bulkeley stood up with the mega
phone. Boat ahoy!' he called. He
got quick answer. Br-r-r-r-r-r-r!
They opened on him with machine
guns. It looked like a fire hose Of
tracer bullets headed for our cock
pit, and now they speeded up, try
ing to head for shore. But we were
pouring the fire back at them.
Now we could see it was a Jap
landing barge, packed with men.
It had arnor on the bow and the
stern, and kept twisting and turn
ing, trying to keep those thick steel
plates pointed toward US. Of course
our maneuver was to come in from
the side, and let them have it where
they couldn't take it.
"All this had been going on for
about thirty seconds when I heard a
cry of pain from behind. It was En-
sign Chandler. I've been hit he
said. A Jap bullet had gone through
both of his ankles. We pulled him
out of the cockpit and laid him down
on the canopy, meanwhile circling
the Japs and pouring the steel down
into their vulnerable sides. We could
soon see we were getting them. The
barge sank lower and lower in the
water and presently gurgled under,
while we pulled off to lick our own
wounds, give first aid to Chandler,
and locate any other boats in the
vicinity. Surely the Japs wouldn't
attempt landing with a single
barge. All we got, though, was
more fire from our own shore guns
a swarm of tracers and then 3-inch-
ers began whistling Overcome of
them landing two hundred yards
away. But we didn't mind. The
army seemed to enjoy it, and it
wasn't hurting US.
"We fooled around until almost
dawn and were headed for home
we couldn't have got Chandler
through the mine fields to the hos
pital until sunrise anyway, when
Bulkeley happened to glance back.
Through the half-ight he could
see, bobbing in the swell, another
low-lying fat craft. Should we 20
back? You're damned right we
should, the men said-to get even
for Chandler by sinking some more
of them.
AS we got closer, sure enough,
it was another landing boat, this
time apparently leaving the coast of
Bataan, and we opened up on her
with everything we had from four
hundred yards away.
But their return fire was curl
ously light and spasmodic. So we
closed to about ten yards. Their
fire had stopped, but their boat
wouldn't. Our bullets would hit its
armor and engines+you could see
the tracers bounce off and ricochet
one hundred feet into the air, but
still it kept going. Suddenly trac-
er hit its fuel tanks-up they went
in blaze, the motor stopped, and
now the boat was only drifting.
But even as we pulled alongside,
those Japs, nervy devils, gave her
hard rudder and tried to ram US. So
Ri11kelev tnssed In a cn1rr,Ia Of had