Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1944-11-26
Marines Defeat laps Night Bonzo Attack Island Of Guam
Letter Describes Nerve Tension Before SLAUGHTER BEGINS

|Steaoy craving ana going BY rusheS
from cover to cover.
BY the light OF our flares and
tracers we could see them, seemingly
In endless hordes.
They were charging right to 5 and
10 feet OF our holes before they were
moved down In piles; few were
breaking through to tangle with the
first marine they found, often
wounding him and sometimes worse
but never once getting by that first
marine.
Here, truly. is personal fight for
survival. You are not fighting for
glory now, nor for your country, nor
your buddy. You are fighting to
survive. You are firing straight
ahead as they break through at
your particular hole. When one gets
through and jumps at you, you kill
him by the quickest method you
know, not because you are brave or
heroic, but because you have no
choice, and, If you are alert, smart,
and can use what you have, you will
always be alive to get the next one
that comes your way.
Officers Powerless to Direct.
There is no officer directing the
defense during the actual heat of
such a charge. Officers have planned
and co-ordinated the defense lines
and fires SO that they will best
Withstand such an assault. and ON
GERS will reorganize them imme-
diately after the charge is over. But
during the conflict, 1t is the sur
vival of the fittest, and even in those
banzais 1t will take a lucky mortar
or artillery shell to get Willie.
No Jap has or ever will pick out
my foxhole and live to choose an
other. This night was unquestion-
ably one of our toughest spots. For
a while 1t seemed that pile them
up though you would. they would
never cease coming. Dead, bloody
NipS were in our holes and piled
In front from 2 feet right on out.
BY now we had our artillery called
right down less than SO yards from
us, and they were firing q continu-
Gus barrage.
Boy, oh boy. what q messi
Naturally We were hurt some but
remarkably little and no one could
endure the deck in that devasta-
ton.
We heard a shrin whistle out Of
all the uproar and that was the end
Of another banzai. No more Nips
tried to come at us again that night
and never again In force, although
they tried all night to haul their
moaning injured away, seldom sue
cessfully.
One company bore the brunt of
this attack and really one platoon
OF that company. And of all
platoons for little Willie to choose
for his position that night 1 had
to choose the one with the jackpot.
Censorship will not allow me to
write the number Of Japs We counted
in the morning but you may have
read. When it's all over it's quite
an experience, but during it you
can't help wondering why you ever
joined the Marine Corps!
Terrible Carnage Viewed.
The morning after the big coun-
terattack dawned quiet and with
out sign Of the enemy. As day
broke we looked on a picture of
carnage such as I hope never to
| see again. One never minds seeing
dead Japs-theyre just like SO many
animals. But we had the job OF
sorting Our own wounded from the
dead and getting them back to aid
stations. After this was done we
surveyed the damage we had done
the Nips.
/, Starting right at our line of fox
holes of this one platoon and ex-
tending on in front for so yards was
pile after pile and row after row
of the beasts In every conceivable
stage Of crawling and charging, with
arms, legs and weapons in grotesque
positions. Many had hypodermic
needles in their pockets and prac-
tically all had some form of liquor
on them. There were Is within 10
yards of my hole besides four who
were unfortunate enough to come
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