The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1944-01-06

this command post. The night pre-
vious, one of the kitchen personnel
reported discovery of lone Jap in
the act of plunging a knife into a
soldier sleeping in hammock.
"An Army cook said he was awak-
ened by a rustling noise. He slith-
cred around in his jungle hammock
and saw shadowy figure wearing a
close fitting hat and with a square
pack and rifle hung on his back.
Silently the figure raised his right
arm and the cook saw what ap-
peared to be knife held in the
hand.
F.! JAP FLEEs
| Fearing to hit one of the two
men who were sleeping in front of
the Jap, the cook yelled, Stand still,
| you -, I've got you covered He
pushed his rifle through the mos
quito netting. The figure froze for
a moment, and then crashed off
through the jungle.
1.-The word was passed around the
command post, and all troops were
advised to keep their weapons, in
| cluding their knives, close by and
/ to maintain silence after dark.
There wasn't much sleep in the fox
holes that night. s
| every land crabs or other jun
gle creatures movements-even the
water which drips interminably
from the foliage-sounded like a
Jap stealing through the under
growth. Those who had positions on
the trails we're particularly jittery
because the Jap after dark follows
trails to minimize the noise of his
| advance. Those who slept fitfully
awoke suddenly many times, visual
izing Jap poised couple of feet
away, ready to stick his knife into
| their bodies.
Everyone wished fervently that
| Washing Machine Charley would
| appaa~ for his nightly bombing to
break the electric atmosphere. But
this time he was late. He came in
at A A. M. Still, it was relief.
The penetrating Jap has been for
| gotten, and some doubt that an
enemy soldier did get into the head
| quarters. But the cook swears he
did"
TROOPS Up EARLY
"Charley's" last nightly visitation
usually finds it too late for the sol
diers to get back to sleep. So they
shave, ii they have the water, and
then have breakfast. No one seems
to be scared, comes the report, even
though thc bombs and tie strafing
of the fr nt.lina American troops
do wouni and Kill some f.. ters.
But the troops are too rusy with
their combat du-ies aai the :ndlti-
tude &C othes duties necessary tc
war on the Jap. Men in the anti
aircraft batteries are kept tusy as
the Ja) flags PARTED or the gur
barrels Indicate. For each flag
means an enemy t|;.ne destroyed
Even a few of the 2la ton trucks
which are armed with so calibel
antiaircraft guns, have Jap flags
painted on their hoods. Just about
everybody shovts az the enemy.
| Everyone works. Especially the
versatile combat engineers. Start.
ing from scratch in apparently i'm
penetrable, marsh land, they've
carved out, for example, a perman
ent highway which will accommodate
six lanes # tlatfic.
Coon EoAOs
Mucn &C I'll success of the Army
| in jungle fighting IN the Solomons
has been attributed tt the fact that
the Engineers III We puilt good roads
right up tc -" ..r,and posts, gen
orally located just to the rear OF
the front lines. Staff officers, vet.
Grams of campaigns in the Solomons
say that this method of supply has
given IRE Americans a tremendous
advantage over the japanese because
the enemy has no means or appar.
emily lacks the ingenuity to solve
the problem of getting food, am.
munition and water to their fight.
ing men. The roads also have meant
quick evacuation of the wounded tc
the rear for treatment. This factor
has saved many lives.
Landing with the first wave OF
Army troops at Bougainville, the
Engineers came equipped, ready fol
anything. They brought bull dozers
graders, drag lines, power shovels
pile drivers, air compressors, ano
carryall scrapers, in addition to the
thousands of shovels, picks, axes
and saws. And they found plenty
of ways to use them.
Supply roads, hewed through the
Jungle, reduced to matter of hours
, the time necessary to get supplies
from the beaches to the front lines
And there were bridges to be built
ground to be cleared for ammuni.
! ton dunps and supplies, arrange.
n