The Wilmington morning star., 1944-01-16

are abundant, strange, screaming
and colorful. diversified mosquitoes
murder sleep by night, and sticky,
shoo-less flies are plague by day.
So much is soon obvious. What
geography have the more obsery-
ant American fighting men in the
Solomons learned?
The Solomon Islands lie about
5000 airline miles southwest from
San Francisco. Stretching 700
miles southeast to northwest, they
form the middle of the arc Of is
lands known as Melanesia. A
thousand miles southwest across
the Coral Sea is the Great Bar
rier Reef coast of Australia. Di-
rectly west is New Guinea, it's
nearest land point 400 miles across
island-dotted waters.
The seven largest Solomons de-
fine the double chain that almost
encloses a large ocean lake. Land
area of the entire group is double
that of New Jersey. Population is
estimated at 40, 000-about match
ing Trenton, New Jerseys capital
Standing on San Cristobal, SOUTH
east anchor of the double chain,
a giant might stride forth, using
the seven large islands for STEP
ping stones. Needless of razor
back mountain ridges, he would
plant his right foot on populous
Malaita, then his left foot on IA
nous Guadalcana1. Between them
nestle Florida and Tulagi, forming
the finest harbor in the Solomons.
Next, the giants right foot would
bear down on long, narrow Santa
Isabel, where natives build giant
war canoes and ride the surf on
boards as in distant Hawaii. This
stride would pass Savo and the
Russells.
His left foot would land on New
Georgia, central unit of the New
Georgia cluster. His fifth step and
sixth large island would be right
foot to reef-encircled Choiseul. His
march would end on Bougainville,
largest of the Solomons and north
west anchor of the double chain.
Highest Mountains
Bougainville, 1875 miles long and
48 miles maximum width, has
nearly one-fourth of all Solomons
land area. Its mountains are high
est, reaching above 10000 feet in
the north. Mt Bagana, one of sew
eral smoke-plumed volcanoes, was
in violent eruption in 1887. Har-
bors and anchorages at Kieta,
BUN and Buka Passage are among
the best in the Islands. With Ma
laita, Bougainville shares two
thirds of the Islands population.
Guadalcanal, second largest of
the Islands, has flat grasslands
bordering its northern coast. They
led to it's selection as a base for
air power. The busy Henderson
Field site was first picked by the
Japs. Gold has been found in the
Guadalcanal m oun t a n ridge,
WlIlSA ACoSAlCo w O,UOV 4CCt.
In the New Georgia group, more
level grasslands and scores of is
lands with narrow passages and
bays made natural settings for in
trepid land and sea action. Van
gunu, Rendova, cone-shaped Kol-
ombangara and Vella Lavella are
large units of the now historic
cluster.
Mendana, Spaniard, discov-
cred the Solomons in 1863 He en-
couraged other voyagers to look
for them by suggesting they were
the source of gold for Solomon's
temple in Jerusalem. Not redis-
covered for two full centuries, they
became a Pacific question mark.
Stories of traders and mission
aries and occasional disappear
ances of white visitors in the late
18th century established proof of
some native taste for long pig"
Head-hunting expeditions against
neighboring tribes were long pop
ular, not for the sake of human