The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-09-15
Men Pour Onto Palu
 And Morotai Islands
Continued from Page l,)

NSShteAAA$A wire on the beaches, backed up by entrenehed machine gun positions, Farther inland were larger guns, probably ranging up to six inches, and the deadly nertNrs which caused heavy casualties on the Marianas beaohheads,
 Because of time differentiNlS, Nlmita' announcement said the Palau landing occurred Thursday morning, Honolulu time, which would be Friday morning Halma- herA itme9
 Blg Threat
 The twin invasion blow threatened to break the chain of sprawling island bases established by the japa- nese around the Philippines and the western and southern approaches to the Chinese mainland, and first re. ports from Palau said the enemy was fighting back furiously from long prepared defenses,
 American hattleships, cruisers and supporting warshlps of the Pacific fleet stood offshore hemharding the Japanese shore installations while cerrler-baSed aircraft diVe.bomhed and Strafed the enemy in close sup- port of tho advancing ground troops,
 Enemy defenSes are being heavily bombed and shelled at close range" the oommunique said,
 MaeArthurs men on Morotai also went in under Q powerful warship and aircraft screen, but their land- Ing met only feeble Japanese oppo- Sition and casualties in the initial assault were described officially as "Very light"
 JAps By.Passed
 The bulk of the Japanese garrison in the HAlmaheras weer revealed to have been concentrated in the southern part of the island group in the belief that MaeArthur would strike there. Instead, they were by. passed, cut of from their only direct sources of supply, and left to sur- render or die.
 On Palau, however, one of the toughest battles of the Pacific cam- paign was believed in progress, pos- sibly exceeding in SAvagery the epic fight for Saipan or the Marine land- ing on Tarawa.
 A brief Navy eommunique said re- Inducements were being put ashore from a host of transports guarded by the guns and planes of Admiral r, Halsey's third fleet, and that the landings were continuing against stiff ground opposition"
 The reference to ground" oppo- sition indicated that tho bulk of Pa lau's aerial defenSes had been smashed by Halsey's task force in Q series of softening up honabardments that began on September 5 and eon- tinued almost without interruption until the zero hour.
 tThe exact point of the landing was not disclosed, but radio Tokyo said the attack centered on Peleliu Island, southermost of the chain of Atolls comprising the Palau group. Tokyo said the landing was made at 6 c, m. (Palau Time) and that the Japanese garrison drove the Americans back into the sea after e two-hour battle.
 $500 Dead
 ("About 2,500" Amc rican dead were left on the beach, the hroad- cast said,)
 The language of the Pearl Harbor communique left little doubt that the Japanese would make e desper- ate attempt to hold Palau, probably their most important bastion in the central Pacific, outranking even Truk, 1,l50 miles to the west.
 There was nc mention of Jap- anese opposition in the air, although there was a possibility that the enemy might risk units of their grand fleet in an attempt to run carrier aircraft to the aid of their island garrisons.
 Any such move, however, would almost certainly bring on Q major battle of surface ships for which Halsey undoubtedly is well prepared The size of the supporting battle fleet covering the Palau landing was not divulged, but 1t was known to include some of the Nays heaviest units
 The landing followed more than 6 week of widespread naval and air assaults by Halsey's battlewagons and carriers against Japanese posi- tions on Palau and in the central Philippines that cost the enemy 50l planes and scores of merchant ves- sels.
 Close Trap
 American occupation of the Palaus would close a wateEy trap around 75,O00 to 100000 Japanese troops now by-passed in the Western Car olins, including the ce.formidable naval base at Truk.
 Tn addition, 1t would remove the last island barrier astride the Cen- tral Pacific route to the Philippines and enable Nimitz to throw the full weight of his land. sea and air forces against the Japanese-occu- pied Islands.
 Vice Admiral Theodore s. Wilkin- son. Rosslyn, Va. commander Of tho .. 8. Third Amphihio1s Force. was directing the landing operations. while Marine n1ny. Gen. Julian c. Smith, Alexandria. Va. who oom- ltaanded fh& Second Marine uiHislon st NMFaNn fH6 tl1a EIcHnTY