Evening star., 1945-08-04
War Department Seen
Ticking 1t on the Chin
Japs Fishing for News on Speed
OF Troop Moves, Says Writer
By David Laurence

By Dauid Laurence
The War Department is taking it on
the chin these days for not telling the
public just how many troops were to
be moved across the continent and why
we needed to hurry or why Pullman
travel has to be curtailed or why no
arrangements to meet the crisis were
made. But any one who reads the latest
extracts from Tokyo newspapers which
are broadcast can see that the Japanese
have an idea of what has been happen-
ing and are trying to find out more.
Plainly the quantity of troops to be
moved and our schedule is something
that interests the Japanese very much.
The Tokyo radio says IAN American
landing operation against Japan may
come in the near future-even as early
as next month"
The Japanese go on to comment that
they have observed 500 ships concen-
trated around Okinawa and they esti-
mate that if the invasion happens this
year we can mount only 40 divisions and
that our maximum next year would be
100 divisions "even If all-out attention
is given to the transport of men from
Europe to East Asia
Fishing for Information.
The Japanese are fishing for informa-
ton. They would like to know what
American divisions were sent from
Europe and what ones we are sending
from the United States and when they
numbers.
When landing operations become i'm
minent, the Japanese by reconnaissance
planes can observe considerable activity
but they cannot tell where the expedi-
ton is going or when it will set sail and
just when it will strike. There is no
secret in the fact that we are concen-
trating troops in various areas of the
Pacific. 1t is obvious that large quanti-
ties of ships are needed to transport the
troops and that Okinawa and the Philip
pines are two of our main stations for
gathering troops. But the Japanese will
not know when we intend to invade or
at what points either in China or Japan.
The Germans were kept guessing and
guessed wrong as to our landings In Nor
mandy though they had no doubt, from
observing preparations on the English
coast, that an invasion was coming.
If the japanese are right in their
assumption that we can mount only 40
divisions, or about 100000 men, in any
operations in l945, what they are saying
is that We day and the necessity for
giving American troops furloughs at
home and other changes in our military
setup in connection with the transition
from Europe to the Far East have pre-
vented the assembly of a larger force.
Just to what extent the demand for
a point system for discharge and the
pressure to demobilize our forces in
Europe and send them home has delayed
the ending of the Japanese war prob
day. The mothers and fathers Of the
boys who are fighting in the Pacific
will some day want to know whether
the high command in America let them
down by yielding to public pressure
instead of insisting on sending our full
divisions intact direct to the Far East
Delay in Requirements.
For the point system has meant that
Army divisions that come to the United
States have had to be torn apart and
replacements found. This means delay,
but it is not revealed how extensive the
delay has been. 1t will be noted, how
ever, that the War Department has Just
postponed a revision of it's plan to
reduce the number of points necessary
for discharges from the Army and 1t is
reported that this was due to protests
from Gen. Macarthur and others in
command who do not want to see our
divisions delayed in getting reorganized
and transported to the Far East.
The size of the Army for 1945 and
1916 is another moot question. Members
of Congress feel it can be reduced con-
siderably even before Japan is beaten.
but the War Department cannot dis
close what categories of troops can be
released or the nature of the changes
in the divisions without telling the
enemy what our plans will be to follow
up any invasion landings that may occur
in 1945.
On the whole there is feeling here
that the Japs may be right about the
possibility of an invasion this year but
their whole plan of defense against it
may turn on how much they can find
out as to the strength of the forces we
have available in the Far East or will
have available at particular moments in
the next several months. The War
Departments necessary silence at this
time will be vindicated in the end.
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