Evening star., 1945-12-18
Japan Intercepted U.S.. Broadcast
Dec. g. 1941, Enumerating Ships
At Pearl Harbor Hearing Told
Statement From
Enemy Officer
Putin Record
The Pearl Harbor Investigating

COfnmlCCee learned To-Day Cnat
the Janee-csA intercepted an
American broadcast L. 6, 1941
tat gave them informaticu. on
the number of battleships, cruss-
ers and destroyers entering OF
anchored in Pearl Harbor.
This disclosure came in a Japanese
naval officers statement, obtained
through Gen. MacArthur's head
quarters in Tokyo and submitted to
the Pearl Harbor Committee 1t was
put in the records after Vice Ad-
miral Theodore S. Wilkinson, former
chief of naval intelligence had tes-
tilted:
l. The warships caught by the
japanese at Pearl Harbor might
have had an hour and half to get
out to sea if warning message
had been sent from Washington as
soon as he had urged.
More Risk at Other Points.
2. The feet would have been less
safe from any attack if it had been
ol1 O1lC VCOG SOdCG VI dU Adlldl1ld
Roads, another Hawaiian anchorage,
rather than at Pearl Harbor.
A summarization of Japanese
plans received from Gen. Macarthur
showed the enemy was fully pre-
pared to attack any ships anchored
outside the harbor.
The committee had heard at
length about American activities in
breaking the Japanese codes, but
today was the first time it had re-
ceived evidence that the japanese
also were reading American mes
sages.
Comdr. Tomo Tachibana of the
japanese naval intelligence staff
furnished Col. F. P. Munson of Gen.
MacArthur's staff with his conjec-
ture on what happened, since the
staff officer in charge of the docu-
ments on surveillance at Pearl Har-
Dor had died and the documents
had been destroyed.
Broadcast Overheard.
Tachibana did not make it clear
whether the Japanese had broken
one of the American codes, but he
said that on December "the United
States broadcast of the number of
battleships, cruisers, destroyers and
others entering (or anchoreO in
Pearl Harbor was overheard"
Admiral Wilkinson said he sug-
gested to Admiral Harold r. Stark,
chief of naval operations, by $50
m. washington time) December u
that a message be sent to the fleet.
He said he was prompted by hight
ing words" contained in an inter-
cepted japanese diplomatic message.
HE did not send a message i'm
mediately after that conversation?"
asked Senator Lucas, Democrat, OF
Illinois.
so understand-not while was
there" replied Admiral Wilkinson.
The admiral agreed that Stark had
the authority to do SO.
Senator Lucas commented that
message was not sent until 1l:30 am.
He calculated that Admiral Stark
had at least an hour and half diff
ference between the time one was
sent and the time it could have been
sent"
Estimates of Time.
"HoW many ships could leave Pearl
Harbor in an hour and a half?" Sem
ator Lucas asked.
Admiral Wilkson said a battleship
or a cruiser could leave ever 10 min
utes, with one destroyer between
the larger vessels. If pressed, he
said, two destroyers could be sand
wiched in, but that might lead to a
channel-blocking collision.
The admiral roughly estimated the
ships in Pearl Harbor as six battle
ships, six cruisers and dozen de-
stroyers.
Admiral Wilkinson gave his opin-
ion on the relative safety of the
Pearl Harbor anchorage in response
to questioning of Representative
Murphy, Democrat, of Pennsylvania,
who asked:
'If-the feet was behind the roads
instead of in Pearl Harbor would
it have been less secure?"
II would say it would have been
less secure because it would also
have been exposed to submarine
attack, while there would have been
the same danger from air attack"
Admiral Wilkinson said.
Less Safe on West Coast.
"Would it have been any more
safe at Puget Sound or San Pedro
(on the West Coast)?"
Rather less safe," Admiral Will
kinson said. ''The antiaircraft pro-
lection was not as complete as at
Pearl Harbor"
Members of the committee clashed
sharply over whether Government
agencies are giving counsel all the
information asked for in the investi-
cation, after Admiral Wilkinson tes-
titled he recalled one dispatch indi-
eating the Japanese suspected their
codes were being broken.
Two Republicans-Senators Brew
ster of Maine and Ferguson of Mich
igan-immediately produced letters
from the committees legal staff,
headed by William D. Mitchell, stat
ing there was no information or in
dication that Japan ever knew their
code had been cracked. The memo
from counsel added that all indi-
cations were to the contrary.
Senator Ferguson charged today's
developments raised the question,
"Are we getting the information we
(See PEARL HARBOR, Page AID