The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1945-11-29


Mrs. Adolph Dolezal, who now re-
side at Chelan, Wash. Herman des-
cribes couple day stop on
OkinaWa.
Il suppose you are really SUR
prised to see that I'm writing from
Okinawa So am l. We just anchored
at Eniwetok for two days, then came
to Okinawa with the Marines.
1T sure is a hell of mess here.
| suppose you read about the big
typhoon here on Okinawa. We were
about 200 miles off Okinawa when
that typhoon and hurricane hit. The
waves were 20 feet high and we
were going up and down on the ship
all the time. While we were in the
! typhoon an SOS came over the
radio. A ship was sinking and an
other ship with us changed course
| to pick up to the survivors We kept
on going toward Okinawa and new
er saw that ship again. We got into
Buckner Harbor Oct IL.
I'VE anchored in the harbor for
a week because they didn't have
room to put us on the island and 1t
was too muddy. 1t rained for II
hours straight during the storm.
They live in tents here and during
the typhoon every tent on the island
was blown down. The chow halls
were all wrecked and everybody on
the island didn't have anything to
eat except X rations for week.
October II when we came on,
they had just fixed up the chow hall
and started serving hot meals. The
chow was pretty good 1t was all
{ made from food in tin cans.
We've been here two days. Most
got on draft and were boarding
ships tomorrow. I'm sure glad we
are too, it's too darned muddy and
slippery here was assigned to the
USS Blue Ridge. / don't know what
kind of a ship it is yet.
American money isn't good on
this island. You have to get 1t
changed to yen and sen. Fifteen
yen are worth one dollar and there
are 100 sen in yen.
Right below our area there are
some caves and pillboxes that were
burned out by flame throWers.
There are some Jap bones lying in
one of the pillboxes. There are still
some Japs in the mountains on the
island. On the other side of the is
land there are still some Jap
snipers. Right after the storm they
captured some Japs with guns and
ammunition, enough to hold them
out for a lifetime.
Il was talking to guy who
Just came from the other side OF
the island He left last Friday, (Oct.
12) and said that there were still
Jap snipers shooting at them there
when we first came here we
were warned about BOBBY traps
There're a lot of guys who were
killed picking up souvenir guns
knives and everything else
S/Sgt. Sidney NJ Brown, Libby
, was honorably discharged from the
service, officials at the Separation
!, Center, Fort Lewis, Wash, recently
announced.
Pearl Harbor, T. FH.-T/Sgt Ar
chic P. Minde, USMCR, son of Mr.
and Mrs. John Minde, Libby, is or
his way home.
Minde is one of 900 high-poin
: Marine and Navy veterans whom thu
: Magic Carpet is to bring back K
: the states aboard the USS Colorado
The USS Colorado left Pearl Har
!. Dor, November Z and was scheduled
to arrive in San Diego November
II.
: Edwin Herbert Stratton, seaman
J. lie, USNR, Yak, Mont, and othe.
crewmen of the seaplane tende,
USS Harnlin played an importan
: role in the far-reaching, extensive
Q damage dealt Japan by the famed
Fleet Air Wing One during the clos
ing 100 days of the Pacific war
: Moving into combat waters dur
= ing the campaign for OkinaWa ant
later in operations around the Jap
: anese homeland, the Hamlin backed
y up planes of the air wing that sanl
more TIM $4,000 tons of enem,
!; shipping, damaged another 1890
u tons and shot down 40 enemy plane
: during the 100 day period.
At the same time, the Hamlin ais
was taking part in the fighting a