Chapter 6 4. Douglas MacArthur and Shigeru Yoshida-1

meeting of east and west On a warm afternoon in the spring of 1951, a seventy-year-old Japanese gentleman was presiding over the first flower viewing party in spring.At this moment, he received news from the United States: President Truman had relieved Douglas MacArthur of all his duties, including his duties as commander of the Korean battlefield and commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces in Japan.The host, looking rather shocked, apologized to his guests and took his leave.He felt distraught, and it took half an hour for him to calm down. This gentleman is Shigeru Yoshida, the ruthless Prime Minister of Japan.He knew this was not the time to be sad.The man who used to hammer his opponents hard knew that politics was a brutal profession.MacArthur and Truman had fought inextricably on major political issues, and now MacArthur was finally defeated.Regardless of whether Truman was right or wrong, Japan-US relations should continue to develop even if the beloved general is no longer in office.So Yoshida must tread carefully so as not to offend the US president and cast a cloud over the Japan-US peace treaty he has been trying to enforce since 1946.

Yoshida delivered a radio address to his country, praising his outgoing friend in a non-diplomatic way.In fact, this also resonates with him emotionally. However, this feeling seems extremely disproportionate to Yoshida."What General MacArthur has done for our country is one of the most glorious in history," he said. There can be no doubt that he is deeply admired and loved by all the people of our country.As he leaves our country, there are no words enough to express our country's tribute to him. " American newspapers reported Yoshida's speech.But it wasn't long before those speeches were drowned out by the uproar over MacArthur's resignation, which faded away with the rest of his life.Thirty years later, when most Americans mention MacArthur, they only think of North Korea, or think of his brilliant military leadership in World War II.In fact, his greatest achievement was exactly what Yoshida pointed out at the end of his career: "It was he who saved our country from the chaos and exhaustion after the surrender; The seeds of democracy were sown in every corner of society." At the time of Yoshida's remarks, MacArthur was plagued by criticism that he was reckless and bellicose.

Yoshida himself played an important role in Japan's revival.However, the Prime Minister was very humble.In fact, it was MacArthur and Yoshida—victory and conqueror, Westerner and Easterner, general and statesman—together in making Japan's rapid and dramatic transformation into a major power in contemporary world history. MacArthur is an American giant, a legendary figure with all kinds of contradictions and paradoxes.He was at once a prudent, thoughtful intellectual, at once an airsy and pompous warrior; an authoritarian and a democrat.He was also a gifted and motivating speaker, with a Churchill-like mastery of rhetoric that inspired thousands and captivated most liberals.

Yoshida was the emotional, irascible leader of Japan's darkest period.The mischievous, cigar-loving diplomat of fame turned his country from military defeat to economic victory.He is often referred to as Japan's Churchill because of his tenacity, sharp words, athletic build and coming to power at an age long past retirement for most. In 1945, MacArthur took control of Japan, which was physically and spiritually defeated.In this world war, two million people died in this country, one third of them were civilians.Factories were razed to the ground.The foreign trade that had laid the foundations of Japanese power in the 1920s and 1930s was gone.Food was scarce.To make matters worse, the Japanese people put all their faith and ability into a war they thought God would not let them lose.Instead, their emperor told them to lay down their arms.This was the first time in Japanese history that it suffered the humiliation of surrender.Soon, Emperor Hirohito publicly announced that he had given up the power of the previous emperors, which is the basis of the Japanese people's religious beliefs.The military defeat left only a material and spiritual vacuum.Yet nine years later, when Prime Minister Yoshida stepped down, Japan was a thriving, active democracy building to become the second economic power in the free world.

It is widely believed that MacArthur did all of this.For it was during his tenure in Japan from 1945 to 1951 that most of the social, economic, and political reforms that transformed Japan were carried out.Yes, Yoshida works with small-scale actions that are sometimes invisible and intangible.However, each of them is as important as the other, but in the face of MacArthur's huge power and aggressive personality, Yoshida is not conspicuous. To make matters worse, during his seven years in office, Yoshida was described negatively by many scholars in the usual way.He has been portrayed as an unpleasant old-fashioned conservative who was always eager and angry to repudiate MacArthur's labor, education, and police reforms.Others say that Yoshida's amendments to these reforms were actually the product of a sudden American realization that a strong anticommunist force was needed in the alliance in the Far East.

Yoshida is actually a cautious politician with basically enlightened qualities.He is justifiable to worry that the reform wind blowing in the United States will come too fast and too fast.The Japanese are probably the least foreign-hating people in the world, with a long tradition of "borrowing from other cultures." But they have always carefully reined in new influences so as to enrich Japanese society rather than disintegrate it. This There is no contradiction with the concept that MacArthur imported to Japan. He created a democratic system and expected the Japanese people to become democratic people. Yoshida understood that for his people to accept the benefits and responsibilities that came with the new freedom, It will all take time. He also knows that not everything that works in the United States will be necessary in Japan.

The roles played by MacArthur and Yoshida are quite different, so the two men are required to have distinctly different temperaments.My first encounter with them reflected the difference between the two of them. I first met MacArthur in 1951.I was a U.S. senator at the time, and I heard him deliver "Old Soldiers Never Die" to a joint session of Congress.The man, engaged in one of the greatest dramatic conflicts in modern political history, appears to be in style.His speech was so forceful that it was almost intoxicating.Again and again his speech was interrupted by prolonged applause.When he said goodbye with emotion, "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away," many congressmen and senators cheered and jumped with tears in their eyes. with.The speech was likely to be met with unprecedented applause, surpassing the applause that presidents have received in the past when they addressed a joint session of the House and Senate.When MacArthur solemnly walked down the corridor and out of the conference hall, the applause continued for a long time.

It has been said that we have just heard the voice of God.Later, another pro-MacArthur senator told me in a joking tone that this speech made the Republicans cry and the Democrats wept. Two years later, I met Yoshida for the first time in Tokyo.For our first session, he arrived a little late, covering his mouth and nose with a handkerchief.He apologized repeatedly that he was preventing a nosebleed - and he clucked embarrassingly again, adding that it was from too much caviar the night before.I don't recall a single leader who could honestly admit to something like this, especially if it had a detrimental effect on important government work.

The impression I got from my first meeting with them was confirmed by later events.MacArthur was a hero, a man of great appearance and importance. When he retired to live in New York, everyone who was invited to meet him at his apartment, like me, respectfully watched him pace the room and listened quietly to his description of the problems he was thinking.Unlike MacArthur, Yoshida was an approachable person.He sat low in a chair with a mischievous grin sometimes obscured by the smoke of his cigar.He likes to show his knowledge with humorous conversation. They also have similarities.Both were well-read intellectuals; these two powerful men were also in their seventies; both were born in the Victorian era, and in public, each posed in an old-fashioned manner. Dignity and dignified gesture.However, MacArthur never made his behavior appear weak."Even when frustrated and reprimanded, he maintained the arrogance of a gentleman," says a one-time assistant. Yoshida, by contrast, can be convincing when needed. Like the rudeness.In Japan's parliament, he once called socialists "stupid".He even grabs a canteen and pours water over the heads of tiresome photojournalists.

If I had guessed, when I first met MacArthur and Yoshida, that one was an arrogant visionary and the other a stubborn realist, I would be right.As it turned out, postwar Japan needed both of them.Without MacArthur's fantasies, the necessary reforms would not have been possible, and without Yoshida's meticulous, hands-on arrangements, these reforms would have made Japan even more chaotic. In essence, MacArthur is a Westerner, but his life tends to the East; Yoshida is an Easterner, but his life tends to the West.They created a situation where their cultures could all be adapted to the crowded Japanese archipelago, creating a new, powerful free nation.

Douglas MacArthur was one of the greatest generals America has ever seen, and one of the most dazzling.His personality is sometimes more compelling than his accomplishments.His aristocratic birth and bombastic speeches made him an easy target for grandstanding and sarcasm.They described him as vain, anachronistic, a haughty Victorian born fifty years too late.His great speeches boasting of American institutions, always so vehement and inspiring, were derided by many as chauvinistic. However, his critics find it difficult to prejudice him.His personality is so complex that a great actor, not even Gregory Peck, has been able to capture it on the screen, as George Scott has, Live the specialty of another great and not too complicated general, George S. Patton. I first became interested in MacArthur during World War II when I was assigned as a naval commander to the Marine Corps Air Combat Transport in the South Pacific.What I heard was a unanimous denial of him.For this was exaggerated by journalists who were usually prejudiced against MacArthur, and by the usual rivalry between the Army and Navy. For example, the C-47 we used had two types of seats: an uncomfortable flip-up seat for the crew and a pair of more comfortable, airliner-style seats for senior officials.The latter seat was ridiculed as the "MacArthur seat". All in all, the general's reputation does not match the facts.During the occupation of Bataan and Corregidor, MacArthur insisted on living in houses on the ground rather than in bunkers.In this way, he and his family were exposed to the fire of the Japanese.We hear his subordinates on Bataan refer to him as "the soldier in the trench."When the situation became hopeless, he had no other idea than to stay on the island and shoot as many Japanese as he could with his pistol until his country died.In the end, it was President Roosevelt who ordered the evacuation before he left the island.What we heard later was that when the fighting intensified, MacArthur hurriedly withdrew from the island with his wife, three-year-old son and Chinese nanny. During World War II, MacArthur's nickname was "the soldier in the trench", which is ironic.Because he did spend time in bunkers and trenches in France with American infantry in World War I.As chief of staff and later commander of the "Rainbow" division, he was admired, even respected, by his troops for his tactical proficiency and fearlessness in the face of danger.He was at the forefront more than once when a large group of U.S. troops charged.In one year, he was wounded twice and won seven Silver Stars for bravery. He faced death as much as a routine in his life. While he was on a reconnaissance mission in Veraclus in 1914, a Mexican bullet dramatically pierced his uniform.He had been gassed in World War I, his undershirt had been torn to shreds by machine-gun fire, and his command post at Metz had been blown up the very day he evacuated.During one of Metz's early bombardments, he sat calmly in his seat and said to his staff who knew him and cared about him: "All the Germans can't make a shell that can kill MacArthur." One day after the war, his car was pulled over by a mugger in New York.MacArthur asked the man to put down his gun and fight to grab his money.This person once served in the "Rainbow" division.When he learned that the person he attempted to rob was General MacArthur, he apologized to him repeatedly and let him go. When the Japanese were shooting hard in World War II, others wondered where to jump for cover if the shells came.But it is often found that MacArthur is still sitting calmly in a chair, observing the battlefield with binoculars.He was indifferent to the exhortations of officers and soldiers begging him not to take the risk.He would say that the bullets were not aimed at him. He often combined a display of bravery with a reckless approach to dangerous places. In 1945 he landed in the Philippine Islands to visit the rest of his troops on Bataan and Corregidor, who were being malnourished and mistreated in Japanese POW camps.He turned to his doctor and said, "Doctor, this is where I'm going. I'm going to keep going until we meet fire. I don't just mean sniper fire." He strode forward, over He picked up the corpses of the Japanese army and walked until he could hear the sound of enemy machine guns roaring overhead. Then he turned around and walked back slowly, not afraid of the Japanese shooting him in the back. MacArthur's life, including the fearless behavior he displayed that sometimes bordered on recklessness, was born of the just fighting sense of his father, General Arthur MacArthur. Whether it is by coincidence or intentional arrangement, the careers of their father and son are extremely similar. In 1863, Arthur, who was only eighteen years old, was an adjutant in the Allied Army.He received the Congressional Medal of Honor for being the first to plant his division's flag on Parish Heights in Tennessee.This kicked off Schuman's march to Georgia.Douglas also received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroism at Corregidor.Arthur spent most of his life stationed on the American frontier—first in the Southwest and then in the Philippine Islands.Douglas returned to the United States only once, from 1935 until his recall in 1951. MacArthur Old and MacArthur Young—the way the Filipinos distinguished them—was obsessed with the importance of the Far East and the Philippines to the future of the West.Both men's lives were also marked by dramatic conflicts with the administration—Douglas to President Truman; Arthur to William Howard Taft, chairman of the Philippine Administrative Council.Arthur was the head of the military in the Philippines at the time. MacArthur's mother, Ping Ji, often encouraged him to follow Arthur's example and move forward courageously throughout his life, even surpassing Arthur.When he went to West Point, she went with him to make sure he could devote himself to his studies and not ruin his career by entrapping the pretty cadet in a rut of romance.He graduated first in his class.When the thirty-eight-year-old Colonel MacArthur was fighting in the French trenches in World War I, his mother wrote many flattering letters to his superiors, including to Parkin, who had served under his father. The general wrote.Finally, when he was appointed as the youngest Army chief of staff in American history in 1930, she reached out and stroked the four-star epaulet on his shoulder and said, "If your father was alive, he would see you the way you are now. It'll feel like it's all coming together, Douglas." MacArthur always felt that he was being set apart by those around him, which irritated him and led to some harmless eccentricities in him.In the military, uniforms are worn to show the rank of the commander.MacArthur resolutely resisted and did not obey this set.Asked by another officer about his unusual attire, he said: "You'll be famous if you don't obey orders." In World War I he often wore a crumpled service cap instead of a proper steel helmet, a turtleneck, a fine satin tie, and breeches.On one occasion, he was mistaken for a German and temporarily captured. From 1919 to 1922, when he was the principal of West Point Military Academy, he was often seen with a short handle.He was the first duty officer to report to MacArthur when the Communists invaded South Korea. MacArthur was almost never sick.His only regular exercise is calisthenics.But he persevered, sometimes walking miles a day, in offices and living rooms, on planes, and on deck during an attack.MacArthur attributed his good physique and strength to having lunch breaks, drinking little alcohol, eating in moderation, and being able to sleep when he lay down.He was a man of faith, but did not attend church very often. In thought, speech and action, MacArthur is a trained person.If he is best remembered for his "Old Soldiers Never Die" speech and his farewell address at West Point, he is most vividly remembered for his Senate hearing on North Korea defense at the meeting.I did not take part in the questioning at the time because I was not a member of the hearing committee.On just the first day, I was overwhelmed by seeing how MacArthur navigated himself in the face of tough questions and only a few minutes to wait.He seemed so brilliant and charming that I spent three whole days listening to his testimony.Democratic Senator William Fulbright and others were well prepared to ask some unpleasant difficult questions designed to demonstrate that MacArthur had violated the spirit of the President's directive and rejected the principles of civilized control of the military. Under such an attack, a relatively small person would be turned into a blind powder.But throughout this hearing, MacArthur remained calm.He never fell into a murderous trap that required him to throw in the towel.In the defense, he used every question to deal with Yuru's confrontation and rhetorical questions.He ended a long, grueling day of debate with the same quick wit and sharp words he had begun. How he states the problem is more impressive than what he states.give me at that time After we talked, I took the elevator upstairs to MacArthur's suite at 37A.General Whitney met me at the door and escorted me into the living room.Hoover's suite made an impression with its simplicity, cleanliness and elegance.Although MacArthur's room was the same size as Hoover's, it was quite spectacular.On the wall are memorabilia collected from his work in the Pacific during World War II. I get the impression that it was not Hoover who served in the highest position in the United States, but he.He also has some fine collections of Japanese crafts. When I walked into the room, MacArthur greeted me and took my hands.He said: "It's great that you can come." Then he introduced me to Mrs. MacArthur.She is one of the most personable and charming women I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.After greeting my wife and children, she said "excuse me" and walked away. This is my first conversation with him.Over the next eight years, I had a series of conversations with him.All of these are memorable.We usually discuss the political situation in the United States and the current diplomatic developments-more accurately, he is talking and I am listening.Whereas in my discussions with Hoover, he always asked my opinion on various issues under discussion; MacArthur almost never did.In the meeting with him, no matter what the topic is discussed, it is like a graduation seminar. The best way for every visitor is: or listen quietly, or take notes.During the occupation of Japan, MacArthur had a fifteen-minute appointment with a colonel.Kamige was so stunned by the general's intimidating, eloquent discourse that he forgot the purpose of his visit.Later, the colonel learned that MacArthur also regarded him as a "very charming talker." As it turned out, my conversation with MacArthur was one of the very limited high-level contacts he had with the Eisenhower administration.I did not report the conversation to the President.In fact, I don't remember any discussions between MacArthur and Eisenhower.I always have an intuitive impression: As long as MacArthur is mentioned, it seems that others do not welcome him very much. These two great American generals have worked together for a long time since the 1930s.At that time, Eisenhower was MacArthur's assistant.I know that in the 1950s MacArthur was desperate to serve in Washington.He detailed to me a picture of how he would slash the military budget or "get the Pentagon in order in a month" if he were appointed secretary of defense or chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.But he never got his wish. Eisenhower may have had good reasons for not appointing the contentious five-star general to his administration—many in the Pentagon would have been outraged if he had been asked to call the shots—but treating MacArthur in that way His feelings were no doubt dampened, too.He never disparages Eisenhower directly, but sometimes mocks him indirectly.Once, when he told me about Eisenhower's years as his assistant, he once said: "He can write an excellent article about how to hold or take a certain position, as long as you tell him what a position is." In 1955, Eisenhower had his first heart attack, prompting some speculation about whether he could, or should, run for president again.At this time, I received a message from MacArthur through Courtney Whitney: "General MacArthur will always stand by the Vice President," Whitney said to me: "He also said that no matter what happens , the others should leave the White House immediately." Under the circumstances, MacArthur's message was inappropriate because I would have been embarrassed if Eisenhower had learned of it.I remember thinking at the time that MacArthur's desire to see Eisenhower leave the White House may be more urgent than his desire to see me enter the White House. MacArthur was dissatisfied with the popularity that Eisenhower possessed.He also believes that the disproportionate focus on Eisenhower and Europe during and after World War II led Washington to ignore America's role in the Far East.In turn, Eisenhower believed that MacArthur, although a great general, was too conceited and dramatic.He has often held this view. 1942.When he received some advice from MacArthur on matters of strategy, he wrote in his diary: "It is strange that he thinks we are still learning all these years. His lesson will be useful to ordinary people of." In the presidential campaign of the 1960s, MacArthur did not play a prominent role.But he took pains to let me know he was on my side.In June, I cabled to congratulate him on being honored by the Japanese government for his promotion of American-Japanese friendship.I enthusiastically extolled his "heroic" contributions to history, expressing my confidence that they would leave their mark "on the legacy of free peoples everywhere."He wrote in his reply: "You have given me an extraordinary congratulations. I have handed over your telegram to the newspaper to show that I fully support you as a presidential candidate." Perhaps only a person who likes to boast like MacArthur, Only then did I assume that publishing my cable praising him was a sign of his support for me.Still, he doesn't seem shy about making such assumptions. He often commented on Kennedy in front of me and took him very lightly.I appreciate that, and it's no surprise.Because these comments encouraged me before the election, and helped me relieve the pain of losing the election after the election.Before that election, when MacArthur told me about the exploits of Kennedy's torpedo boats, he said contemptuously that Kennedy was "brave, but very reckless."He also said, "Kennedy might be court-martialed for lack of judgment in a certain campaign." In June 1961, two months after the Bay of Pigs fiasco, he again savagely criticized Kennedy.He mentioned that he had recently spoken to Jim Farley, the legendary former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and Roosevelt confidant.Farley pointed out that Kennedy's mind was very quick and flexible.MacArthur's response was that he didn't think Kennedy had the ability to judge—the ability to see the whole situation before making a decision.MacArthur went on to say to me, "The vital role of a commander is to separate, from the intelligence he receives, the five percent that is important from the other ninety-five percent that is not important." He said he believed that Kennedy had clearly failed in his decision-making on the Bay of Pigs, and that Kennedy had also unfortunately lost the trust of the military and the CIA as a result of the fiasco.Granted, he thought Kennedy was "smart" politically, but attributed it to Kennedy providing him with a plane to travel to the Philippines as he pleased.Still, he added, Kennedy "was dumbfounded when it came time to make a decision."Having said this, he went on emphatically—as he likes to emphatically—"Kennedy was going to take Cuba. Although now is not the time, but in the future he will definitely do this and will do so. " Regardless of MacArthur talking about this or that issue, he almost always brought the topic to Asian affairs.He once told me that looking back, if he had put half a million Kuomintang troops under his command along the Yalu River, he could have split China in two and changed the balance of power in the world in one fell swoop. Unfortunately, the opportunity has been missed. As communism encroached, he became increasingly pessimistic about the future of Asia.But he also believed that getting involved in a ground war on the Asian continent would be a major mistake for the United States, and his last piece of advice to an American president was to insist that Lyndon Johnson not send more troops to Vietnam.The best course of action, he felt, was to continue to frighten Soviet or Chinese-backed rebels and support Asian governments against them. His approach to political issues was also ambiguous.Living in New York and serving as chairman of the RAND Corporation board gave him a better opportunity to study Wall Street businesses, he said, adding that he found them "uncharacteristic" and "they never stuck to principles."He said, "The only rule they follow is to embrace the victor and support him regardless of his standpoint." In the early sixties, he said to me: High taxes are the main problem in America: Our country has become more conservative.On the eve of the 1964 Republican National Convention, he reinforced his view that Goldwater should not be nominated because he was too conservative. In 1961, MacArthur also said to me: When Kennedy's father took Kennedy himself to Waldorf to visit him in 1951, Kennedy seemed to be a "socialist".He praised Kennedy for indeed having an "extraordinary memory" and said that when he became president, he remembered their first meeting in Waldorf a decade earlier with uncanny accuracy.What makes me particularly memorable is that this also shows that MacArthur's memory is very strong. MacArthur also gave me a little personal advice that many people think should be followed. When I asked him in 1962 if I should go back to California and run for governor, he grabbed my hand and said, "Don't. California is a big state, but it's too small. You should Stay in Washington, not Sacramento. You should be running for Congress" Herbert Hoover had given me the same advice just two hours earlier, in his suite six floors below. My conversations with MacArthur are always linked in my head to my conversations with Hoover.Both were elderly and bright, both lived in Waldorf House, and I often visited them on the same day. My last interview with Hoover was on August 10, 1063, the day of his eighty-ninth birthday.I stopped by to visit him.His nurse told me that he was so ill that recovery was almost impossible.But his sanity has always been clear.She told me that he would often get up in the middle of the night, leaning on his yellow cushions to write.Over the years, Hoover personally answered hundreds of postcards congratulating him on his birthday. The nurse said he still reads the postcards but cannot answer them himself. When the nurse wheeled him into the room, I saw that he was very emaciated from the pain, and I was very sad.Still, his handshake was strong, his voice surprisingly sonorous, and his comments on things short and to the point.Despite his hardline anti-communist lines, he supported the test-ban treaty that the United States signed with the Soviet Union that month.His view is that "this can at least somewhat ease the current tension".As he pointed out, "Khrushchev needs friends because of China".He disagreed with Adenauer that we could play the China card against the Soviet Union.He pointed out that they were all in the early stages of communism and therefore particularly provocative.He also told me that the Chinese people are very emotional people, but they can also be "bloody" to foreigners or to their compatriots. During the Boxer Rebellion of 1900, Hoover worked in China as a mining engineer.This experience made his above attitude appear more colorful.When the xenophobic Boxers attacked Tianjin's foreign ancestral homeland, he and his wife took part in the battle to defend the ancestral homeland.At that time, the Boxers and government forces also killed each other.Hoover said he saw thousands of dead bodies floating in the river that ran past his camp.In his view, the massacre of the Chinese revolution was just another chapter in the same story.He predicted that within 25 years, Maoism will not be able to change the Chinese people, because "it is a slow thing to change a nation's traditions."The U.S. should deal with them as little as possible, he said. He was more magnanimous with Kennedy than he was with MacArthur.He commented: "Kennedy was much better than I expected." For Goldwater, Hoover and MacArthur also have different views.Perhaps the best way, he thinks, is to give him enormous power to try it out for himself and "get out of our system". Although MacArthur and Hoover shared similar views in a fairly wide range of fields, I don't recall them ever referring to each other once.At first, I thought it was rare for them to see each other.However, I later learned from Mrs. MacArthur that President Hoover invited the MacArthurs to his suite for private dinners five or six times a year.In those moments, two of the most remarkable leaders of our time sat down for a fascinating conversation. MacArthur's ignorance of the principles and policies in the army was not limited to turning a deaf ear to the officers' clothing regulations.Soldiers take it as their duty to obey the instructions of their superiors.But MacArthur does not often do this, even if the boss is the president of the United States. It was not uncommon for MacArthur to be right and his superiors to be wrong.In World War II, he took his troops expertly across the South Pacific from 1942 to 1945 and suffered far less casualties than American troops suffered in a single battle at Bourg .His success made him less appreciative of orders from Washington. At one point, the Pentagon told him that the plan to reoccupy the Philippine island of Mindoro was too risky.But MacArthur still did it, and succeeded.攻占了吕宋这个大岛以后，他在没有授权的情况下，又攻取了群岛的其他岛屿，在这些行动中仅损失了820人。在日本，他突然插手于社会和经济方面的改革，这超越了最高司令官的权限。 但是，他的成就却是如此辉煌，以致于后来他虽然因为犯上而被解职，杜鲁门总统对他还是无可奈何，而且还嘉奖了他。 除了他父亲有例在先外，还有两个因素对麦克阿瑟在蔑视更高的权威方面起了特别的作用。首先，从他的事业一开始，他就猜疑别的军官想攻击他。在第一次世界大战中，他对盟军在法国的肖蒙司令部里珀欣将军周围的人就不信任。后来，他的主要对手则是象乔治·马歇尔这样的军官，他在肖蒙时就和珀欣在一起。 小赫伯特·胡佛这位麦克阿瑟的崇拜者在一次与我的谈话中，称这些官员们为"五角大楼小集团"，说他们只有在欧洲的作战经验，视野只局限在欧洲。麦克阿瑟认为，他们之中的许多人，特别是马歇尔，出于政治方面和私人关系方面的原因，总想在太平洋地区寻隙阻挠他的每一行动。他也认为，杜鲁门和他的军事顾问们没有尽最大的努力去阻止共产主义在中国的胜利；政府暖昧的亚洲政策，也使南朝鲜在共产主义的侵略面前敞开了大门。 麦克阿瑟还蔑视坐办公室的人员。他本质上是一位战地指挥官，感到他与坐办公室的人比较起来，更了解战场上需要怎么干才对头。美国的历届总统们便是最高级的办公室人员。与他在第一次世界大战中的顶头上司和第二次世界大战期间的参谋长联席会议相比，这些总统并没有使麦克阿瑟感到更加可从三十年代起，麦克阿瑟与他为之效力的总统们的关系都不理想，虽然在每一种情况下引起不愉快的原因各不相同。 在大萧条时期，他与胡佛发生了闻名的"退役补贴大进军"的龃龉。当时，25，000名老兵和他们的家属来到华盛顿，要求给予现金补贴。陆军参谋长麦克阿瑟质问游行者动机何在，还亲自跑到现场，和他们对抗。胡佛命令麦克阿瑟不要把军队派往游行者们的临时营地，但麦克阿瑟不顾胡佛的命令，驱散了示威者。 他与富兰克林·罗斯福的关系，尽管表面上看来很恳挚，但在三十年代削减陆军和空军预算的问题上，麦克阿瑟与罗斯福意见相反，这位将军对罗斯福决定不派兵增援巴丹半岛上的美军也深为不满。在麦克阿瑟得知罗斯福1945年去世时，他对一名下属说："罗斯福终于死了：一个人要是从来没有讲过真话，谎言对他也就十分顺耳了。" 在美国，没有哪两位领导人比麦克阿瑟和杜鲁门更加互相嫌恶了。早在1945年6月，杜鲁门就记下了给他自己用的一个备忘录：美国战后的一大难题，是"如何对付普赖马·唐纳先生、布拉斯·哈特和五星上将麦克阿瑟"。他接着写道，"我们不得不让这些蹩脚货呆在关键性的岗位上，这实在是太可悲了。我不明白，罗斯福在九泉之下，为什么没有命令（巴丹半岛司令官）乔纳森·温莱特回家去和让麦克阿瑟（在柯里矶多岛上）当烈士呢！"反之，麦克阿瑟认为杜鲁门忽视亚洲，"屈从于难以控制的狂潮，"而且（就象一位批评家打算让他女儿唱歌时，突然要揍人家一样，）在关键时刻容易丧失理智。 这两人之间的紧张关系，在朝鲜战争期间终于达到了高潮。 麦克阿瑟在朝鲜、甚至是在他的整个事业中的最卓越的杰作，就是在仁川的两栖登陆。这是他关于"在敌人没有想到的地方打击他们"的战略的最佳典范。 1950年秋，联合国军队被阻遏在朝鲜半岛东南角的釜山。 如果对集结在釜山前线的北朝鲜共产党人发动一次突然袭击，将必须冒兵员大量损失之险。于是，麦克阿瑟决定在朝鲜西海岸的仁川——汉城的外港登陆。登陆后，他计划从共产党人手中夺回南朝鲜的首都，用他过去在太平洋战争中把日本人孤立在岛上的办法，把敌人在南方的军队围困起来。 仁川是一个不可靠的、危险的登陆点。起初，麦克阿瑟的上司对此是犹豫的。八月份，杜鲁门派他的顾问艾夫里尔·哈里曼到东京与麦克阿瑟将军会晤，研究朝鲜形势。哈里曼的军事助手弗农·沃尔特斯后来是我的一位密友，曾被我任命为中央情报局的副局长。 一天早饭后，在美国驻日本大使馆的餐厅里，麦克阿瑟将在仁川登陆时需要的补给品的清单交给了哈里曼。在盟军占领日本期间，麦克阿瑟和他的家人就住在使馆里。 "我不相信象美国这样一个大国，竟不能满足我微不足道的军需补给的要求。"麦克阿瑟说着，沃尔特斯默默地听着。 "告诉总统，要是他满足我的要求，我就在九月十五日涨潮时在仁川登陆，以这次登陆为铁锤，以第八军为铁砧，把北朝鲜军队砸得粉碎！"后来，沃尔特斯告诉我："当时，我脖子后面的汗毛都竖起来了。" 哈里曼对此也留下了深刻的印象。麦克阿瑟终于得到了他所需要的增援。参谋长联席会议也批准了他的计划。1950年9月15日，这位七十岁的司令官站在麦金莱峰号旗舰上，注视着以美国海军陆战队第一师为前锋的部队登上仁川，打败了北朝鲜三万多人的军队，我方仅损失536人。到了月底，他把共产党人赶回到三八线以北，将汉城还给感恩戴德的李承晚。 仁川登陆后，联合国安全理事会就麦克阿瑟的军队的目的是要统一朝鲜一事进行投票。这是响应杜鲁门政府单方面决定的政策的一个行动。但在十一月底，当麦克阿瑟的军队逼近鸭绿江时，成千上万的中国军队在林彪指挥下，竞排山倒海而来，迫使这位将军忍辱撤退。但这是典型的、熟练的和有秩序的撤退。对中国军队的这一行动，中央情报局和麦克阿瑟的情报处都作出了错误的判断。 第二年春天，麦克阿瑟在得悉杜鲁门决定寻找一个停战的办法以后，发表了一篇关于朝鲜军事形势的辩护词，其中包括指出中国军队质量低劣，并暗示共产党人最终将被迫妥协。后来，麦克阿瑟还争辩说，任何一个司令官在战场上都有权向敌人发出这样的信息。他发表这个辩护词时，口气咄咄逼人，这也许是不明智的。因为它招来了北京和莫斯科的猛烈批评，也使杜鲁门丧失了他的外交主动权。 更糟的是，在他呼吁中国人举行谈判一事公开化以前几天，麦克阿瑟给国会共和党领袖乔·马丁写了一封信。此前，马丁曾就蒋介石的军队是否可以用于这场战争一事征询这位将军的意见。麦克阿瑟在信中复告，应该使用蒋介石的军队。他又补充说，外交家们正在试图用言词来对付这场反对共产主义的战争，而共产主义在亚洲的胜利则必然导致欧洲的陷落。他说："应该赢得这场战争。这样，欧洲庶几方能免于战乱，也能维护自由。"他又说，"胜利是没有代用品的。" 当马丁在议院读完这封信时，引起一场狂潮烈焰，横扫国会，而且席卷白宫。甚至连平时比较冷静的参议员——那时我已是参议员——也吵闹起来了。虽然马丁是在没有得到麦克阿瑟的允许或认可的情况下公布这一信件的，但杜鲁门立即宣布了解除这位将军的职务的决定。麦克阿瑟是从新闻节目里首次得知他已被撤去所有职务的，这使他蒙受了额外的耻辱。前总统胡佛直接打电话给他，敦促他立刻回国，并告诉他国内情况的另一面：根据民意测验，百分之六十的美国人支持麦克阿瑟，反对杜鲁门。 麦克阿瑟被撤职以后，我向美国参议院提交了一个吁请恢复他的职务的决议案。"我应该说，我并不是那些认为麦克阿瑟将军是一贯正确的人中的一员，"这是我在参议院里的第一次重要讲话。"我也不是那些认为他没有作过受到批评的错误决定的人中的一员。但是我应该说，在目前这种特定的情况下，他提出了一项可供选择的政策，它可能、而且将会得到美国人民的支持。他也为我们提供了政策上的转机——过去那些政策，几乎使我们在亚洲、甚至在全世界陷于灾难的边缘。" 回顾以往的经历，我相信，上述的概括已经经受住了时间的考验，虽然它受到了两党的指责。麦克阿瑟无视文明控制军队的原则；实际上也干涉了总统外交政策的实施。但杜鲁门政府的政策是缺乏自信和模棱两可的。这就是多年来，使麦克阿瑟备受挫折的根源。而他正是为数极少的、对亚洲有足够了解的美国领导人之一。他们看到不祥的力量正在亚洲发挥作用，我国则由于未能坚决反对这些势力而招来了祸殃。 麦克阿瑟致马了的信和他的军事辩护词，并不是他对华盛顿的决策的首次评论。后来杜鲁门说，他在八月初就已经考虑过撤掉麦克阿瑟朝鲜战场司令宫的职务的问题了。当时，这位将军曾经致函"赴外参战退伍军人委员会"，谈论关于保卫福摩萨的问题。然而，杜鲁门当时并未这样做，因为他不想"伤害麦克阿瑟将军本人"。 在整个战争过程中，麦克阿瑟和杜鲁门政府的摩擦随着政府的政治需要而时起时落。给"赴外参战退伍军人委员会"的信发出后，他差点儿被撤职。仁川登陆胜利后，杜鲁门却又飞到沃克岛参加一次会议，其唯一的、明显的目的，就是搞出一张这位被围攻的总统和那位受人欢迎的将军站在一起的照片。联合国军第二次攻占汉城后，麦克阿瑟深信我方即将获得全胜，这成为通过谈判解决问题的障碍。戴高乐在麦克阿瑟去职后的第四天的一次讲话中说过：麦克阿瑟是一位战士，"他英勇无畏的优点在被充分利用以后，剩下的又使人感到可怕了"。 最后，曾经宣称对麦克阿瑟个人的感情关照备至的总统，居然连招呼都没有打一下就撤了他的职。麦克阿瑟就此写道："哪怕是一位勤杂人员、打杂女工或仆人，也不会被人这样不留情面地解雇。简直连起码的礼仪都不顾！" 麦克阿瑟和杜鲁门个人之间的纠纷，是朝鲜问题上的争论的最富于戏剧性的集中表现。但是，这一争吵也可以解释为持有优先注意亚洲问题的观点的麦克阿瑟与美国过分注重欧洲的外交政策之间的斗争。 杜鲁门对欧洲的政策——即杜鲁门主义、马歇尔计划和柏林空中补给线——是强有力和直截了当的。麦克阿瑟的亚洲政策却相当杂乱。共产主义在中国的胜利或朝鲜半岛僵持局面的存在预示着亚洲或东南亚其他国家将会落入共产主义之手的想法，对许多政府的决策人来说，似乎是太陌生了。不过，现在人们对它已经不再感到陌生。 大多数美国人对远东问题也是缺乏远见的，这也许因为他们的根是扎在欧洲的缘故吧。麦克阿瑟一生中的大部分时光则是在亚洲度过的。许多人认为，他与亚洲人相处，比与他的西方伙伴相处更为自在。二十年代和三十年代，他在菲律宾服役时，经常无视那种把菲律宾人和西方人隔离开来的、传统的"种族隔离"政策。三十年代，在他于马尼拉举行的宴会上，也难得看到几张白色的面孔。 现在，中国再次登上了世界舞台；日本的经济奇迹对美国经济的霸主地位所造成的威胁也变得日益明显。美国人开始认识到，下几代人的世界历史，可能将是由东方的男女们来支配的。这一教训需要很长时间才能记起1953年，我在担任副总统的头一年，就应艾森豪威尔总统的要求，用两个月时间访问了十九个亚洲及太平洋地区的国家。总统感到前任政府忽视了亚洲，并希望在作出可能会对亚洲有所影响的重大决定之前，能够得到有关该地区情况的第一手报告。一路上，我的夫人和我会见了几百位不同背景的领导人和凡千位不同背景的人士。我们看到了该地区的巨大的潜力；同时也清楚地看到来自北京和莫斯科的、直接的或间接的共产主义的侵略的威胁。该地区的一些国家，特别是法属印度支那国家，缺乏有能力的领导来对付这些威胁，我们对此尤感关切。最重要的是，我们的访问和讨论使我确信，在今后的年代里，亚洲将会成为世界上最重要的部分，美国的政策应该尽量考虑到这一点。这就是我在访问结束之时向艾森豪威尔总统和我们国家所作的汇报的核心。 但是，一位副总统的一次访问不可能蓦然改变一个国家的态度。美国继续面向西方。我在1967年写的一篇文章中说过："许多人坚持认为建立一个大西洋轴心是自然的和必要的。但实际上基普林还是正确的：亚洲人民又是如此之不同，以至于美国只是表面上关心亚洲。" 半个世纪之前，麦克阿瑟就已亲自对远东作了一次调查研究，而且完全被它迷住了。他在1903年离开西点军校后，随他父亲视察了日本在亚洲的阵地和欧洲在远东的所有殖民地。 全部旅行花了九个月的时间，这是麦克阿瑟一生中最重要的事件之一。 "这里住了将近世界人口的一半，可能还把一半以上的初级产品用于养活后代，"他后来写道。"照我看来，这是再清楚不过了：亚洲和它的前沿岛屿与美国的未来，事实上，还有与美国的继续存在，都是息息相关的。"具有革新思想的麦克阿瑟在西点军校当了三年校长（在那里，他命令挂出亚洲地图，使士官生们可以研究它们）。在他个人的历史中，有二十年是与美国在太平洋的历史紧紧联系在一起的。 1930年起，麦克阿瑟本人对美国在东方的地位开始发挥影响。当时他是美国的陆军参谋长，负责使陆军和空军保持可随时投入战斗的状态。在和平时期，要得到足够的军事预算是一件相当棘手和困难的工作，在萧条时期就更难了。 1934年，在白宫发生了爆炸性争论的情况下，麦克阿瑟成功地劝阻了富兰克林·罗斯福，使他不再大幅度地削减防务经费。"当时我竭尽我的全部情感，置一切后果于不顾地劝说他。"麦克阿瑟后来这样写道，"我还向他描述了我们如果失去下次战争将会造成的后果：一个美国男孩躺在地上，敌人的刺刀戳进他的腹部，敌人的皮靴踩在他的喉咙上。他嘴里在咒骂着。我知道，他骂的这个人不是麦克阿瑟，而是罗斯福。"当他离开总统办公室时，军事秘书对他说，他"拯救了军队"；麦克阿瑟也被自己的大胆惊呆了，呕吐在白宫的台阶上。 1935年，麦克阿瑟返回菲律宾，掌管军队。当时，菲律宾是美国的一个联邦。象他的父亲一样，他认为这些岛屿对于美国太平洋地区的任何防务计划都是至关重要的。但是，他在军事方面耗资甚巨的各种需求，却远远得不到满足。这是麦克阿瑟与他称之为"北大西洋孤立主义"——即华盛顿忽视美国在远东的利益、沉迷于西欧的发展的做法——的第一次龃龉。在第二次世界大战之前直至结束之后，这类摩擦发生过多次。 虽然华盛顿终于在1941年给了麦克阿瑟较多的钱，但是菲律宾第二年还是落入日本人之手了。麦克阿瑟带领部队令人赞佩地撤退到巴丹半岛后，从柯里矶多岛的要塞向他的在奋战的部队许诺说，罗斯福正向他们伸出援助之手。但是，这些援助却被送到了欧洲。这使他怨恨罗斯福，并增加了他对"五角大楼小集团"的猜疑。 他在日本担任最高司令官时，曾对来访者悲叹道，美国尚未开始认识到日本对亚洲的重要性和亚洲对世界的重要性-或是尚未了解到亚洲的巨大潜力。1950年1月，艾奇逊发表声明称，台湾和南朝鲜不在美国的防务圈之内。麦克阿瑟就此得出了如下结论：这位国务卿"关于远东的意见很糟糕"。他邀请艾奇逊访问东京。但是艾奇逊说，他的职责使他不能离开华盛顿——尽管他在任期中七次访问了欧洲。1950年，共产党人侵略南朝鲜，麦克阿瑟最后一次被召回军队服役。 麦克阿瑟与华盛顿在朝鲜问题上的争吵，必须从其前因后果上来全面地认识。麦克阿瑟认为，中国人介入朝鲜战争一事证明，"从开头起，扩张权力的共同欲望就激励着每一个可能成为征服看的人"，与中国人的妥协，必将进一步鼓励共产主义在亚洲、甚至在欧洲的冒险。麦克阿瑟认为，倘能获得华盛顿足够的支持，他将能击败共产党人，使他们没有勇气再作这样的冒险。那时，中国人和苏联人之间还没有不和。我们国会中的许多人同意麦克阿瑟的看法，认为打败在朝鲜的中国共产党"志愿军"，是遏制威胁所有亚洲自由国家的侵略力量的有效办法。 麦克阿瑟向杜鲁门挑战，并不是因为他渴望把战火扩大到中国，事实上，他从未打算用美国地面部队对抗中国的干涉和竞争。直到生命终止时，他依然认为把美国士兵送到亚洲大陆去作战是一件蠢事。他向杜鲁门挑战，是因为他长期以来怀疑华盛顿的决策人不了解亚洲，不了解共产主义在亚洲扩张所形成的威胁。他还坚信，如果让那种认为侵略者与美国发生小规模战争以后依然会安然无恙的想法蔓延，那也是很危险的。 他从自己的亲身经历中，懂得了威特克·钱伯斯的直觉。 "对于共产主义来说，"钱伯斯在敦促我坚决支持杜鲁门的把美国军队投入朝鲜战场的决定时说。"这场战争不仅关系到朝鲜、而且也关系到日本。在日本还是非常不稳定、并力图从战争的破坏中复苏之际，如果朝鲜被共产党人接管，共产主义运动在日本就将得到巨大的推动力。" 麦克阿瑟认为，在亚洲问题上，杜鲁门对他已经有过两次打击：杜鲁门未能保住中国，他模棱两可的朝鲜政策可能又鼓励共产党人去攻击南朝鲜。现在，中国军队参战了。麦克阿瑟认为，杜鲁门和艾奇逊又再次失去了理智。他担心的是，政府的胆怯最终会危及整个远东，包括日本。这促使他被解除了职务。 在麦克阿瑟被免职的那一天，威廉·西博尔德这位驻日盟军外交部门的负责人和美国最为能干的一位外交官收到了华盛顿的指令，要他去会见吉田首相，让他相信美国对日政策不变。 西博尔德被领进吉田楼上的书房。正穿着西服在花园里主持那天下午的赏花会的首相，换了和服接见他。他的客人后来写道：当时他"显然十分震惊"。 西博尔德自己也被这则消息搞得心烦意乱。他担心吉田由于要作出对此也负有责任的日本式的姿态和因为他是麦克阿瑟的密友而想辞职。他告诉吉田，在往后的时日里，日本人民需要一个坚强有力的领导，以便带领他们从麦克阿瑟去职一事所产生的冲击中恢复过来。在会晤结束时，吉田答应西搏尔德：他将不会辞职。 尽管吉田又在任上继续干了三年多，但是战后历史上这极其伟大的伙伴关系结束了。吉田除了一段短时间不在任上之外，从1946年起，他和麦克阿瑟一直在一起工作，以便在旧日的废墟中重建日本。 麦克阿瑟在这方面作出的努力，相对而言是人所共知的。 吉田却是战后世界上的一位无名英雄。他精力充沛，富于同情心，口齿清晰，政治上老练，怠我无私，而且深深地忠于他的国家，诚为战后各国领导人中的一位巨人。他也是少数几位退休和去世后仍然卓有影响的人物之一。甚至到了1982年的现在，日本仍旧按照吉田在三十年前确立的稳健的、有节制的原则进行治理。 世界上每一个学龄儿童都知道邱吉尔和戴高乐。虽然吉田在许多方面和他们并驾齐驱，但是，除了日本人和象我这样有幸和他个人结识者之外，绝大多数人对他几乎毫无所知。 就象东方迷住了麦克阿瑟一样，吉田对西方也着了迷。 他与十九世纪和二十世纪其他许多受过教育的日本人一道，急于通过发展与外国的关系，为增进他自己国家的利益找到一条捷径。在某种意义上，他的生活就是许多世纪以来鼓励接受外国影响，但不允许它们瓦解日本立国之本这两方面互相结合的产物。 从七世纪起，中国就对日本产生了巨大的影响，成为日本的政体、军事组织、土地改革、宗教信仰、伦理道德和文学艺术的模式。从十九世纪起，日本又与美国有密切的关系。这在许多方面与日本和中国已有的关系类似。这种新的关系可以追溯到十九世纪九十年代贸易的繁荣，珍珠港事件和巴丹半岛上令人痛苦的岁月，广岛和长崎的创伤，以及战后年代在商业方面和确保安全方面错综复杂的合作关系等方面。 用吉田的话来说，"日本的决定性世纪"始于1854年。当时，日本人看到了美国海军准将伯里的船队的甲板上矗立着加农炮，深信他们不应该再顶住要求他们加入现代世界的行列的压力了。不久，一群维新派人物废除了幕府时代将军的统治——它代表软弱的天皇，统治日本达二百七十年之久。维新派使明治夭皇复位，让他到东京古老的宫殿里行使至高无上的权力。他的宫闱原来一直被限制在政治上如一潭死水的京都。 明治天皇和他的顾问们认识到，现代化是使日本免于象中国的一部分初印度支那那样沦为西方列强的殖民地的唯一道路。他们也认识到，现代化管理有利于带来经济上的繁荣。这样，在十九世纪后期，日本开始用很长时间认真地观察美国和西方，很快就借鉴了教育、法律、农业和管理等方面的经验。 明治维新派创造了一个尚有许多明显局限的民主制度。它更接近于德国的俾斯麦的民主，与美国或英国的民主不同。西方的这一套移植到了东方，但还不完善。西方的民主虽然被介绍过去了，但是东方的极权主义还阴魂不散，日本还存在着形式上的天皇。本世纪三十年代，日本出现了经济危机，国际上对日本的敌意也增加了，这使人数极少的一群军国主义者得以利用由此而引起的民族主义浪潮，夺取了政府的权力。 军国主义者——吉田称之为"穿制服的政客们"——获得控制权以后，命令人们服从他们，就象一个世纪以前的幕府时代一样。他们控制了皇位，并利用它的权威发号施令。 吉田生于1878年明治维新的激烈变动之中。虽然他出生在东京附近，但是他的原籍是日本最小的岛屿上的土佐县。 上佐的男人们以伐木和航海为业，在那个崇尚齐心协力和礼仪的社会里，他们是狙鲁的，具有粗旷的性格。上佐人被称为"日本的巴斯科人"；吉田象来自土佐的其他子弟一样，也具有粗鲁的性格。后来，他因为在政府工作方面作风蛮横，被称作"独断专行的吉田"。