Chapter 7 Counterattack -1

counterattack Roosevelt put a cigarette in the mouthpiece and lit it.At this moment, he had already slipped out of the portrait posture, and the painter also knew that it was impossible for him to sit still.She looked at him and saw that he raised his left hand to touch his temple and pressed it.It seemed that he wanted to pinch his forehead, but the hand dropped, the fingers twitching, as if groping for something.Miss Thackeray put down her crochet hook, walked over to Roosevelt and said, "Did you drop something?" He pressed the back of his neck with his left hand, closed his eyes, and whispered—the voice was so faint that only she could hear it. — "I have a terrible headache." His arms dropped and his head fell to the left.The front chest is bent down.It was 1:15 p.m.

counterattack The Japs—that's what MacArthur called their enemies, and others called them "Japs," shorthand for what the Japanese called themselves "Big Japan"—were perhaps the most underrated infantry soldier in history.A Japanese soldier looked like a package that was randomly rolled up in brown paper, dirty and wrinkled, and might fall apart at any time.His leggings were ragged, his military uniform was baggy, his trousers were baggy, and his bandages were ridiculously short.Such an image creates an illusion, and once formed, the illusion is not easily eliminated.Even after the devastation at Pearl Harbor, Admiral William F. Halsey predicted that Japan would be crushed by 1943.Back home, too, jukeboxes blared: "Goodbye, Mom! I'm off to Yokohama!"

"I'm going to punch some dirty Japanese kid." Any drinking buddy can tell you that America has won every battle since 1775 and has never lost. But what about the Japanese? They haven't lost since 1598.Although those Japanese soldiers in yellow uniforms looked like cowards, they never took it easy when fighting.They were sharpshooters, and they never missed a shot to 1000 yards.Each of them brought 400 rounds of ammunition (twice as much as the American infantry), and five days of military rations, which were dried fish and rice.They are absolutely not afraid of death, because they have been educated since they were young: it is extremely honorable to die for the emperor.In addition, the weapons and equipment they rely on are also daunting.They had sunk many American battleships at Pearl Harbor.Washington soon learned that not only were Japanese warships faster, stronger firepower, and torpedoes better than those of the United States, but even the quality of the Japanese air force was not comparable to that of the United States.When attacking Hawaii, they dispatched four types of aircraft: Kawasaki, Mitsubishi Zero, Nakajima B5N1, and Mitsubishi G4M1.Each was better than similar aircraft that the United States was able to take to the air at the time.

In the fourth week after the outbreak of the war, Secretary of War Stimson warned the nation: "We will always win the Japanese in the end, but don't look at this war with rose-colored glasses. There are reports that the Japanese army ... is poorly trained and equipped. Inferior. But the harsh facts show that they are experienced in combat, well equipped, strong in body, strong in character, and well trained.” In the past, it was believed that a young and strong American could defeat ten Orientals, but now this myth Has been shattered.At least Washington has been greatly shaken, realizing that the situation in the United States has never been as severe as it is now since the Civil War.At one point, however, U.S. military intelligence — supposedly “intelligence” — thought the enemy would never attack Pearl Harbor.There are many reasons, one of which is said to be: the Japanese army was gathering in Saigon at the time, and it was impossible for Tojo to launch an offensive in several places at the same time.This is common sense and so on.

This well-known common sense is wrong. On New Year's Day in 1942, the troops of "Great Japan" not only went directly from Saigon to the south, but also landed in Guam, Hong Kong, Borneo, Wake Island and the Philippine Islands.Tojo's blitzkrieg was stronger than Hitler's.He cut off the passage between Tokyo and the west coast of the United States, and controlled a large sea area, whose area reached 1/10 of the global area.At the same time, the submarine dispatched by German Admiral Raeder also provided great support to Tojo.Originally, when the war started, the Allies felt that there was not enough ships.In order to smash the Anglo-American alliance, Raeder sank any ship flying the Stars and Stripes or the Mizi flag, so as to cut off the supplies of overseas troops. In early 1942, it seemed possible that he might achieve his goal.Americans living on the east coast can see merchant ships being torpedoed and sunk almost every night. In January, within hours of each other, pure submarines sank the British tanker Coimbra (6.768 tons) and the cargo ship Nonis off Long Island, and in North Carolina Sinks the American merchant ship "Alan Jackson" and the oil tanker "Malay" near the surface.This year, Nazi submarines sank a total of 1160 ships, an average of more than three ships a day.Among those killed was the destroyer USS Jacob Jones, which sank off Cape May, New Jersey.This was the first time an American warship had been sunk by an enemy torpedo near its own coast.

In this critical life and death period, the Allies have been defeated repeatedly, and the Axis Powers seem to be invincible.The Nazis were attacking Stalingrad, regrouping for a final assault on Moscow.Rommel approached Cairo, and the British diplomats in Cairo were already burning documents. It seemed that the Germans were also approaching the city in India, and it was only a matter of time before they joined forces with the Japanese allies sweeping east.Tojo, like Hitler, was on the verge of becoming irresistible.General Joseph Stilwell limped out of Burma, muttering, "It's a disgrace to beat us up and drive us out of Burma!" Some strategists in Washington thought defeating Japan could take ten years .In the past, the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean were considered to be natural barriers, but now it seems that they are not so insurmountable.Not only did Americans see their sailors die on the East Coast, but the sound of gunfire was heard on the Pacific Coast as well.Japanese submarines shelled Seattle. In early March, 15 Zeros from the ship attacked Los Angeles.Although these attacks are nothing more than harassment in military terms, they have a great psychological impact on Americans.Feeling the need to reassure the people, the President prepared to broadcast a fireside chat and requested that newspapers include a map of the world so that listeners could follow him.But the Japanese could hear what Roosevelt said.So, when Roosevelt said in serene tones that there was no reason for pessimism, the Japanese sent another submarine force to attack Santa Barbara.In this way, anti-aircraft guns were set up in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

In Tojo's general offensive on December 7, in addition to Pearl Harbor, there was another attack target, which was Malaya.A few diplomats in Washington, who claimed to be well versed in Oriental psychology, had boldly speculated that the Japanese might invade Thailand.In a sense, they are right.To use an analogy, it is like the forecast of light rain before the worst storm in New England history in September three years ago.At that time, the Vichy government was weak and deceitful. General Homofumi Yamashita took advantage of this weakness and turned Indochina into a base for the Japanese army to gather and rectify and prepare to attack.Then, he held secret talks with the Thai government.As a result, on December 7, the Thais pretended to resist for four hours before surrendering to General Yamashita.Now, he was ready to show his talents for the first time, attacking Malaya.

Three dense Japanese columns, under the cover of Vietnam-based aircraft groups, poured into the Malayan peninsula from Thailand, forcing the British army to retreat steadily.There was no need for them to invest in such a large army, but they wanted to contain the British Air Force and lure the British Navy to take the bait.The strategy worked.The British Admiral Sir Tom Phillips was indeed hooked: he led the British newest capital ship, the naval ace "Prince of Wales" and the heavy cruiser "The Enemy", and sailed directly.The only aircraft carrier in his fleet ran aground, blinding the fleet.On the third day after the start of the war, Mitsubishi torpedo bombers sank the "Prince of Wales" and "The Enemy".The allies are in the waters of Hawaii, and these two ships are considered to have the strongest combat effectiveness. Once they are destroyed, Malaya will naturally be doomed.The enemy's advance was getting faster and faster, and all kinds of unbelievable rumors spread like wildfire, saying that the Japanese "monkey soldiers" were like "Tarzan the Ape", who could swing from a big tree to the ground like a swing by grasping vines and vines. Another one (actually they just use bicycles).Meanwhile, Winston Churchill paled with dismay when he was reported that Singapore's guns were all pointing out to sea and could not turn around.

The emperor's elite troops advanced southward like a broken bamboo, and Lieutenant General Masahiro Honma's regular division began to land on Luzon Island on December 10.On the same day, Phillips was buried in the bottom of the sea, and Guam, which was undefended and unprepared, also fell into the enemy's hands.In less than three weeks, Honma's troops had landed at nine places. MacArthur declared Manila an undefended city, but before he could finish speaking, the Japanese attacked Manila by air.The U.S. and Philippine local forces then retreated to the Bataan Peninsula.Roosevelt wanted to rescue MacArthur. He knew that the general was difficult to deal with, but he still valued his general ability, so he ordered him to go to Australia. One night in February, MacArthur boarded a torpedo boat with his wife, children and governess in the dark, and fled in a hurry.The soldiers who were thrown on the Bataan peninsula angrily sang:

We are outcasts who fought in Bataan: No father, no mother, Uncle Sam is missing, The six relatives are cut off and have no support, There are neither cannons nor guns. No one cares about his mother. It is sad to say that their complaints about the lack of arms are almost true.At that time, the defense system was already in disintegration, and the only American unit on the Bataan Peninsula was the 31st Infantry Regiment, with only 636 people left.They had no choice but to retreat to the fortress of Corregidor Island, which was shaped like a tadpole. There were only ten old-fashioned aircraft and a few torpedo boats.The most senior naval commander, Vice Admiral Tom Hart, got on his largest warship (submarine "Shark") the next day after Christmas, hung the four-star general flag, and left the Philippines.The officers and soldiers in the Corregidor bunker stayed around the radio station of the communications unit at first, but they walked away after a while, because the news broadcast was so depressing.Hong Kong fell, and nurses were raped by Japanese soldiers on the street.Wake Island also fell.Five hundred Marines under the command of Major James Devereaux fought heroically for two weeks, repelling a landing charge, but no reinforcements arrived.By the time Vice Admiral Hart's submarine surfaced in Java on New Year's Day and arrived at the Allied High Command of British Field Marshal Wavell, the Japs had occupied Singapore and were preparing to take action against Java and Sumatra.After studying the battle map, Wavell flew to India.The angry Dutch accused him of leaving the East Indies to their fate.

The fate is indeed very tragic.The Allied fleet was now under the command of a Dutch admiral, and the captains needed an interpreter to understand his orders. Seventeen Allied warships, without air cover, went out to sea to stop the Japanese.They are outnumbered and hopeless.The largest Allied ships were no more than two cruisers.However, the Japanese ships that appeared between the sea and the sky looked densely packed from a distance, like a pagoda. There were 74 ships in total, including four battleships and five aircraft carriers.The battle of the Java Sea lasted seven hours, and only half of the Dutch Admiral's ships were buried at the bottom of the sea, including himself.The rest were quickly cleaned up by Japanese planes.The last two warships (USS "Houston" and Australian ship "Perth") tried to escape through the Sunda Strait, but the strait was blocked by the enemy. They were finally sunk in battle on the night of 1 March.Surrounded by enemy ships, the "Houston" was still fighting endlessly when it sank, and the cannons roared until the stern tilted, and the trumpeter on the ship stood upright on it and blew the abandon ship number. It is difficult for Americans in the distant land to understand the battle in the Pacific Ocean.Pearl Harbor, and also the Battle of the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, USA.Texas was originally a province of Mexico. In 1835, the Americans occupied San Antonio.The following year, the Mexican army besieged the city, and all 150 US troops defending the city were killed. ——The translator and the name of the American warship in the "Maine" incident. It was bombed and sunk in the port of Havana, then a Spanish colony, in 1898. ——Like the translator, one of the reasons why they are more popular than the war they triggered is that at that time, in addition to paying attention to the West Coast, all the attention of the United States was focused on Hitler.Another reason is unfamiliarity with geography.Officers and soldiers on Iwo Jima received "Victory" postal letters from relatives and friends in China, and found that the sender thought they were still fighting in the "South Pacific".The place names of the European battlefields are familiar to everyone since elementary school.But has anyone ever heard of Yap Island? Where is Eolibava Island? What about New Britain, New Caledonia, New Guinea, New Ireland, and New Hebrides? Find out! It is a pity that American teachers do not teach these place names in their teaching.But they can't be blamed either.Islands like Wake, Midway, and Iwo Jima were of little value before the age of aviation.Until 1941, only Standard Oil or Lever Brothers were interested in the islands in the Pacific.When the war broke out, the U.S. Navy was still using outdated 18th-century charts.In fact, many naval battles failed due to ignorance of the depth of the route.As the Marines entered the Solomon Islands, they had to measure as they advanced.The first battle they fought there, even in the wrong place.They thought it was the Tenaru River, but later discovered that it was the Ailu River. The common people's impression of the Pacific Ocean is nothing more than a B-movie crew's invention: the South China Sea Islands are an exotic paradise, shady with palm trees, and the wind blows when the wind blows.There, Sadie Thompson and the missionary are mixed together with characters from the short stories of the famous British novelist Somerset Maugham. ——Translator, Aboriginal girls wear close-fitting salons and dive into the sea to fish for pearls, just like the famous movie star Dorothy Lamore.This kind of overseas strange talk is indeed fascinating, and of course there is also a star and a half of it that is in line with the facts.The girls looked less like Dorothy Rameau than like Lister's hydration bottles. It was created by American military doctor Bill Lister in 1947, hence the name. —Translator, however, most veterans of what the enemy called the "Great East Asian War" can still recall the magnificent natural scenery there: for example, the dense jungle of Guadalcanal Island. There are flocks of parrots everywhere; the volcano in Queen Augusta Bay on Bougainville Island is full of smoke; the fire trees on Saipan Island are lovely red, and so on. But American soldiers did not come here for sightseeing, they came to fight a cruel war.The more stunningly beautiful the jungle, the more ferocious the battles can be, and some islands are simply impossible to stay on.For example, a team of engineers was sent to the Santa Cruz Islands to conduct surveys and prepare to open a temporary airport, but they all contracted meningitis and died.The battle is fought under unimaginable natural conditions.Guadalcanal was shaken by the earthquake, and the jets of the volcano on Iwo Jima hissed from the rocks.On Bougainville, bulldozers got bogged down in unfathomably deep, cavernous swamps.On Peleliu Island, at the height of the fighting, the temperature reached 115 degrees Fahrenheit even in the shade of the trees.Sometimes the weather is tougher than the enemy.Cape Gloucester received as much as 16 inches of rain in one day.The Great Battle of Wright Gulf was interrupted by a monsoon.A month later, a typhoon sank three more American destroyers. Any war has its special and unforgettable sounds, and this war is also like this. After many years, it has become like a blurred kaleidoscope in people's memory, or like some old photos randomly collected, which are enough to arouse contemplation. It will also cause terrible memories in the depths of people's souls, making people feel lingering fear.The troops stationed at the beachhead outposts lived in mobile barracks surrounded by the sea, like outcasts drifting on a cartoon-like deserted island, proving that Supreme Court Justice Holmes said that war is "looking for trouble". good.And the monotonous and harsh broadcasts on the ships, the smell of sweat, and the empty and desolate barracks canteen; and those airstrips, paved with large perforated metal plates, like large jigsaw puzzles; There are the cannonballs that exploded suddenly in the banyan forest, the red plaster of the zero-wings shining dazzlingly under the equatorial sun; and the warships that zigzag to avoid the enemy’s attack, making the panic-scattered phosphorous biota emit light and aircraft carrier pilots scrambling to run across the flight deck during a sortie, flight hats bouncing on their heads, voyage charts tucked under their armpits, and so on. However, for those who have served in the Marine Corps and Army, the most unforgettable memory is probably a new combat "operation" that started in the middle of the night.The atmosphere at that time was almost unbearably tense.They staggered out of the hard plank beds in the transport ship, ate a random breakfast, and then watched nervously the shore that was being bombarded by their 14-inch caliber batteries, carrying the deadly weight of equipment on the already aching body. On the back, along the cargo-handling net, and down to the wobbly, pitifully small Higgins landing craft.They stared nervously at the hazy land in front of them, heading towards the No. 1 red beachhead or No. 2 green beachhead at full speed, hoping that they would not be caught by a hidden reef this time and become the target of the Japanese machine gunners. I don't know what the terrain is like.One thing they knew, this ghostly place was another hot blast furnace, and the infantry suffered, but it must be as beautiful and beautiful as all other islands. Such a unique and bizarre natural environment has also caused some unusual casualties.At the Battle of Cape Gloucester, 25 marines were crushed to death by fallen trees; ships sank, but sailors floating on the water were swallowed by sharks; Guinea landed, but was chopped into several pieces by the headhunters.Another part of the Japanese army was boiled and eaten by their own people on Guadalcanal Island.The jungle was brutal to a defeated army, and because of the growing strength of the U.S. Navy, it was generally the Japanese who were cut off from retreat.If they are surrounded, they can only eat people or grass roots and bark, and live with poisonous snakes and crocodiles in the bushes.Even if they had a way out, there was little hope of escape.After the Japanese army commanded by General Zaolihai withdrew through the Huon Peninsula in New Guinea, only one-fifth of them were still able to fight.General Horii himself drowned as Japanese troops under him made a hasty escape across Mount Owen Stanley. The Japanese were not allowed to surrender without the emperor's order.Even after Hirohito announced his surrender, some diehards still hid in their holes and persisted until the 1950s, or even after the 1950s.The Japanese considered it humiliating to be captured alive by the enemy.Some carried suicide pistols with only one bullet in the chamber.By the middle of the war, the shadow of defeat had loomed. Japanese military officers often gathered soldiers together and launched a suicide charge shouting "Long live" according to the Japanese military tradition.If you don't have a rifle, you can send a club, and if you can't move, you can send a grenade or a mine to blow yourself up.In short, no one is immune.The commander of the Japanese army in Saipan was too old and frail to commit suicide, so he asked his adjutant to shoot.Also on Saipan, five-year-old Japanese children gathered in a circle, threw grenades at each other, and died together. The Japanese have always revered suicide by caesarean section.But in the eyes of the Japanese commander who talked about Bushido spirit, fighting to the last soldier also has military significance.They have occupied more Oceania than they need, and the progress is twice as fast as originally planned.In this case, their operational goal is to strive for peace negotiations.General Honma said in 1939: "To fight the United States, we are prepared to sacrifice 10 million people." On a wooden sign in the Japanese cemetery on Peleliu Island, there is a slogan written in scrawled words: "We will use our own flesh and blood to fight in the Pacific Ocean." Build a line of defense!" Their propaganda has always been about the complete victory over the Yankees.But the core characters are more realistic.The plan of the admirals was that if the United States took the initiative in the war, they would switch to a war of attrition.The closer the Americans got to the Japanese mainland, the more tenaciously the Japanese soldiers and civilians would fight.At that time, Tokyo will organize suicide boats, human torpedoes, and a huge number of kamikaze groups.Once the U.S. military is about to land on the Japanese mainland, the slogan of the people will be: "100 million pieces of jade!" They know that MacArthur once estimated that the first day of the invasion of the Japanese mainland, the U.S. military casualties will be as high as 50,000, and then the war is likely to continue Years.They reasoned that the American people would not make such a huge sacrifice to force Japan to surrender unconditionally.Therefore, the slogan they planned to post on the streets of Tokyo at the end of the war read: "The sooner they (the Americans) come, the better." The reason why the war in the Pacific was so tragic, and the reason why there were so few prisoners on both sides, was because the Japanese devils believed that it was shameful for them to surrender, and it was also shameful for the enemy to surrender, so they were not polite to the prisoners.The U.S. troops who were defeated and surrendered at Corregidor were forced to make a "death march."That is to say, whether they are sick or wounded, they are all forced to march, literally until they die.All those captured when the US Marines attacked Makin Island were beheaded by the Japanese.At Milne Bay, the Australian captives they left behind were bayoneted, their penises cut off, their foreskins sewn on their lips, and a sign mockingly hung over their heads: "Death won't let you die!" This behavior immediately provokes retaliation.Since the French and Indian War, the French and Indian War (1756-1763), also known as the Seven Years' War.Mainly the battle between Britain and France for the North American continent.The French army formed an alliance with the Indians, hence the name.At that time, the United States was not yet independent, but Washington, Franklin and others had led the Americans to participate in this series of battles. ——Translator The American military has never been as brutal and ruthless as it is now.Of course, there is still a difference between women and children, and there has not been any atrocities that killed civilians and dishonored the military's honor like in Vietnam 25 years later.But in battle there is no longer a truce, no more chivalry.The U.S. Navy waged unrestricted submarine warfare.The Japanese devils would rather starve to death than surrender on the Ameralty Islands. The U.S. military let them hide in the bushes and used them as living targets for soldiers to practice shooting.This is a life and death war, and even the generals are as murderous as ordinary infantry.Lieutenant General Leslie McNair said to the soldiers: "We must hate the enemy, we must hate the enemy with every fiber of our body. We must hunger for war, we must live to kill the enemy." Admiral William Halsey ordered a huge slogan to be erected in the mid-mountain of Tulagi Island, so that passing ships can clearly see: Kill the Japs, kill the Japs! Bravely kill more Japanese devils! You do your job well, It is to help the front to kill more yellow dog bastards. Similarly, MacArthur also told General Robert L. Eckleberg: If he can't take Buner down, don't come back alive. In 1943, the commanders of the U.S. military detected the whereabouts of the famous Japanese Admiral Yamamoto Fifty-Six from the intelligence provided by the spies, and sent a group of P-38 fighter jets to detect his plane and kill him. Yamamoto Fifty-Six is ​​a military genius who can be called the Nelson of the East.Under his single-handed planning, Japan launched a four-sided naval offensive, and in just six months, invaded the land area of ​​3,000 square miles in Oceania.But he didn't know that his purple code had been deciphered by the US Signal Corps.Had he known, the war would have been very different.In fact he nearly wiped out the entire armed forces of the United States at the time.For a long time after his death, the Pentagon has repeatedly used the disaster he caused as an argument to propose an astonishingly large annual defense budget. After Yamamoto won the big battle in the Java Sea, this so-called country with a rising sun is indeed radiant and dazzling.Lieutenant General Yamashita Fufumi proposed to Singapore Lieutenant General Percival of the United Kingdom: "I just want you to answer whether to surrender or not." So Singapore surrendered on February 17.Its gigantic Vickers Coastal Cannon, 14 of which was shipped to a coral island in the Gilbert Islands, was given the exotic name of Tarawa.Burma surrendered soon after Singapore surrendered. In the second week of March 1941, the Japanese army advanced along the road to Mandalay and captured it on May 1, thus cutting off the Chinese transportation line. Singapore is a strategic point, and its fall caused great shock.Less famous than Singapore, but actually more important was the Australian outpost of Rabaul on New Britain, which also fell in January.The enemy stationed 100,000 troops there, built five airfields, and turned it into an impregnable fortress. Rabaul became the gateway to a group of outposts on the islands of New Ireland, the Solomon Islands, and New Guinea.Australia is now within range of the Japanese Air Force.The port of Darwin on the north coast has been rendered useless following heavy air raids.New Zealand conscripted all men under the age of 65 into the army, and the country's destroyers entered the state of combat—only nine in total.The Australian Prime Minister has issued a warning to the nation that an enemy invasion could be imminent any moment.The proposal to abandon the two British Dominions was strongly opposed in Washington by the new Admiral of the Navy, Ernest King (not so long ago the Admiral of the United States Navy).Roosevelt telegraphed Churchill, saying: "The situation in the Pacific is very serious at present." The "Tokyo Rose" mocked the United States and said: "Where is the US Marine Corps hiding?" With the exception of the southern Solomon Islands, Port Moresby (on the tail of the bird-shaped island of New Guinea) and the imperiled Corregidor, the Japanese controlled the entire Pacific Ocean west of Midway and north of the Coral Sea .They had originally estimated that the casualty rate in the blitzkrieg could have reached 20 percent.But in fact, they were barely bruised at all.They had a fleet that sank five Allied battleships, one aircraft carrier, two cruisers, and seven destroyers, all while remaining unscathed themselves.At this time, MacArthur made a bold statement in Australia.King ordered Admiral Nimitz to immediately assume the command of the Pacific Fleet, asking him to hold the Midway-Samoa-Fiji-Brisbane line "at any cost", and Nimitz set off without even putting on his uniform.But all this is just to cheer yourself up.Since the Great Battle in the Java Sea, the forces sent to the front by the United States have only been patchwork.The U.S. military in the Pacific is really in dire straits, and even internal subversion has occurred.In the U.S. Army headquarters in Noumea, France, there were French colonels full of Vichy elements, who informed the enemy of the mobilization of U.S. ships and troops. But in the United States, morale is very buoyant because of some exciting and optimistic legends: what a pilot named Colin Kelly bombed and sank the Japanese battleship "Haruma" (it didn't happen); The Makassar Strait off the coast of Borneo and the Japanese Navy met, and the result was a big victory for the US Navy (which is not the case); what Wake Island Marines once broadcast: "Send some more Japanese devils" (surely they did not broadcast like that).As for Tojo and Yamamoto, they were not deceived, and they re-examined the combat plan drawn up in 1938 with full confidence.The next step was to occupy Guadalcanal and its neighboring island of Tulagi in the Solomon Islands.Sure enough, on May 3, the Japanese army easily captured the two islands. On May 6, Corregidor also surrendered.The tragedy played out in the Philippines is over.MacArthur wrote in Australia: "I don't need to say much about Corregidor. But from the last echoing cannon fire and the red smoke, I seem to see those haggard, thin, haggard and fearless officers and soldiers there. His image will forever live in my heart.” The day after the fall of Corregidor, a Japanese amphibious force entered the Coral Sea east of Australia in an attempt to capture Port Moresby.The conquest of the Philippines made them more courageous and arrogant, and they suffered from what the aircraft carrier commander, Admiral Yuan Yuan, called "victory disease".The ensuing battle was the first time in history that an aircraft carrier confronted an aircraft carrier, and it was a bit bizarre.If the Americans want to keep Australia, they must fight to the death to keep Moresby.They sent two of the five remaining aircraft carriers to intercept the enemy ships.However, in the eyes of the enemy, this battle is nothing more than a small episode.Yamamoto still has to preserve his strength and prepare for the Battle of Midway.Despite this, the Japanese air force still inflicted heavy losses on the U.S. forces during the Battle of the Coral Sea.In addition to sinking the "Lexington", it also severely damaged the "Yorktown".U.S. naval aviation destroyed seven Japanese ships, including a small aircraft carrier. —The pilot telegraphed: "One enemy ship lost." But, on the whole, it was a tie at best.But Moresby and Australia can survive for a while.The Japanese ship turned around and retreated. The "Yorktown" was repaired day and night at Pearl Harbor by 1,400 mechanics, and it caught up with the Battle of Midway in less than two weeks. At this time, the first major crisis in the Pacific War began.The islands in the hands of the Allied forces were almost lost, and the Japanese army took Attu Island and Kiska Island in the Aleutian Islands.Now Roosevelt, like the Australians, had to consider the incredible possibility of an enemy invasion of the mainland. The American fleet had been severely damaged. Now the total number of Japanese naval ships has tripled that of the United States, and the confidence is unprecedented. May 27, 1942 was the 37th anniversary of Japan's victory over the Russian Navy.Yamamoto, a low-ranking officer at that time, specially selected this day to start this historic March on Midway Island.The fleet headed for the ocean, led and covered by a fleet of 65 destroyers.This was followed by 22 heavy cruisers and 11 battleships, led by Admiral Yamamoto's flagship super dreadnought Yamato.Around this fleet, there are 21 submarines, four large fast aircraft carriers send 700 aircraft to cover in the air, and 80 transport ships are fully loaded with combat troops.The fleet broke through the waves and advanced, and the officers and soldiers sang battle songs with great air.The Marines preparing for the first batch of landings also gave out beer.Roosevelt told MacArthur on June 2: "At present, it seems that the Japanese fleet is heading for the Aleutian Islands, or Midway Island, Hawaii. It is also possible to attack southern California and Seattle, although this is unlikely." This is what Yamamoto wanted to achieve - to make the other party confused about where he was going to start.He sent another task force to Alaska (there were so many Japanese ships at this time that the admiral didn't know how to use them) to conduct a feint attack, trying to trick the Americans into spreading their forces.But this time the admiral was self-defeating.He thought he was invincible, but in reality he was not.His "Purple Code" has already been deciphered by the U.S. Army Communications Corps, and he was also code-named "Magic" by them.Every time he issued a secret order, the "magic" was immediately deciphered, and the content immediately reached the hands of Admiral Nimitz, who was in charge of organizing the defense of Midway Island.There are dense soldiers on the island, and defenses are everywhere.All the warships that could be mobilized at that time had been dispatched to patrol the sea.That is to say, there are 7 heavy cruisers, 1 light cruiser, 14 destroyers, 12 submarines, and 4 aircraft carriers: "Hornet", "Lexington" sic. —Translator, "Enterprise" and "Yorktown" already repaired. The war situation began to be very unfavorable for the Americans.The first Japanese bombers, numbering 100, bombarded Midway, weakening the island's defenses.At that time, the number of US destroyers was pitifully small.But Nimitz has two favorable conditions: one is that there is a "magic" code that constantly reports to him the enemy's whereabouts, and the other is that Yamamoto has no knowledge of the whereabouts of the US fleet.Then, the commander of the Japanese aircraft carrier made a serious tactical error: He cleared away the planes that had been waiting on the flight deck so that the planes that attacked Midway could fly back to the ship.But before the Japanese plane flew back, the American plane was already circling in the sky, thus putting itself in a defenseless and unprepared position. On the morning of June 4, 1942, American torpedo bombers launched the first attack.Almost all of them were shot down by enemy fire.Of the 41 aircraft that went into combat, only six survived.Not a single torpedo hit the enemy ship.These torpedo planes are obsolete, and the pilots, like the Japanese kamikaze, must be sacrificed.When they die, they also think that their sacrifice is in vain.But in fact, it was they who created the slightest chance of winning.In order to avoid torpedoes, the Japanese aircraft carriers swung their rudders desperately, making it impossible for the aircraft on board to take off.The few Zeros that had been lifted into the air had to fly at low altitudes again to intercept those American pilots who died for their country.At this critical moment, two squadrons of "Dreadnought" bombers from the "Enterprise" led by Lieutenant Commander Clarence McCluskey flew in.They immediately swooped down at a 70-degree angle and blew up all three Japanese aircraft carriers.到了下午，又向另一艘航舰猛扑，把它也击沉。山本这次出击只带了这四艘航空母舰，现在已失却空中掩护，他不能不撤退了。他坐在舰桥上，无精打采地喝着大米粥。 八个星期之后，一直受到“东京玫瑰”嘲弄挖苦的美国海军陆战队在斐济群岛登陆，这是美军在这次大战中第一次反攻的预习。这场战役自始至终，规模很小。由于所有现代化武器都已运往欧洲，海军陆战队第一师所用的火器，还是1903年的单发的、逐发上膛的春田式步枪。他们的绑腿还是1918年的，他们的勃朗宁机枪和迫击炮，还是在第一次世界大战阿尔贡战役用过、经过涂上润滑油以后保存下来的。 如果说这次进攻有什么精彩之处的话，那就是部队的质量。海军陆战队本来就是精锐部队，而这些团队更是陆战队的精锐。1942年8月7日他们在瓜达尔卡纳尔岛涉水登陆，马上就后悔莫及。这个岛一直被称为卡纳尔，一位前英国殖民地官员称它为一个“倒霉发臭的鬼地方”，是一点也不为过的。要占领这个岛，任何时候也不容易，但在1942年夏季，另有一层难处。日本人打下了爪哇，盟军的奎宁供应就断了，当时这是防治疟疾的惟一特效药。德国化学家在30年代发现了一种名为阿托品的代用药，但美国公司当时还在拼命试制未成。当时军令规定：发烧的士兵要高至(华氏)102度才准离开火线。尽管标准定得这样高，但到了10月份，还是有两千人因患疟疾住进了医院。 登陆那天，海军陆战队很走运，没有遇到抵抗。日本人很少，正在那里修建一条3600英尺的简易跑道。他们扔下不管，躲进丛林里去了。但到了第二天晚上，美军就遭殃了。山本还有很多舰艇和熟练的水兵，入夜以后，他从拉包尔派去一支特遣舰队，通过所罗门群岛的狭长的斯洛特海峡驶过来。那里有个萨沃岛，岛上的火山口峰，阻碍着美军视线，掩护了日舰前进。那晚称为萨沃岛海战的美日舰队交锋，在美国海军史上是损失最惨重的一役，或者可以这样说，是任何一国海军史上损失最惨重的一役。有四条珍贵的巡洋舰被击沉，1000名水兵没顶。第二天清早，残余的美国舰队向南撤退，那些运输舰，只卸了一部分，便也跟着撤退走了。海军陆战队的将领说，他的部队被遗弃在岛上，“光着屁股”。他们马上要将每日定粮减半，进行自卫战的弹药只够四天用。但是日本的运输舰源源不断，海军陆战队给它们起了个“东京快车”的名字，它们将日军从拉包尔运至卡纳尔岛的另一端登陆——每晚有900人，有一晚是4500人。 海军陆战队靠着从简易长型机场取得供应，在敌人炮兵的轰击下，在密集的步兵攻击下，在那泥泞如酱的小型掩体中，拼命坚持下来。热带的暴雨向他们迎面袭击。不但疟疾，还有痢疾和各种菌藻传染病，纷至沓来，使他们的体力大为削弱。这时，世人似乎慢慢地认识到争夺瓜达尔卡纳尔岛的意义。美军既已在那里登陆了，把他们撤出来是不可想像的。到了10月中，麦克阿瑟对罗斯福说：“要是我们在所罗门群岛打败了……整个西南太平洋就危乎殆哉了。”罗斯福也给丘吉尔写信说：他祈祷上帝，保佑他们守住滩头阵地。双方都把瓜达尔卡纳尔当做实力的测验。日皇在东京宣称，瓜达尔卡纳尔之战是“决定性的战役”。当时斯大林格勒战役和阿拉曼战役，也到了最紧张阶段。这个丛林密布的岛屿，也和那两个大战役一样，宛如强有力的磁铁，吸来了多得同它们本身战略重要性不相称的军队，因为双方都倾力以赴，认为这一仗足以决定全局。 麦克阿瑟要求增援瓜达尔卡纳尔，话里是带刺的，他发表的公报一向如此。他要求将美国的“全部人力物力”，转到西南太平洋来。这就意味着对英国和俄国的物资装运要全部停下来，将美军载去欧洲的每艘运输舰都转到大洋洲方面来。在他看来，日本人的威胁，就是严重到这样程度的。但是，美国总统肯定不会这样看。他和战区司令官不同，对战争自有其全球观点。这当然要冒风险，但倾全力对付日本，所冒的风险就更大。即使他在那里打了胜仗，如果转过头来只剩下自己去和希特勒孤军作战，那又有什么好处呢·他需要英、俄同盟，就只能采取大西洋第一的战略。德国军队一天没有消灭，就不能说打败了纳粹德国。俄国人不断地在要求开辟第二战场，他和丘吉尔就得马上开辟一个第二战场，或者是类似那样的战场。所罗门群岛的美军处境危殆，他是知道的。他甚至亲自过问，要派援军去瓜达尔卡纳尔。除此之外，就要靠在那里血战的美军和澳军他们自己去对付了。 说麦克阿瑟想也能想像出华盛顿的动向，这是不可能的。从外表看来，这个首都仍然一派歌舞升平。汽车耀目，交通拥塞，食品充足，宴会频繁，一如往常。然而，在位居要津的高级官员中，则正倾其全力，对付当务之急。温斯顿·丘吉尔来美国访问，在两院联席会议发表讲话，这是件头号重要的大事。但更为紧迫的，又似乎是如何把大西洋战役进行下去。第一步是要实行灯火管制。像迈阿密那样的城市，沿海六英里长的霓虹灯，一直照射到海上，把商船都照得一清二楚，给德军潜艇艇长指出了目标。于是，从1942年5月开始，实行半灯火管制(这是战时经济动员署署长吉米·伯恩斯搞的，所以又称为伯恩斯管制)，这样，德军潜艇便无隙可乘。再过一年新型雷达、空中监视出现，这时驱逐舰也采用了新战术，于是德国潜艇才不再成为威胁了。 要建立一支有1200万人的军队，军费是庞大的。罗斯福向国会提出了108903047923元的军事预算，在当时说来，已是史无前例的了。形势迫切需要增加军火生产。波音公司负责生产B-17空中堡垒(后来，负责生产B-29超级空中堡垒)，联合公司生产B-24型“解放”式轰炸机，北美公司负责P-51型“野马”式战斗机，沃特公司负责F4U“海盗”式战斗机。休斯、凯泽、和弗里泽等人的大名家喻户晓。哪个工厂生产成绩好，就由陆军和海军发给优良奖旗，让它在它们车间的房顶上飘扬。福特的柳树场，很快就成为全世界最大的车间。在发生珍珠港事件那个星期天，这个本是一条宁谧小河缓慢地、蜿蜒曲折地流过那些未经垦耕的地方，现在这里矗立着全世界最大的车间，里面有一条半英里长的装配线。福特计划在这里每小时生产一架30吨重的联合轰炸机。这些飞机出厂很快，根本不用他考虑仓储的问题。这些飞机由驾驶员把它滑行到附近机场，进行试飞后就飞走参加战斗。 但是柳树场的合同也和其他事情一样，最后要由华盛顿某个部门做出决定。1942年6月中，有六个能讲英语的德国间谍由潜艇送来，在长岛和佛罗里达登陆。两人自首了，其余的被逮捕了，他们秘密储藏的炸药也被破获。由华盛顿派人来审讯、结果把这六个不肯屈膝的人处以死刑了事。耶鲁大学要用沙包保护爬满常青藤的房墙，这又要由华盛顿某个官员批准。有时各种命令，决定和谈话荒谬可笑。到了初夏时节，美国陆军妇女服务队的队员们穿上由洛德·泰勒公司所设计的新制服。于是《妇女服装日报》大做文章，说：“束腰和乳罩现在已成为陆军妇女服务队制服的一部分，这使制造束腰和乳罩的工业增添光彩。”但是布鲁克林的《碑石报》则对美国陆军妇女服务队发动了攻击，说美国陆军妇女服务队这个概念，是有破坏性的，是有人精心炮制出来，“破坏美国人和基督教反对妇女离开家庭的传统，把消除性别、纵情肉欲、不愿养育的异教女神带回国来，辱没美国妇女的身份。”甚至带有自由派色彩的主教的《公共福利报》，也反对妇女参军。但是许多妇女还是报名参军了。大家都想服役，连原来爱养狗的人也不例外。于是陆军将有点用场的宝贝小狗组织起来，组成K-9部队，给它一个绰号，管它叫“摇尾巴”。《纽约太阳报》小狗栏编辑阿瑟·罗兰还为这个K-9部队写了一首进行曲： 我们来自祖国的狗窝， 告别了老家和炉火， 我们参加了狗的大军， 肩负起民族的命运。 菲利普·怀利大约在这个时候说过，美国人表示感情往往有独特的方式。比如一师部队在阅兵场上排成MOM(妈)字，这种事第二次大战中只有美国兵干得出来。不过鸡毛蒜皮的琐事有利于把关系重大的绝密行动掩护起来，有些机密是要利用一切伪装的。在田纳西州诺克斯维尔市东北18英里的橡树岭那里，工人们正在平整山麓，安放底脚，准备兴建一些建筑群。那里的人谁都不知道他们搞什么名堂。有人问，这是干什么·工人回答说：“干每小时一元三角五分的话。”从这里再往西两千英里，就是新墨西哥州那个平静的圣菲城，其中有不少带有外国口音的游客走到东宫街109号那座房子。接着，就有船把他们载到35英里以外的一个营地。他们只知道这是Y号工地，后来就是举世闻名的洛斯阿拉莫斯城。 太平洋海岸的西北部，到处都在兴建高大的联合企业工厂。工人们问老板，他们生产什么，回答是，生产“马匹的前身，要运往华盛顿的”，或者说，“流产的轮子。”“流产”词近马车，如此答复，意为莫名其妙。——译者连老板自己也不知道怎么回事。只有几个科学家，一个什么少将，少数几个由罗斯福总统亲自指定的文职人员，才真正掌握这机密。这个计划要动用的20亿美元，在联邦预算分散在各种项目下，看不出来的。参议员哈里·杜鲁门到这里来，到处打听情况，要看看纳税人的钱是否用得其所。白宫就叫他别管闲事。 这些科学家们知道，他们是在和时间赛跑。根据英国情报人员报告，柏林原来命令挪威的挪尔斯克氢化厂生产3000磅重水，后来又增加到1万磅。同时捷克的铀一直源源不绝地向德国那边运去。1942年10月15日，盟国在挪威空投了一支突击队，把这个氢化厂破坏了一部分。这使盟国有个喘息机会。但是毫无疑问，纳粹又会将工厂重建起来的。 这次杜鲁门参议员是白费时间。但在大多数情况下，杜鲁门所花的时间却颇有成果。罗斯福实行配给制度和物资管理制度，引起老百姓大为不满，本是早在意料之中。而且官僚主义既然又是那样严重，有些怨言就更无可厚非了。那年春天，出现了历史上最长最拗口的一个机构的缩写PWPGSJSISIACWPB(战时生产局钢铁工业咨询委员会钢管、钢索产品、电镀钢承包商小组委员会)。还有一个什么战时生产局工业生产处糕饼工业各色饼干椒盐卷饼小组委员会。12月份的头一周，物价管理局还发出这样一个通知：“凡是真正的圣诞老人，可以不受10月3日总统有关冻结工资的命令的限制。所谓真正的圣诞老人，是指那些穿红袍、挂白胡子、带着适合身份的一望而知的其他衣饰、而又具有慈祥、愉快的性格，能取得孩童们的景仰，执行他的崇高职责，传播圣诞节精神的人。” 这就是理查德·尼克松头一次看到的华盛顿。他是一个教友会派教徒，对于是否该去打仗，还没有拿定主意。所以，珍珠港事件后，他就带着帕特到东部，在物价管理局工作，每周薪金61元。他大学毕业时是个自由派，但据他后来说，看到管理配给制度的人怎样工作以后，他变得“比较保守了”。到了8月，他每周工资已经有90元，但据说在看到了“上面那些靠政治关系得到官职的人们在各式各样重床叠架的庞大机构中营私自肥”以后，他就辞职不干，克服了教友会教徒的反战原则，参加了海军。但这点并不说明什么，因为当时他已是征兵对象。他本来是个律师，参军以后，可以当个海军中尉。他被派到南太平洋。那时一位叫做约翰·肯尼迪的海军中尉也在那里，指挥一艘巡逻鱼雷艇。但尼克松和肯尼迪不同，他在战争期间大都不在前线，而在南太平洋作战空运处工作，没完没了地打扑克，学会从来往船只那里把各种美味搞到手，包括烈性威士忌酒。由于他精于此道，他的宿舍就以“尼克松碎牛排小食店”著称。一天，他在布干维尔岛，哈罗德·史塔生乘飞机来了。当时史塔生还是哈尔西参谋部里的人，但尼克松知道他是政治上前途无限的人物，很有可能当选总统，于是便设法赶到舷梯旁去欢迎他。史塔生紧紧和他握手，尼克松对这一点印象很深刻，但战后他见到史塔生提到这次见面，史塔生却记不起来了。 哈里·霍普金斯在白宫二楼他那个和罗斯福的办公室不过是咫尺之遥的套间里，向一位未来总统传达欧洲战场的未来战略方针。后来盛行摇摆音乐一代的年轻人都把这战场叫做ETO。艾森豪威尔当时还藉藉无名。1941年他在路易斯安那州负责一次演习，才在军中博得一点名声。罗斯福在看了有关报告，又和马歇尔将军商谈以后，就认为要指挥这场极其艰巨的联合作战，最恰当的人选就是艾森豪威尔了。