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Show THE BULLETIN. BINGHAM. UTAH ' I Marine Fliers Triumph Over Perils of Air and Sea; Combat Correspondents Recount Tales qfHeroism Gunner Attempts To Bring Home Crippled Bomber "Twelve fighter pilots of my squadron had been out on a routine escort mission. We were sent to escort a group of marine dive bombers on a foray against the Jap-hel- d airfield at Munda and were returning to Henderson on Guadalcanal." Major R. L. Vroome, U. S. M. C, was telling a group of fighter pilots about Sgt. Gilbert Kenze, an gunner from State Center, Iowa. "Somehow in the fracas I got sep-arated from my formation," went on the major. "As I headed home-ward I received a radio warning that one of our dive bombers was In trouble. "I found it a good mile south of me at about 5,000 feet. The pilot hang-ing hall way out of the bomber's (Editor' note: The following two stories were written by Combat Cor-respondents of the United States marine corps. Typical of the work of these fighting writers, the first was by Staff Sergeant William I. Cofjeen Jr., as told to Staff Sergeant Harry Holier. The second s writ-ten by Sergeant Hen T. Johnson.) when night fell I still was several miles from it. But I had something to look forward to and I slept bet-ter that night. "I reached the beach near the house at n of the next day. I hid my raft in the bush and approached the building, fear-ful that It was occupied by Japs. I saw a sign that read 'Solomon De-veloping Company, Sydney, Austra-lia .. .' I soon learned that the building was part of an abandoned coconut plantation. "I stayed at the plantation house five days. On the sixth day I gath-ered some limes and oranges and started traveling again. In the dis-tance I could see the tip of a large island, with the peak of a moun-tain rising above the clouds. I de-cided to make this island my next objective. "When I landed I soon found that I had made another bad move. I found no life; only cliffs and moun-tains. However, there was plenty of fresh water my first in approxi-mately 27 days. "I finally decided that I would re-trace my steps and try to make it back to the first island on which I landed. I started out the next morn-ing and barely made it back to the plantation house. The infection in my hand had cleared, but my foot was swollen from infection. ' Prayed for Direction. I Sergeant Survives After 32 Days on Barren Islands For 72 days he was "miss-ing in action." His comrades in a marine corps flying unit in the Guadalcanal area had long given up hope of seeing him again. But Sergeant Bill Coffeen came back. Shaggy and lean, he stepped out of a navy rescue plane. He told of surviving storms, blistering sun and infection and living for 32 days on a coconut diet. The last 40 days he was miss-ing, friendly natives cared for him. Today Staff Sergt. William I. Cof-feen Jr., 23, whose parents live at 5348 North Lotus street, Chicago, 111., Is at a naval base hospital being treated for malaria and malnutri-tion. "I got off on the wrong foot that morning of April 13 and ended up the same way," began Coffeen. "My plane barely missed the treetops as I took off from Henderson Field. A guide light at the end of the strip blinded me. We were to escort navy torpedo bombers on a mission. "Within sight of land between and Choiseul islands, I suddenly noticed my engine smok-ing. My oil line was leaking. "Losing altitude rapidly and fear-ing the motor would explode, I de-cided to bale out. "It seemed that I hit the water Just a few seconds after my para-chute opened. "I pulled the cord on my life Jack-et, but it failed to inflate. It had been punctured. I pulled my rubber raft out and inflated it The paddle was missing. "The water was calm, but 30 min-utes later a storm hit. High waves tossed my small rubber raft about like a toothpick, and overturned it. Into the water went all of my medi-cal supplies and emergency rations. All I had left was the clothing I was wearing, and my hunting knife and pistol. "After I righted the raft I started paddling with my hands. I still was In sight of land. In n I heard the familiar drone of our fighter plane motors it was my flight returning from the strike on I t ' V ! - t' " i " it) : v ; . L .'. at J - -- - "That night I planned what I de-cided would probably be my final at-tempt to contact life. I prayed to God Almighty to send me in the right direction. Tomorrow, I de-cided I'll make for the other side of the big island. "Near dusk on the fourth day, as I had barely enough strength in my arms to paddle, a storm broke and gradually I was carried out to sea. The last I remember I started to scream, and then I passed out! "I was told later that a high wind blew me into shore. When I re-gained consciousness I was in the arms of a native. " 'You American or Jap?' the na-tive inquired in his best pidgin Eng-lish. " 'I'm American, I told him. " 'American, you good,' he re-plied. "Those were the best words I be-lieve I have ever heard in my life. I knew then that I had been rescued. "I couldn't walk. My rescuer car-ried me to his hut not far from the beach. I asked the date and he told me it was May 15. When I told him I had been lost since April 1332 Sergeant Gilbert Henze cockpit, his helmet gone, his clothes ripped to shreds. "I asked by radio, is your pilot alive?" " 'I don't know sir!" he answered, 'we got hit by a burst of shrapnel about 20 minutes ago, and he has been that way ever since.' " 'Can you, or have you ever flowr a plane!' " 'No sir,' he answered. " 'Do you think that you can keep her level and follow my instruc-tions?' ' " 'Yes sir, I sure can try.' " 'The first thing I want you to do then is to release that 1,000 pound bomb.' Can't Release Bomb. " 'I can't release it sir, it can only be done from the front cockpit' "I peered anxiously ahead. Be- - which I had set out that morning. "Several of the planes flew low and almost directly over me. I fired five shots from my pistol and waved the white raft sail, but they failed to see me. "I started paddling with my hands toward land. On the way, sharks swished by the raft. Reaches Small Island. low and just visible lay the shore-line of Guadalcanal. If we could make it I could signal for a crash boat or any kind of a boat and then if I could get the kid to follow my instructions I would try to bring him in by water. Then I heard the kid shout over his radio, 'My engine just sputtered then, sir. She must be out of gas.' "That's the last word I heard over my radio for suddenly it too went "I slept in a sitting position that night Long before daybreak I started again for land. The sea was calm. Near sundown the sec-ond day out, I finally reached the shore of a small island. I was ex-hausted, hungry and thirsty. When I reached the beach of the coconut grove island I realized I made a grave mistake by tossing my shoes overboard after the storm. My socks were the only protection for t p . --MS $, - Vf ! 'Wm3 Sergt. William I. Coffeen Jr. days he hardly believed me. He told me that white men could not live that long on the sea and in the jungle. The native was a converted Seventh Day Adventist He had been taught English by missionaries. "I felt stronger the next day. By the third day I was able to walk once more. They decided to take me in a canoe to their village, where I was given American food canned meat and potatoes. On the second day in the village the infection in my foot was lanced. "During my stay in the native vil-lage I was stricken with malaria. I was given 'queenie,' native name for quinine. My body was bathed in fresh water and lime. Within five days the fever disappeared. While with the natives I regained 20 of the 40 pounds I had lost When I arrived at the native village I weighed about 115 pounds. "On the 72nd day after I had para-chuted into the sea, a navy rescue plane landed off shore near the native village." aeaa. "I could see the kid working fran-tically on the stick as the bomber went into a sickening glide. "With my radio dead I frantically signaled for the kid to jump. "If he saw me he failed to notice. Then I saw his head and shoulders emerge from the cockpit. I saw him clutching for his rip-cor- Sudden-ly I saw his body, parachute and all, shoot upward as the trailing edge of the plane hit him. No man could live under such an impact. "I followed the chute downward in tight circles. I could see a huge vent in the shrouds. The kid's body dangled from the harness. "A few minutes later it hit the water with a splash. "I brought my plane within a few feet of the water. As I passed over the spot where the kid had fallen all 1 could see was his vellow 'Mae West' "As I headed for horre I prayed that the kid was unconscious when he hit, at least this would spare him any suffering before he drowned "I happened to be sitting by our radio a few days later. A flier had been picked up by some friendly na-tives. He was conscious when found, and though suffering from multiple wounds and fractures, had a better than 50-5- 0 chance to sur-viv-lened later that the tail of the plane had severed his right W below the knee." (Editors note: Servant Heme returned to the and died thl l - S natal at hup,tal. Mare Island Call tery, state tenter. Iowa ) my feet. "I gathered two coconuts, cut holes in them with my knife, drank the juice, then broke them open and ate the meat. It was the first liquid and food I had had in nearly 48 hours. "I stayed on this island three days. It was uninhabited and I knew I would die if I stayed there. "Far away I could see a larger island and decided on the fifth day to strike out for it. I was growing weak from the coconut diet. "After hand-paddlin- g along the coast all that day with a blazing sun baking me, I made the next island at dusk. It was studded with coco-nut trees like the first island. "Next morning I decided to try for another island. It took me all that day to reach it. It was the same story when I landed there no food, no fresh water, no life. Arm and Foot Infected. "My left arm was swollen to twice its normal size overnight. My right foot was also infected. I realized blood poison was devel-oping, so I cut open the source of infection with my knife, and bathed my arm in salt water for more than an hour. I was relieved somewhat and decided to move on. That morn-ing I tried to drink coconut juice, but I Just couldn't get it down. "As I paddled along the shore I saw what appeared to be a red-roof-house near the end of the island. "The house proved a greater dis-tance away than I had estimated; S xN S i ' i -- "tot le South PTlfciXTS V i ,' CofTn landed, after i- - u ?T " 1 fortunately he found S.'itf.. ,- iAM4,:,lit.,jrt.n,-- l , . .VJ ,7 and water fsourpphleiesh. ad lostl A YANKEE veteran was talking about the next world series with the Cardinals. The veteran gave me three rea-sons for picking the Yankees to re-cover the scalp and the winner's end J'? which they lost a JtKK year ago. A Here they are v 1 1. "Last fall, I'll admit, we had them badly underrated. f A They were a better iWft AJ ball club than we yfy l expected to meet. ' , 4 M This time we'll be 6wii nl set and ready." Red Ruln- - 2. "The Cardinals have suffered much heavier losses than the Yankees have. The three men that fed us poison last fall were Johnny Beazley, Terry Moore and Country Slaughter. Pollet would have bothered us a lot. We've lost DiMageio and Rufflne. while Etten has filled up Buddy Hassett's spot. Beazley, Moore and Slaughter could make a big difference." 3. "With Spud Chandler working as he is, with Bonham and Wens-lof- f ready, we'll have a big edge in pitching. Chandler is hard for any team to beat. Against this Mort Cooper has never been good throw-ing at our league. Cooper is a strong, winning pitcher. But he's sure to remember what happened in his four American league crashes." The Cardinal Side There is some sound stuff to this argument but here is one point the Yankee entry overlooked the Cardinals have always thought they could beat the Yankees. The Yankees also overlooked the fact that the Cardinals had better pitching, Just as good an outfield and just as good an infield. The sudden collapse of Joe Gordon, a former World Series star, a top competitor under pressure, was the heaviest Yankee Jolt. They have had the better of their meetings in Florida. I never saw a more confident World series club than they were last fall. Even when Mort Cooper, their crack pitcher, was hammered out and Red Ruffing was holding them hitless, they were still full of scrap and hustle. No team that has lost Beazley, Pollet, Terry Moore and Slaughter can be as good as it was. But the same goes for DiMaggio and Ruf-fing. At present the prospects for a first-clas- s show are bright enough. Baseball's War Trip Branch Rickey has the best suggestion for baseball's pro-posed all-st- war tour that I have run across. His idea Is to have two representa-tive outfits from both big leagues tour the home camps of the United States with some form of pennant emblem at stake where each con-test will be a real game, fought to the limit, and not an exhibition scramble that will mean nothing to anvone, including the camps and the ballplayers. There are heavy handicaps in the way of transporting any teams over- - seas. For instance: 1. The weather. England Is now out on this account and North Af-rica soon reaches her rainy season. 2. Scarcity of suitable ball parks where a first-clas- s game can be played. 3. The competitive spark that means action and not exhibitions. This leaves Australia as the only available spot and this would be a doubtful tour. Australia is a long way off, needing more fighting men, planes and supplies than ballplay-ers. "What's the matter with supply-ing entertainment and recreation to the millions of service men we have at home?" Mr. Rickey asks. "Most of these men are camped far from home. They could also use entertainment and recreation. i "But it would have to be the real stuff. No mere exhibition offering would ever get by. These troops know what real baseball is and they wouldn't stand for anything but the best type of competition. "If such a series was played a complete record of all games should be kept with the club standings car-ried. Also there should be some form of emblem or trophy to be awarded." I agree with Branch Rickey. I doubt that any overseas exhibition would work out. It would be better, for overseas work, to use such men as Babe Ruth, Dizzy Dean, Walter Johnson, , Frank Frisch and others well known wherever the old flag flies. The Master Motion Carl Hubbell is still talking about Walter Johnson's pitching motion. "Johnson must be around 57 now," he said. "But when I saw him warming up with Bresnahan and pitching to Ruth a few days ago he might have been around 28. What impressed me was the free and easy motion of his arm. As you get older, especially after you've passed 40, the old wing begins to tighten up. It must be worse after 50. But not for Walter. He still has a pretty fair share of the old speed left." Released by Western Newspaper Union. CRANKIE SINKWICH, the No. 1 college football player of 1942, has brought considerable happiness to the National Football league. In signing with the Detroit Lions, Frankie will bring many an added dollar to the Detroit clubs and to every other team In the circuit. The Lions had no "name" player on their squad at the time and they needed one at least for the early part of the season. Sinkwich recently was given an honorable discharge from the ma-rines after serving since the first of tlje year. He was given a medical discharge after spending some time in the hospital at Parris Island, S. C. Sinkwich was the most publicized college griddcr of the 1941 and 1942 seasons. His name on the roster will draw thousands of cash custom-er- s who haven't paid a great deal of attention to the Lions during the past. The 1912 Season The Lions, who finished last in the league last season, losing all 11 league games, were privileged to take first pick in the annual college draft, which was held last June In Chicago. Sinkwich may not have what It takes to be a standout professional player. There have been plenty of big names in college ranks who failed in their professional careers. In fact, most of the top professional teams consist of individuals who never bothered going to college. They figured, and quite logically, that a college degree wasn't at all necessary to success on the profes-sional circuit But chances are good that Frankie will become a valuable asset to the unfortunate Lions. Any team that loses all of its season's games can use very handily the aervlcea of a name player. He may not do so much toward Improving the team's league standing, but he should help the treasury. And when a pinker helps one club, he helps the entire league. The World Series Just a year ago the New York Yankees were quite ifirm in their statements that they could do better in Sportsman's park in St. Louis than In their own stadium. Now a Ik.' joe McCarthy Manager Joe McCarthy's men art even happier over the 1943 World Series schedule, which calls for them to play the first three games in Yankee Stadium. The Yankee players and the New York fans think the schedule gives the American leaguers a big advan-tage over the St Louis Cardinals. But the bookies aren't influenced by intangibles and are hesitant about laying a price on the series. They won't concede the Yanks very much. If anything, because of the "favorable" schedule, and chances are good the odds will be 6-- take your choice. Remaining Schedule The fact that the first three games are going to be played at home isn't as important as the remainder of the schedule. It calls for a two-da- y travel intermission between the New York and the St. Louis games, and another open date for selling tick-ets if there is a seventh game. This schedule means that Spud Chandler, the Yankees' mound ace, will be able to work at least twice and perhaps three times. Chandler won 19 games and lost only three, and Is certain to draw the opening assignment from McCarthy on Octo-ber 5. After four days' rest he will be able to start the first game in St Louis, on Sunday, October 10. Then, if the series goes the limit, he could take another three-da- y rest before coming back for the final game. Then there's big Ernie Bonham, who has won 13 and lost seven. He can be used twice, and Hank Borowy or Rookie Charley Wensloff can be called upon to fill in on the mound when needed. The schedule works both ways, of course. The Cardinals have the same amount of time for rest, etc. They will have the opportunity to use Mort Cooper two or three times, but on the basis of past perform-ance against the Yankees and other junior circuit hitters, it is doubtful If Manager Billy South worth figures this balances the books. IIP A'otej of a City Slicker: When Alexander Woollcott gradu-ate- d from Hamilton College he nev-er stopped talking about his alma mater. So when the dramatic critic passed on, it was natural that hli ashes be interred at Hamilton Col-lege Cemetery with a few Intimate friends and associates attending the services ... It rained hard for a whole day and night before the urn containing his ashes was lowered into the ground . . . However, some-one miscalculated . . . The ribbons by which the urn was lowered proved two feet short . . . And so the urn had to be dropped (into the hole partly filled with mud and wa-ter) and when it fell all the mourn-ers standing around the grave were splashed. "Just like Alec!" said a bespat-tered pal. "To the last a critic!" Katina Paxlnou, one of the stars In "For Whom the Bell ToIl3," is one of the world's bitterest Nazi-Fasci- st fighters. Katina learned how to hate them before she left her na-tive Greece. You can't get a work of art out of Italy if you are not an Italian citi-zen, according to Billy Rose, an art collector himself ... A pal of his, in Italy not long ago offered $100,000 for a Rembrandt and was Informed that he could take it with him by having a likeness of Mussolini paint-ed over it . . . The paint, it was explained, could easily be washed off without damaging the Rembrandt . . . "If they see you with a pic-ture of n Duce," said the dealer, "they will not stop you." And so the art lover paid the $100,000 and had no trouble bring-- , lng the picture into the United States . . . Where he easily washed away the painting of Mussolini to discover It was an oil of Mussolini! We asked a movie director how some of them acquired great repu-tations ... He offered this exam-ple ... A famous character actor, in one of his early films, was doing a desert scene in which he was to portray a man dying of thirst . . . The director tried to get the actor to register the proper emotion, but the terrible ham only managed to look farcical . . . Finally, after repeated failure, the director gave up ... To get the idea across, however, he decided to photograph the actor's feet throughout the scene showing him staggering along the desert dropping one of his posses-sions after the other: First he dropped his pack, then his gun, and finally his canteen . . . The critics voted that scene the outstanding one in the film! necklers of the administration a.r.e.having a field day with this one In Sicily, they'd have you be-lieve, a peasant invited a comrade to his home for a feast . . . After two bowls of soup, double offerings of entree and a three-inc- h American ' sirloin steak plus several ears of Indiana corn on the cob (loaded with Maryland butter), Idaho potatoes (with more butter) and Georgia wa. termelon and oodles of New York cream for their delicious Yankee Doodle coffee, the guest beamed his appreciation. "Not yet!" interrupted the host. "Now comes dessert!" "What kinda dessert? How can we eat any more?" "Now comes Tootsie Rolls!" said the host. "Tootsie Rolls?" asked the guest. "What's Tootsie Rolls?" "Who knows?" shrugged the host "Lend-Lease!- " The Magazines: Liberty scoops the field with a report alleging that New York school children find their lessons so exciting they hate going home when the bell rings ... I don't believe it . . . Newsweek states that the 4th year of the war produced only one great Allied ge- neralSir Harold Alexander . . . Zatso? How about Gen. Eisenhower, who may be FDR's running mate in the 1944 Presidential race? . . . Sumner Welles' typewriter ran away from him, judging by his text In Coronet. Diplomatic jobs, he noted, are and bring success If worked at hard enough . . . Would he say that now? ... In the SEP there is a nice, warm tale ol the newspaper men covering the South Pacific. The biggest peril ol the job, warns the author, is capital 'T' poisoning . . . H. Brubaker'i best item in his New Yorker kid-din- "The housing crisis In Wash-ingto-is evidently worse than ever. Drew Pearson has had to move inU the doghouse." Lieut. Col. Elliott Roosevelt, a well-deserv- furlough In the Stork Club the other night, was being congratulated by intimates. You are thinner In the face, ad a newspaper man, and thet Pointing to his ribbons, added. "b 6 .I1 heavier across the chest." 'The only decoration that reallj counts," was the reply, "is the Pur. Ed," ' Meda1, Which 1 wish 3 The Purple Heart is awarded onlj to the wounded . . . Elliott's adveo tures cost him 43 pounds. gfAWI A PATCHW0RKba: cover and made of yellow green flower patch-strip-material isVs ruffle. Stool cover is across-r- ug is 24 ir the flower design of terials. Do the quilfeg your sewing machine.6 a colorful, inexpensive Due to an unusually Urj. current war condition!, 'j time is requtred in filial few of the most popular pi; Pattern No. 5595 is B n cent to cover cost of nufe order, together with yw a and pattern number to: HOME NEEDLEI 149 New MoBtgont Sao Ftanclsto, C NO ASPI can do more for von to it World'slargestselleratlOt: 100 for only 35 Get St. Jo Oldest Asseml The parliamentary! Iceland is 1,013 years i est in the world. HELP FSil MMeft COLDS 4 from developing Put a few drops of r each nostril at the veryfii or sneeze. Its quick aids Nature's defenses against colds. Follow l UNITED STAJ r" AND I STAMf, 1 SNAPPYH Fifty-thr- e. P waste rubber, tw port that that tinu. to b. of tho than tharubb.' limit. B.F. Goodrich Cotf" In this .pr'meflt If your "ff!t signal hrt REGoodg |