Show r THEY WERE I E E F Fr n Jr 7 I 0 WHITE r r THE TIIE STORY SO 50 FAR The story of their part put In the battle for Cor or the Philippines Philippines Philip Philip- pines Is being told by four our of the five naval officers who are all that Is left of Motor Torpedo float Doat Squadron 3 S. They are arc John Bulkeley now Lieutenant Lieuten ant Commander squadron commander R. R n. n Kelly second second command ln command and Ensigns Anthony Akers and George E. E Cox Jr March larch 11 showed the squadron their secret orders They were to carry General MacArthurs MacArthur's party and some additional personnel to the southern Islands where they would be met by transport planes which would carry General MacArthur to his new headquarters When Kelly arrived at atthe atthe atthe the rendezvous the others were missing CHAPTER X XI XI XI I had an idea where they would be and I explained Bulkeley I Iwas Iwas Iwas was sure would take no chances with women and a child aboard Of course hed he'd seen the Japanese signal sig sig- signal nal fire the night before Planes might be out spotting us for destroyers destroyers destroyers de de- and as soon as dawn broke Bulkeley undoubtedly had made for forthe forthe forthe the nearest of those other Cuyos Cuyos- picking one from his chart wed we'd never been here before which was as surrounded by reefs and water so shallow that no destroyer could venture venture venture ven ven- ture within gun range or even within sight sight- There he would wait walt all day if not until dusk at least until he thought the danger of spotting spotting spotting spot spot- ting planes was past before com corn corning coming coming ing to join us hereSo hereSo hereSo here So at we dropped a hook In the cove and I sent two men ashore with semaphore flags to climb the islands island's single hun five I foot dred hill and stand continuous watch watch for for the other three boats of course but particularly for Japs At when we figured any spotting planes would have had to head back for home I was about to pull cur our lookouts from the hill and get under way when they wigwagged wigwagged wig wig- wagged down that they saw a ship apparently friendly maybe an LITE I picked it up with my binoculars binoculars binoculars bi bi- bi- bi and presently made out the 32 boat which soon tied up alongside alongside alongside along along- side us It was this boat remember which had been repaired after Its explosion The cook had been blown Into Cove During the night its struts started coming loose so they could use only one or two of their three en engines ines and they like us had lost touch with the other boats in the night But instead of falling far behind the flagship they had somehow managed in the darkness darkness darkness dark dark- ness to get out in front of it itIn In m I the first gray gray- light of dawn their stem stern lookout reported a strange ship ship gaining gaining on them Looked like a Jap destroyer Now an in good condition can outrun any warship afloat But the 32 boat was hobbling on two engines so although although al al- thou though h he was running full throttle its commander wasn't surprised that the strange cra craft t kept gaining In order order or or- der to lighten his boat and pull away be he dumped six hundred gallons gal lons Ions of gasoline in drums over the side Eide but still the enemy was closing closing clos ing on him There seemed no nothing ng to do now but fight before the destroyer destroyer destroyer de de- de- de opened with its Inch 3 guns They readied two torpedoes and turned dauntlessly for tor the attack to discover just in time that the strange pursuing craft was the 41 boat their boat their own flagship with General General General Gen Gen- eral MacArthur aboard So here they were were loaded loaded down downto to the water line with seasick and puzzled generals Just at this point I there was a rising roar from seaward seaward sea sea- I ward and the 41 boat came around the point Bulkeley and General MacArthurs MacArthur's party Wed lost sight of ot you a few hours before dawn said Bulkeley when you stopped to clean your strainers I went on ahead because I wanted to get et as deep as possible Into the Cuyo Islands before sun sun- rise As the sky I headed for the nearest end best best it it was one of the prearranged crosses on the map It wasn't much of an island island- only a quarter of a mile wide wide but but It had plenty of shallow water to keep off Jap destroyers Lying at anchor some of the crew picked off a little sleep as we rolled gently in the sunshine Presently Presently Pres Pres- the General came on deck I he was a fine figure in his camels camel's hair coat and gold hat frowning a little as he squinted in the sunshine at the water and white sand Then i Mrs MacArthur and the little boy I and his Chinese amah came up to sit in wicker chairs in the sun sun- shine It was too bad little Arthur couldn't have played on the beach but I told the General no one should go ashore Because if it dive bombers bomb bomb- ers came over and spotted us we would have to get the hell out of that cove quick leaving even the lookout behind and out Into open water where we could dodge and twist I figured the morning would be bethe bethe bethe the dangerous time for bombers if they knew we had slipped out so 80 soby soby by two o'clock I felt it was sat safe to get under way and we threaded down through the little channels channels chan chan- nels between the islands which would defy a destroyer or cruiser to follow approaching the last one which was our general rendezvous In the distance I could see the other two boats also heading for tor it and ben hen we arrived Kelly in the e 34 coat was already there and waiting Then there was the problem of I what to do da about the 32 boat which 1 I t L had dumped most of Its gas at dawn and couldn't proceed much farther at high speed This was a rendezvous not only for our four tour but also for tor General MacArthurs MacArthur's second means of escape escape escape-a a submarine It had all been carefully worked out and the submarine would bob up in this cove tomorrow Had we been attacked attacked attacked at at- tacked or broken down the General could have left us here and continued continued con con- his trip on down to Australia by submarine General MacArthur Admiral Rockwell and Lieutenant Bulkeley talked about the nights night's plans the plans the advisability of continuing with us tonight or going b by submarine went on Lieutenant Kelly KeDy The Admiral Admiral Ad Ad- miral was for tor staying with us but the General was undecided The afternoon trip had been rough and Bulkeley had warned the night would be rougher Yet as we lay there In the cove the sea seemed calm enough and the sky gave no hint of bad weather So on the assurance assurance assurance as as- of the Admiral that it would be good weather the General decided decided decided de de- de- de they'd continue with us Then as Bulkeley had said there was the problem of what to todo todo todo do with the 32 boat which had dumped much of ot her gasoline She Shedid Shedid Shedid did not have enough left to make the fast run with us to the Island of Mindanao where the Generals General's party party party par par- ty would get the plane for Australia So Bulkeley gave her different orders or or- ders Her generals were to be transferred trans trans- transferred to my boat She was to wait walt here in the rendezvous until tomorrow tomorrow tomorrow tomor tomor- row when the submarine arrived She was to tell the submarine that everything had gone well the Gen- Gen r r rt t 16 r t 4 wit r ry y v vf n Y f I f i tv t c They wigwagged down that they I saw a ship ship apparently apparently friendly era oral eral 1 had gone on to Mindanao and would go to Australia by plane as planned Having delivered this message message mes mes- sage the 32 boat was to go to Iloilo Hollo on the island of Panay only one onehundred onehundred hundred and twenty miles away There she could get repairs and enough gas to bring her on down to to join the rest of us inthe Inthe in inthe the other three boats and we would finish the war together in the southern southern southern south south- ern islands What went wrong with this plan we dont don't know to this day The boats boat's commander Lieutenant Schumacher Schumacher macher must have decided that it wasn't in lit condition to follow these orders Anyway Anway when the submarine submarine rine arrived he had it shell the 32 boat so it would not fall into Japanese hands and boarded the submarine which dropped his crew off of at Corregidor and took him safely safely safe safe- ly to Australia We found out much later that he had gotten to Australia For some sometime sometime time their disappearance was a mystery and Bulkeley here spent several days flying out over all those islands trying to find some lome trace of the 32 boat Some day of course there will be a full report on exactly what did happen which will explain everything All we know Is that we last saw them back there in the cove as we left the harbor a harbor a hard right turn and then out to sea at nt about We were leading lending so that the flagship Just behind us could s' s search Sarch arch out the smoothest part of our wake so that MacArthurs MacArthur's party party par par- ty could ride comfortably Wed We'd been going about fifteen minutes when the port lookout called Sail SaU hoi hal and there she was was three three points on our port bow distance about five miles Looks like an enemy cruiser 1 said the lookout I grabbed my binoculars and so it was wasl I Hull down but masts and superstructure plain On the course we were steering we would cross her ber bow I gave the 34 full right rudder and full speed ahead ahead it it was much faster taster fast tast- er than eighteen knots because the carbon had burned out of our motors mo mo- tors I knew that type of ot Jap cruiser cruis cruls- er could make thirty-five thirty knots with Til eu steam up But unless they were expecting something they could only make twenty So we had a good chance of keeping away from them them them-It it might bo be dark before they could close in Meanwhile I was hoping they hadn't seen us and praying that the sun would hurry up and set but It Just pooped along seemed along seemed to hang there above the horizon for tor weeks and finally bobbed under at seven If l youve you've never been in the tropics tropics trop trope ics you dont don't realize how fast it gets dark dark almost almost no twilight at atall all I think it was the whitecaps that saved us said Bulkeley The Japs didn't notice our wake even though we were foaming away at I full throttle During the excitement the General General General Gen Gen- eral was lying down in ha the cabin with his eyes closed but Mrs MacArthur MacArthur Mac Mac- Arthur who was with him heard everything that went on and she didn't turn a hair She took it like a lady went lady went right on rubbing the Generals General's hands to keep up his circulation clr cir though she was seasick herself I never went below and all my men stayed at battle stations so the people in the cabin took care of themselves there themselves there was no one to wait on them The General saw that I was supplied with cigars They were pretty well provisioned They'd brought from Corregidor among I Iother other things a few cases of Coca Coca- I Cola the Cola the first Id I'd tasted in many I weeks weeks and and some of the ham I ever ate It got dark fast after sunset a wind sprang up and ahead we could see lightning flashes But these didn't help us find the narrow passage passage passage pas pas- sage into the Mindanao Sea We were going in the dark entirely by dead reckoning At midnight we figured wed we'd be off the strait strait strait-so so we turned into the pitch blackness holdIng holding hold- hold Ing lag our breath but still we didn't hit anything I had no charts Id I'd never been there before I could see absolutely nothing but since we didn't crash into a beach we kept kepton on going and at last I knew we were through and safely into Mindanao Mindanao Min Min- danao Sea our reckoning dead-reckoning navigation had been right And there we really caught hell said Kelly Big foaming waves fifteen or twenty feet high thundering over the cockpit drenching drenching drench drench- ing big everybody topside Also because because because be be- cause of the speed water and wind it got damned cold Our binoculars lars bars were full of water and our eyes so continuously drenched with stinging stinging stinging sting sting- ing salt that we couldn't see In strange waters with islands all aU allaround allaround around us We could see the outlines outlines outlines out out- lines of the big ones ones ones-Negros Negros and Mindanao very Mindanao very dimly against the horizon through the storm But there ther were dozens of small ones and probably probably probably ably hundreds of reefs The sea was on our port bow tending to drive us south We expected expected ex ex- to make a landfall forty miles dead ahead ahead ahead-a a small island where we would turn turn and and let me metell metell metell tell you this was an unpleasant situation situation situ situ- for a navigator The helmsman's helmsman's helmsman's helms helms- mans man's eyes and ours were full of salt you had to keep one hand in front of your our eyes to avoid the slapping slapping slapping slap slap- ping force of the water and yet et you needed both to hold on The Admiral Admiral Ad Ad- miral was pretty wrought up Ive sailed every type of ship In the navy except one of these he shouted at me above the wind and this Is the worst bridge Ive I've ever been on I wouldn't do duty on one of these for anything in the world you world you can have them It was a real problem to keep astern lookout for the 41 boat so sowe sowe sowe we wouldn't lose it Three good waves in a row and wed we'd be out of sight and in that weather we could pass within seventy-five seventy yards and never see each other The 41 was now keeping about two hundred hundred- yards ards astern hunting for the smoothest smooth smooth- est part of our wake to keep the Generals General's party comfortable The General had said that if it his boat slowed we who were ahead should I also slow letting them set the pace I know seasickness can be very unpleasant unpleasant un un- un pleasant but I wanted to get them safe in port by dawn in case there were Jap planes about so I kept pulling them on It got rougher and rougher and the Admiral kept remembering it had been he who had assured MacArthur that Bulkeley Bulkeley Bulkeley Bulke Bulke- ley was wrong about the weather weather- it would be calm The Generals General's going to give me hell for this In the morning he said uneasily uneasily- Damned if il I thought Bulkeley knew what he was talking about but about but he surely did Admiral stayed with me The up upon upon upon on the bridge the whole trip in spite of the weather Every half half- hour I would send a 8 member of I hau-I the crew over the boat for inspection to see how bow its hull was standing the strain for we were taking an awful licking During one of these I noticed a fl figure ure by the machine gun turret sitting with his feet teet propped up on a torpedo tube His stomach was long ago empty but he wa was leaning forward forward for for- ward retching between his knees From this I guessed It might be one of our passengers and sent a quartermaster to ask him i if he wouldn't care to go below The quartermaster returned and saluted saluted ed cd The General says he doesn't want to move sir sir sir-he he knows what's best for him TO BE ill- CONTINUED |