Show first hours ashore on cost marines heavily by benjamin goldberg goldber PALAU ISLANDS delayed the island was covered with a pall of black smoke as the marines landed each wave of leathernecks Leather necks was met with intense enemy fire mortar shells knocked out amphibian tractors from the rocks flanking the beach came machine gun fire from the groves came rifle fire the jap was everywhere in caves cave in pill pillboxes boxes in foxholes es under brush concealed in palm trees wrapped in fronds and he took a heavy toll one marine reeled to the beach arms dripping blood As he was wa about to drop into a foxhole he was slain by a jap sniper A corporal led his machine gun squad into action in 20 paces he lost six men an officer lay in a shallow foxhole speaking over the radio telephone A mortar shell plopped nearby the officer was killed instantly A corporal beside him was chipped by shrapnel in the first four our hours the leath advanced only yards one unit found a cave with three openings twenty feet away was a 8 marine lying on his side he had been wounded at the front line and was returning alone for treatment when a jap shot at him from inside the cave A sergeant raced to aid hint him while the other men of the unit covered him with rifle fire the sergeant crept to the mouth of the cave emptied his clip A second later he was dead from a bullet between his eyes A lieutenant inched forward he too was shot dead flame throwers flush japs one jap was flushed out of the cave by flame throwers he was shot A second one charged out he too was killed grenades were thrown into the hideaway and chased out a third enemy soldier he was killed there was one who refused to budge twenty pounds of explosive in one cave mouth and the flamethrower flame thrower in the other two accounted tor for him at dusk the japs counter at tacked one of their tanks and some infantry broke through almost but not quite to the beach itself two of our came up to meet the assault they were knocked out A third came up and put the jap tank out of action two japs leaped out oui and we were r filled with bullets before the they reached the ground the japs lost 50 men and withdrew all night the ahe marines stayed in their foxholes while mortar shells tell fell about them from the rear came sniper fire these snipers crisscrossed criss crossed our positions with rifle and light machine gun fire |