During the assault, the performance of some of the men stuck in my mind. Everyone gave their all, but some of the guys fought with extraordinary skill. For example, PFC Bill Reeder had been a professional baseball player before the war and had quite an arm. He looked like a World Series pitcher when he started throwing grenades at the Japanese. A couple of mortars opened up on his unit, and that sent Bill into action. He threw an entire box of grenades with such accuracy that the Japanese and their guns stopped like a truck at a stop sign. Bill was in E Company, which needed to take Needle Rock. His aim proved to be so deadly on target that the company took their objective because of his throws.
Another man that stays in my mind was PFC Lee Moore, the flamethrower. After E Company got to the top, the Japanese started a counterattack. As the enemy came rushing up the hill, Moore grabbed an automatic rifle and ran straight at them. Firing from the hip, Lee dropped the enemy like a swamp dweller swatting mosquitoes. Recognizing that they were still coming, Moore climbed on top of the rock and fired down on them right and left.
In the fray, a few of the Japanese dived into a cave. Lee saw them go in and picked up his flamethrower. Charging that cave like a mad mama bear, he turned the fire machine on full blast. Laying the nozzle down, he started throwing grenades into the cave. Lee Moore had made himself so vulnerable that it was amazing no one had shot him. When the attack was over, he had killed twenty-four Japanese. His bravery ended up being recognized with a Distinguished Service Cross.
Hard to say what makes a man stand up in the midst of bullets flying in every direction and charge the enemy. Obviously, that was taking your life in your own hands. Anyone who charged the foe with such gallantry had to know they might well be gone by the end of the day. They weren’t fools and they understood the cost. I think they had to believe in something that was more important than themselves. They had families of great importance to them. These heroes made their stand because they loved their kin and country more than their own lives. That’s what makes a hero.
* * *
When the assault began, I Company was immediately blocked by machine-gun fire coming from a cave on the face of the escarpment. We began to realize that the Japanese had turned that entire area of the cliff into a fortress. Their fire proved to be so fierce that the company was quickly pinned down. One of their men shared their conversations with me.
“We’ve got to get closer to that cave,” leader Lieutenant George Weiner said. “Can we get a flamethrower up there?” He looked around at the squad.
One man raised his hand. “I’ve got the blaster, sir. Count me in.”
“Okay. We’ll give you all the ground cover we’ve got. You’ll have to crawl up that steep slope to get close enough to have a decent shot. We’ll do our best.”
The man nodded, picked up the heavy unit, and slipped the pack on his back. “Ought to do the trick,” he said, and picked up the nozzle. “This one can send a stream of fire that will bounce off the walls and ceilings. Gets into unseen space. I’ll smoke ’em out.”
The men nodded their appreciation and he started working forward.
“Alright, men,” Weiner said. “Open up on that cave. I don’t want any mistakes that jeopardize our man.”
A barrage of gunfire aimed at the cave’s entrance slowed the Japanese while the squad watched the flamethrower inch his way upward. The Japanese obviously had no idea he was coming. In short order, he got within a few feet of the entrance, then stood up and rushed to flatten himself against the megalith wall. The flamethrower exploded with a blaze of fury. The soldier waited a second and then crammed the nozzle into the entrance to the cave. Smoke roared out.
“Stay poised, men,” Weiner said. “We’ll charge forward as soon as we get the chance. Keep your eyes open and your heads down.”
Suddenly, three simultaneous explosions sent rock and debris flying out of the entrance to the cave. Fire roared out, followed by a bellow of smoke. The flamethrower dropped to his knees and covered his head when the ground shook.
“My God!” Weiner exclaimed. “What in the hell did we hit?”
I Company rushed forward. For several minutes, the smoke continued to roll out and then finally receded.
Lieutenant Weiner crawled up next to the flamethrower. “You think we got ’em all?”
The man laughed.
“Okay. Lead us in with that zip gun of yours.” Wiener waved for the rest of the men to follow.
Fire had blackened the walls and the ceiling, leaving a charcoal look to the interior. Two mangled machine guns lay broken on the rock floor. Bodies of four dead Japanese had been virtually roasted. Smoke continued to curl up from their remains.
Weiner peered into the blackness. “This cave doesn’t end quickly,” he mused. “Looks like the lair just keeps going. Give me a flashlight.”
One of the soldiers handed him a light.
“The flamethrower must have ignited a box of ammunition,” the lieutenant said. “Be cautious, but keep walking.”
The cave went back about fifty feet and then veered to one side. Scratches and scrapings on the wall left the impression of pickaxes that had once extended the cave. The men kept following the winding tunnel.
Abruptly, they could faintly hear chatter. Pressing their ears to the wall, the men quickly realized Japanese were on the other side.
Lieutenant Weiner stopped and shook his head. “My God!” he said softly. “The Japanese have hooked all these caves together through a series of tunnels. We’re faced with a more serious problem than we ever dreamed of.”
* * *
The battle raged through the day. The entire 383rd had their hands full as they discovered the reverse side of the slope swarming with Japanese. When the men of E Company discovered the openings to the cave beneath their feet, they poured crude oil and gasoline into the openings. The soldiers set the gooey mess on fire and waited for the Japanese to get smoked out. They didn’t have to wait long.
Japanese came rushing out the entrance right into the path of our machine guns and mortars. They were like sitting ducks in a carnival. We were making real progress.
By the time the sun began to set, we were firmly in position on the escarpment. In addition to our losses, we had learned a considerable amount about what we were facing. Their pillboxes were made of reinforced concrete and positioned on the cliff, making them impervious to gunfire. We had discovered that the entire escarpment in front of us had tunnels and caves running everywhere like an ant den. No matter which way we turned, the Japanese would be there. Even when we hit them aboveground, they could still be beneath and behind us.
One tough predicament!