The New York Times Book of World War II, 1939-1945
Page 62
Visitors’ galleries of Senate and House were crowded and silent, through the reading of the message and throughout the slow, methodical roll calling on the declaration against Germany. When the voting started on the resolution against Italy the spectators lost interest. In the House chamber the leave-taking was so general and so noisy that Speaker Rayburn halted the balloting to restore order. The exodus continued.
President Roosevelt signing the declaration of war against Germany, Dec. 11, 1941.
DECEMBER 21, 1941
Admiral King Heads Navy, Rules All Sea And Air Fleets
Special to The New York Times.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 20—Admiral Ernest J. King, in command of the Atlantic Fleet since February, was designated today Commander-in-Chief of the United States Fleet, directly responsible to the President under general direction of the Secretary of the Navy and in supreme command of all naval operating forces in Atlantic, Pacific and Asiatic waters.
Rear Admiral Royal E. Ingersoll was named to succeed Admiral King as commander of the Atlantic Fleet.
These actions were taken by Secretary Knox in accordance with an Executive Order signed by President Roosevelt on Thursday, a day after Rear Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, was ordered to relieve Admiral Husband E. Kimmel as Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet at Hawaii.
Admiral King, an aviation expert who has served also as chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics, is put in entire charge of the Navy’s surface, air and coastal frontier operating forces.
His staff will be composed of a chief of staff and such other officers and agencies as appropriate and necessary, the Presidential order specified, to perform duties in general as follows:
Make available for evaluation all pertinent information and naval intelligence.
Prepare and execute plans for current war operations.
Conduct operational duties.
Effect all essential communications.
Direct training essential to carrying out operations.
Serve as personal aides.
Although Admiral King’s principal offices will be in the department, the Navy emphasized that the orders did not relieve him from duty at sea.
“He is free to exercise personal command at sea as in his judgment circumstances make advisable,” it stated.
KING’S SERVICE IN ALL BRANCHES
Admiral King was born in Lorain, Ohio, on Nov. 23, 1878, and was appointed to the Naval Academy from Ohio in 1897. His subsequent career brought him experience and distinction in all branches of naval service, on the sea, in the air, on submarines and in administrative posts.
During the Spanish-American War he served on the U.S.S. San Francisco engaged in patrol duty off the Atlantic coast. From 1916 to 1919 he was Assistant Chief of the Staff of Admiral Henry T. Mayo, Commander in Chief of the United States Fleet, and for that service he received the Navy Cross.
In 1923 he took command of the submarine base at New London, Conn., and was in charge of the salvage operations of Submarine S-51, which sank off Block Island in September, 1925. For that service he received the Distinguished Service Medal.
After the sinking of the Submarine S-4 off Provincetown, Mass., in December, 1927, he directed the salvage force and the Distinguished Service Medal, Gold Star, was awarded to him for that task.
In 1927 Admiral King qualified as a naval aviator at Pensacola, Fla., and in 1928 was appointed commander, Aircraft Squadrons, Scouting Fleet.
He served as assistant chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics, 1928–29, and was in command of the aircraft carrier Lexington until 1932, when he attended the senior course at the Naval War College. He was appointed chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics in May, 1933.
His decorations also include the Sampson Medal, U.S.S. San Francisco, 1898; Spanish Campaign Medal; Mexican Service Medal, U.S.S. Terry; and Victory Medal, Atlantic Fleet Clasp, U.S.S. Pennsylvania.
His home is at Annapolis.
Admiral Ernest J. King in 1941.
DECEMBER 14, 1941
JAPANESE ATTACK UNITES AMERICAS
In the Southern Continent Popular Sentiment Is Aroused and Angry
By ARNALDO CORTESI
Special Cable to The New York Times.
BUENOS AIRES, Dec. 13—The popular South American reaction to the Japanese aggression against the United States, after a moment of shocked and incredulous surprise, has been one of anger—blazing, red-hot anger—that any power foreign to this continent should have dared to attack one of the American republics.
The people who feel the most outraged by what Japan has done include many who up to the present had no particular sympathy for the United States, for the fact that the victim of Japanese aggression happened to be the United States is of secondary importance, and the reaction would undoubtedly have been the same if the least instead of the greatest of American republics had been attacked. The point is that violent hands have been laid upon an America regarded as a single unit stretching from the Arctic to the Antarctic, and this has caused the blood of all of the citizens of the continent to boil, regardless of nationality or political opinions.
The people of South America have suddenly discovered—and have not been a little surprised by the discovery—that there are certain things about which they all feel alike.
SAME FAMILY
The first and most important of these is the intangibility of this continent. When it is a matter of an American country versus a non-American power—any non-American power—Argentine and Brazilian, Chilean and Venezuelan, Uruguayan and Colombian all feel that in very truth they are members of the same family. Japan has contributed more in five minutes than all of the statesmen of the Americas in a century toward bringing such a feeling of brotherhood about.
How large a part of the popular reaction in South America has been determined by the fact that the United States was the victim of a treacherous attack is shown by the comparatively slighter impression made by the German and Italian declarations of war. These were taken almost as a matter of course, as a necessary consequence of the irresistible development of events. They have caused interest, speculation and excitement, but nothing even faintly comparable to the spontaneous emotion produced by the first news that Japanese aircraft had bombed the United States possessions in the Pacific.
DECEMBER 23, 1941
Editorial
HITLER PROMOTES HITLER
Though the German armies in Russia have not been destroyed, they have failed in their primary objective. This was to destroy the armed forces of the Soviets. They have also failed in their secondary objectives, which were to reach the southern oil fields and to take Moscow before the coming of cold weather. The attempt has cost them dearly. And with this failure added to the entrance of the United States into the war, it must be a dull German who does not wonder whether something has gone wrong.
Is this the explanation of the sudden mysterious removal of Field Marshal von Brauchitsch as Commander in Chief of the German Army and the assumption of superior command by the man who describes himself as “the statesman Adolf Hitler”? Certainly it is possible that Hitler, relying on German confidence in the infallibility of his “inner call” and his “intuition” and the dynamics of his “fanatical will power,” has sought to allay anxiety among his people by taking command himself and at least by implication charging responsibility for the failure in Russia against the soldier whose task it was to execute his orders. It is also possible that the suspected rift between the Nazi party and the Army has been widened by the Russian failure and that Hitler does not wholly trust his high command. A third possibility is that Hitler is dreaming dreams of new campaigns which the hardheaded army men are reluctant to attempt to carry out.
In any case Hitler has strained the legend of his infallibility pretty far, even for the German people. The year is almost gone, and the Nazi leaders themselves have stopped promising that the war is nearly over. Yet when 1941 began Hitler pledged his countrymen that it would br
ing victory and an end to all their hardships and privations. In his New Year’s Day proclamation he made the unequivocal statement: “The year 1941 will bring consummation of the greatest victory in our history.” At the end of January, on the anniversary of his assumption of power, he boasted: “The year 1941 will be the historical year of the great new order for Europe.” In mid-March, at the annual German Memorial Day services, he promised that the year 1941 would “end what started the year before.” And in mid-April, celebrating his own birthday, he echoed the confidence of Dr. Goebbels that victory was “already as good as assured.” Again, at the outset of the Russian campaign, he promised his people that this would be the decisive battle for the establishment of the “New Order,” and still more recently he assured them that the resistance of Russia “is already broken and will never rise again.”
Adolf Hitler saluting from a train window, April 1941.
Even the regimented people of Germany must be aware of the obvious inconsistencies between these statements and the recent semi-hysterical wheedling pleas for greater sacrifices on their part, in order to overcome an enemy superior in numbers to, and better equipped than, the hitherto invincible German Army. How long will it be before the German people isolate and identify and destroy Hitler himself as the root-cause of all their suffering?
DECEMBER 25, 1941
Heroic Defense of Wake Isle an Epic In Marines’ Annals
By CHARLES HURD
Special to The New York Times.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 24—The Navy reluctantly closed today its chapter of exploits at Wake Island, which is now assumed lost to the Japanese, by revealing that 378 Marines, assisted by seven members of naval medical personnel, held off Japanese attacks by sea, air and land for fourteen days before radio silence signaled the end of their vigil.
This little group of fighting men, armed only with light weapons and twelve fighter planes—without bombers—took a toll of one Japanese cruiser and three destroyers in the course of their defense of the tiny island, which lies about 2,000 miles west of Honolulu.
In the fighting, which lasted from Dec. 9 through Dec. 23, no aid reached the defenders of Wake and there apparently was no chance to try to evacuate them. This they knew, but they continued fighting for a length of time and against odds that made their work without parallel in the service records.
The fall of Wake removed another link between Honolulu and Manila; Guam was captured by the Japanese about two weeks ago. So far as is known, Midway Island still is holding out and has not been attacked for some days.
THE HEROISM OF WAKE
A collection of facts marshaled by the Navy Department here, on the basis of radio reports from Wake Island, pictured a fight in which the Marines, outnumbered from the start, sustained wave after wave of smashing attacks, even after the loss of most of their fighting equipment.
The report that they had sunk two more destroyers on the last day of the defense, when most of their weapons had been smashed, was confirmed by the Tokyo radio last night.
In addition to the planes based on Wake Island the Marines had only weapons classed as “light.” The garrison had no heavy artillery and there was no protective fort—only the garrison buildings, hangars and the usual buildings that would be erected on a watch post. The Navy listed the weapons at Wake at the start of the fighting as six 5-inch guns, two 3-inch anti-aircraft guns, eighteen 50-calibre machine guns, “plus the usual light weapons.” There also were six searchlights.
The official report of action in the last fortnight read as follows:
“Early as Dec. 9 Wake was under enemy attack by sea and air. Four separate attacks in forty-eight hours were beaten off, and most of the fighter planes were lost in these actions. The marines, however, succeeded in sinking one enemy light cruiser and one destroyer by air action.
LANDING FIELD ATTACKED
“They reported to the Navy Department that they expected these attacks would be resumed and a landing attempted by the enemy. They were prepared to resist to the best of their ability. President Roosevelt reported on Dec. 12 that Wake was still holding out. On Dec. 14 the marines suffered a moonlight raid by enemy bombers, which attacked their landing field. They reported no damage had been suffered, but by the following morning forty-one bombers were over Wake. In this raid one of their fast-diminishing number of fighting planes was destroyed on the ground.
“The defenders reported two of their men had been killed, but that they had succeeded in bringing down two enemy bombers and damaging several others by anti-aircraft fire. They would continue to resist.
“Two additional bombing attacks were sustained on 15 December, and an enemy submarine was reported hovering around Wake. These were to be followed by still two more attacks in force on the 17th and 18th.
“By 21 December the little garrison was in serious trouble. Seventeen heavy Japanese bombers attacked the island and were beaten off after heavy damage. The 3-inch batteries were struck, the power plant was damaged and the Diesel oil building and its equipment were destroyed. Only one 3-inch battery of four guns was now effective.
“The following day, Dec. 22, the Wake defenders reported that they had sustained still another heavy attack by air, but that several enemy ships and a transport were moving in. This landing attempt was in great force, but two enemy destroyers were put out of action by the Marines before the invaders could effect a landing on the island.
“For many hours the issue was in doubt. On Dec. 23 Tokyo claimed that Wake Island was completely occupied by Japanese forces, and the Navy Department was forced to admit that all communications with Wake had ceased.”
DECEMBER 25, 1941
Roosevelt, Churchill Voice Faith To War-Weary World
Special to The New York Times.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 24—Speaking from the high south portico of the White House, in the twinkling lights of the community Christmas tree on the lawn below them, President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill this evening called on the people of their two nations to rededicate themselves in a righteous cause and to “arm their hearts” for labor, suffering and for the ultimate victory ahead.
Thousands of men and women, banked on the south lawn in the clear, mild twilight, heard the two leaders speak, while the radio carried their voices throughout the world, with the hymns and carols of the traditional Christmas ceremony.
Standing between the central columns of the porch, at the President’s left hand, Mr. Churchill spoke publicly for the first time since he arrived to start the historic discussions of the joint conduct of the war.
It was the first time, too, that a President of the United States and a Prime Minister of Britain had ever met on Christmas Eve, with what at least approximated a joint message to their peoples.
CHURCHILL IS HAILED AS FRIEND
Hailed by the President as “my associate, my old and good friend,” Mr. Churchill spoke to his American audience as “fellow-workers, fellows, soldiers in this common cause.” He had “a right to sit at your fireside and share your Christmas joys,” through ties of unity and association, he said, and he urged them, at this season, not to overlook the character of their cause.
“Ill would it be for us this Christmas-tide if we were not sure that no greed for the lands or wealth of any other people has led us to the field, that no vulgar ambition, no sordid lust for material gain at the expense of others has led us to the field,” he said.
“Here in the midst of war, raging and roaring about us over all the lands and seas, creeping nearer to our hearts and homes, here, amidst all these tumults, we have the spirit of peace in each cottage home and in every heart.”
Armed soldiers surrounded the White House grounds, ropes held the crowd 100 yards from the portico and policemen and members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation patrolled the interval, but the grim wartime precautions did not dampen the enthusiasm of the audience as the President spoke and Mr. Churchill followed.
APPLAUSE INTERRUPTS SPEAKER
> The vibrant voice, the strong Victorian phrases, the quick, descriptive lift of the left hand, the set of chin and mouth marked an expressive and defiant Churchill, and the audience, again and again as he spoke, interrupted him with applause.
But not all his message was of determination and defiance. Seasonably, he wished his hearers, “In God’s mercy, a happy Christmas to you all.” And he asked, “for one night only,” a revival of the season’s cheer.
Winston Churchill demonstrates the easy zipper on his famous siren suit on the White House lawn at dusk, December 1941. Next to him, Diana Hopkins, the daughter of White House aide Harry Hopkins, struggles to keep President Roosevelt’s dog, Fala, next to the chair.
DECEMBER 26, 1941
BRITISH GARRISON ENDS 16-DAY SIEGE
Water Supply Exhausted, Hong Kong Defenders Bow to Crushing Odds
By CRAIG THOMPSON
Special Cable to The New York Times.
LONDON, Dec. 25—Even while long-delayed communiqués from Hong Kong reached here today, the Colonial Office announced the colony’s fall after a sixteen-day siege. It appeared that Governor Sir Mark Young had been instructed to seek a negotiated surrender rather than attempt to stand off the Japanese to the last defender.
Early this evening the Colonial Office revealed that Sir Mark had been advised by the naval and military commanders at Hong Kong that further effective resistance was impossible and that he was taking action accordingly.