December 1941

by Craig Shirley

  The Department also announced the first seventy-five recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross, some awarded posthumously including Captain Colin P. Kelly, whose saga of his heroic actions against a Japanese ship, and who died in the line of duty had, like the marines on Wake, become the stuff of folklore. Possibly one pilot who deserved the DFC was Lt. Hewitt Wheless, whose B-17 bomber was attacked by no less than eighteen Japanese Zeros, hitting the plane fifteen hundred times yet not bringing it down! “When we got back, the plane looked like a sieve,” the calm Lt. said. “But the holes just gave us more fresh air inside. These babies (the Flying Fortress) sure live up to their reputations.”38

  The award, which had been authorized by Congress in 1926, was for anybody in the Air Corps who had “distinguished himself by heroism or extraordinary achievement in an aerial flight.” The seventy-five recipients were not just those who piloted the planes, but those who attended to them as well.39 Master sergeants, staff sergeants, corporals, and privates were among the awardees.

  The sports writers of the Associated Press voted the Cleveland Indians the biggest disappointment of 1941. The year before, they’d missed the American League pennant by the skin of their teeth, just one game, and the Yankees took it. In 1941, the Indians finished twenty-six games out of first place. The best fight of the year was voted the Joe Louis and Billy Conn fight. The worst fight of the year was voted the Joe Louis and Lou Nova fight.40

  Box office hot Mickey Rooney, 21, and the unknown aspiring secretary, Ava Gardner, 17, announced their commitment to life-long fidelity and matrimony.41 The film industry was working with the government to ensure the government did not censor the film industry. “President Roosevelt has appointed Lowell Mellett, Director of the Office of Government Reports, as coordinator of Government films during the war emergency with the statement that he wants no censorship of motion pictures.”42

  The Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph Company took out large newspaper ads pleading with readers not to make any long distance phone calls on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day and possibly jam the lines, when the government needed them.43

  For the first time since December 7, the War Department had allowed journalists and photographers to inspect the damage done at Hickam Field. “Tattered skeletons of huge hangars at the army’s Hickam Field stood Wednesday as gaunt evidence of the surprise Japanese attack on this placid pleasure spot, and in them lay . . . the twisted and charred wreckage of the many once-mighty guardians of Hawaiian skies . . . The baseball field was covered with bomb craters.”44 Most of the casualties at the field had occurred while men were still in their barracks, many still in bed. Some, as at Wheeler Field, never got off the ground. “American pilot casualties at Wheeler were . . . two killed by strafers as they were taking off, and one as he was boarding his plane to attack.”45 They never had a chance.

  The lion and the lamb settled down together and gave FDR and the country an unexpected Christmas gift. The business and labor conference, which just the day before had seemed at an impossible impasse, came to a historic agreement. Labor would agree to no strikes for the duration of the war if business agreed to no lockouts. Jaws dropped all over the country when the two old antagonists, labor and business, further agreed to settle all disputes by “peaceful means,” including the matter of closed shops.46 America was united in purpose; patriotism trumped even economic self-interest.

  Congress had mostly fled the city for their home districts and home states but a few still remained, including some members of the House Ways and Means Committee, who were trying to determine how to raise the massive funds needed to fund the war effort. Some members “predicted the bill might bite huge chunks out of individual and corporation incomes. . . .”47 An “unlimited tax” was under advisement. Setting an income cap for all Americans, after which the government would take everything, was bandied about. Other radical plans were also discussed including collecting tax in the actual tax year. But some members thought “it was premature to discuss suggestions that the 1942 tax bill be collected immediately on 1942 incomes. Federal taxes normally are collected in the year after which income is received.”48

  Marshal Petain broadcast a gloomy Christmas message to the people of France, telling his conquered countrymen that peace was a long way off and that many families in France had already been separated by the Germans, due to imprisonment.49 Rumors were thick in political and diplomatic circles that the Germans were getting ready to push Petain out of his feeble and emasculated position as head of the French Vichy government. The plan was to replace him with a new figurehead who was out-and-out pro-Nazi.50

  Meanwhile, the pope issued his annual Christmas Eve message from Vatican City in which he issued a Five Point Plan for a post-war world. In a broadcast on Vatican Radio, Pope Pius XII called for the elimination of aggression, “oppression of minorities,” against future wars and armaments and “persecution directed against religious sects or churches because faith ‘is one of the rights of mankind.’”51 His remarks were carried live in the U.S. on the Mutual Radio Network.52

  That afternoon, as the sun dipped over the horizon, Churchill and FDR both addressed a crowd of twenty thousand on the South Lawn of the White House (attendance estimates varied widely) and the nation by radio, as the president flipped the switch to light the big Christmas tree. It was the first time the White House Christmas tree had ever actually been placed on the White House grounds. Previously, it had been on the Ellipse, Lafayette Park, and Sherman Square. The Marine Band played and the crowd sang Christmas songs just before the lights of the cedar tree were turned on. The songs included, “Joy to the World” and “Silent Night.” The Band had played “God Save the King” and “The Star Spangled Banner,” which, of course, commemorated the American success over Churchill’s forebearers at the battle of Ft. McHenry in the War of 1812. The invocation was given by Father Joseph Corrigan of Catholic University.53

  It was noted that some in the crowd had waited as much as a whole hour before being admitted through the Southwest and Southeast gates which opened at just after 4:00 p.m. and where army tents had been erected to check individuals. Because no packages or cameras were allowed on the grounds, they were lined up along the fencing to wait until their owners returned to claim them. Some women—called by the Washington Post the “indomitable species”—asked soldiers on duty to hold their packages but the men in uniforms refused, albeit politely.54 After a time, the gates were closed and no one inside would be allowed out until the proceeding had been completed.

  The weather had been unseasonably warm with daytime temperatures in the low sixties. “The sunset gun at Fort Myer boomed just before the two men walked onto the portico. A crescent moon hung overhead. To the southward loomed the Washington Monument, a red light burning in its lofty window.”55

  FDR and Churchill appeared on the south portico and both stood to give their remarks. “Over the traditional ceremony hung the pall of war, but there were signs of merriment and good cheer.” At 5:00 p.m., their remarks were carried live across the nation on all radio networks. In his plummy aristocratic baritone, the Englishman opened by saying, “I have the honor to add an appendix to the message of Christmas goodwill and kindness with which my illustrious friend the President has encircled the homes and families of the United States. . . .” He spoke eloquently of his home, of his mother’s “ties of blood” to America and the commanding sentiment of comradeship in the common cause of great races who speak the same language and to a very large extent worship at the same altar and pursue the same ideas . . . This is a strange Christmas Eve. Almost the whole world is locked in deadly struggle.” He also spoke of the “terrible weapons which science can devise.”56 There was a marvelous rhythm to his remarks and his cadence was mesmerizing. Churchill was a strong leader, but he also was a gifted writer and speaker.

  Continuing, he said, “I cannot feel myself a stranger here in the center of the summit of these United States. I feel a sense of unity and fraternal
association, which through all your kindness, convinces me that I have a right to sit at your fireside and share your Christmas joys.”57

  Churchill said to the gathering that the young across the globe “shall not be robbed of their inheritance or denied their right to live in a free and decent world.” Concluding with a climactic poetic grace, in a way that only Churchill could, he intoned, “Here then, for one night only, each home throughout the English-speaking world should be a brightly lit island of happiness and peace . . . And so, in God’s mercy, a Happy Christmas to you all.”58

  Roosevelt had spoken first and then introduced the British prime minister as one of the “great leaders” in the world. A newspaper noted that it may have been the only time FDR had “played second fiddle” to a superior public speaker. It was noted that the crowds were silent as Churchill spoke and “restless” when FDR addressed them.59

  In his “Yule Message,” Roosevelt’s remarks were sprinkled heavily with reference to the war and sacrifice but also of hope and the Christian philosophy of love and charity. “The year 1941 has brought upon our Nation a war of aggression by powers dominated by arrogant rulers whose selfish purpose is to destroy free institutions . . . Our strongest weapon in this war is that conviction of the dignity and brotherhood of man which Christmas signifies—more than any other day or any other symbol.”60

  In his gracious and eloquent comments, he never mentioned Germany or Japan by name, but made clear that the forces of the Allies represented the forces of light and the Axis Powers represented the forces of darkness. “The new year of 1942 calls for the courage and the resolution of old and young to help win a world struggle in order that we may preserve all we hold dear.”61

  Their remarks were broadcast live on radio, coast-to-coast. The Reverend Oscar Blackwelder of the Washington Federation of Churches gave the Benediction. The whole program, from the lighting of the tree which had been placed near the fence bordering the South Lawn through the playing of the Bands and the speeches and remarks lasted but thirty-five minutes, just as stars in the sky began to twinkle. Yet those in attendance knew they had seen something special.

  Roosevelt had also sent a Christmas message to the Armed Forces of America and if there was anyone who needed prayers at the time, it was the boys and girls in blue and khaki:

  To the Army and Navy: In the crisis which confronts the Nation, our people have full faith in the steadfastness and the high devotion to duty demonstrated by the men of all ranks of our Army and Navy. You are setting an inspiring example for all the people, as you have done so often in the past. In sending my personal Christmas greeting to you I feel that I should add a special measure of gratitude to the admiration and affection which I have always felt and have expressed in other years. I am confident that during the year which lies before us you will triumph on all fronts against the forces of evil which are arrayed against us.

  Franklin D. Roosevelt, Commander in Chief.62

  That evening, Churchill joined the Roosevelts for Christmas Eve dinner, where instead of the British favorite of goose, he dined on turkey and cranberries.63

  CHAPTER 25

  THE TWENTY-FIFTH OF DECEMBER

  Government and U.S. Forces May Leave Manila;

  200,000 Japanese Estimated Landed on Luzon

  Washington Post

  Japs Claim Capture of Hong Kong

  Birmingham News

  Submarines Attack More U.S. Vessels

  Evening Star

  War Cast Shadow Over Christmas Joy Throughout Land

  New York Times

  The enemy was closing in on Douglas MacArthur from what seemed to be all sides. Enemy troops were coming ashore at Lamon Bay and Cavite, both near Manila, and a half dozen other hard-to-pronounce but easy-to-understand locations. Ferocious ground fighting was everywhere and large armadas of transports filled with fresh Japanese troops ready to come ashore were reported south of Manila. No one in the American military had anticipated or prepared for this avalanche of enemy soldiers. They certainly hadn’t been sighted.

  Japanese planes had swarmed over Luzon most of the day and were deliberately bombing the business and civilian areas of the island. Discussions were held to consider declaring Manila an “open city” so as to halt the bombing. Brussels, Paris, Belgrade, and other cities had been declared in such a manner so as to save the lives of civilians while preserving the culture and architecture of those cities. The Quezon government fled the city.1

  MacArthur was now facing possibly 200,000 Japanese fighting men who had landed on the island since the beginning of hostilities, and they were advancing quickly on American and Filipino strongholds. “Japanese hordes swarmed toward Manila from all directions today and this city was thrown into a supreme battle for its freedom on Christmas Day. . . .” A message the night before “told of heavy Japanese reinforcements lying off Luzon; at least 100 enemy transports accompanied by strong naval and air escort. . . .”2

  The War Department issued a brutally frank statement. “Though American and Philippine troops are greatly outnumbered, they are offering stiff resistance to the Japanese forces in a series of delaying actions.”3 Delaying actions only meant to delay the inevitable. The number of War Department communiqués was going up, but American morale was going down.

  Given the situation on the ground, the U.S. announced that it might have to withdraw its forces from the Philippines. That made it one of the lousiest Christmases for Franklin Roosevelt and the American citizenry in recent memory, certainly since 1777 and Valley Forge, in which the embers of a newborn nation were nearly snuffed out, or the Christmases of 1812 and 1813 or 1861 through 1863, again when those embers almost died.

  There was an additional sense of loss and distress because of Wake Island. Post-mortems were filed in many papers, speculating on what happened to the surviving marines. “What became of the little garrison is not known.”4 The Japanese were not known for their charity toward prisoners of war. Profiles of the fearless commander, Major James Devereaux, along with his wife and ten children began appearing in the press. Devereaux was a career Marine and hailed from a family of military men.

  Military leaders had wanted a base on Wake because it had a protected cove which they were dredging of coral heads and, once constructed and outfitted with oil tankers, runways, buildings, docks and the like, would be an excellent forward base of operations against the Japanese in the Pacific. It was a link in a chain from the West Coast to Hawaii to Midway to Wake to Guam to Manila. Now the chain was broken.

  Just a few days earlier, no one in America knew Wake Island from Treasure Island. It was a dot in the middle of the vast Pacific and only became more widely known after Pan Am had erected a seaplane operation there a few years earlier. Human footprints were rarely found on the island. It was a strategic defeat in a young war in which America had yet to win anything. In relation to its small size, the island’s loss was an outsized psychological blow to the morale of Americans, who knew the flag of the Rising Sun now flew over former U.S. territory. The defenders of Wake had held out two days longer than the defenders of the Alamo, a fact which the marines noted with solemn if disconsolate pride.

  The tattered British garrison at Hong Kong finally succumbed to the Japanese as well, making this Christmas lousy for Winston Churchill and the British too. The Japanese government made the announcement of the British capitulation, and London did not deny the claim. Tokyo’s propagandists twisted the knife when they announced on state radio that the island was a “Christmas gift” from the military to the Japanese people.5 Of course the Japanese were not Christian but rather Shinto and Buddhist.

  “The last-ditch defense of Hong Kong has broken under relentless assault by land, sea and air and the crown colony which for a century has been a British bastion off the southeast China coast has fallen to the Japanese. So ends a great fight against overwhelming odds,” the British Colonial Office said.6 By the early evening of the twenty-fifth, Japanese officials were meeting with the Bri
tish governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Young, to discuss the terms of surrender and the disposition of civilians and combatants.7

  A confidential memo from British Ambassador Lord Halifax to Franklin Roosevelt spelled out the problems in Hong Kong. “During previous 24 hours enemy kept up incessant attacks and local raids accompanied by intensive bombardment by artillery mortars and dive bombers. Troops very tired.” Halifax told FDR that water had been cut off, “food supplies greatly reduced by enemy action.” The memo went on to review the world, in the eyes of the British, and with the exception of Libya, and it wasn’t very pretty.8

  Churchill was quickly becoming a popular boarder in the White House. He often got up early as he was still on London time—five hours ahead—but he worked diligently and quietly, armed with an endless supply of Cuban cigars. Around 4:00 p.m., he would take a break and retire for a nap that would last an hour or two and then go back to work, often by transatlantic telephone or cable, until 1:00 a.m. “He has endeared himself to the White House staff with his sense of humor, his entertaining quips, and an amazing vitality and capacity for work.”9

  He was also without shame. As Jon Meacham noted in “Franklin and Winston,” “Churchill, fresh from his bath, was in his guest room at the White House, pacing about naked—‘completely starkers,’ recalled Patrick Kinna, a Churchill assistant who was taking dictation from the dripping prime minister. There was a tap at the door, and Churchill said, ‘Come in.’ Roosevelt then appeared and, seeing the nude Churchill, apologized and began to retreat. Stopping him, Churchill said, ‘You see Mr. President, I have nothing to hide from you.’ Roosevelt loved it.

  ‘Chuckling like a school boy, he told me about it later,’ said presidential secretary Grace Tully. ‘You know Grace . . . I just happened to think of it now. He’s pink and white all over.’”10