"Now hear this, this is your captain speaking. Tomorrow morning you will be put to the ultimate test under fire. We are going in to support the Marines landing and capture of Tarawa. As you know we had been shelling it for several days and there should be very little enemy resistance. We may expect a few air raids so keep alert."

     The captain was sorely mistaken. The Japanese literally destroyed the first two waves of American troops before a beach head was established. The Japanese had built underground concert bunkers in the coral rock and our big shells had just bounced off them. The bay was so full of mutilated dead Marines that the sharks were not even hungry.

     After a few days the firing stopped, then we really had a mess to clean up. The small island beaches were covered with bodies leaving us no place to bury the dead. The intense climate from the equatorial area we were in caused rapid dilapidation and immediate attention was give to this problem. Burning the deceased Japanese seemed the only solution. I will never forget the smell of burning flesh.

     We were anchored along side of a cargo ship that was being used to question captured prisoners. Two big burly Marines brought out a young boy that looked about fifteen. After the officers decided they did not want to question him he was given the option to commit Hara-Kara. When he said no he was tossed up in the air and used for target practice. This seemed like a way to get even after some of the things the the Japanese had done to us. For example, when our soldiers got near the Japanese bunkers they would send out naked women with their hands behind their back. When a Marine got near her she would pull the pin on the hand grenade she hid behind her and that was good by to both of them.

     The Japanese were still holding the base at Kawajalion. This allowed them to send out bomber attacks almost every night. To protect the troops on the island our ships were doing figure eights. Now we were the target for the Japanese.