United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps
The United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps -- the Marine "D&B" -- performs martial and popular music for hundreds of thousands of spectators each year. The Corps of more than 80 Marine musicians, dressed in ceremonial red and white uniforms, is known world-wide as a premier musical marching unit.

Performances
Throughout the summer months the unit performs in the traditional Friday Evening Parades held at the Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C., and in Sunset Parades at the U.S. Marine Corps War Memoral (Iwo Jima Monument) near Arlington, Virginia, every Tuesday evening. These "Parades" are not street parades but are dramatic military ceremonies which are a symbol of the professionalism, discipline, and Esprit de Corps of the United States Marines. The Drum and Bugle Corps travels more than 50,000 miles annually, performing in excess of 400 events across the nation and abroad.

History
The history of the unit can be traced to the early days of the United States Marine Corps. In the 18th and 19th centuries military musicians, or "field musics," provided a means of passing commands to Marines in battle formations. The sound of various drum beats and bugle calls could be easily heard over the noise of the battlefield and signaled Marines to attack the enemy or retire for the evening. Through the 1930s, Marine Corps posts still authorized a number of buglers and drummers to play the traditional calls and to ring a ship's bell to signal the time.

The United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps was formed in 1934, at historic Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C., to augment the United States Marine Band. The unit provided musical support to ceremonies around the nation's capital and, during World War II, was additionally tasked with Presidential support duties. For this additional role, they were awarded the scarlet and gold breastcord by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which they now proudly display on their uniform.

When the war ended, the Drum and Bugle Corps resumed performing at various military and public ceremonies. In the early 1950s the unit gained considerable acclaim performing for an increasing number of civilian audiences. Originally their instrumentation was similar to the other drum and bugle corps of the era. It has evolved along with civilian corps, although usually adapting trends after they have become established by civilian corps. Music composed specifically for their unique selection of instruments helped establish their reputation for excellence during this period. These factors also led to the unit's formal designation as "The Commandant's Own"—a title noting their special status as musicians for the Commandant of the Marine Corps.

In 1968, Truman Crawford, formerly of the US Air Force Drum Corps, became musical arranger and instructor for the Commandant's Own. During his 30 year career with them he created a unique and popular image. It would be difficult to overstate the tremendous influence he had on the development of the organization. He has been called the John Phillip Sousa of Drum Corps. In his honor, the new rehearsal facility of the Commandant's Own at Marine Barracks Washington, 8th and I, will be named the Truman Crawford Hall.

Training
In the tradition of their "field music" predecessors, the musicians in "The Commandant's Own" are Marines in the truest sense of the word. Every member is a graduate of Marine Corps recruit training and is trained in basic infantry skills. Prior to enlisting, each Marine must pass a demanding audition for service in the Drum and Bugle Corps. These Marines are selected so that following Recruit Training and Marine Combat Training, they proceed directly to "The Commandant's Own." without requiring further training. An interesting but little known fact about the United States Marine Drum and Bugle Corps is that it does not march in parades of state but instead is held back in reserve by the commandant of the Marine Corps who may order it anywhere as it serves under the commandant's immediate command. Two striking physical features which distinguish the unique Marine musical unit from the United States Marine Band, "The President's Own," are that field musicians of the Marine Drum and Bugle Corps wear white gauntlets which cover the wrists and bear and play silver color brass section instruments as compared to field musicians of the Marine Band whose wrists are not covered and who bear and play gold-colored brass section instruments. The brass played by the "Commandant's Own" are, in fact, drum corps bugles pitched in the key of G (as all drum corps brass was prior to 2000). Additionally, their bugles are 2 valved models similar to those used by drum corps in the US and Canada prior to 1990. Their current inventory of brass instrumentation was manufactured by the Kanstul company in 2006. Features of the uniforms and batons of the drum majors of the two Marine musical field units exhibit different characteristics also.

History of Navy Seabees

The Seabees have never received credit for what they do so well. The US Marines could not have done without them during World War II. They could build and they were trained to fight on the battlefield, if needed. The Navy Corpsmen were also there to help in the medical field and many of us would not be living today had it not been for the very brave heroes.

The Seabees of the United States Navy were born in the dark days following Pearl Harbor when the task of building victory from defeat seemed almost insurmountable. The Seabees were created in answer to a crucial demand for builders who could fight.

Using sailors to build shore-based facilities; however, was not a new idea. Ancient Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans did it. In more recent times, from the earliest days of the United States Navy, sailors who were handy with tools occasionally did minor construction chores at land bases.

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THE FIRST "ADVANCED BASE"
American seamen were first employed in large numbers for major shore construction during the War of 1812. Early in 1813, the USS ESSEX, under the Command of Captain David Porter, USN, rounded Cape Horn and became the first Navy ship to carry the American flag into the Pacific Ocean. The ESSEX began operating in Pacific waters and captured a British commerce raider, several British merchantmen, and several large British whaling ships. While sailing near the Galapagos Islands in October, 1813, Captain Porter learned that a British naval squadron had entered the Pacific and was searching for him. Because he had been away from his home base for well over a year, Porter decided to prepare his small squadron for the expected battle. To do this, he needed a safe harbor in which to repair and re-equip the ESSEX and some of his prizes that had been converted into fighting ships. In the absence of secure facilities on South America's west coast, he decided to take his ships to the Marquesas Islands. After sailing through the Marquesas for a few days, he selected the shore of a bay on Nukuhiva Island as the best site for constructing the United States Navy's first advanced base.

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Under Captain Porter's direction, nearly 300 skilled artisans from his ships undertook the building of the base. Approximately 4,000 friendly natives obtained the materials and worked side-by-side with the Navy builders. As a protection against unfriendly tribes, the men built a fort, which was duly christened Fort Madison with the ceremonious raising of the American flag. Other construction included a house for Porter, a house for the other officers, a cooper's shop, a sail loft, a bake shop, a guard house, a simple medical dispensary, a stores building, an open-shed shelter for the Marine sentries, a rudimentary dock, and ramps to haul the ships high onto the beach. While this construction was underway, some unfriendly natives occasionally attacked, and the Americans had to lay down their tools, take up their weapons, and defend what they were building.

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Captain Porter's foster son, David Glasgow Farragut, a twelve year-old midshipman assigned to the ESSEX, was an interested observer and a participant in the construction of the base. When the Typee natives began to attack the base, young Farragut was ashore. Alarmed at the possible early demise of his foster son, Porter hustled him back aboard the ESSEX for safekeeping.

During lulls in the fighting and while construction was underway, Farragut was allowed to go ashore and participate in the operations. However, at the first signs of trouble with the unfriendly tribes, back to the ESSEX or the SIR ANDREW HAMMOND he went. Even after he became the United States Navy's first admiral some forty years later, Farragut was still bemoaning his ill luck in not being allowed to engage in active battle at Nukuhiva.

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Upon its completion, the Navy's first base was named "Madison's Ville," and Nukuhiva Island was named "Madison Island," and the adjoining waters were named "Massachusetts Bay." Porter went so far as to claim the island as a United States possession. In the entire proceedings, he conveniently ignored Spanish and British claims going back respectively to the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries.

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Even before construction of the base was completed, the ESSEX and ESSEX JUNIOR were hauled up the improvised ramps to the top of the beach. The site selected for rehabilitating the ships was a small plain covered with shade-producing coconut trees. Re-outfitting and repair operations started toward the end of October 1813 and continued until the work was completed early in December. Meanwhile, the other ships were serviced while at anchor in the harbor. During the entire period, hostile natives frequently attacked the workers, who, although sometimes hard pressed, always managed to repel them.
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Upon completion of the project in December 1813, Captain Porter immediately sailed with the ESSEX and ESSEX JUNIOR and eventually met the British squadron. His two ships were bottled up in Valparaiso Harbor, Chile, and attempts to break the blockade led to the capture of the American ships in March 1814. Porter and his men thus became prisoners of the British.

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In the meantime, Lieutenant John M. Gamble of the U.S. Marine Corps was left behind at Nukuhiva Island to defend the advanced base and the remaining three prize ships. For this task, he had but 22 American officers and men and some sullen British prisoners. Gamble's assignment proved to be beyond the capabilities of his force. Several thousand native Typees began a series of attacks against Fort Madison and Madison's Ville, the British prisoners mutinied, and even four Americans deserted for the sake of native sweethearts. The gallant Marine officer and his men were about to be overwhelmed, and they knew it. Consequently, all hands were shifted to the most seaworthy prize, the SIR ANDREW HAMMOND. A final native attack was repelled with further casualties, and the ship got underway in May 1814, with no charts and a seven-man crew almost too feeble to sail. The United States Navy's first advanced base was thus abandoned through necessity, and certainly not because of the "construction force's" lack of fortitude and valor.

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After a voyage of nearly 2,500 miles, Lieutenant Gamble and his surviving crew of three seamen and three Marines arrived in the Sandwich Islands. They landed and immediately discovered that their tribulations were not yet ended. HMS CHERUB was in the harbor, and the Americans fell into the hands of the British. Ironically, this was the same ship which had earlier captured Captain Porter and his men at Valparaiso.

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Although they may seem remote from the Seabees of today, the Navy's operations in the Marquesas Islands really are pertinent because precedents were set. First, a requirement was established for an overseas naval construction force. Then skilled craftsmen of the fleet were selected in large numbers to man the force. The men built a U.S. Navy advanced base. Finally, the builders were attacked by hostile natives, and had to lay down their tools and take up arms to defend what they had built. Essentially, these same functions characterize today's Seabee builder-fighters.

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TWELFTH REGIMENT (PUBLIC WORKS)
Skilled Navy craftsmen were not again employed in large numbers for naval shore construction activities until the period of the First World War. In 1917 the Twelfth Regiment (Public Works) was organized at the Naval Training Station, Great Lakes, Illinois. The development of the regiment was an evolutionary process under the direction of three successive Public Works Officers.
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With the entry of the United States into the First World War in April 1917, an immediate requirement was established at Great Lakes for facilities to house, process, and train 20,000 naval recruits. By the end of 1917, the expansion of the war had increased the requirement, and facilities were needed to handle 50,000 recruits.

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The naval officer responsible administrative and training operations at Great Lakes was the commandant of the station, Captain William Moffet, USN. When the initial requirement was levied, Captain Moffet did not have sufficient funds at hand to construct the facilities. He therefore went to Washington, D.C., and conferred with the Secretary of the Navy, Josephus Daniels, and with the Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks, Rear Admiral Frederic Harris, CEC, USN. These two officials, controllers of the immediate purse strings for naval construction activity, quickly agreed to release sufficient funds for the initial increment of construction. Admiral Harris, however, pointed out to Captain Moffet that a young officer of the line was in charge of the Public Works Department, and he suggested that a Navy Civil Engineer Corps officer should be appointed to manage the department. Captain Moffet readily agreed to this proposal.
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Accordingly, Lieutenant Norman M. Smith, CEC, USN, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy and a one-time officer of the line who had transferred to the Civil Engineer Corps, was appointed Public Works Officer at Great Lakes. He assumed the post on 18 June 1917. At this time, about 100 enlisted men already were assigned to the Public Works Department.

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Although most of the major construction work was to be accomplished by civilian contractors, Lieutenant Smith foresaw that the department would have to be expanded. Skilled craftsmen, architects, draftsmen, designers, and other professional and technical people were needed. Because civilians with the requisite skills were difficult to find, he decided to screen incoming recruits to obtain skilled craftsmen. He found many, but not enough.

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Lieutenant Smith then began recruiting among civilians outside of the installation, but because of commuting problems, qualified local craftsmen were unwilling to become civilian employees. As a patriotic duty, however, many were willing to join the Navy as petty officers with the understanding that qualified men could apply later for commissions. Captain Moffett approved this proviso, and it greatly facilitated recruiting.

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As a result of recruit screening and civilian recruiting, nearly 600 men were obtained for the Public Works Department by July 1917. These men were organized into the Twelfth Regiment (Public Works). Essentially, the Public Works Regiment was the Public Works Department. Because in those days staff officers could not exercise military command, a young officer of the line, Lieutenant William C. Davis, USN, was appointed commanding officer of the regiment, and he served in that capacity throughout its existence. He exercised military control, but the Public Works Officers exercised technical control. Since Lieutenant Davis was, in fact, a subordinate of the respective Public Works Officers, there was never any real conflict between military and technical control.

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The regiment was a training as well as a working organization. The purpose of the training was not necessarily to teach the artificer trades to "green" men. Rather it was to assemble artificers, discover the abilities of each, select the natural leaders, and teach them military drill and discipline. The intent was to have these men ready at all times for transfer to other naval stations or naval bases in the United States and abroad, and to fighting ships. The average time the men were retained at Great Lakes was from three to four months, during which period they were used effectively to perform public works functions.
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Briefly, the Twelfth Regiment (Public Works) drew the plans for the Great Lakes wartime expansion, down to the minutest detail; and supervised all construction, whether done by civilian contractors or by enlisted men. It saw to the maintenance of buildings, grounds, roads, and railway; and operated the power house, heating systems, water supply, and sewage disposal. It also operated carpenter, machine, and paint shops. To accomplish the maintenance and minor construction, detachments from the regiment were assigned to all the camps at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station.

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The construction of the numerous recruit training camps at Great Lakes was mainly done by contractors and their employees. Camp Paul Jones was, however, assigned to the Public Works Regiment, and the men of the regiment turned a temporary tent camp into a semipermanent facility. The major work at this regimental camp began in October 1917, and it was substantially completed by the end of the year.

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On 30 December 1917 the regiment became "fully operational" at Camp Paul Jones with 1,500 men, organized into three battalions.
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Meanwhile, in the summer of 1917, Commander George A. McKay, CEC, USN, became Public Works Officer at Great Lakes. Lieutenant Smith remained as his deputy for a few months, and upon being promoted to lieutenant commander, departed for an assignment as Public Works Officer at the Charleston Navy Yard in South Carolina.

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On 30 January 1918 Commander McKay, in turn, was succeeded by Commander Walter Allen, CEC, USN. The new Public Works Officer surveyed and analyzed his department and decided that the organization was too cumbersome. He, therefore, reorganized both the department and the Public Works Regiment, which by April 1918 consisted of 2,400 men in five battalions.

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Throughout the latter part of 1917 and all of 1918, men were withdrawn from the regiment for assignment in the United States and abroad. In the spring of 1918, 100 men were given special training in mechanics and ordnance, and then sent to St. Nazaire in France to assemble the famous Naval Railway Batteries. They joined the operational gun-crews and performed combat duties along the railway lines in proximity to the German lines.

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Another 350 skilled men from the Public Works Regiment were selected and sent to France. Landing at the ports of Le Havre and Cherbourg, they were retained in those areas to build and rehabilitate docks and wharves, lay railroad tracks, and build communication facilities. On one occasion, a team of men from this group went into Paris and converted the Eiffel Tower into an antenna for a "Marconi wireless transmitting station."

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In the summer of 1918, Captain Allen selected another complement of 200 men, who went to France and constructed air bases along the coast.
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During the autumn of 1918, training operations at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station reached a peak to satisfy the requirements of ships and bases in the United States and abroad. By the end of October more than 125,000 recruits had undergone training since the U.S. Navy build up began in March and April of 1917. This expansion of training and facilities, in turn, required a similar expansion in the strength of the Public Works Department and the Twelfth Regiment. The peak strength of the regiment was reached on 5 November 1918. Its comprised 55 officers and 6,211 enlisted men, formed into 11 battalions.

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When the First World War ended on 11 November 1918, training and construction operations at Great Lakes ceased. The regiment gradually faded away by the end of 1918. The war was over but not the memories.

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An important aspect of the Twelfth Regiment (Public Works) was its unofficial status. At no time was it considered an official U.S. Navy unit. It was merely the creature of the commandant of the Great Lakes Naval Training Station. It was organized and developed by three successive Public Works Officers, and owed its existence solely to the administrative, operational, and training needs of the Public Works Department. Efficiency was the keynote of its existence.

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PLANNING BETWEEN THE TWO WORLD WARS
Although the Twelfth Regiment (Public Works) was dissolved in the general demobilization that followed the end of the First World War, the germ of the pioneering idea remained in the minds of many Navy Civil Engineers. Sometime during the early 1930s, for example, the planners of the Bureau of Yards and Docks began providing for "Navy Construction Battalions" in the bureau's contingency war plans. Unfortunately, the identity of the creator of the term went unrecorded. During the decade the successive heads of the bureau's War Plans Office were Captain George McKay, CEC, USN; Captain Carl Carlson, CEC, USN; and Captain Walter Allen, CEC, USN.

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In 1934 Captain Carlson's version of the plans was circulated to the Navy Yards, and later the Chief of Naval Operations tentatively approved the concept of "Navy Construction Battalions". In 1935 Rear Admiral Norman Smith, CEC, USN, Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks, selected Captain Walter Allen, his War Plans Officer, to represent the bureau on the War Plans Board, the supreme agency for all aspects of national war planning. Captain Allen ably presented the bureau's concept of "Naval Construction Battalions" to the War Plans Board. The concept was subsequently adopted for inclusion in the national Rainbow war plans that were developed during the last half of the 1930s.

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All this may sound more imposing than it really was. From the practical point of view, the plans actually contained only an idea and a name. Implementing details and procedures were inadequate and unworkable. The great weakness of the "Navy Construction Battalions" concept, indeed the fatal flaw, was the provision for dual control of the battalions: military control to be exercised by Navy officers of the line, and construction control to be exercised by Navy Civil Engineer Corps officers. There were no provisions for good military organization and military training for the battalions, which were requisites necessary to create high morale, discipline, and cooperation among the men. Moreover, the original plans contemplated the formation of battalions to construct training stations throughout the United States, an obvious throwback to the Twelfth Regiment (Public Works). On completion of the training stations, the battalions would move to forward areas.

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Moreover, the war plans provided only for construction battalions with limited operational duties; no other types of units or expanded duties were included. This oversight narrowed the scope of possible activities. Finally, no provisions were provided for recruiting, enlisting, training and developing training facilities for the enlisted personnel of the construction battalions.
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When war finally came, most of the provisions of these plans would have to be shelved. Workable and more pertinent and practical procedures were developed in their place.

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Meanwhile, Rear Admiral Ben Moreell, CEC, USN, became Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks in December 1937. It was a time of international crisis and rivalry in both Europe and Asia. In the late 1930s the tense international situation brought quick authorization from the United States Congress to expand naval shore activities. The new construction, started in the Caribbean and Central Pacific in 1939, followed the customary peacetime pattern: contracts were awarded to private construction firms that performed the work with civilian personnel, under the administrative direction of Navy Officers in Charge of Construction.

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By the summer of 1941, large naval bases were under construction at Guam, Midway, Wake, Pearl Harbor, Iceland, Newfoundland, Bermuda, Trinidad, and at many other places. To facilitate the work, the Bureau of Yards and Docks decided to organize military Headquarters Construction Companies. Under the immediate control of the Officers in Charge of Construction at the bases, the men of the companies were to be utilized as draftsmen and engineering aids and for administrative duties as inspectors and supervisors to oversee the work of the civilian construction contractors. The companies, each consisting of two officers and 99 enlisted men, were not to do any actual construction work.

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On 31 October 1941 the Chief of the Bureau of Navigation, Rear Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN, authorized the establishment of the first Headquarters Construction Company and the enlistment of its men. The men were recruited in November. By the beginning of December 1941, the company was formed and the men were undergoing boot training at the Newport Naval Station in Rhode Island. On 16 December 1941, four additional companies were authorized. By then, however, events had outstripped planning, and all the men recruited under this authority would be used for loftier purposes.

Franklin D. Roosevelt asks Congress for a Declaration of War with Japan

On December 8, 1941, the day after Japanese forces attacked the American military base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Franklin Roosevelt addressed Congress and asked for a Declaration of War with Japan. The Senate and House of Representatives approved the war declaration unanimously with the exception of one vote - Congresswoman Jeannette Rankin became the first member of Congress to vote "no" on both the declaration of war on Germany during World War I and the declaration of war on Japan in 1941 - and FDR signed the resolution that day.

Franklin Roosevelt gave one of his most famous speeches to Congress on December 8, 1941 when he asked Congress to declare war on Japan. After the first draft of the speech was written, FDR made handwritten changes and used that text as his final speech. Compare the first page of FDR's original draft and handwritten corrections to his final speech:

Address to Congress Requesting a Declaration of War with Japan December 8, 1941

Mr. Vice President, and Mr. Speaker, and Members of the Senate and House of Representatives:

Yesterday, December 7, 1941 -- a date which will live in infamy -- the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.

The United States was at peace with that Nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with its Government and its Emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific. Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in the American Island of Oahu, the Japanese Ambassador to the United States and his colleague delivered to our Secretary of State a formal reply to a recent American message. And while this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or of armed attack.

It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time the Japanese Government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian Islands has caused severe damage to American naval and military forces. I regret to tell you that very many American lives have been lost. In addition American ships have been reported torpedoed on the high seas between San Francisco and Honolulu.

Yesterday the Japanese Government also launched an attack against Malaya. Last night Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong. Last night Japanese forces attacked Guam. Last night Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands. Last night the Japanese attacked Wake Island. And this morning the Japanese attacked Midway Island.

Japan has, therefore, undertaken a surprise offensive extending throughout the Pacific area. The facts of yesterday and today speak for themselves. The people of the United States have already formed their opinions and well understand the implications to the very life and safety of our Nation.

As Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense.

But always will our whole Nation remember the character of the onslaught against us.

No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory. I believe that I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost but will make it very certain that this form of treachery shall never again endanger us.

Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory, and our interests are in grave danger.

With confidence in our armed forces- with the unbounding determination of our people- we will gain the inevitable triumph- so help us God.

I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, December 7, 1941, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese Empire.

A report on the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941

Major R. H. "Harry" Lodge, USA, tells his story.

R.H. "Harry" Lodge, Division Overseer of Oahu Sugar Company, tells his story of December 7, 1941. Lodge was also a brilliant photographer.

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor came as a sudden shock to all of us. How the military could have been so unprepared is one of the puzzling aspects that has not yet been solved. Months prior to the attack, the F.B.I., Army and Navy Intelligence had made studies and census of the plantation workers living on the perimeter of Pearl Harbor which was part of the Waipio Peninsula under my supervision. A few of these workers were Japanese, the balance Filipinos. It appeared obvious that the reason for the study was to plan the evacuation of these people in case of attack. Yet the military, particularly the Navy was caught totally unprepared...

My wife, daughter, and I were having breakfast a few minutes before 8 o'clock when the sound of explosions and the roar of airplanes broke the peace and quiet of that Sunday morning. At the time we were not greatly concerned because there had been many realistic war games prior to this. However we soon realized this was something different. We went outside for a better look. A lone plane buzzed the area and strafed the sugar mill. It had the rising sun on the fuselage. My wife dashed in the house and turned on the radio in time to hear the announcer repeat several times that we were under attack. About this time there were several explosions in the cane field in front of our house which later proved to be exploding shells from our own guns. A sudden blast shook the house as shell blew a hole in the paved road back of us, (in front of Fleener's) and showered our house with gravel. Our dog was hit by a piece of shrapnel.

The phone rang and I was told to evacuate all the employees living in the Pearl Harbor area. After locating a couple of truck drivers, we took the old bus used by the Oahu Sugar Co. athletic teams, and a labor truck and hurried to the Waipio peninsula with me leading the parade in my car. The plantation road follows the shore line and Japanese planes were coming in waves, crossing directly over us and blasting away at shipping and installations on Ford Island and Pearl Harbor. Several bursts of machine gun bullets sprayed the road just ahead of my car. The air was thick with shrapnel but by some miracle nobody was hit although all three vehicles had a few dents. With the help of my water luna, E.M. Faye, we rounded up the men with some difficulty as many had taken cover in the cane fields.

Once the men were evacuated I took shelter under one of the many old keawe trees that leaned out over the shore line. By this time it appeared that every battleship, cruiser and destroyer was either afire, exploding or already on the bottom with their superstructure leaning at a crazy angle above water. Great columns of black smoke belched upwards from both warships and shore installations, and a row of planes parked on Ford Island blazed in a holocaust of flaming gasoline as the attacking planes caught them like sitting ducks. The noise of exploding bombs and gunfire was deafening.

The battleship Nevada which was still afloat passed a few hundred yards in front of me heading for the Harbor mouth. When almost opposite, it was hit by a torpedo carried under the fuselage of one of the attacking planes. There was a terrific blast which blew a hole in the bow of the ship big enough to drive a car through. Simultaneously several bombs appeared to hit the deck, and the great battleship began to sink.

To show how unprepared the navy was, there was not one commissioned officer aboard. The ranking sailor on the Nevada was a chief Petty Officer who immediately beached the ship in comparatively shallow water. She settled on the bottom with the decks awash. This was the first ship to be salvaged in the weeks following the attack.

Shortly after this incident, a Japanese plane was hit by gunfire and came crashing through a gnarled old keawe tree not far from where I crouched. The pilot was literally torn to fragments. This was the only plane I saw shot down in this area.

The men returned to work on December 11th. and we gradually resumed normal operations. There was no great damage to my section of the plantation but for a long time we were locating unexploded shells in the cane fields. Some time after the attack I found an unexploded bomb on the edge of the cane field bordering Pearl Harbor. I called one of my irrigators and told him to guard it until I returned with a naval officer from a nearby installation. He was not to handle it and under no circumstances allow anyone else to touch it. I was about ten minutes getting back with the officer. As we rounded the corner of the cane field, my irrigator was hefting the weight of the bomb in his two hands. When he saw us, he hurriedly dropped it. Fortunately this was one of those times when the bomb did not explode.

In conclusion it should be stated that there was no act of sabotage by the local Japanese.

(signed) R.H. Lodge