- published 1944




Anything that speaks to men of home is beloved in thew South Pacific. Probably the most
popular program is one broadcast from Japan by “Tokyo Rose”. “Hello all you Yanks
down there in the islands, I’m going to play ‘Blues In The Night’ just for you”.



Sometimes the tension lifts for a few happy moments. A group of officers drinking bitter
whiskey and water out of metallic-tasting canteen cups, maybe swept up in a haze of
good fellowship and a fine swirl of argument.



The task force sails in a void of silence. Its radios are dead. Sometimes it maybe lost
to the world for weeks, churning through an eternity of never changing water. The men
are smothered in this silence. Subdued by the irresistible movement and the sobering
nearness of attack, their speech is broken by long periods of quiet.