bomb right alongside the bridge we had just passed. Smoke and dirt flew into the air. The few people who had been nearby ran chicken-like from one side of the street to the other, then across again. The sky overhead was magically loaded with dogfights as our top-cover fighters leaned over and came roaring straight down to tangle with tho invaders. Bombs thudded into the airstrip. Machine-guns chattered all over the sky as everybody seemed to be chasing everybody, holding down their trigger switches as they went. The newly arrived antiaircraft units at the field opened fire, yet except for the two bombs which cratered the end of the strip, there was little damage. But there was plenty of noise. Poor old President Rhee had had another tough time of it, too. The attackers caught his plane in the act of taxiing down the runway for its take-off. The pilot had skidded to a stop and off they scampered into his sadly maltreated soybeans. General MacArthur arrived back at the field just as the Bataan was settling down for its landing. Realizing that it was my only chance for getting my pictures into New York in time for publication, I knew that I had to return to Japan on that plane. When I asked him he immediately answered, “Of course.” Then his eyes again flicked up to my cap and back to my face, and he turned with a little smile to speak to one of his staff. EARLY JULY: The second week of the war was heartbreaking for the handful of American soldiers who were rushed into Korea from Occupation duty in Japan. The men of the 24th Division were standing almost alone in the face of the massive Red front as it swept south over the land. South Korean Army resistance had wilted and nearly vanished after the initial sneak attack. The Americans could do no more than fight a bitter delaying action. Thirty-six hours of torrential rain had covered the enemy with an impenetrable cloak and given them time to build up heavy concentrations of armor and flak 32 l Ⅲ. Korea 1950 This is War!
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTMyNzcxNA==