Defended By Short!’

‘Protected By Kiminel Defended By Short!’

WHEN the Japanese made their sneak attack on Pearl Harbour, in the dawn of December 7, 1941—exactly 12 years ago—the Americans were taken completely by surprise, and suffered appalling naval losses.

An American serviceman reported, during the night, that he had picked up by radio the sounds of a large air fleet out over the Pacific: but his superiors did not take him seriously.

The Americans recovered from the disaster: but the two command ing officers in Hawaii, Admiral Kimmel and General Short, dis appeared forever from the ranks of officialdom.

Early in 1942, James Norman Hall, of Tahiti, famous American author, wrote these bitter verses. His famous collaborator, Charles Nordhoff, soon afterwards placed a copy in the hands of the Editor of Pacific Islands Monthly. A couple of years later, when the Americans were on top in the Pacific, the PIM Editor proposed to publish the verses, and submitted same accordingly to the Australian censors. The latter gentlemen nearly had a fit, and in sisted that the frightful composi tion be destroyed forthwith.

Hall died in July, 1951, but he left a copy of the verses with a friend in Tahiti, and this copy has just reached us. It is worth publishing now, because “Pearl Harbour” brought the United States into World War 11, angry and united as never before, and so changed the history of the world.

TIWAS some nights before X Christmas —a fateful nineteen — At the great island fortress, and all was serene.

Destroyers, battleships, cruisers and subs Were as safe at their berths as their men in their pubs Of the popular naval and movie resort, Protected by Kimmel, defended by Short.

In the hangars the bombers were safe, and the fighters As snug and as tight as the Saturday-night ers Who crowded the restaurants, beach-clubs and bars To dine and to dance to Hawaiian guitars.

Each high naval rating was safe at his post On (or at, to be truthful) the bridge he loved most.

Oh, the battles were grim and the rubbers hard-fought, And quarter was neither expected nor sought.

But the young personnel were all over the port

Defended by Kivnmel, protected by Short.

But it seems that one sergeant was still on the job, And it seems that he heard from his post the faint throb 4s of motors of bombers, some scores at the least. ‘What’s this!’ he exclaimed, as the chiming increased;

‘Who dares fly at night off the pleasure resort Protected by Kimmel, defended by Short?’ ‘Lieutenant,’ said he, (for a loot was in charge; The Service requires it, to see that a sarge Makes no silly mistakes or conjectures) T hear The throbbing of engines, and coming more near, I can’t have mistook. Shall we send the report To Admiral Kimmel or General Short?’ (Next Page)

‘Engines? Whose engines ?’ the loot made reply, Looking up from his ‘Look’ with a luck-lustre eye. ‘lt might be the Japs, sir,’ the sergeant put in. ‘Or a squadron of Huns coming round from Berlin?’

The other riposted, with withering scorn; ‘Or Italians attacking by way of Cape Horn!

Would you make us a laughing-stock all round the port Defended by Kimmel, protected by Short?’ ‘But I swear I can hear them’, the sergeant insisted. ‘And I swear we should honour the day you enlisted With banners and joy-bells and rousing salutes!’

Said the loot, as he eyed him from forehead to boots. ‘The British are coming! ... 7 mean to say, Japs!

Comrades, to arms! . . . You greatest of saps!

Fly to Washington! Hurry! Put on your silk socks!

Take a word-of-mouth message to Stimson and Knox!

Farewell, Paul Revere! And return to this port Intelligence Chief for both Kimmel and Short!’

The Sergeant was silent. What more could he say?

The other lieutenants were off for

the day And the night, and to-morrow was ‘hang-over Sunday’ ...

Pearl Harbour would open for duty on Monday.

He couldn’t go paging all over the port Calling ‘Admiral Kimmel’ or ‘General Short!’

Meanwhile, Honolulu was joy unconfined, And so was the ‘licker.’ They danced and they dined. ‘Aloha, aloha!’ sing wailing guitars. ‘All heaven is spangled with Hollywood stars.’

What else it ivas spangled with none of them guessed, For the East, it can never, no never meet West! ‘Aloha, aloha!’ the saxaphones cry. ‘Aloha, aloha!’ . . . response from the sky — But none of them heard, in that pearl of a port Protected by Kimmel, defended by Short.

Now heads without brains are beginning to spin, And the shank of the evening is wearing quite thin; So it’s hey, for the pleasure of hitting the hay And peacefully snoring through hang-over day; For what is so safe as an island resort Defended by Kimmel, protected by Short?

Hang-over it was—hut what hung overhead Cost six hundred wounded and three thousand dead.

Battleships, cruisers, destroyers sunk; Bombers and fighters a mass of old junk.

But junk has its uses. Enquire of the Jap The buyer, for years, of our mountains of scrap.

He will take and return it with joy to the port Protected by Kimmel, defended by Short.

Can history show a disaster so great?

Hongkong and Singapore left to their fate; The stout-hearted Dutch forced to battle alone, (Next Pa&e)

And gallant MacArthur! There never was known, For what hung in the balance, so huge a defeat.

Duty neglected . . . and ashes to eat!

Sing, Hey for the popular pleasure resort Protected by Kivnmel, defended by Short.

And while singing ‘Hey!’ let us sing very small For ourselves as a Nation. We’ve had a great fall Deserved and ordained; for who furnished the Jap With the oil and the steel and the mountains of scrap For the planes and the bombs that returned to the port Protected by Kimmel, defended by Short?

Sing, Hey, for the heads of the Nation! Sing, Hey For Congress and Public, as guilty as they!

Indict Uncle Sam and arraign him in court With Admiral Kimmel and General Short.

—Jnh, 1942.

Tenders have been invited locally by the British Solomon Islands Government for the construction of the Central Hospital, Honiara. It is to be built on the site of the exist ing temporary hospital a relic of the US Army between the Mat amkau River and Kukum.

r Mr. B. Brake, a N.Z. National Film Unit cameraman, visited Fiji and Tonga in October making col our-film tests in preparation for the Unit’s coverage of the Royal Visit in December. Such tests are necessary with colour film which is subject to changes in colour sensitivity under varying conditions of humidity and temperature. The 400 feet of film

exposed during October have been flown to London.

II Mr, G. Sims, Deputy Director of Education in Fiji, has been appointed Rector of Royal College, Mauritius. He went to Suva in 1948 after having served previously at Hongkong and Cyprus.