Ault (DD 698) - Naval Cruise Book

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Q For the first time, ships of the force bombarded Hokkaido. On the AULT, Commander David S. Edwards , Jr., United States Navy, relieved Commander Joseph C. Wylie, Jr., United States Navy as commanding officer on July Sth- Then on the H5-9'l'G of 18-19 July, our destroyer squadron, with cruiser division 18, steamed almost to Tokyo itself, conducting an anti-shipping 3WeeP ef Sage-mi Wan, and bombarding Nojima 5-ski. This boldest venture of all seemed to good to be true when we completed the mission and rejoined the force without having been taken under fire, either from shore batteries or by enemy planes. We knew that victory could not be far off now. On August 8th, while cruising off Honshu, AULT had a distinguimed passenger, Rear Admiral Byxd, whom we transferred from ALABAMA to ESSEX. But the very necct day, just when things seemed brighter, came another grim reminder that we were very much at war. The Destroyer BLRIE of our Squadro while on picket duty, was attacked and severly damaged by a Jap euicider that came screaming and burning down into her forward superstructure. SURRENDER Thesewere strange days, days of routine flight operations, of alert apprehension, and rumors of peace and Japanese surrender. Strangest and exciting of all was the great day, the 15th of August. President E'z.sw1: 1 Japanese had accepted the terms of th6'P0t3d8-m ultimatumi has .urffrtmed to the voice of Admiral Halsey on the radi0 as he gave thanks f ,,.n 1 our victory and a 'Well Done' to the force. But at the close of his address, we went to general quarters. L7 JSP Pla-nee 'er' shot dom! That was virtually the end of the war for ue. On the 21st we joined Task Group 38.14, On the next day AULT added to her distinguished list of . p .9- na .1 J. 'Y . , 1 ' -A 1 - ,M .-.,-..,.,--s--.V-W -V f ' ' ' - ' ' ' 'T J ' H ...kk-A ,I ', H ,mm , Q V W k , . ...-., .- -e--M---'-W' ' ' Q ' -,W QM , 7,5 ,, , V ., Q , . . - - V A -

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M passengers Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser, Commander of the British Pacific Fleet, Whom we transferred from his flagship, DUKE OF YORK to our carrier IORKTOWN. A glad sign of the times was the transfer of the first contingent of men to leave this ship under the Navy Demobilization system, on 30 August. September 2nd, and the great day of the surrender ceremony. Aura' was fortunate to the last, and nlth Admiral H.F. Kingman, Commander Battleship Division 9, and Commodore Higgins aboard , she steamed into Tolqo Bay for that grand occasion, anchoring just a shouting distance from the MISSOURI as due had been in New York Navy Yard on the other side of the world :Ln the month they both were commissioned, a cycle had been ccmpleted, a good job well done, and there our story may rest. -ILC-