Daly (DD 519) - Naval Cruise Book

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. Her Adventures fcontznuedl 1 Uur next duty found us as a unit in the screen of an escort-carrier force which was sending aerial strikes against Sakashima. These two weeks were a form of rest for all hands from the grueling schedule of the previous 71 days, although there were many times when 'GG-Q was sounded. Captain Bradley made it known to the crew on the 25th that we were headed back to Leyte Gulf. There was a feeling of loss and of sorrow in leaving behind our honored dead, to rest forever in the area of their heroic struggle. They were gone, but they would never be forgotten. The days between 27 ,I une and 12 July were spent at anchor in San Pedro Bay, Leyte Gulf, Philippine Islands. There was recreation for all. Each day, a small group would go to the beach, where they could have a beer or so, stretch their legs a bit, play ball or just sit around and trade a few souvenirs with the natives. Movies each night topside-rain or no rain. It was a rest that untangled the high-strung nerves of all. . In the early morning of 13 July, the DALY steamed out of Leyte Gulf en route to Buckner Bay, Okinawa, as a part of Task Force 95, under Rear Admiral F. S. Low, in company with cruisers and other destroyers. After fueling in Buckner Bay on the 16th, the force set the course for the East China Sea, for an anti-shipping sweep of the China coastal area. To avoid an approaching typhoon, the force changed course on the 17th and rc- tired fro-m the East China Sea. On the 20th, with the typhoon reported as hav- ing passed to the northward, the course was again ,set for our anti-shipping sweep of the East China Sea. Several small craft were encountered, but inves- tigation showed them to be Chinese. By the evening of the 24th, the force had returned and was anchored in Buckner Bay. Fifty nzne

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Her Adventures fcontinuedj After refueling, the force again left Okinawa for their second sweep of the East China Sea. This sweep took the DALY and accompanying ships to the region of the mouth of the Yangzte River. Once again, the only shipping encountered was small craft. The third sweep was started when the force left Okinawa on 1 August. This ship, in company with destroyers and cruisers, proceeded independently to make a close sweep of the entrance approaches to the Yangzte River. Sweeps were made each day until the 6th, when the force returned to Okinawa. The news of the first atomic bombing of Japan brought new hope, and prayers for an early end of the war rose among the men. In the days following the first announcement, and then the second bombing, there was a sense of an- ticipation of something big about to happen. Then came the electrifying news that Japan had offered to surrender. The first report of this from Japan came in just after dark. All hands were skeptical at first, then a wave of hilarity and celebration, colored with shouts, whistles, horns, bells, and gunfire and tracers and searchlights, spread over Buckner Bay, making a spectacle long to be remembered. So it had finally come-the end that we had paid for so dearly' and fought for so long and so hard. The days of waiting for confirma- tion from the Allied Powers were diflicult to bear out, but, at last, that became a reality, too. On 9 September, we left Okinawa en route to' Nagasaki, Kyushu, Japan, in company with escort carriers, cruisers and other destroyers, to participate in the occupation of Nagasaki and the evacuation of Allied prisoners of war from that area. The DALY entered the outer harbo-r of Nagasaki Ko just be- fore noon of the 14th and moored in the inner harbor in mid-afternoon. p At Anchor in Sasebo, Kyushu, Japan A S lxty one