Tazewell (APA 209) - Naval Cruise Book

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NX xxxxxxxx xxXXXWlXXX xxXW'W Whxxxxxxxxfg xxxxXXXxxxxxXV'xxx XXXXXXXXXXXVQ Although the war was won, our work was far from completed. lt was time to load up for another cruise on the Pacihc. We sailed from San Pedro on August twenty-sixth with a very unhappy load of I ir W A S Hz:-Eizx Sl: Pi! - S ':::.:'ffg '1 P 1+ ii w ::::.:::' 'l E-eaiiiiigigsaii1i.itt: .ii1a-T-1,-f '--- ' 195113, sg' WA I ENIJEII. MACARTHUR Wlll RULE JAPAN Hirohito to Stay as Figureheacb Formal Armistice Will Be Signed in Few Days Doggiesn on board. This time our destination was Manila, largest city of the Philippine Islands. We steamed past Hawaii and on to Eniwetok where we stopped for fuel and mail. Another week brought us through the San Bernardino Straits and up into Man- ila Bay. Manila Bay was liter- ally loaded with ships. Here were transports, hospital ships, merchant vessels of many nations, amphibious craft of all descriptions and even the British f 1 r 26 carrier lllzmriom. Here and there a humbled Jap freighter furtively stuck her bow out of the water. Inside the breakwater smaller japanese vessels lay helplessly on their sides. We all had oppor- tunity to make liberty in war-torn Manila. Here was an opportunity to see the ravages of war first- hand. What had once been a beautiful city was transformed into a rubble of bricks, tottet- ing buildings and hungry people. Whole areas of the city were in ruins. Pock-marked buildings still standing, attested to heavy artillery fire and street fighting. Shops had

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V ..'f., . , wwf' fp ii . in . . i- w gg It . g g XXNSXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXX KXXX , . f'tig.3uxxxxXxxw,x Xyxxxxxxxxxxxgsx XXXyxxxxxxxxxxx..4-Lux the 3U9th, and the .5lUth. A sick man didn't have a chance with all those Docs aboard, Our holds were bulging with medical equipment and we had a capacity load of troops. On the twenty-seventh of june we reluctantly shoved off for Tinian in the Marianas where the Army was plan- ning a large hospital in preparation for the invasion of japan. The two-week trip was made on an unusually calm sea. Arriving at Tinian we quickly de- barked the troops at their new home. ff l Then we moved over to the neighbor- A ing island of Saipan to await further orders. It was quite a thrill to watch the huge Superforts take off loaded with bombs for the japanese home islands. Both Saipan and Tinian had large B-29 fields. In a few days we were again headed Stateside with a small group of Marines who had been overseas for many months. july twenty-ninth saw the Tazewell anchoring in the bay just off Long Beach, California. Scuttlebutt had it that another yard period was in the offing so the Exec's Office was deluged with leave requests. Many of us were able to take substantial leaves, and it surely was great to get home again, if only for a short visit. A Then things began to happen. The B-29's had AA 5 l 4 T been pounding japan's cities unmercifullyg peace feelers were emanating from Tokyo. Then came the atomic bombs which virtually demolished W? Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Rumors came thick and fast of japanese surrender and, almost before we realized it, the war in the Pacific had ended. 25 .-...,,..g.. -f-,A-env.,-X..-.-. .-4. 1'i ?'T R'1 M-rn-.1

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5 Ui xxXXNXXXxx xXXxXx yxxx 'lllxxxxxxxxxxxwxx xxxNXXxxxxxx9'xxxxx xxxxxKXxxxxxxxSX'3'Xxx l blossonntd .innilst boinbtdfout buildings, selling articles of all descriptionsg lr.intlem.ule sanilals, woven baskets and purses, daintily embroidered handker- tlnels, .intl water--bnllalo liorns, Little Filipino boys darted among the ctoWdS of sightsseers selling lap invasion money, postage stamps and cheap rings. Prices were extremely high. XXforn-out trucks and small, pony 8 drawn carts, known as carromatas furnish- f ed the only civilian transportation on the Y. streets which were narrow and dusty. The military was much in evidence with an endless stream of jeeps, trucks, tanks, and ambulances rushing here and there. XXt'e soon received orders to debark our troops at San Fernando Bay in upper Lu- zong then back to Manila to tie up at a pier. Here we loaded oc- V. cupation forces of the Eighth Army headed for Yokohama in japan. Q 4 ' g 4 . . D I Leaving Manila we sailed southward to Batangas. Then on to Legaspi where we met the remainder of our squadron. The village of Legaspi is located at the foot of Mount Ma- yon,altitude of 7,943 feet, :S f- considered the worldls most perfectly shaped ac- the tive volcano. An eruption takes place every ten years. The next one is ex- . rf 7 pected in 1948. We were given a liberty here and were able to barter with the natives. The boys came back from liberty loaded down with ba- nanas, pineapples, woven l baskets and grass skirts. 27