Dear Folks:
Now if I had a cigar I would be enjoying a truly pleasant summer evening. Beside me I have two cans of Regal Pale Beer, and their presence probably makes this the biggest day since D-Day. It was our first issue and consisted of three cans to last four days. It was the first I have seen or smelled in four and a half months. After each few lines I smack my lips like a well fed dog and sit back in great satisfaction. But this wasn’t all that made today memorable. Most of this business affords little cause for celebration but occasionally something comes along to make things seem brighter and build you up for a while longer. For the past three weeks our mail had, for some reason, been held up and we had nary a single communiqué from the home front, and yesterday it came rushing in. My own take was twelve although my stable mate who is married with a child rated forty-six of them. Among them was a letter from Mrs. Dick, one from Mark Gardner (whom I went to school with in Lincoln), Glen, Bill, Gram, and Kate along with three from you two. The one from Mrs. Dick was especially well written and her last paragraph was a treasure. I wish I could quote it to you. She wanted me to tell you that I had received it, so whenever you get down that way, give her the word. (At this point I open my second can of beer).
Yesterday I finally got around to packing the souvenirs and getting them sent. First each item had to be stamped by the Joint Intelligence then the box had to be passed by the local censor. You will probably wonder what is coming off when you get it. It’s a big box and is pretty heavy. In it is a Jap sword which is a highly prized souvenir and commands quite a price. Other items are a belt on which the sword is worn, a Jap battle flag, and a bayonet with scabbard and belt. I was with Dick when he found the sword and the other items he got himself. I sent it yesterday the 6th of August (I think he meant September) and insured it for $150. Dick was especially anxious that I got them sent okeh.
I felt quite honored at the compliments about my descriptive letter about Saipan. The fellows in the office told me about the same thing that you wrote and when I was writing it wondered what in the heck I was putting in it and what was there to write about. I let Dick read part of it and he said ‘Gee whiz you writin’ all that?’ and then he shook his head quite characteristically.
The paper enclosed is a mainland issue of the Dispatch as you can see – I thought you might be interested. A few points that aren’t often written about that the folks back home wonder about. Yesterday I was quite domestic – ran off a batch of laundry and ruined the King’s English saying this was a woman’s job. Hung it up to dry later and then it rained and soaked them good. I should of got married when I was at home. I read the little article about the veterans plan at the University and want to take advantage of it if I’m not ‘retained’ too long. But then I have a lot of ideas as to what I’m going to do when this is over, among others – getting married, seeing some more of the world, a job, and the highest priority right now, getting back to school. I’d work like a son-of-a-gun at it if I could get back. No more fooling around. Well it’s getting late sunset (the prettiest I’ve seen) and the electricity ain’t so I’ve got to put the cover on this thing and take a bath. I had intended to write more tonight but it’s just getting too dark to see so here’s adios for this time.
Love,
THE SAIPAN POST DISPATCHA Newspaper for Enlisted Men
Published by Army Garrison Force
Vol. I No. 41 (Mainland Issue) Saipan, M.I. Thursday, August 10,1944
EDITOR: This issue of the Saipan Post Dispatch has been prepared for the folks at home. Today’s issue contains in capsule from an historical resume of the Marianas. Certain portions of the masthead have been deleted to meet censorship requirements; subsequently daily issues of this paper are not to be mailed until further notice.
SAIPAN: The Marianas, of which Saipan was the capital, form a chain of 14 islands and one group of three small islands. All are of volcanic origin. They constitute together with the Marshall, Caroline and Gilbert Islands, the insular area of the Pacific known as Micronesia. The four principal islands of the Marianas are Saipan, Guam, Tinian and Rota. It is believed that the Marianas were originally people by the migration wave from Indonesia which settled in the rest of Micronesia, namely the Caroline, Marshall and Gilbert Islands. There are many resemblances between the Micronesians and the Polynesians. The latter settled in the remoter parts of the Pacific and differ in language and culture. In the Marianas, the Chamorros, of all the various Micronesian peoples, strongly resemble in physique, culture and language, the inhabitants of the Philippines and the Dutch West Indies.
In December 1520, Magellan with three ships sailed into the Pacific, and on March 6, 1521 discovered the islands of Guam, Rota, Saipan and Tinian. Eltano, Magellan’s subaltern, revisited Rota in 1524. The Spanish explorer, Leaisa, reached Guam in 1526. Admiral Logaspi landed on Saipan in 1564 and proclaimed sovereignty over the Marianas. Quiros, another Spanish explorer, reached Saipan in 1596. In 1668, Spain dispatched soldiers and missionaries to bring the Marianas under Spanish Control. The islands were then named the Marianas in honor of Queen Maria Ana, widow of Philip IV of Spain, by the Jesuit missionary, Diego Luis de Sanvitores, who arrived in Guam from the Philippines. The Spaniards ruled until 1898 when the American cruise ship Charleston, commanded by Captain Henry Glass, steamed into the harbor at Guam and opened fire upon Fort Santa Cruz. Through its capture, Guam was separated from the rest of the Marianas. In 1899, the Germans purchased the Marianas from the Spanish for $4,500,000 and ruled them, Guam accepted, until 1914. In October 1914, a Japanese naval squadron took possession of the German Marianas Islands. The principal objective of the Spanish administration was religious proselytism; the Germans wanted commercial expansion; the primary ends of Japanese policy were political and military. Great Britain by secret agreement in March 1917, recognized the claims of Japan to all former German possessions in the Pacific north of the equator. The approval of Franco and Russia was obtained by Japan. At Versailles, American pressure was appeased by the origin of the Class C Mandate which differed from outright annexation only by imposing on the mandatory power a number of obligations. The Marianas attracted little attention until 1932 when rumors gained currency that Japan was fortifying Truk and several other islands. Japan denied this and when she withdrew from the League of Nations in March 1935, most American jurists opined that she should forfeit her mandate and the islands revert to the League. Japan, however, kept the mandated territory, defining it as “an integral part of the Japanese empire.” After 1938, when Japan discontinued the submission of an annual report to the League, all pretense of international supervision vanished, and the islands were increasingly treated as a closed military area.
The native Chamorros at one time were skilled navigators and canoe builders; when into-island commerce was suppressed by the Spaniards, the Chamorros lost their skill and never regained it. The Carolinians were expert navigators and when they were allowed to settle on Saipan during the nineteenth century, the Spanish government, which had practically no means of transportation at its disposal, stipulated that the Carolinian settlers should make an annual voyage to Guam via Tinian carrying the produce of the region.
Saipan was colonized by Captain Brown, an American, between 1810 and 1815. Brown brought along several Americans and a few families of Hawaiians intending to set up a colony to trade with the whalers. Spaniards snuffed out this enterprise in 1815. Whalers visited the Marianas from 1825 until 1850, but their appearance had little effect upon the economy of the Marianas. In 1869, an Irishman named Johnson leased Tinian and did a prolific business in cattle and pigs until 1875.
The native Chamorros who numbered between 70,000 and 100,000 in the 1650 period have decreased through war, famine and disease to a little over 5,000 in the entire Marianas today. An infusion of Filipino and Spanish blood helped to save the Chamorros from extermination. Even the mixed group, which is now dominant, when added to the full-blooded Chamorro population does not exceed the 5,000 total. The trend created by the Spanish conquest virtually depopulated the natives of the Marianas. Severe epidemics of smallpox, measles, whooping cough, and scarlet fever, introduced mainly by visiting whalers, ran rampant through the Marianas and served to offset the natural population increase.
SAIPAN SHORTS:
….Tinian has been conquered. The expected banzai never developed.
.…The first motion picture show for American Troops on Tinian was held July 31st. Several thousand yards forward death stalked friend and foe.
.…The superman halo attached to the hips in the early days has disappeared. The burial of over 22,000 Japanese soldiers on Saipan brought home to Tokyo factual evidence of American power in the Pacific. The fanatic fight of the Japs to sudden death makes the war in the Pacific one of the bloodiest in the annals of American history. On Saipan, American casualties were over 15,000.
….Over 50 movie spots are operated on Saipan; some daily, others periodically. The Garrison Theater has a potential capacity of 7,500 two-high sandbag seats facing a raised screen in front of which is a regulation boxing area. This arena when completed will feature boxing bouts between Army, Navy and Marine pugilists. It will also be used by chaplains for religious services. Temporary staging will be added when “live” shows arrive on Saipan. The island will be dotted with theaters constructed similarly.
….The 100-minute rainfall last night failed to dislodge 5,500 Garrisoin Theater patrons. It seems that nothing short of an earthquake will discourage the crowds that attend the outdoor movies every night.
…..Chamorron, Korean and Japanese youths between the ages of 8 and 15 are given calisthenics daily.
..…A Jesuit missionary and 6 nuns escaped to the civilian camp a few days before Saipan’s fall.
….The Chamorro baseball team at the civilian camp has already trimmed an Army and Navy team. Baseball scouts should include this spot in their ivory hunting itinerary.
…..One word every Chamorro boy and girl knows is “okay” and they use it habitually.
…..The communication miracle wired throughout the entire island is colossal enough to secure a bow from AT&T.
…..The Engineers have received many commendations, including one from the Navy.
….The Signal Corps Repair Shop has done an outstanding job in the maintenance of motion picture equipment. They have gone out of their way on innumerable occasions to render technical advice and labor in order that “the show might go on”.
….The record of medical units on Saipan stands out in bold relief. During the changeover from foxhole operations to permanent hospital facilities, with American nurses, they have written a new epoch in medical history. The dispatch with which these units handled casualties in the bloodiest battle in the annals of American warfare reflects the extraordinary ability and skill of these responsible for its organization and operation.
….Congratulations to Connie Mack on his 50th anniversary in baseball.
….The Saipan Post Dispatch dedicates this issue to the St. Louis Post Dispatch as full payment for usurping part of their famous name and incorporating it into the masthead of the First American daily on Saipan, which as been published since July 1 (1944?). If we can approach in excellence the distant shadows cast from Pulitzer’s bulwark of news reporting, then Ralph Coghlan, Fitzpatrick, etc., can rest assured that the traditions of their perennial sheet will not be ravaged by a mimeographed upstart on bloody Saipan. We salute the St. Louis Muny Opera, Jack Shumacker’s famous turtle soup, Phil Hitchcock, Larry Goodwin’s St. Charles St. Lounge, Luke Sewell’s Browns, Cardinals, Ruggori’ Steak House where the late O. O. McIntyre dined, Parkview Hotel, Coronado, Anheuser-Busch, Griesedieck, Hyde Park, Alpen Brau, Falstaff, the Star-Times and Globe Democrat.
….The next issue will be dedicated to New York City
