Marshall McClintock

“ The plane was slipping down the sky fast, approaching the island. About ten feet above the water, Scoot leveled her off and pancaked into the water, trying to get his tail to act as a brake. The controls flew from his hands and his head hit the top of his cockpit. But he didn’t lose consciousness from the blow, even though he was badly stunned.
He saw the rocky shore of the island rushing toward him as the plane seemed to skim over the water. Then he struck the rocks, was thrown forward, and heard a ripping, tearing sound as the bottom of his fuselage was crushed and mangled on the rocks. ”

“ Dick smiled.
“I get into the parachute troops after my basic,” Tony said. “And then, first, they teach me how to fall down. As if I haven’t fallen down plenty of times when I was a kid. And from places just as high as they made me jump off of, too. When you’re a kid duckin’ away from the gang from the next block, you know how to climb and dodge—and fall. Then the practice jumps from the tower! What do they need a tower for? Why not just get us up in a plane and toss us out? We’ll learn how to use a ’chute fast enough that way, don’t you worry.” ”

“ When it was all over, and half the Jap force lay at the bottom of the sea while the rest ran for cover, pursued by American planes, the men on the Plymouth wearily surveyed the damage done to their ship. It was plenty, but a month in port would fix her up again. As they headed slowly for Pearl Harbor for repairs, Scoot and March got the big surprise of their lives. They had no thought of making heroes of themselves, and they never could figure out how, in the heat of battle, any officer could have seen just what they did. ”

“ If the town were to be wiped off the map forever, it would be all right if it meant we got rid of the Germans. But what about the people here?”
“Your own people must be warned in time so they can get to the hills,” Dick replied. “But not too long in advance must they know, lest some word leak out. Tonight you can tell those closest to you, those who can surely be trusted completely. Then, on the night before the wrecking of the dam, these can pass the word to all others. They must filter out into the hills, trying their best to cause no wonderment among the Germans.” ”

“ Facing the bow of the ship, March saw the forward bulkhead of the control room. Yes, there was the huge steering wheel with the helmsman holding it lightly. It seemed strange for a helmsman to be looking at a wall, or instrument panels on a wall, rather than at the open sea over which he steered. March knew that the controls were electrically operated by the wheel and thus easy to handle. But every man was made to steer it by hand on occasion—and that took real strength!—in order to be ready for that emergency that might come when the electric current failed. ”

“ The day seemed endless for them all. They could do nothing but sit and wait for darkness. For men who loved action as these men did, it was difficult to sit still while there was so much to be done.
Even after darkness came, there was a long wait ahead of them, for they were not to meet Tomaso until after midnight. Every fifteen minutes from ten o’clock on, Vince or Max asked Dick if it weren’t time to start yet. These two particularly were restless, for they had done nothing at all since their landing by parachute. Dick and Tony had at least gone into the town and laid plans. ”

“ March and Scoot had sat next to each other in the big assembly hall of Hampton High School on the first day. They had taken to each other at once and from that time had been the closest of friends. Some people had wondered at the deep friendship of these two who, in some ways, seemed so different. Scoot had always been a noisy and boisterous kid, eager for any activity that meant speed, excitement, and a little bit of danger. ”

“ These men knew, too, that the Rangers would get to the top of their hill on time, even though many of them would be carrying guns and mortars.
“Okay—now here’s where we come in,” Scotti said. “Just after dawn we fly past the Wadizam Pass, to the north of it, circling around as if we were trying to sneak in just when we had enough light to see but before the Germans would see us. Of course, they will see us and we know it. But they haven’t got much of an opinion of us as soldiers or tacticians yet; so they’ll think we’re fools enough to believe we can get away with it.” ”

“ Dick said, “that not everybody is as agile as you are. And they don’t have the same attitude as you. They feel a little funny at first, jumping out of an airplane. And they’re likely to get mixed up and forget which side the ripcord is on. Some people tighten up and get panicky. They’ve got to learn things slowly, get used to them.”
“What’s so hard about it?” Tony demanded. “You jump, and you don’t even have to worry about the ripcord. It’s hooked inside the plane.”
“Well, they’ve got to teach you how to land right,” Dick countered. ”

“ But March felt better when he got on the train for Baltimore. It was good to have seen Scoot for even that short time. There were a million other things they could have talked about, but they had got close to one another again in that time and they had gained greater spirit from their companionship.
He tried not to think that he might not see Scoot again—ever. But he couldn’t help facing it.
“After all,” he told himself, “submarine duty is no bed of roses. People do get killed in it. And flying a Navy fighter against the Japs is not the safest occupation in the world. ”

“ Many others have been evacuated to the factories in the north. And all our young men—they were in the army, of course. Some are dead, others are prisoners of the Germans. We don’t hear much. But here in Maletta we try to keep on laughing and smiling. Why, we still have the opera once a week.”
He glanced apologetically at Dick. “I know that Ricardo Donnelli would find our opera company a poor one. Our costumes are shabby now, our sets falling to pieces. The good young voices are not here, but the performances still give us great joy—almost the only joy we still have in our lives.” ”

“ Always on the lookout for enemy ships, officers and crew alike had been disappointed to run into nothing but an American task force, consisting of a carrier, a cruiser, and three destroyers racing north at full speed.
March had tried to make out the name of the carrier, and he would have been delighted to know it was the Bunker Hill carrying Scoot and his companions from their Truk attack to a small action against another Jap-held island farther north. But even American subs submerged and ran deep and quiet when American ships were near by. ”

“ Max said. “If you want to be just Sergeant Dick Donnelly, then you can be it. You see, I had an uncle and aunt in Germany that I loved a lot. They didn’t like Hitler and they said so. They were that kind. And they’re dead now—died in stinking concentration camps. So I’m not thinking much about anything, either, until I get even for them. It’s going to take a lot of dead Nazis to make up for Uncle Max and Aunt Elsa.”
“For a bunch of guys who say they want to fight so much,” Dick laughed, “we seem to be taking it pretty easy, sitting here in the shade on a nice afternoon.” ”

“ March shook his head. “And to think that I’ve hardly seen a submarine!” he muttered to himself. “And I surely haven’t been inside one. But Scoot’s already been up in a plane! It just goes to show,” he told himself, “that submarines are tougher than planes. Just think of the tests we’ve got to go through before they can even let us take a ride in a sub. With a flier all he’s got to do is pass a physical test!” ”

“ We have heard of a big attack by the American forces.”
“Yes, that is why we must have the radio,” Dick said. “We want to report to our Army how many trucks and tanks and soldiers come here. Can you learn that for us each day?”
“My friends and I—we can learn,” Tomaso said. “Tomorrow morning I will tell them, and each evening I can give you the information. But I do not tell even my friends where the radio is. They need not know, and if the Germans should try to torture the information out of them, they will not be able to weaken.” ”

“ March swallowed and then almost laughed as he saw the two rows of students earnestly swallowing. Then he realized he had not looked at the pressure dial for some time. He was startled to see it at thirty-five pounds. It was a good deal hotter now and everyone was sweating profusely. March looked around at the others carefully, forgetting his concern about himself in his interest in the others. ”

“ And then they saw the old man making his way up the hill toward them. They waited in silence until he came under the trees, and then Tony spoke.
“Hello, Uncle Tomaso,” he said gently. “We’re here.”
“Yes, I see,” the old man said. “With your radio—and a ladder, too.”
“We have everything,” Dick said. “And these are two more American soldiers. You may have heard of this big fellow—he’s Vince Salamone.”
The old man looked at the home-run king and his eyes shone!
“Of course!” he cried. “Who in the world does not know the world’s greatest baseball player? ”

“ Scoot said. “I used to dream of flying a Wildcat—thought there just couldn’t be anything better than that. And I still thought so when I finally flew one off the training carrier. She was an old one, but still a Wildcat. Then when I get here on the Bunker Hill, I find the brand new F6F’s—and Hellcat is the right name. They’re what a Wildcat pilot dreams up as impossibly perfect when he thinks about what kind of plane he’ll have in Heaven.” ”

“ Tony said. “All anxious to get into the thick of it. It seems as if our gang is just about the blood-thirstiest in the Army. That’s why they all joined up with the parachute troops—thought they’d get first crack at the enemy if they dropped behind their lines.”
“We’ve got quite a cross-section in our own plane,” Dick said. “We’ve all got special reasons, the three of us here, for wanting to fight and fight hard. ”

“ March felt just as well about the news. He would have a chance to learn everything about the submarine from one end to the other. He would actually navigate the ship a few thousand miles, but without having to worry too much about enemy ships or mines or planes while doing it. By the time they left San Francisco he’d feel like a veteran submariner. He would be able to handle his regular tasks without thinking about them, and he’d be able to take actual fighting with vigor and enthusiasm. ”

“ If I’m that kind, then you don’t want to find yourself out in the Pacific undergoing a depth-charge attack with me alongside you, suddenly going nuts inside a very small submarine.”
“I should say not,” Bigelow said. “And it’s nothing especially against a fellow if he can’t stand this particular kind of strain that he gets in a sub. Maybe he’s got a kind of claustrophobia—fear of being shut up in small places—without knowing it. Maybe he’d make a swell aviator or bombardier or the bravest PT-boat Skipper in the world! It’s just that submarining takes certain qualities, that’s all. ”

“ Many have run away, to the north, afraid of the advancing Americans and afraid of their own townspeople, too. But there are a few left. There is Garone the banker and Balardi who was Mayor under Mussolini. He is still here. And they have a few sniveling underlings. But there are not many. Some there are who fear for their own necks. They will not actively fight the enemy, but they would never betray us, either.”
“We’ll put ourselves in your good hands,” Dick said. “You can be our guide and helper here in Maletta.”
“Is the town still the same?” Tony asked. ”

“ Sutherland took Stan and March around the control room, explaining the various instruments and levers, answering their questions.
“What beats me, sir,” Stan said, “is the number of different things you have to remember! I just can’t conceive of doing all that so fast and not forgetting a thing.”
“It seems like that at first,” Sutherland said. “But after you do it a few times, you get used to it. Just think—driving a car is pretty complicated if you’ve never even seen a car before. ”

“ I’m just shootin’ at an idea I hate, an idea that will ruin the whole world if it isn’t stopped. If the other guys are supportin’ that idea with guns, then I’ve got to shoot ’em, that’s all. And it doesn’t make any difference if they’re Italians or not. It doesn’t make any difference if they’re Americans. If any Americans try to make our country like Germany, then I’ll shoot them too.”
Max Burckhardt had wandered up and joined them as they sat under the shade of a palm tree.
“Tony’s right,” the big private said. “But I’m itchin’ especially to get at some Germans, even if my folks were German. ”

“ And Scoot knew, too, that two groups were high in the air, serving as cover for just such a Jap attack.
“Those Nips may not know it,” he muttered to himself, “but I’ll bet there’s a flock of Hellcats coming out of the sun right behind ’em.”
The Zeros were larger now, growing larger every minute as they dived down at the formations of American planes trying to climb away from the field. It looked as if all the planes were determined to crash head-on into each other at the greatest possible speed.
Scoot heard a short command come over the radio from his squadron leader. He grinned. ”

“ Dick said. “We’ve got a lot of ammunition.”
“Until they think to circle up in back the way you did,” Scotti said. “Dick, you’re a fool to have come back here. I’m done for, anyway, but you can get away. Our men must be right over the crest of the hill. You can get up to them all right.”
“Nothing doing,” Dick said. “I’m sticking with you.”
“That’s plain suicide!” Scotti fumed. “As your superior officer I order you to leave.”
Dick just laughed as they both gave another burst of fire toward the Germans who continued their forward creeping toward the entrance of the cave. ”

“ When pressure is reduced too much too suddenly, some of the gases in your blood form bubbles—just like a kettle boiling. And those bubbles in your blood can cause plenty of trouble.”
Stan turned to March. “Sure,” he said. “Remember those experiments everybody has in first-year chemistry? Making water boil when you put it on a cake of ice? The water’s under pressure in a closed container, and cooling it condenses the steam vapor so that pressure is reduced. So the air forms bubbles which escape when pressure goes down.” ”

“ Lieutenant Scotti smiled. A well-placed light mortar shell had just landed in a cluster of three German trucks on the road below. And that had happened shortly after word had come of the Ranger attack on the remainder of the German force in the Wadizam Pass itself. Everything was going not only according to plan, but even more swiftly and efficiently. The enemy had fallen into the trap completely, splitting his forces so that the Ranger attack could sweep him off his feet.
“I wonder how Dick Donnelly’s making out,” he thought to himself. “He’s in the tough spot and may never get back. ”

“ Stan and March didn’t know what to say. They liked the young man, but their surprise at his youth bothered them. He seemed to sense their thoughts, and smiled.
“Don’t be upset,” he said. “I’m not quite as young and inexperienced as I look. Graduated from Annapolis six years ago, been in submarines ever since. I was executive officer on the Shark in the Pacific since the war began—happened to be at Pearl Harbor when it happened. On my last patrol lost my Skipper—God bless him—when he had a heart attack. ”

“ As the smoke cleared away, Dick saw that the two grenades tossed by Lefty and his men had done a thorough job. The shack was a pile of lumber, and some of it had toppled to the ground below the dam wall. The Germans who had hidden in the shack during the fake surrender were no more—and neither were their companions alive. Dick and his men advanced on the run, arriving at the dam as Bert’s group rushed up from the left. Lefty’s men stayed where they were, waiting for the others to join them. ”

“ There are lots of young fellows going out on such jobs who won’t be coming back from them. How do I know but what Scoot and I—or one of us, anyway—are among them?”
But such thoughts did not stay with him long. No matter what the facts of the matter or the statistics of casualties in wartime, March felt very confident of returning home safe and sound and going on to live to be at least ninety-five. As the train rolled along ever nearer to Baltimore, he thought more and more of Kamongo, his new home, his new ship on which he was to be the navigation officer. ”

“ If the Germans get any force around there in time, it won’t amount to much and our men can get back here fast without being cut off. The bridge is harder, and the Germans will want to save that. But their force can really come at it from only one direction and our men can just back up the hill here, fighting them off as they do it.”
“Yes, I can see that,” the sergeant said.
“But the dam’s a different matter,” Scotti went on. “In the first place, they’ve probably got a squad or two on guard there, with radio. So you’ll have to make a feint at a real attack to make our bluff work. ”

“ At that moment, Scoot pressed the trigger on his own machine gun, but it was too late. The Jap had darted out of range just in time. He was so fast that Scoot could not possibly maneuver his slow ship to battle him.
“There’s only one chance,” Scoot said to himself, “and I’m going to try it. If this monkey is the bad shot most of them are, he may miss on his first try, even with a set-up like me. If he does, that’s my chance.” ”

“ Tony agreed. He was becoming more excited at the prospect of placing his radio over German headquarters.
“Then you could pull up the radio equipment with a rope,” Dick said. “And one of us could climb up to help you. After all, you’ve got to have some one with you when you broadcast, to crank the generator handles and give you enough power.”
“How do we know the tower is strong enough?” Tony asked.
“It is strong enough,” the old man said. “It has stood all these years. A bolt of lightning did no more than knock a few rocks off the top.” ”