spence
Posts: 5400
Joined: 4/20/2003 From: Vancouver, Washington Status: offline
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DATELINE PERTH, AUSTRALIA - 8 March 1942 Local military officials were surprised this morning when U.S. Army General Douglas MacArthur, commander of the American Army in the Philippines disembarked from the USS Canopus, the submarine tender which broke through the Japanese blockade and pulled into Perth the previous day. General MacArthur, accompanied by his family and several key staff officers, apparently waited until all of the wounded soldiers transported on the Canopus were unloaded and taken to hospital before making his presence known. Met on the docks by Brigadier Curtiss and few members of the local press, General MacArthur declared, "The President of the United States ordered me out of the Philippines to help organize the Allied defense and to prepare for our inevitable counteroffensive. I have come through and I SHALL RETURN". After speaking momentarily with Brigadier Curtiss, MacArthur held a brief ceremony with the paraded crew of the Canopus. The ship's Captain, CDR Earl LeRoy Sackett, of Nebraska was awarded the Navy Cross for conspicuous gallantry in action against the enemy both in the Philippines and for bringing his ship and its occupants safely through the blockade. The Canopus provided torpedos and other maintenance facilities to the American submarines while in Manila. CDR Sackett ordered that the ships' motor whaleboats be fitted out with light artillery and machine guns and set to patrol Manila Bay and the coasts of the American positions on Bataan. These "Mickey Mouse Battleships" destroyed several Japanese landing barges and in a number of actions prevented Japanese landings behind the American lines. Bombed many times the Canopus suffered only minor damage and its guns shot down at least two float-type Japanese Zeros. MacArthur also awarded a Navy Cross to Ltjg Frank Landers, captain of the American torpedo boat PT-32. Ltjg Landers' PT Boat is credited with sinking one Japanese Destroyer (thought to be the very modern Asagumo) and damaging a second destroyer and a transport, both of which subsequently sank in a series of engagements near Davao on the island of Mindanao. Following the presentations MacArthur left with Brigadier Curtiss to an undisclosed location.
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