The Gisborne Herald. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED “THE TIMES” GISBORNE, TUESDAY, OCT, 6, 1942. PACIFIC OFFENSIVE.

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 20907, 6 October 1942, Page 2

The Gisborne Herald. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED “THE TIMES” GISBORNE, TUESDAY, OCT, 6, 1942. PACIFIC OFFENSIVE.

Although there can be no question that, for- the ”time rr being at ' least, events in the Pacific have taken a favourable turn,- there is still an inclination to adopt a cautious note in commenting, about the position. The 'official mind, in particular; seems ,tc revolt at the idea of accepting things at their face value —to assume that there must be an adverse' storm after every lull arid' that good news must Inevitably, be followed by bad. War .is invariably a grim record of ups and 'dowris; of successes and reverse's'. ' It ‘used to be axiomatic among' military ■leaders that gains should be exaggerated and losses minimised, but in this war in the Pacific, in particular, the process seems to have been Reversed. Every setback has been accompanied by gloomy predictions' of' worse to come 'arid every success has been qualified by warnings that the advantage gained may be only temporary. The trouble seems to be that the politicians suffer from art .inferiority complex and are unable to convince themselves that the Allied -forces really are capable of “inflicting defeats upon the Japanese. The whole situation Should." bri "’reviewed ’'dispassionately and the firs];; thing, to be done, without reaching the ’stage "of unwarranted optiriusm; Is to give frill credit for the successes already achieved. ' What has happened in the Pacific in'the past few months? What real gains have the Japanese made since the flood tide of their offensive Was halted? The answer is that they have gained nothing arid lost a good deal. Primarily, they lpst their hold on the Solomons Islands;' the niost important base in this" part of the- Pacific. At the same .time,; it is true, they made some limited advances in' New Guinea. They landed at Milne Bay arid' they, succeeded in cTos'Sirig'th'e Oweri Stan-' ley range. Perversely enough, but tunning 'true to form, most Australian commentators allowed' ’the minorreverses in New Guinea to obscure the really brilliant victory in the Solonions. Tt v?as suggested at the time that’ so long as the Allies could hold the Solomons New Guinea really mattered little in the ultimate ‘ scheme 1 of things. This viewt is now apparently being generally accepted—even'by the Japanese. They were routed at Milne Bay arid they are retreating as fast as they can ip New Guinea. How far they will retire remains to be seen, but the indications are that they have beep forced to ' realise" that New Guinea is useless to'them ufiless they can recapture the' Solomons, which may now be their'immediate'aim.' In Any event, the Australians have now learned that they were frightened by the shadows of clouds in New Guinea and overlooked the substance of the gains in the Solomons.

It is desirable,' if only for the sake of morale, to ‘ consider the present situation in the Pacific area as a whole. The preddfmriating picture is one of a general Japanese retreat —the Solomons; 1 New"" Guinea, and China. Where they retreat the Allies advance. In the Aleutians the Allies have advanced without a corresponding Japanese'retreat', but here" too, unless they can muster air power to match that of the Americans, they will sooner or later-Be-forced to retire. In effect, the Allies are making a three-pronged 'drive against the Japanese. It may take some time to develop momentum, but the foundations of it are already there—from North America, from China, arid ’from tne south-west Pacific the Allies will ultimately close in on the enemy. In the' mearitirrie? the Japanese Have been halted wherever they sought to advance and have been compelled to consolidate their positions within a circle which is slowly but surely contracting. They will' stubbornly defend their positions, but 1 their' ability to resist Will depend, 1 in the maiin, upon their sea and air-power, both of which are rapidly diminishing arid neither of which" can be replace,& at a rate comparable either to their' losses or to that of the Allies. These losses will be a vital factor in deciding the war in the Pacific. ’ H-,

It is reported from Tokio to-day that another naval'battle is being fought in the Pacific. ’ The news is not confirmed, but it Is probably correct because the stage has now been reached Where the Japanese must make a desperate challenge for sea sripremacy or else be prepared to retreat still further. Much will depend upon this battle when it comes, but " with memories of the Goral Sea and Midway still in. mind there need he 1 rio despair’ in advance of the event. As for the war in the air, it has becorrie a one-sided affair. Japan is'neither able to oppose Allied attacks, to make attacks of her own, . or to provide" air cover for her own troops. Even'if ft'is the case, as has been suggested, that she is conserving her strength for an all-out effort the very fact that she is compelled to adopt this policy may be regarded as an encouraging ' sign. Whatever the future may hold —and the wise course is to be prepared for anything—nothing can alter the fact that the present situation is definitely encouraging. ' ; This should be’recognised and from the position should be drawn hope for future developments and courage, if if be needed, to face any possible temporary reverses. At the very least, the ; Offensive action that is taking place should be accoriipanied by an offensive spirit among the people and tfiofr leaders.