(See Cover)
A Japanese named Nagano had an American named Knox feeling jittery last week. Osami Nagano is Chief of Japan's Naval Staff, and last week his Navy was up to no good in the South Pacific. U.S. Navy Secretary Frank Knox, just back from the South Pacific with his cheeks full of optimism, grew a little jumpy in a press conference when reporters began asking what Nagano's ships were doing.
Was a great big fight going on?
No, said the Secretary.
But the Japanese had announced sinking two battleships in an air-sea clash off Rennell Island (TIME, Feb. 8). That certainly sounded like a big battle.
Said the Secretary, sharply: "A lot of preliminary dispositions are going on—but no pitched battles of any kind as yet. Any assumption that last night's communique indicated a tremendous battle in progress is an incorrect assumption."
But, said a reporter, the communique specifically suggested just that.
"Let me see the communique," said the Secretary. "I don't think it did."
Mr. Knox then read a passage from the communique: "The increased activity on the part of the Japanese indicates a major effort to regain control of the entire Solomons area. . . ." He then commented: ". . . 'indicates a major effort to regain control.' Well, that may be so. But it would appear to be only an indication, only a speculative proposition. We don't know exactly what they are planning."
Knox's Point. The difficulty of knowing what Admiral Osami Nagano has planned is far more than the usual difficulty of guessing an enemy's moves. That is partly because Nagano, in a race of inscrutable men, is notoriously tight of tongue, partly because the Japanese have a mania for secrecy. It is perhaps mostly because probabilities about the Japanese in war cannot be based on the ordinary human standards. Japs fight differently.
But even taking these difficulties into consideration, even without the special information available to Mr. Knox, it was easy last week to see that something big was brewing.
> A U.S. convoy of transports, apparently going to Guadalcanal and covered by a naval task force, had been attacked twice. The first attack was 60 miles due south of Guadalcanal, off Rennell Island. The Japs claimed two battleships, three cruisers.
> According to Tokyo, a scouting task force of U.S. cruisers and destroyers was attacked by the Japs south of Santa Isabel Island—up the slot from Guadalcanal. The Japs claimed a cruiser and a destroyer.
> A.P.'s Bill Hippie reported from Guadalcanal: "Aerial observers reported tonight that a large force of Japanese warships was headed for Guadalcanal." Nothing more was announced about this contact.
> At least one Japanese carrier task force was apparently in the area. Unusually strong resistance was met by Fortresses raiding Japanese vessels in the Buin area up the slot (20 Zeros shot down three Fortresses and damaged one badly). This was interpreted in Washington as meaning that a carrier was nearby.