_Upon reaching the beach, Marines quickly unload over the gunwales of
the amtrac which brought them in and rushed off the beaches. As the
frontlines advanced, succeeding waves of amphibian tractors will carry
the troops further inland._]
On W-Day, Lieutenant Colonel Ralph E. Houser’s 3d Battalion, 3d
Marines, was on the extreme left of the line, facing Adelup Point,
which, with Asan Point, marked the right and left flanks of the
invasion beaches. Houser’s troops could seize the territory in his zone
only with the support of tanks from Company C, 3d Tank Battalion, and
half-track-mounted 75mm guns. Holding up the regimental advance was a
little nose projecting from Chonito Ridge facing the invasion beach
in the 1st Battalion, 3d Marines’ zone. Early on W-Day (about 1045),
Captain Geary R. Bundschu’s Company A was able to secure a foothold
within 100 yards of the crest of this promontory, but could not hold
its positions in the face of intense enfilading machine gun fire.
Captain Bundschu called for stretchers and corpsmen, then requested
permission to disengage. Major Henry Aplington II, commanding the 1st
Battalion, was “unwilling to give up ground in the tight area and told
Captain Bundschu to hold what he had.”
Colonel Hall ordered the attack to continue in mid-afternoon behind a
massive 81mm mortar barrage. None of the companies of Major Aplington’s
battalion or Lieutenant Colonel Hector de Zayas’ 2d Battalion could
gain any ground beyond what they already precariously held. Their
opponent, the _320th Independent Infantry Battalion_ held fast.
A couple of hours later, Colonel Hall ordered another attack, with
Companies A and E in the fore. Major Aplington recalled:
When the 1700 attack went off, it was no change. E made little
progress and the gallant men of A Company attacked again and again,
reached the top but could not hold. Geary Bundschu was killed and
the company slid back to the former positions.
In the morning light of 22 July (W plus 1), that small but formidable
Japanese position still held firmly against the 3d Marines’ advance.
During the bitter fighting of the previous day, Private First Class
Luther Skaggs, Jr., of the 3d Battalion, led a mortar section through
heavy enemy fire to support the attack, then defended his position
against enemy counterattacks during the night although badly wounded.
For conspicuous gallantry and bravery beyond the call of duty, he was
awarded the Medal of Honor. On the 22d, Private First Class Leonard
F. Mason, a Browning automatic rifleman of the 2d Battalion, earned
a posthumous Medal of Honor for single-handedly attacking and wiping
out an enemy machine gun position which threatened his unit. Although
wounded severely, he rejoined his fellow Marines to continue the
attack, but succumbed to his fatal wounds.
[Illustration: _Seen from the air, 9th and 21st Marines assault Green
and Blue Beaches in the Northern Sector on 21 July, W-Day. In the
right, Asan Point casts a foreboding shadow over that portion of the
landing area. Note LSTs beaching at the left._]
During the day’s bitter fighting, Colonel Hall tried to envelop the
Japanese, using Companies A and C of Aplington’s battalion and Company
E of de Zayas’. On regimental orders, Aplington kicked it off at 1150.
It also got nowhere at first. Company A got to the top but was thrown
off. Company E was able to move ahead very slowly. Probe after probe,
it found Japanese resistance perceptibly weakening. By 1900, the men of
E reached the top, above Company A’s position. The Japanese had pulled
back. In the morning, a further advance confirmed the enemy withdrawal.
[Illustration: _BEACH SKETCH_
_NORTHERN SECTOR_