_During a lull in the fight, a Marine machine gunner takes a break for
coffee, with his sub-machine gun on his knee and his 30-caliber light
machine gun in position._]
When Vandegrift returned to Guadalcanal, Holcomb moved on to Pearl
Harbor to meet with Nimitz, carrying Halsey’s recommendation that, in
the future, landing force commanders once established ashore, would
have equal command status with Navy amphibious force commanders. At
Pearl, Nimitz approved Halsey’s recommendation--which Holcomb had
drafted--and in Washington so did King. In effect, then, the command
status of all future Pacific amphibious operations was determined by
the events of Guadalcanal. Another piece of news Vandegrift received
from Holcomb also boded well for the future of the Marine Corps.
Holcomb indicated that if President Roosevelt did not reappoint him,
unlikely in view of his age and two terms in office, he would recommend
that Vandegrift be appointed the next Commandant.
[Illustration: