_Marines advance warily on Airfield No. 1 towards wrecked Japanese
planes in which enemy snipers are suspected of hiding. The assault
quickly moved on._]
Some of the bitterest fighting in the initial phase of the landing
continued to occur along the high ground above the Rock Quarry on the
right flank. Here the 25th Marines, reinforced by the 1st Battalion,
24th Marines, engaged in literally the fight of its life. The Marines
found the landscape, and the Japanese embedded in it, unreal:
There was no cover from enemy fire. Japs dug in reinforced concrete
pillboxes laid down interlocking bands of fire that cut whole
companies to ribbons. Camouflage hid all enemy positions. The high
ground on either side was honeycombed with layer after layer of Jap
emplacements.... Their observation was perfect; whenever a Marine
made a move, the Japs would smother the area in a murderous blanket
of fire.
The second day of the battle had proven unsatisfactory on virtually
every front. To cap off the frustration, when the 1st Battalion, 24th
Marines, finally managed a breakthrough along the cliffs late in the
day their only reward was two back-to-back cases of “friendly fire.” An
American air strike inflicted 11 casualties; misguided salvos from an
unidentified gunfire support ship took down 90 more. Nothing seemed to
be going right.
The morning of the third day, D+2, seemed to promise more of the same
frustrations. Marines shivered in the cold wind and rain; Admiral Hill
twice had to close the beach due to high surf and dangerous undertows.
But during one of the grace periods, the 3d Division’s 21st Marines
managed to come ashore, all of it extremely glad to be free of the
heaving small boats. General Schmidt assigned it to the 4th Marine
Division at first.
The 28th Marines resumed its assault on the base of Suribachi, more
slow, bloody fighting, seemingly boulder by boulder. On the west coast,
the 1st Battalion, 28th Marines, made the most of field artillery and
naval gunfire support to reach the shoulder of the mountain. Elsewhere,
murderous Japanese fire restricted any progress to a matter of yards.
Enemy mortar fire from all over the volcano rained down on the 2d
Battalion, 28th Marines, trying to advance along the eastern shore.
Recalled rifleman Richard Wheeler of the experience, “It was terrible,
the worst I can remember us taking. The Jap mortarmen seemed to be
playing checkers and using us as squares.” The Marines used Weasels,
handy little tracked vehicles making their first field appearance in
this battle, to hustle forward flame-thrower canisters and evacuate
some of the many wounded.
[Illustration: