The Conquering Tide: War in the Pacific Islands, 1942–1944

by Ian W. Toll

Union leftists, veterans of the labor struggles of the 1930s, insisted that the war was a conspiracy to enrich politicians and fill the coffers of their capitalist benefactors. Archibald writes of “an atmosphere of lassitude” that “flooded like a heavy vapor over the yards, and everywhere was evidence of an incredible waste of time.”6 Loafing was widespread, and it was organized. Newspapers were smuggled into the yard and passed around. In out-of-the-way corners of the ships and machine shops, men and women played cards, threw dice, or exchanged gossip. Lookouts were posted at doors, and coded signals warned of an approaching superintendent. The malingerers maintained that the front office did not really care how hard they worked, because the yard would go on making money hand over fist no matter how many ships it turned out.