More than 2,400 men had been lost, either dead or missing. It was one of the worst periods in American military history; but gradually, fresh troops were pouring into the country. The quality of hardware was improving. The real question was whether this small, outmanned handful of American troops could win its fight against time before being driven into the sea. There was fear of an Asian Dunkirk. General Walton Walker, who had become commander of the Eighth Army, got edgier and edgier.
