That amounted to about half of Task Force 38, an armada of sixty steel ships with blue-gray camouflage patterns and soaring masts. They seemed to dwarf the adjoining islets. Lieutenant McCandless of the Seabees woke up that morning and walked down to the beach: “As I emerged from the palm trees and looked across the lagoon, I could hardly believe my eyes. It was full of warships—all sizes and types. Aircraft carriers, battleships, cruisers, tankers, destroyers, ten or twelve submarines, etc., all riding peacefully at anchor. They had slipped in during the night. I have no idea how they could
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