[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 48 (Thursday, April 27, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E660]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   HONORING COURAGE OF FIRST MARINES TO SCALE SUMMIT OF MT. SURIBACHI

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                              HON. ED CASE

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 27, 2006

  Mr. CASE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the courage of the first 
United States Marines to scale the summit of Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima.
  Iwo Jima is a small rocky island only two miles wide and four miles 
long located approximately 650 miles south of Tokyo, Japan. It is a 
volcanic island, much like the islands of my home state of Hawaii. A 
place where cool Pacific breezes rush over soft beaches and birds sing 
songs learned during lonely flights across the wide ocean.
  For a brief moment in time, the Island of Iwo Jima became the central 
battleground between the Empire of Japan and the Allied Forces during 
those terrible and dark days of World War II. The Allied Forces were 
determined to take the island in preparation for a final attack on 
Japan, and the Japanese were unbendable in their desire to defend Iwo 
Jima and to prevent the Allies from moving any closer to the main 
islands of Japan.
  On February 19, 1945, approximately 70,000 American and other Allied 
Forces and 22,000 Japanese soldiers locked themselves in a horrific 
battle that would begin the final phase of the War in the Pacific. 
Entrenched in a series of interlocking caves, blockhouses, and 
pillboxes, the Japanese fought with determination to defend their 
island. Debarking off a naval armada of more than 450 ships, the 
Allies, led by the United States, brought the full weight of their 
highly trained and battle-tested troops to bear with the determined 
goal of taking the rocky island no matter what the cost. The battle for 
Iwo Jima would be one of the fiercest conflicts of the Second World 
War. 6,821 Marines were killed in action, and 19,217 Marines were 
wounded. Of the 22,000 Japanese defenders, only 1,083 survived.
  On February 23, 1945, the fifth day of the battle, Marines from the 
5th Division were ordered to ascend the slopes of Mt. Suribachi, the 
main peak controlling the island. Four Marine squads worked their way 
up the mountain and, at 10:30 a.m., the officer in charge, 1st 
Lieutenant Harold G. Schrier, along with the platoon leader, Sergeant 
Ernest Thomas, and Sergeant Henry Hansen, Corporal Charles W. Lindberg, 
Radioman, Private First Class Raymond E. Jacobs, Private James R. 
Michels, Private Philip L. Ward, and Corpsman, PhMac John H. Bradley, 
raised the American flag over Mt. Suribachi.
  Today, when our National remembers the brave U.S. Marines of Iwo 
Jima, we often visualize the commanding bronze statue resting on the 
banks of the Potomac River. Most Americans do not realize that this 
memorial actually depicts the second, much larger flag that was raised 
on Mt. Suribachi, signaling the courage and determination of the United 
States to all on Iwo Jima and at sea.
  In my home state of Hawaii, the Iwo Jima USMC Memorial Association, 
Inc. is working to raise the funds necessary to build a memorial to 
recognize the American Marines who raised the first American flag on 
Mt. Suribachi. I applaud their efforts, and hope that every citizen 
across the Nation will support those groups dedicated to recognizing 
the courage of American Marines everywhere.

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