W.E.B. Griffin - The Corps VII - Behind the Lines

Washington, D.C.

0915 Hours 17 November 1942

Master Gunner James L. Hardee entered the office of Colonel David M. Wil-son, waited until he had the colonel's attention, and then announced that Colo-nel F. L. Rickabee, Deputy Chief of the USMC Office of Management Analysis, was outside, asking to see him.

Following a hand-delivered, classified SECRET, interoffice memorandum from the Deputy Commandant of The Marine Corps ordering that no personnel actions-read transfers-involving officers assigned to the USMC Office of Management Analysis were to be taken without the specific approval in each instance of Major General Horace W. T. Forrest, Assistant Chief of Staff, G-2, Colonel Wilson and Gunner Hardee had correctly surmised that the Office of Management Analysis probably had more to do with intelligence than either management or analysis.

They had no idea what it had to do with intelligence, and did not consider it their official business to make inquiries. Colonel Wilson had run into Colo-nel Rickabee at various times during their long service; but with the exception of the time they'd spent as students at the Naval War College, he could not recall ever knowing what Rickabee's assignments had been. Neither were Rickabee's records in the files of the Officers' Branch, Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-l. They had been "borrowed" a long time before by the Office of the Secretary of the Navy and never returned. There had been no reply to two requests for their return.

I haven't seen Rickabee since the War College, Wilson thought as he made a show him in wave of his hand to Gunner Hardee.

"How are you, Fritz?" Wilson said, trying to conceal his surprise that Rickabee was in civilian clothing. "Long time no see."

"David," Rickabee replied. "How are you?"

"What can I do for you?"

"I came here looking for Charley Stevens," Rickabee said. "He's out of the office."

Colonel Charles D. Stevens was head of the enlisted branch of the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-l.

"Charley went down to Parris Island to show some congressmen around."

"He and his deputy, and his deputy's deputy, leaving a young major in charge," Rickabee said. "I didn't want to show him this, so I came to you."

He handed Wilson an obviously decrypted radio message.

"Strange paper, Fritz," Wilson thought aloud, as he felt the unusual, slick paper.

"It burns rapidly," Rickabee said matter-of-factly.

=TOP SECRET=

SUPREME HEADQUARTERS SWPOA

NAVY DEPT WASH DC

VIA SPECIAL CHANNEL

DUPLICATION FORBIDDEN

ORIGINAL TO BE DESTROYED AFTER ENCRYPTION AND TRANSMITTAL

FOR COLONEL F. L. RICKABEE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA

MONDAY 16 NOVEMBER 1942

DEAR FRITZ:

WHILE JACK NMI STECKER'S PROMOTION IS RICHLY DESERVED, IT MEANS MCCOY WILL BE GOING ON THE FERTIG OPERATION JUST ABOUT BY HIMSELF. THE MAN WHO SHOULD REPLACE STECKER OBVIOUSLY IS BANNING, BUT THAT'S OBVIOUSLY IMPOSSIBLE. MCCOY HAS ASKED ME FOR A CHINESE- AND JAPANESE-SPEAKING GUNNERY SERGEANT WHO SERVED WITH HIM IN BOTH CHINA PRE-WAR AND WAS ON THE MAKTN ISLAND RAID WITH HIM.

UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES, I THINK MCCOY SHOULD HAVE WHATEVER HE THINKS HE NEEDS. THEREFORE PLEASE ARRANGE THE IMMEDIATE REPEAT IMMEDIATE TRANSFER OF GUNNERY SERGEANT ERNEST ZIMMERMAN FROM VMF-229 (WHICH IS NOW AT EWA, HAWAII) TO US HERE. DO WHATEVER IT TAKES, AND KEEP ME ADVISED.

REGARDS,

FLEMING PICKERING, BRIGADIER GENERAL, USMCR

T O P S E C R E T

EYES ONLY, SECNAV

"I'm surprised you showed me this," Wilson said. "It says, 'Eyes Only SECNAV.' "

"It also says 'do whatever it takes,' " Rickabee said.

"I'm also surprised that General Pickering knows that Jack (NMI) Stecker was promoted. That was supposed to be kept quiet."

"Yeah, I know. And I know why. And I know that General Pickering knows about it because the Secretary of the Navy told him."

"What's this 'Fertig Operation'?"

"Sorry, that's classified."

"What do you expect me to do with this?"

"Transfer Gunny Zimmerman."

"For one thing, Fritz, that sort of thing is in Charley Stevens's basket of eggs. I handle officers. For another, even if Zimmerman was an officer, I couldn't just order his transfer on the basis of this. Who is this General Pickering, anyway? What makes him think he can just wave his hand and have people transferred?"

"Because what he's doing has a high priority."

"From whom? What kind of a priority?"

"To stop the flow of bureaucratic bullshit, you're telling me you won't have the gunny transferred?"

Wilson's temper flared.

"What I'm telling you, Colonel," he said coldly, "is that I can't, because I don't have the authority to summarily order the transfer of enlisted men." As quickly as his temper had boiled over, it subsided. "Charley will be back the day after tomorrow. You're going to have to wait until Charley can act on your request. I'm sure his major will decide, correctly, he can't do it on his own authority."

"Thank you for finding time for me in your busy schedule, Colonel," Rickabee said, and marched out of Colonel Wilson's office.

[THREE]

Office of the Secretary of the Navy

Washington, D.C.

1015 Hours 17 November 1942

"Well, look who's here!" the Secretary of the Navy said, pleasantly, when Colonel Rickabee walked into his outer office, trailed by Captain David Haughton. "Good morning, Colonel. We don't often see you here."

"Good morning, Mr. Secretary. I came to see Captain Haughton."

"Morning, Fritz," Haughton said.

"Anything I can do?" Secretary Knox asked.

"A request from General Pickering that I need some help with, Sir," Rick-abee said.

Knox's eyebrows rose in question.

Rickabee handed him General Pickering's special channel radio message.

Knox glanced at it and handed it back.

"I saw this at breakfast," he said. "Is there a problem?"

"I had a little trouble with G-l at Eighth and Eye, Sir. The officer who handles this sort of thing is at Parris Island."

"Take care of it, David," Secretary Knox said.

"Aye, aye, Sir."

THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

16 November 1942

Lieut. General Thomas Holcomb

Commandant, United States Marine Corps

Washington

By Hand

Dear General Holcomb:

The Secretary of the Navy desires the immediate transfer of Gunnery Sergeant Ernest Zimmerman, USMC, presently assigned VMF-229, to the USMC Office of Management Analysis, with duty station USMC Special Detachment 16, Brisbane, Australia, and further desires that travel be accomplished by the most expeditious means available.

Respectfully,

David W. Haughton

Captain, USN

Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy

[FOUR]

The White House

Washington, D.C.

1910 Hours 17 November 1942

Admiral William D. Leahy rose quickly to his feet when Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox came into his office.

"Thank you, Mr. Secretary, for making time in your schedule for me," he said.

"My time, Admiral, like yours, is the Master's time," Knox said, gestur-ing toward the closed door to the President's Oval Office.

"Well said, Mr. Secretary," Colonel William J. Donovan said, chuckling. Donovan, a stocky, silver-haired man in civilian clothing, rose from his red-leather upholstered chair and offered Knox his hand.

"How are you, Bill?" Knox asked.

"Very well, thank you," Donovan replied, and added, "As a matter of fact, I'm at the moment feeling rather chipper. I think I see a problem on the way to its solution."

"Is that so?" Knox said. "And what problem is that?"

"The intractable Douglas MacArthur," Donovan said.

"The Director, Mr. Secretary, has come up with a suggestion the President feels has considerable merit."