Of
all the murderous weapons we carry, phosphorus is, in some respects,
the most pitiless and deadly. Its dense, white fumes fill a tunnel
with suffocating smoke, while at the same time its tiny fragments
cut into a victim's body like "shrapnel from a grenade." They have
fearful burning penetration, and each fragment continues to fume in
the flesh or bone with an inextinguishable fire.
The
pungent, disagreeable smell of burnt flesh filled the air and
suggested, as it poured out of the depths of the tunnel, that more
dead Japs might be within there. As we felt sure the place was
cleaned out, we didn't stop to look.
Capt. Charles M. Bradford, MD |
