Heard a report that eight Japanese ships damaged by Halsey's raid last weekend were smashed on the rocks of the Bay by the typhoon — a total loss.

Early this afternoon, a Japanese plane did an acrobatic solo over Manila, dogfighting with his own shadow. Unimpressed spectators cracked jokes.

"We always have a great time during the raids, dashing from window to window," said Fito Garcia, talking about a couple of bombs that landed near him in Paco. So what did he do when the two bombs dropped? "Pues chico, we dove in all directions. We were flat on our faces in the blink of an eye. Listen, an SB2C can take diving lessons from me!"

Leyte News: The Japanese landed additional "heavy reinforcements" and paid a price for it. They used 4 transports escorted by 15 destroyers and supported by planes. The American Fifth Airforce in Leyte went "all-out" in a continuous 24-hour effort, sinking 3 transports and 6 destroyers. A Seventh Fleet PT boat sank a seventh destroyer off Mindoro. So many Japanese are confined to such a small area in Leyte that they will have to attempt a breakthrough somewhere — probably tonight.

A correspondent told the tale of an American doughboy who plucked a fruit in Leyte, and by pantomime, asked a little native boy if it was good to eat. The kid didn't understand, so he repeated the act several times but got no response. Finally a bystander told the kid in English: "What he wants to know is if it's all right to eat that fruit."

"Hell yes," answered the kid, "it's got Vitamin B!"

...ooOoo...