The Saber and Scroll
memi Creek linking them . Other positions such as Buna Mission and Buna Village also saw major fighting . The first attack on 19 November would mirror all the attacks that followed for the next month . There was no air support and one , only one American artillery piece without ammunition . There were no tanks . Not expecting much of a fight , the 1st Battalion of the 128th Infantry Regiment advanced . No reconnaissance preceded the attack . While approaching the bridge , they were stopped cold by murderous small arms fire , fire they could not respond to because they could not see it , the Japanese used flashless weapons and their positions were brilliantly camouflaged . Major David Parker , an observer sent by the War Department , noted :
It was impossible to see where the enemy fire was coming from ; consequently , our own rifle and machine gun fire was ineffective during the early stages .... Grenades and mortars were difficult to use because , first , it was difficult to pick out a nest position to advance upon with grenades , second , the thick jungle growth and high grass made throwing and firing difficult , and third , because it was nearly impossible to fire . 10
The Simemi Creek Bridge . This is clearly not much of a bridge and is meant for only foot traffic . It is also an easy point for Japanese fire to concentrate on and US infantry would be limited to that bridge as it is surrounded by jungle . 11
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