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An unusual request for assistance



I'd like to ask a question that may be only marginally related to the
list.  Please respond directly to me if you have knowledge of this
matter.

A donor has inquired if we are interested in an item called a "short
shorter."  This is a one dollar bill signed across its face by ten
senior U.S. generals and admirals, purportedly at the Japanese
surrender ceremony on U.S.S. Missouri, September 2, 1945.  Allegedly,
this was coordinated by Admiral William Halsey.

Two of the signatures on the bill are those of Dwight D. Eisenhower
and Omar Bradley.  To the best of my knowledge, both Ike and Bradley
spent their entire war service in Europe.  "Hap" Arnold and Jimmy
Doolittle also signed this item.  While Doolittle was famous for his
bombing raid on Japan in 1942, he and Arnold also spent virtually all
of their war service in Europe.  They *could* have been transferred to
the Pacific after the German surrender in May 1945, but Gen. Curtis
LeMay ran the air war against Japan, and was Arnold's counterpart in
that function.  Also signing the bill is Ernest J. King, the Navy's
senior admiral, who spent his war career in Washington.

I went to the National Archives' online exhibit and found a
reproduction of the Japanese surrender document, but it was signed by
only one individual on behalf of his country.  Chester Nimitz signed
on behalf of the United States (Douglas MacArthur presided over the
ceremony).  Had Ernest King been present, he would have outranked
Nimitz and probably would have claimed the honor of signing on behalf
of the U.S.

My question is this:  Is there anywhere a list of the senior officers
in attendance at the surrender ceremony?  If so, were Eisenhower,
Bradley, Arnold, Doolittle, or King present?

I'm not trying to verify the authenticity of the signatures, but
rather the purported circumstances of this document's creation.  It
could very well be that the story surrounding the origins has been
"embellished" in the past 55 years.  I'd be grateful to anyone who can
provide a definitive statement on whether any of the five listed above
were present in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945.  Thanks very much.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

James Stimpert                       E-mail:    James.Stimpert@jhu.edu
Archives (Arts and Sciences)
MSE Library
Johns Hopkins University             Voice:     (410) 516-8323
3400 North Charles Street
Baltimore, MD  21218                 Fax:       (410) 516-7202

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