Battle Honours I was interested to hear, from a man
who knew what he was talking about, that for the Japanese, when they look back on the last war, the fighting in Burma has a certain grim pre-eminence, and that Imphal evokes in them the same sort of emotional response that Passchendaele used to evoke in us. In this country too Burma is popularly regarded as having been a worse theatre to serve in than any other, though I doubt whether it really deserved the reputation. It had many practical inconveniences and some psychological terrors; but because of the enemy's weakness in artillery, armour and air- power I suspect that the actual fighting was less alarming, and much less dangerous, than most of the actions in Italy or North West. Europe, besides offering a good deal more scope for individual initiative. The Japanese estimate of their Burmese ordeal has been influenced by various war-books but may be based partly on the fact that Burma was the only area in which large land forces were involved in a long- drawn-out defeat. The British contribution to the overthrow of Japan was a relatively small one and is often, understand- ably, overlooked altogether by the main architects of victory in the Pacific. It is satisfactory to know that it will not be forgotten in a hurry by our ex-enemies.
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