“He was saved by a few Destroyer Escorts and jeep carriers who fought so hard the Japanes were fooled into thinking they were up against a main force and withdrew before what would have been a major victory for them.”
That’s the ‘Battle off Samar’ as told in Hornfischer’s
‘The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy’s Finest Hour’
CDR Ernest Evans was awarded the Medal of Honor for his role in this battle. I liked the way that Hornfischer compared Evan’s fearless style of battle with that of his Cherokee ancestors.
Great book! Hornfischer is an excellent writer, I think one of the most entertaining (if you can use that word in reference to his subject) in his style. My favorite is ‘Neptune’s Inferno’. He manages to convey the essence in a way that even someone like Morison (whose work I like, but acknowledge he was an insufferable snot) did not do.