On the island of Guadalcanal, a 2,000-yard-long ridge rose from the jungle canopy. Behind it lay the air base of Henderson Field. And if Henderson Field fell, it would mean the almost certain death or capture of all 12,500 Marines on the island . . . Positioned on the ridge were the hard-fighting men of Edson's Raiders of the 1st Marine Raider Battalion. They were the United States Marine Corps' best of the best, and they knew defeat and retreat were simply not options. For two hellish nights in September 1942, about 840 Marines--commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Merritt Austin...
On the island of Guadalcanal, a 2,000-yard-long ridge rose from the jungle canopy. Behind it lay the air base of Henderson Field. And if Henderson ...
