The Pittsburgh Press (January 16, 1942)
‘Hang on we must; hang on we will’
By 1st Sgt. Ian Fitchett, official Australian Army correspondent
With Australian forces in Malaya, Jan. 16 (UP) –
Fighting General Henry Gordon Bennett gave his lean and wiry Australians their stand-and-fight cry today:
Hang on we must and hang on we will.
Out on a pre-chosen line in Eastern Negeri Sembilan, Australians went into action at last, trained especially to combat the tactics the Japanese have used in Malaya and already notching an ambush victory over the enemy with “terrible slaughter.”
The 54-year-old General Bennett said:
My men are going in with their chins up.
They know as I know that the task in front of them is hard; but don’t fear – they’ll do it.
They are up against an enemy they despise and hate and they know every trick he has tried. The Japs are getting the hardest blow they’ve had in this war to date and there’s a lot more coming to them.
Every move they make from now on will be countered by Australians who can outmatch, outfight and outwit them.
Hang on we must and hang on we will.
The swift move of the Australian Imperial forces to help block the Japanese advance on Singapore was one of the best kept secrets of the war.
Until the end of last week, the Victorians, Queenslanders and New South Wales troops had almost given up hope of seeing action. Orders to move came with dramatic swiftness, some units being placed on buses within an hour.
The positions they now are holding had been selected by special reconnaissance parties some weeks ago.