In a 1958 interview, Truman was asked about the soul-searching decision he went through to decide on dropping the bomb. He replied, "Hell no, I made it like _ (snapped his fingers) _ that!" One year later at Columbia University, he said, "The atom bomb was no great decision." He likened it to a larger gun.
The components for the 20-kiloton weapon were being shipped to Tinian Island, in the Marianas, aboard the "Indianapolis." The top-secret package arrived at its destination a mere 24 hours after the official operational order for the bomb was sent to General Carl ("Tooey") Spaatz.
About the Bomb
