Back From The Living Dead - Bert Bank (best big ereader .TXT) 📗

Back From The Living Dead

 

MAJOR BERT BANK

 

An original story describing tho infamous March

of Death; 33 months in a Japanese Prison

and liberation by the Rangers.

 

Major Bert Bank

 

THIS Booklet is humbly dedicated to my Mother

and Father, and to my many friends who were

interested in me, and whose prayers were responsible

for my deliverance from the ordeal described herein.

 

FOREWORD

 

He breezed through the office with a hearty laugh

and a healthy handshake as he bid us farewell when

going into service.

 

When he came back it was with the same sort of

welcome. “The same old Bert” we said and undoubtedly

these qualities helped him to survive the ordeal that

had come in the intervening time.

 

Bert was on his way to becoming a crackerjack

advertising solicitor at The Tuscaloosa News when

the war clouds gathered. He left us to go into service

in 1941 and he was called up from inactive status on

his reserve commission.

 

From the time he left us until he came back this

year, Bert went through a lot that many other men

did not survive. He was taken prisoner of the Japs on

Bataan, survived the Bataan March of Death and 33

months internment in a Jap prison camp. Now he’s

a patient at Valley Forge General Hospital where

Army doctors are attempting to restore his sight to

normal. The long, gruelling months on a meager diet

took its toll.

 

But Bert doesn’t complain. “There are a lot of other

fellows less fortunate than I,” he will tell you.

 

Many friends have asked him to tell of his experiences. During the course of bond tours and other

public appearances in the Army’s behalf, Bert has

recounted these experiences. And so he thought he

would write them down for these friends. That’s the

reason for this booklet.

 

The story of his capture and internment are here

in Bert’s own words. He is the man identified as the

Captain Bert of Alabama in the late Lieutenant Colonel

Edward Dyess’ story “The March of Death.” Bert was

scheduled to make a break from the Jap prison camp

with Colonel Dyess but was sick at the time and could

not make it.

 

So this is the story of Major Bert Bank, a native

Tuscaloosan and graduate of the University of Alabama. He’s one of the men who came back from the

“living dead.”

 

This is the original story, a part of which was

printed serially in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat

October 4 to 12, 1945.

 

Norman H. Bassett

 

Editor, The Tuscaloosa News

 

PART I Saved From Death by Daring U. S. Rangers,

Major Bank Relates Story of Sensational Raid

on Cabanatuan Prison

 

On January 30, 3945, 511 American, Dutch, British,

and civilian prisoners of war became free men again.

These starved and beaten men had been subjected to

three years of “hell” at the hands of the Japanese.

The Americans were from Bataan and Corregidor,

while the British and Dutch prisoners were survivors

from a ship which had been bombed by American

planes off the coast of Luzon on September 21, 1944.

The Japanese had rescued the 60 survivors of a ship

carrying approximately 800 and brought them to our

camp at Cabanatuan. The civilians were interned at

the outbreak of the war, a few being brought to

Cabanatuan from Manila. There were several camps

in which there were only civilian prisoners.

 

Rangers and Guerrillas Make Daring Raid

 

On the night of January 30, 1945 (Jan. 29 in the

States) 100 men of the Sixth Army Ranger Infantry

Battalion, assisted by approximately 200 Filipino

Guerrillas, staged the most miraculous and sensational

rescue in our history. Coming 28 miles behind the Jap

lines they evacuated 511 hospitalized and weakened

prisoners of war. Their job was not completed when

they had killed every guard surrounding the camp, for

t was necessary for them to carry many who were

unable to walk on a jaunt which lasted from 7:30

o’clock that night until 10:00 the following morning.

At that time American trucks met us and carried us

to the American lines. We had no p re-know ledge of

this rescue at all, and when the firepower started

at 7:15 P.M. we all thought that the Japanese guards

had opened up on the prisoners, as we did not expect

them to turn us over to the Americans alive. Then, too,

just the previous day the Japs had come over and

asked our American CO. how many could walk if it

were necessary. This meant to us that they were getting ready to move us. We had also heard through

some of the Filipinos that the Japs had killed many

of the American prisoners of war. We were later told

how at Palawan the Japanese had set fire to 190

Americans and shot them.

 

Prisoners, Distrustful of Japs, Keep Under Cover

 

The Rangers’ fire power lasted approximately 13

minutes, during which time all the Americans were

lying flat on the ground. At the cessation of this

firing, which was the most terrific we had ever heard,

the rescuers ran into the compound screaming. “The

Yanks are here, run for the main gate,” but not one

of the American prisoners stirred. We whispered to

each other not to move, that it was a trap to get us

to run and then they, the Japs, would open up on us.

Of course, the Japs did not need an excuse to shoot

us, but they might consider this the mo3t convenient

way out.

 

Nevertheless, during this effort on the part of I h

Americans to get us to run, I crawled down a ditch

on my stomach, close to a man with a rifle, who was

still screaming. “Run for the main gate, the Yanks

are here.” He was crying, “What the hell is the matter

with you people, don’t you want to be free?” Well,

very reluctantly. I asked him if he was a Yank, to

which he replied, “I’m from Oklahoma.” At that I

shouted, “That is good enough for me,” and ran like

hell for the main gate.

 

Guerrillas Blockade Road

 

The Rangers had come inside the camp to get us,

while the guerrillas accompanying them put a blockade

on the road. After we evacuated the camp, 500 Japs

with 12 tanks started after us and the guerrillas fought

a rear guard action as the Rangers were assisting the

prisoners. The tanks were destroyed and the Japs

that were not killed, fled.

 

Many Filipinos were outside the camp with carabao

carts to carry those who could not walk. The stronger

were aiding the weaker. A Ranger was helping me

through the darkness of the night, as my eyes are very

bad, and I was carrying a paralytic on my back. The

Filipinos in the barrios were waiting for us to come

through and they were all crying with joy and happiness. They were screaming “Mabahuay” which in

the Philippine language means good morning, hope

you are well, wonderful to see you or anything else

which may indicate a word of good cheer. They were

all crying and very happy as they had also been mistreated by the Japanese during the past three years.

The Rangers seemed as happy as the prisoners they

had freed. All during the night and the next morning

they run up and down the long columns inquiring if

anyone was from their home towns.

 

Hear of “Bazookas” and L.S.T.‘a

 

We first received information about the new Army

equipment. After they had killed all the 150 Japs

guarding us and we had evacuated the camp, I asked

a Ranger what type of mortar I had heard during

the firing. He casually replied that it was a bazooka,

whereas I and a few others standing by asked “What

in the hell is our Army using now, Bob Burns’

Bazooka?” The Ranger immediately realized that he

was talking to men who had been out of circulation

for three years and had no idea of any of the Army’s

new equipment. He also began speaking of L.S.T.‘s

and other amphibious equipment. We reminded him

again of our ignorance concerning modern equipment,

and he apologized and described to us some of the

equipment used in the landing on Luzon.

 

At our first stopping point at about midnight, we

were told by Lieutenant Colonel Mucchi, the commanding officer of the Rangers, that when we reached the

Rizal road, approximately 16 miles ahead, we would

be safe. Three days previously the Japs were in control of this road, so for 16 miles we were in danger

of being ambushed by the Japs. Fortunately the

 

Americans had driven the Japs back and had taken

control of the road during the three days interim. We

were all very tired and hungry the following morning

when, at 10 o’clock, we were met by American trucks

and soldiers who gave us cigarettes and toilet articles

and told us of the wonderful meal awaiting us at the

hospital at the 12th Battalion Replacement Center.

We were loaded on trucks and started for the hospital

in real American vehicles and not standing on each

other as we had done when we travelled with the

Japanese.

 

Sight of “Old Glory” Thrills All

 

A few minutes after we had started in the trucks,

we passed a barrio with a large American flag flying

in the air. Every American in those 40 or 50 trucks

stood at attention and saluted with large tears rolling

down their cheeks. We had been through lots and lots

and starved and taken beatings from the Japs and

had become very tough but the sight of this “Old

Glory” made us all realize that we were not really so

tough and that we were real Americans and still had

that emotionalism which most Americans possess.

 

During this ride in the trucks which lasted for about

two hours, the American soldiers who had received

word of our liberation were lined up along the road,

cheering us as we passed. When they saw our trucks

approaching they ran from their tents as far as 600

to 800 yards to yell a word of cheer to us. And they

were all wonderful, and to 511 Americans it was a

great satisfaction to see such a demonstration. It was

also gratifying to see the large amount of supplies

and equipment that our Army now has. On Bataan and

Corregidor we had seen nothing like this, and during

our imprisonment the Japs had told us that our Army

had been defeated and we had no Navy and other

similar lies. Of course we did not believe this, but

after all, three years in a Jap prison camp is a long

time.

 

Bread and Butter Favorite Food

 

We arrived at the hospital at about 12:30 P.M. and

we were given our first real food in three years. Food

such as bread, butter, meat, potatoes, milk, and other

items which we knew existed but had not seen. We

sat down to eat and everyone was reluctant to begin

because of the fine silverware on the table. We were

all afraid that we could not handle these knives and

forks, but someone made the first move and that was

all that was necessary. We all dove into