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

of corned beef.

Many swapped food for tobacco. One-half pound of

cheese brought three packages of cigarettes.

 

We were like a group of small children when these

packages arrived, even though the Japs had taken out

most of the food. We devoured what food was left in

a short period and then we were hungry again. The

Japs took most of the medical supplies sent in this

Red Cross issue, although we did get some supplies.

In order for a man to get quinine for malaria, he

must have a chill and fever of 105. The Japanese

doctor, Lieutenant Yoshumura, seemed like a good

man, and would tell us that he would do more for

the Americana if he was in charge of the camp. He

said that Major Maihiti was a drunkard and would not

give the Americans anything to eat or any medical

supplies. I sometimes thought that the Jap doctor was

sincere, but many of the Americans disagreed with

me. They said that he would do no better if he had

been in charge of the camp. He would inspect the

Americans every Sunday in order to try and get more

to work. We would pass in a line by him and the

American doctor would tell our trouble. If the Jap

doctor thought that you should be in quarters then he

would mark you “Quarters,” but if he thought that

you should be on duty he would mark you “Duty.” The

American doctors were forced to send the man where

the Jap doctor ordered him to go. Many times the

American doctor would disagree with the Jap doctor

as to the condition of a man, but he would have to

send him out anyway, and the Jap doctor would say

that his major must have so many men out to work,

and it was his job to carry out the orders of the Jap

major.

 

American Doctors Performed Miracles

 

In camp we had two barracks with American doctors

as barracks leaders. These barracks were designated

as the quarters for men who could not work. We also

had one large building designated as the hospital by

the Japanese. It is amazing what wonderful work was

carried on by the doctors in the hospital. They per-formed operations which were successful, even though

the patient went through undue hardship during the

operation. I remember once when we were working

near the hospital, I heard a man let out a terrible

scream. On returning to the barracks late that evening

I ascertained that the morphine given to the boy was

no good. After his stomach had been opened up, the

morphine wore off, and the man was in horrible pain.

We had no facilities to keep the morphine cold and it

was very old, and as a result was not effective at all.

As this was all we had, the patients suffered terrible

pain.

 

As a result of malnutrition many of the prisoners

had to have their toe nails removed. The big toe nail

would curve over and under the toe. The doctors said

that this was the result of improper diet. Many men

had to have large infections cut out, which was very

painful. Hardly a day passed that you did not hear

someone screaming from pain during an operation.

 

Paralysis Spreads in Penal Colony

 

We had several scares in camp at Davao. Once a

man became paralyzed in his legs. We thought that

infantile paralysis had started in camp. We all wore

masks for about two weeks as a protection. The Japanese doctors and the entire Japanese personnel were

frightened, as they were afraid their own men might

catch this disease. We were not sure that this person

had infantile paralysis, but we were trying to take all

precautions necessary. Fortunately, this was not the

cause of the paralysis, as no one else caught it. But

we did have many who became paralyzed, not only in

the legs, but in the arms. Many of the prisoners had

severe cases of drop foot. The doctors later told us

that this was all caused from malnutrition. I remember

a fine looking master sergeant who lost his speech. His

throat was paralyzed and he could not utter one word.

It is incredible what the lack of proper food will do

to a person. If it doesn’t cause immediate death, it will

cause so many impairments of the body that sometimes

death is better. Many of us were totally blind, and the

Japanese were repeatedly asked for the large beautiful avocados surrounding our compound, but we were

refused on each occasion. I remember in August, 1944,

I saw a lieutenant who could not control his legs at all.

When he walked he was required to walk very fast,

and then had difficulty stopping. But when he reached

California in March of 1945 he was walking normally

again. It was the good American food that had made

him walk again, as it had hundreds of others.

 

PART VII 21 U. S. Prisoners Spent Agonizing 30

Days Awaiting Japanese Firing Squad After 2

Companions Escaped

 

We had two Japanese interpreters in camp who were

mean and stupid. One, a Mr. Wadda, who had worked

for an importer in Japan, was the stupidest person I

have ever known. He was always trying to lower our

morale by telling us that the war would last for 20

years, and that the Americans would be defeated very

decisively. We had been allowed to write cards once

a month. You could only say a few words. When I

returned I found that only a few had reached the

States. We never did expect the Japs to send any out

at all. On one of these cards, one of the doctors, in

order to make his family feel better, wrote that he

was spending lots of time browsing through some

medical books. This Mr. Wadda came over one day and

hit Hie doctor a few times and told him that he had

specific instructions not to mention anything in the

card about eating or food. The doctor replied that he

had not mentioned anything about eating or food at

all, whereas the interpreter showed him the statement

about browsing through medical books and hit him

a few more licks over the head. The doctor tried to

explain to him that we used this to mean looking

through the books or perusing them. But the Jap interpreter paid no attention. He said that his dictionary

defined “browsing” as to graze or eat weeds. The

interpreter was right, literally, and could not be convinced otherwise. He immediately destroyed the card,

and hit the doctor another lick as he walked out of

the room.

 

Interpreter Called “Simon Legree”

 

The meanest interpreter thai we had was the one

we called “Simon LeGree.” He was very cruel, and

delighted in beating Americans at all times. He was

from San Francisco, and told us that he had made a

lot of money in California. Everytime he passed an

American he would hit him with his fist. He was a

person of very short stature and little frame, but he

could hit harder than any little man I have ever seen.

He would hit you with his fist and would always draw

blood. These two interpreters spoke very poor English.

In fact, they murdered the English language. We

could understand them, but with great difficulty. I

remember once, all Americans were required to write

a letter stating what our impression of the war was,

and describing our most horrible experience during

the war. We were also asked what we desired most at

present. Of course, we were told to say only things

that would be favorable to the Japanese. For example,

they told us to say that our greatest desire was that

the war would end and that we would make everlasting

peace with Japan, and that Japan would be our friend.

The Japs told us that there would be three classifica-tions of gradings on these papers. Those receiving an

“A” paper would be given a prize, those receiving a

“B” paper would be given a prize, and those receiving

a “C” paper would be punished. I remember one barracks leader was relieved by the Japs because all of

his barracks wrote poor papers.

 

The day for the grades to be announced arrived and

the Japanese segregated all the Americans according

to the grade they received on this paper. All the

people receiving “A” papers had to march by those

receiving “C” papers. As a result, many of the Americans receiving “C” papers became very angry with

those receiving “A” papers, because they thought that

they were cooperating with the Japanese. But the

peculiar part about the whole thing is that the Japs

just gave some “A’s” and others “C’s” without even

grading them. They were always trying to cause fric-tion between the Americans. I remember I dictated my

letter to a friend of mine and we both turned in exactly

the same papers. I made a “B” and he made a “C.”

Those receiving the prize winning papers were told to

get in a line. We passed by the Jap interpreter who

gave us coconuts, commotoes, and papuyas. Well, they

were not checking the line, so everyone got in, and

they began giving out the food. The interpreter stopped

everybody and said, “The Americans are embezzling

me.” This type of English was very common among

them. Many of the guards spoke English better than

these two interpreters, as they were more intelligent

men.

 

Americans Sabotaged Japanese Equipment

 

We were sent out to work on details over the island

with the Japs here as we had been on Luzon. The

prisoners operated the pump house and power plants

for the Japs. Anytime we could sabotage their equipment we would do so. I remember talking to an officer

that had been sent to Corregidor to work on a detail,

and while there they were compelled to work on some

large guns of the Japs. The men sabotaged the guns

and this particular officer told me that if the Japs

ever attempted to shoot these guns that it would kill

everyone within 75 yards. Well, the Japs evidently

began wondering whether the Americans had done

such a thing, because right after the guns were sabotaged these Americans were told that the following

morning they themselves were going to shoot the guns.

Of course, the Americans were all scared to death, as

they knew that they would be killed when they attempted to shoot the guns. The following morning

arrived and they walked to the guns just as a man

walks to his death chamber when he is being electro-cuted. These men knew that it meant certain death

the minute they fired the guns. Well, they were at the

guns and the Jap officer in charge came and saw that

the Americans did not show any outward signs of

being afraid, so he called the firing off. Eleven

Americans had been saved just because they did not

show any outward signs of being afraid to die, a

symbol of true Ameicanism.

 

Americans also drove the trucks for the Japanese,

as the Japs were very poor mechanics. This was one

of our best sources of information. The trucks would

go into town and the drivers were always bringing in

a little unofficial information. This was the origin of

many rumors. 1 may say here that 1 am convinced that

many rumors started in prison camp because a day

never passed that some rumors weren’t floating around

camp. Many of them would later turn out to be true,

and I am convinced that these rumors helped many

survive. Of course, in 1943 at Davao most of the weak

men died and just the strong were still living.

 

Ten Escapes Cause Arrest of