Blood Brothers: A Medic's Sketch Book Part 16

Dee. 27, 1944: In a series of short marches, we crossed a small peninsula to a pier. Six large transports were anch.o.r.ed in the gulf.

There were fourteen sunken vessels visible above water.

Landing barges were bringing about fifty j.a.panese soldiers at a time to the beach with many boxes of ammunition. The barges then came over to our pier to take on some fifty prisoners.

High waves made it very difficult to get on the barge; I had to jump down about ten feet onto the bouncing front deck. I was surprised that my "toothpick" legs didn't buckle under the jolt. We started out to a transport with a No.2 on the stack, the Brazil Maru. An air raid alarm sounded!

In the confusion our landing craft was directed to an empty transport marked No.1, the Enoura Maru. We were soon up the long ladder, and put in the forward hold; then we were divided into groups of twenty.

This time there was plenty of room and an abundance of fresh air, but it was very cold.

On the level above us were hundreds of sick and wounded j.a.panese soldiers returning to j.a.pan. They were dressed in army caps, long white gowns, g-strings, and field shoes. No food; no water! But the j.a.p soldiers were eating their regular meals three times daily. Steel decks very hard! Unable to sleep.

Dee. 28, 1944: Thursday-Under way at dawn! Again, no food; no water; j.a.p patients getting three regular meals on time. A few prisoners were trying to trade jewelry for food. Most of us had nothing to trade.

Manure and flies were very bad.

When I attempted to stand, I blacked out. One died; we wrapped him in a straw mat, had a brief religious ceremony, and then slid him over the side. The count, (?) 1,305.

Col. Harold Johnson, our C.O., prohibited all trading with the j.a.ps! A civilian gambler from Manila ignored his orders and obtained rice and candy for his friends. Angry prisoners scattered the rice and candy into the darkness.

December 29, 1944: Raining. Prisoners fought each other, trying to get their cups and mess gear under the drippings from the hatch covers to catch a few drops. Two spoons of rice.

1800 hours - Blasts of large guns on the deck. We crawled off the wooden planks on to the steel deck. Depth charges were exploding on each side of the s.h.i.+p for a thirty minute period. Then there was enthusiastic clapping by the j.a.ps on the upper deck. It was announced: "j.a.panese Impeliar Navy has sunk Amelican submaline!" Banzai/ Banzai/ Banzai/

At 2000 we dropped anchor. There was a full moon. Pens, rings and mess gear were being traded for cigarettes or water. It was a very cold night.

Hips and spines were becoming extremely sore-attempting to poke through the skin.

December 30: The sea was very rough. Our empty s.h.i.+p,

floating high, pitched and pounded. Half cup of rice; several spoons of water.

2000 hours - sh.e.l.ling and depth charges for half hour. During the night a j.a.panese soldier fell from the upper deck into our hold killed by the fall. This added much to the usual confusion. Intermittent depth charges all night as our s.h.i.+p dashed and pounded across the open sea toward Formosa.

Dee. 31, 1944: Sunday-No food; half cup of water! Col. Johnson told Mr. Wata: "If we don't get food, we will all die!"

Mr. Wata responded: "Evelbody must die! This is no time for sympathy!"

The sea was very rough and very cold! During the night we entered a land-locked harbor-Takao in Formosa. It was New Year's Eve! The old bewhiskered rabbi and farmer, Aaron Kliatchko died. The count, (?) 1,304

Jan. 1, 1945: We dared to think that things might get better in "forty-five." We began to hear, "Still alive in 'forty-five!'" Issued five moldy "hardtack" type biscuits.

The prisoners were now like animals in a cage begging for food and cigarettes. The j.a.ps couldn't understand how the Americans could expend so much energy jumping for cigarettes, when they were supposedly very weak. Three-quarters of a cup of water (a real treat).

Bitter cold. We were extremely hungry, thirsty and cold. Our bodies were very sore and we were unable to sleep.

Old John "The Thief," died. The count, (?) 1,303.

Jan. 2, 1945: The harbor was surrounded by high, snow covered mountains; we were in southern Formosa. The j.a.panese patients were taken out of the holds; their areas were fumigated by American soldiers-hoping to get something to eat in return for their work.

Col. Johnson again requested food. Mr. Wata answered: "United States submalines sink arr j.a.panese food s.h.i.+ps! Vely solly!"

Many prisoners continued to scramble around the hold grabbing for cigarettes thrown down from the deck above; they were more addicted to tobacco than food. Their prancing around made it more difficult for us to convince the j.a.panese that we were hungry and thirsty.

Received two-thirds cup of rice and one teaspoon of dried fish. No water! A bitter cold night! Much coughing! Some prisoners were acting crazy; doing weird and unpredictable things. An officer was a.s.signed to guard the stairway so none of these crazy

persons would try to escape and cause an incident.

Jan. 3rd, 1945: 0800-There was an air-raid alarm! It was followed by rapid firing from the deck for about two hours; much running about on the deck above. Several planes flew low over the harbor probably observing. No food; no water!

When I tried to stand, I blacked out! Many prisoners were coughing, and suffering from cramps and dysentery. It was a very cold night. The j.a.ps worked all night loading the s.h.i.+p.

Jan. 5: In the evening, as we were trying to get to sleep, several of us were showered with 11 liquid, which tasted like battery acid. "What were the j.a.ps up to now?" The liquid proved to be the contents of a latrine bucket; the prisoner, carrying the bucket to the deck, was so weak, he spilled it. When we asked the guards for some sea water to clean ourselves off, they just laughed.

I volunteered to take guard duty at the stairway so I wouldn't freeze to death.

Jan. 6th: It was bitter cold! We were still barefooted and wearing the summer clothing received at the Olongapo Naval Base in the Philippines. The guards were s.h.i.+vering in spite of heavy overcoats. No food; no water!

We were taken up on deck, then down a long ladder to scows and moved out into the harbor. Some prisoners were grabbing dirty and rotten vegetables floating in the filthy water. Some even filled their canteens with sea water.

In a few minutes, our scow pulled up to transport No.2, the Brazil Maru. We were soon up the ladder and put in the second hold with the other prisoners - all 1,273 of us. We were told that there had been thirty deaths on the Brazil Maru. We were divided into groups of twenty. Again it was very crowded; much confusion, much cursing.

Half cup of rice; a quarter cup of thin cabbage soup. A miserable night.

Jan. 7, 1945: We started a hospital on the upper deck and moved some fifty dysentery cases into it. The j.a.ps gave us some dysentery medicine-looked like pellets of gunpowder. Flies were very bad. Four died! Tenko (?) 1,262.

Jan. 8th: Hatch covers were moved above us admitting dazzling light and extreme cold. All prisoners were moved off from the lower deck; about 473 into the forward hold, and about 789 on to the upper deck of our hold; again it was very crowded.

Thirty-seven English and Dutch prisoners were taken off the s.h.i.+p-to be transferred to a P.O.W. camp in Formosa.

Winches lowered many sacks of sugar into the lower hold. Mr. Wata warned us, "If you touch any sugal, you vill be hollibly shot!"

Jan. 9th, 1945: At daybreak, we heard many planes followed by anti-aircraft fire in the distance. Very soon, planes were overhead!

There was panic in our hold. Men were trying to get off the wooden planks on to the steel decks. A young captain stood up and shouted, "Everybody stay put! You are as safe in one place as another!"

A direct hit produced a blinding and deafening explosion nearby; a tremendous orange flash followed by pandemonium.

Hatch covers above came cras.h.i.+ng down into the bilge, dropping many prisoners thirty to forty feet below. There were screams, cries, groans, and oaths! The air was filled with dust and dirt. Wounded were soon being dragged into our improvised hospital; many with fractures, shrapnel wounds, all covered with dirt.

Just as we were getting the wounded cases moved into the hospital and the dysentery cases out, back came the planes. When it was over we had lost several of our doctors. Col. Riney Craig, Major Mack Williams and I were the only doctors still active. We removed the clothing from thirty dead to give to those still living. No food! No water! Open hatches aggravated the bitter cold night.

Jan. 10, 1945: We worked on the wounded all morning. In the afternoon my attention was called to a shrapnel-made gash in the forward bulkhead of our hold. I looked through into the forward hold and witnessed the most horrible sight of my life.

There were three hundred mangled Americans piled some three deep the result of a direct bomb hit. At the sides of the hold, a few wounded were sitting and standing dazed and motionless. The j.a.ps had no compa.s.sion at all they would not let us enter the forward hold to help in any way.

Jan. 11, 1945: Finally, two days after the bombing, several masked and white robed j.a.p soldiers gallantly descended the ladders into our hold, and painted mercurochrome on minor wounds. They would not look at the serious wounds.

The j.a.ps wound not enter the forward hold. Only G.o.d knew what suffering was going on there. j.a.p laborers pounded wooden

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