As I keyboarded these documents some things that I heard came back to me, can’t remember who told me, as time has faded my memory. I will try to briefly recap his story. He was in a field artillery unit shipping to the Philippines and a day past Pearl Harbor when Pearl Harbor was attacked. The convoy diverted to Australia where they later reshipped to Java. In Java he was a telephone operator in the field artillery. Some one told me that they wanted to capture a Jap soldier for interrogation and the story was that "big Mike from Kansas" came back with a Jap under each arm.

The Army Air Corps took some of Mike’s outfit in as aerial gunners, later on. He or someone else told me that he was on a B17 and was shot down over Java. Also the story was that there were no tail turrets yet on the B17 and they made their own gun position in the tail to shoot at the enemy

When it was imminent that the Japs would soon overtake the Americans in Java; one last American ship was in port to take out all the survivors that they could. Soldiers with wives and children at home were allowed on first and volunteers were asked to stay on and fight. Mike was among the volunteers who stayed and fought and was captured by the Japanese when Java fell.

So the ones who survived and were taken prisoner were later taken on a horrible trip by sea from Java to Hokkaido the northernmost island of Japan. I remember Mike saying the boat trip was by far the most horrible part of the whole adventure. He related that they were attacked by American aircraft and ships, in the long and terrible trip by boat. There was no food or water for them and they were mistreated on board. They drank their own urine, many simply gave up and died, others jumped overboard to their deaths. The lucky survivors made it to Hakodate prison camp to be mistreated and starved for almost three more years.

The event that we all can remember was the Japanese dinner that Mike prepared at home for the family and a few friends. Tiny Gale and I tried to recall who all were there for the dinner but time has faded our memories too much. Rita said she would not go to it. Anyhow Mike wanted us to taste one of his Japanese delicacies: A fishhead and rice dinner. Our neighbor a grocer and butcher, Earl Snyder furnished him with the fishheads. I guess Mike did a good job of preparing the meal, but none of us could stand the sight of those fish eyes staring up at us.

When Mike went to California Rita was a little girl, but when he came back in 1946 she was a young lady. Mike had a hard time adjusting to that, as did Rita to him. Expecting to come home to a baby sister as he left her, he brought her from California a huge beautiful stuffed black and white Panda. He lugged that thing all over getting in and out of fights over it but still bringing it home to his baby sister.

Another time, I recall Mother had a beautiful cat, a black Persian named Jezebel. This cat was a real slinky, superior acting cat and was starting to get on Mike’s nerves. So, one evening he put a tea kettle of water on to boil and started to chase the cat all over the house, so he could catch it and have cat for our dinner like he used to have in prison camp. Remember, in camp they ate cats, dogs, insects, rodents any thing they could get their hands on to stay alive. This was one time Mother fought him to victory and she saved her beloved cat from the dinner table.

I don’t know what would have happened if Bernard had not been home during those trying times. He had been in a military police battalion in Egypt and had been guarding some pretty tough characters, the German and Italian prisoners of war; he also dealt with some outlaw Arabs who had been preying on American soldiers on leave. He was tough enough to make Mike toe the line most of the time and actually decked him once that I knew about.

Parsons, Kansas was a wild and wooly town in those days the Army Ammunition Plant was working full time and the Katy railroad running full blast. There were lots of all night restaurants, diners and hash houses. There were many, many nightclubs and beer joints and plenty of fights and brawls by returning servicemen, much to the delight of Mike. I don’t want to go in to detail here, but we became involved in many of them trying to keep Mike out of trouble.

Bernard agrees with the above and added that not much of the fish heads were eaten at the fish and rice dinner. He also mentioned that Mikes’ lungs were ruined by the forced labor. His job was to wear a mask and clean the hulls of ships (underwater) saving the ships from having to dry-dock.

Bernard was home from the military police in Africa when Mike came home; I did not get out of the service until March 5, 1946. I don’t think any one else could have handled Mike like Bernard did. He recalls taking Mike out on the Katy train to Kansas City and on out to the military hospital at Colorado Springs. That was a nerve-wracking trip but he safely deposited him at the hospital. From there Mike later went back to Los Angeles.

He had to leave southeast Kansas he said because his lungs couldn’t stand our cold winters and humid hot summers. He kept in good touch with his Mother. I remember he sent her a red electric blanket when the electric blankets first came out. She was so proud of it. He phoned her frequently and his favorite past time was watching the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball games.

Mike died August 8, 1966 and was buried in Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery August 15, l966. It is a beautiful cemetery located out on the peninsula that overlooks San Diego Bay and the military installations over at North Island. The peninsula curves out and upward into the Pacific much like Cape Cod does in Massachusetts. At the very top of it is the historic old lighthouse that guided sailing vessels when California was colonized by the Spaniards. I think the cemetery is closed for further burials but is a beautiful place to visit yet. His Mother died Dec. 13, l957.

--John Daley

November 17, 1999