March 1981 - Philippine Defenders Main

Transcription

•
PA. -
MARCH 1981
NUMbER 5
ATTEND THE NATIONAL CONVENTION
SANDS HOTEL LAS VEGAS. NV. APRIL 26-MA Y 1. 1981
STATEMENT OF
THE AMERICAN DEFENDERS OF BATAAN AND CORREG I DOR. INC.,
PRESENTED BY
ARTHUR A. BRESSl. PAST NATIONAL COMMANDER AND SPECIAL
PROJECTSOFFICER;
ELMER E. LONG, JR., NATIONAL COMMANDER
MANNY LA WfON, NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE OFFICER
RALPH LEVENBERG, PAST NATIONAL COMMANDER
LIEUTENANT GENERAL ALVA FITCH, USA-RETIRED
BEFORE THE COMM ITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFA IRS,
UN ITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WITH RESPECT TO LEGlSLATIONCONCERNING THE PRISONER OF
WAR HEALTH CARE BENEFITSACTOF 1981 1H.R.- 1100)
WASHINGTON, D.C., MARCH 4,1981
The aim and purpose of this presentation is respectfully request the Committee on
Veterans' Affairs give favorable consideration t.o clarifying the intent of the Congress as
it relates to the ·'Benefit. of the Doubt" and the " Burden of Proof' provisions in Veterans
Adminis tration Policy Guides. We would also request this body uamine the provisions
of the absence of military medical records during adjudication procedures and that the
periods of time now legislated by law relative to psychoses and/or mental problems be
eliminated.
Mr. Chairman and Members of this Veterans Affairs Committee. again we are
privileged and grateful to each of you for this opportunity to add our voice from the
American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor concerning the Prisoner of War Health
Care Benefits Act of 198 1. It is not our intent to reolive history with t.he e:.:.ooption of a
reminder of how a series of unfortunate circums tances, including a commitment to combat we were des tined to lose. a lire of horrendous conditions under a mos t brutal enemy.
an incarceration period. in prison camps we never bargained for. adversely affected our
lives - even to this present date.
At the time of our liberation and repatriation. the few voices of our medical personnel who would dare predict dire consequences were totally drowned out in the flWTY of excitement which marked our return to American control. The findings of the POW study,
completed in 1980 by a very capable research team. s hows conclusive evidence there had
been plans on paper to conduct physical examinations of the repatriated Americans. but
for reasons no one can satisfactorily explain. t hey failed to materialize. That oversight
alone was extremely costly. and unquestionably was the foundation for this aeries of
most unfortunate subsequences which now are so important in the lives of those who survived the prison camps.
For instance, no one at the time really knew the consequences of prolonged malnutri·
tion or how the additional trauma of prison camps would surface. even as late as thirtyfive years after t he fact. Our own doctors, Norman Brill, John Nardini. and Charles
Brown, tried to be heard. Their statements recei ved little or no attention. Thirty-eight
years after the fact, however, the Veterans Adminis tration recognized and acknowledged
a relationship between combat and a prisoner of war s tatus and publis hed their acceptance of Pos t-traumatic Stress Neuroses as service-connected. In retrospect, it is difficult.
to attept it t.ook as long as tbirty-eight years.
Equally as unbelievable, Gentlemen, is that the same POW study of 1980 disclosed
there were very little, if any, medical records maintained in these prison camps. However.
we do admit we did not have to wait thirty-eight years for such pronouncement from the
Veterans Administration. As a matter of fact, it took only a quarter-century for them to
issue s uch proclamation.
(Continued 0 ,.. Page 8)
***********
Your Convention Committee lucked out
when we arranged the 1981 Convention in
Las Vegas. Since some of the terrible fires
that have been happening in high rise
hotels: and office buildings, we have had
some members express concern for the
area they will be housed.
The Sands Hote1 is comprised of a high
rise tower with several low motel type
buildings on either side of a large long
grass area. There are 2 swimming pools,
golf green. play areas, sun bathing and
plenty of party areas. You see our reasons
for selecting these buildings for our rooms.
Most important you make your reservations before April 5, 1981 as that is the cut
off date with the hotel. We have blocked
out 400 rooms to that date. If necessary
Phone 702·733-5000. Be s ure to tell them
you are with A.D.B.C. or they will tell you
they are all full as we have the rooms
reserved.
Here are a list of shows for your plans:
ALADDIN: LOLA FALANA & JOEY
BISHOP
CEASAR'S: SAMMY DAV IS. JR.
FRONTI ER: WAYNE NEWTON &
DAVE BARRY
HrLTON: BILL COSBY & JULIET
PROWSE
.
RIVIERA: MELISSA MANCHESTER &
JOAN RIVERS
SAHARA: WAYLAND & MADAME
" GOES TO HARLEM "
TROP I CANA : THE LAS VEGA S
STRIP!
HACIENDA: ICE FOLLIES
IMPERIAL PALACE: BRAVO VEGAS
SANDS: SHECKY GREENE
UNION PLAZA: THE ODD COUPLE
DUNES: CASINO DE PAR IS
FLAMINGO HILTON: ICE SHOW
STARDUST: LIDO DE PAR IS '81
***********
Dedk:oted to thost pInOI'Is both hing ond dtod who fOU9ht ogoiMl
ove!whelming odds ogcmsl tIw enem, ot the outbrtolc of World WO( II
0ffici0I PutIIk:otion of the
AMERICAN DEFENDERS OF BATAAN & CORREGIDOR. INC.
(INClUDING A NY UNIT OF FORCE OF TH E ASIATIC flEET. PH ILI PPIN E A RCHIPELAGO,
WAKE ISLAND , MARIANNA ISLAND, AND DUTCH EAST INDI ES)
HOIOIU'I' omcus
Re. Admin! HenIJ W. Goodllt
.......... !bioI., Comm.,c!er
Re. Admir. AI., II. Mc;CrlClien •.
. ..•.•.. ~., Vke-Q)mmander
Brl,. GerI .... "'nold J. fun~ •.. ,.
..
V'IC.tomm.,de.
WIll I. lONG, JI.
NATI0tt6.l COMMANOt:R
Box 2052
New Bern, N.C. 28560
919-637· 4033
HoncM.,
EDWAlD JAClRIT
MlSTOIII M. 'ATtllIO
Seen•• ,
r,el5llrer
201 Hilleres! [)ivt
414 Ricllm oo d PllCe
Wellsburl. W.Ya. 26010
Leoni •. He'll' Jefle, 01605
304-131·1496
MM. '" HUID, IlO.
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Surle;Jn
Dll!lIain
515 lid St., N.W.
III BuUefc" Road
(MJton. Ohio 44703
Butler. P,. 16001
ME.IUS OfTME l.nSfMDlTIOAID
Josep/I T. Poster
Perm.,ent Seaet.,
.brnes CIIII'II'ell
»S, Oilell.
DI.lts Roslis
JolIn Emefic_
Pllil "'slani.,
Ben Aq llllini
YillCenl .IrweIe
Benson Gurtoo
Hat Rom.,ZD
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Philip "'$ladilf!
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Jr. Vk:, Commonder
7040 Qrlelond Avenue
W.sltn'i",. Ohio 43081
""IU' AISUIftAN
Sr. Vk:, COIIlIIIIIIldeI'
II" Seoool' lone
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Jlldle Ad'lCCllte
103 AlI.,dale [)itt
tt.npton. VI. 23369
IUSDII , m Ol
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704 14th S-. SoL
Decatllr. Ala. 35601
Stnice Office'
55 Geil Sh.eI
Sili...s. CA. 9UOI
.IOSErtI ol VATU
. .PM llYEIIUC
Eilitor. Tht Qu~
IlATJOUl COlI_DEI
J[IOM( ol
Duirm • • CGnll!l1tion
P.O. Box 331
Site Committee
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P.O. 80. 32633
Henderson. Hr. 89105
18 W.bIef [)i¥e
San Antonio. TulS 78216
702·5M·7130
MeKees Rocb. Pa. 15136
MTIIJI A. IIUSI
DOM f . 'IAITOIIO
Dllirmlll, NecroIou Committee
Slltci. Protects Officer
1107 t.nbritce Cowl
11242 L I1IsII KIIi" Ortle
llln,woocI. RI. 32750
TIICSOII. "'lzoIII 8S715
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201 Hilleres! [)iYe
Wellsbu'l. W:q , 26070
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tt.olcl Spoonen
• Ret. Albert O. Talbot
.limn Mc;[,."
.M / Gen [.p . iii,. . .II.
Simme Piclun.,
AI brrt Seftn.
Mutice Mam
met)II A. VatllJ
.""'...
HaIMlIII
"'I Incumbent Slate Commlll6ers
• Inris GolcIsltltl
Albert I. timl•
s.nuel M. Bloom. M.O.
I\erlneth J. SIIIII
Ha'ry P. MeIIoui
John F. R.y
Samuel 8. Moody
"'I~II' A.. lllmi
JolIn f.. leDai,
la'nes II. t."lUIh
Thomas A. tldell
8ern.d "'IN
loiI'rs Sach'/llld
Jerome A, McDlwitt
JolIn M. fmerict
~ T. PostllJ
John Bennetl
Jlmtl O. t..1weI1
Rolph lrtenbtrtl
EXECUTIVE BOARD
NEED HELP
H.R.11oo
The National Executive Board met in
Reading, PA Feb. 28, 198 1. As us ual we
had an e.cellent attendance of board
members as well as many of the local
members. For the dinner some 80 people
attended.
Our thanks to Joe and Helen Poster, and
Dot and John Hassler for all the hospitali·
ty they provided the members.
The various committee chairmen made
their reports. These were discussed and
acted upon. The convention progTam was
given much study the results is printed in
this Quan. We ask the members to register
early 80 they can take part in aU the ac·
tivities, Tickets will be issued for aU the activities. Because of the people who make it
a life s tyle to crash parties such as ours we
mU!t protect our act.ivities by insisting on
each person who attends.
Under old bu s iness Art Bre ss i,
Legislative Chairman, devoted quite a bit
of time on past appearances before the
Veterans Affairs Committee. He also
reviewed his plans for his appearance at
the March 4th hearing, Again it was s tated
2 - THEQUAN
I served with the 59th Coast Art.i1Iery,
Was captured on Corregidor.
Sent to Kavetil Naval Base. made to
jump ship about 2 miles from shore. had to
swim, some did not make it.
Forced to march several miles to Bilibid
Prison wit.hout. food or water.
Trying to get in touch with: Joe Br8U!1
and Norman J . Masterson from Arkansas:
Ben Grayson. OK; Lewis Withrow, GA.;
Dagguarto Ramirize, N.M.; Smelser from
MO and St. Kramer (St.ate u/k).
I am tryi ng to est.ablish eligibility for
the Purple Heart. Would appreciate any
help your publication can give me. Thank
you.
Gregory Rodriquez
18049877
310 West. Madison
Henryetta, OK 74437
The A.D.B.C, by action of its officers
and executive board at its meeting of Feb.
28, J98 1 supports H.R. 1100 and the companion health care bills. Hearings on these
bills were held on March 4, 198 1. Our
representative Art Bressi appeared in an
effort to convince the Veterans Affairs
Committee to mandate the V.A, to provide
the J ap P.O.W.'s the care and benefits due
him under existing laws and regulations.
The present regulations do provide a fair
adjustment of our problems. if only the ad·
judicators read the benefits we were entitled to, and we are not asking for anything
new. Take the time to read Art's s tatement
to the Veteran's Affair Committee.
the benefits are there but how do we convince the VA to give us the " Benefit of the
Doubt" or "Presumption" t he mOn! one
gets involved the more frustration one
gets.
CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations to Dr, Charles T.
Brown, 215 Blue Bonnet Blvd., San An·
tonio, TX for his award of the "Freedom
Foundation's of Valley Forge. PA George
Washington medal for his work with
former prisoners of war. A well deserved
tribute "Doc,"
•
ANTHONY TOSCANO
RECEIVES POW CITATION
ADBC Deaths 1980
•
1. The following American Defenders of Sstaan and Corregidor have passed away
during the year 1980. There may have been more but. not reported to us.
l. Roscoe E. Lauttenhiser
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
I
•
22.
28.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
31.
38.
39.
40.
4 1.
42.
•
43.
44.
45.
46.
41.
4S.
49.
SO.
51 .
52.
58.
64.
55.
56.
51.
5S.
59.
GO.
61.
62.
68.
Horace H . Young
Nicasio B. Asuncion
Wilbur L. Davis
Donald Vincen( Hart
Ralpb E. Johnson
Lt. Col Ray G. Lawrence
EugeneF. Kowalski.
Robert C. Becker
James D. Landrum
Philip H . Sanborn
Stanley Wloodarczyk
Richard Shields
J . Harold Harvesten
James H . Bahrenbury
John F. George
Lt. Commander Art Christenson
William O. McCarthy
CbarlesW. Primrose
AndrewW. Veltman
Fred Hahn
Mavis C. Brown
Grover O. Whittinghill
B/Gen. Virgilio Cordero
Hubert 8 . Gator
Lloyd B. Finley
RobertM.Neil
Howard Ayres
Floyd A. Daoo
James H . Wamack
R.D. Brunton
Jack R. Speece
Eugene G. PheiHer
James L. Dorsey
Walter Kidd
Marvin C. Bullock
Odell C. Paul
Eulite N. Adams
Lawrence H. Phillips
Hank Phillips
Fred Howard
Francis Caasera
Damon W. Dunagan
Watson L. Henley
Juan S. Deluna
Karl Burdette
JackVanAllen
Clayton Marcotte
William B. Pogue
JohnSawyer
Jease J . Hucks
Mayor Ed Simpson
James R. Harris
Reinholdt Aschenbrenner
John S. Burns
Frances Nash Dumas
Joseph A. Connally
Lawrence J . Schaefer
Herbert. W. Schroek:
E .O. Phelps
Raymond!Gdd
Donat Lambert
Fred K. Ross
California
Washington
Missouri
California
California
NewMe.xico
New York
California
Virginia
Rhode Island
Ohio
T~..
California
Ohio
Texas
Arizona
California
Massachusetts
Flori..
Utah
Texas
Kentucky
Puerto Rico
New Hampshire
California
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
Telt8.s
Georgia
North Dakota
T....
New York
Virginia
Louisiana
Florida
Geo.-g;.
T~..
New York
New York
Arizona
"'-n
NewMe.xico
T....
NewMe.xico
Pennsylvania
Florida
California
T....
Ohio
South Carolina
Florida
Tax..
Colorado
California
Alabama
Oregon
Iowa
T ....
Virginia
Massachusetts
New York
(Continufld on Page 16)
Died Jan. SO, 1980
Died Feb. 10, 1980
Died Feb. 28, 19S0
Died March I, 1980
Died March 17, 19S0
Died MaTCh 28, 1980
Died March 21, 1980
Died April 1, 1980
Died April 6. 1980
Died April 9. 1980
Died April 15. 1980
Died April 15, 1980
Died April 27, 1980
Died May 5, 19S0
Died May 1980
Died May 16, 1980
Died May 22. 1980
Died May 22, 1980
Died May 28, 1980
Died June 2, 1980
Died June 1980
Died June 6, 1980
Died June 1. 1980
Died June 9.1980
Died June 10, 1980
Died June 1980
Died June IS, 19S0
Died June 16, 1980
Died 1980
Died June 16, 19S0
Died June 21. 1980
Died June 23, 1980
Died 1980
Died 1980
Died July 10. 1980
Died July 14. 1980
Died July 24, 1980
Died July 28, 1980
Died July 25, 1980
Died July 25, 1980
Died August I, 1980
Died 1980
Died Auguat 22, 1980
Died August 25, 1980
Died 1980
Died August I, 1980
Died Sept. 18. 1980
Died 1980
Died 1980
Died Sept. 30, 1980
Died 1980
Died 1980
Died Sept. 16, 1980
Died 1980
Died 1980
Died Sept. 20, 1980
Died Oct. 23. 1980
Died Nov. 1980
Died Oct. 9, 1980
In late December. just in time to have an
additional reason to celebrate the New
Year, Patriot Anthony Toscano of Onon·
daga Memorial Chapter No. 406 received a
surprise package. In it was an Award of
Excellence from the American Defenders
of Bataan and Corregidor, Inc. (ADBCl).
The Award and letter of congratulations
came from John M. Emerick, Past National Commander of the ADBCI and 8
Life Member of the Military Order of the
Purple Heart who livea in Finleyville. Pen·
nsylvania. The Award was authorized by
the Executive Board of the ADBC at ita
meeting which was held in Louisville. Ken·
tucky, last November.
Patriot Toscano is an active and loyal
member of the Order and has done much
for vet.erans as he has served in many dif·
ferent offices and capacities. One story
which he tells. and which concerns his
duties as National Service Officer, is of an
individual who was originally drawing 20%
disability. Over a period of time Toacano
was able to increase that to 80% and then
to 80% and finally to 100%. In addition.
the veteran land former Member of
MOPH) was awarded a retroactive pay·
mentofS15,OOO.S I and a commissary card.
All of this happened in 1971. Since t.hat
time, however, the individual has not
renewed hia membership in the Order.
Patriot Toscano calls this his " Sweet
Mystery of Life. " Well, perhaps; but such
wOl'k as that, Tony, is just e.J:actiy why the
American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, Inc. saw fit to present you with
the Award of Excellence. You sometimes
get knocked down. but you come back up
and go back to giving 100%. And you have
paid your dues many timea over.
Congratulations on a well-deserved
Award.
WANTED
P.O.W. STORIES
I was in 803rd Eng. on Bataan and was
in the death march. I am a life member of
A.D.B.C. and A.X.P.O.W. I would like a
short story from A.D.B.C. members, of
some outstanding event from your POW·
days, photos of yourseU or camps made
while a POW. I wiu copy and return
photos. 1 want them for my own collection.
If the stories are good book material I
might put them in book form if you will
give me your written and signed penniasion to do so. When you write give branch
of service and P.O.W. camps.
Send to:
Joe B. HiU
213 Danelson Hills Dr.
Nashville, Tenn. 372 14
MARCH, 1981 - 3
" I CAME BACK ALIVE"
By Joseph Wengronowitz. 18042320
Hq & Hq Det. 2nd Bn. 31st Inf.
Attached to F Company
Part. I I - Rescue at Cabanatuan
Like thunder out of the e8.!J t. we were ordered into truckll and were sent to CabanatUBn. What a joyous day that. was. O'Donnell was 8 hell on earth. Any change of location
was good enough for us. However. omy the Americans were allowed to go. The Filipino
POW 's stayed back at O'Donnell. How sorry I fe1t for them. The time now is about July
1942. We were dumped orr at Cabanatuan. about 70 miles north of ManUL I believe aU
American POW's have been in this death camp. mortuary, funeTal parlor, call it what you
like - you can never describe as it really was. All the men I met can write or tell you a different. story about the same things you have been reading. only in a different way. If you
think Cabanatuan was anot.ber bell on earth, you should bear hOJT()l" stories from POW
survivors of torpedoed hellahips that left Manila Bay for camps in Japan and Manchuria.
We, were assigned to barTacks with 100 men to each barrack, and 10 squads per 100
men. H one man escaped out of one squad. the other nine were to be shot by a firing
squad. So the Japanese had guards patrolling the exterior of the barbed wire fence. and
we Americans bad POW's patrolling the inside of the fence. The Japanese also used a barracks for a guard house for POW 's who were caught stealing from others or COmmitting
other minor offenses. These sentences usually lasted up to 30 days. However, if a POW
was caught stealing the third time. be was committed to dig his own grave, kneel down at
one end, and be sbot in the back at SU1\56t. This was done ouLside the fance. All other
POW's inside were to st.and at attention and watch the horrendous act.
Ob dear, we are now burying sis.. seven, maybe 10 American bodies everyday. We
have been here only two months. The quality of the rice is moat putrid. It just has to be
sweepinga from a truck bed. A sack supposedly has tom open and spilled, then swept up
with all the sand, dirt. and whatever was in the bos car or truck, We have yet to get 60me
fann of meat. God only knows if we ever will Hey, 26th Cavalry (Philippine Scouts), your
borses would have tasted pretty good about this time. They tasted pretty good, anyway,
on Bataan or Corregidor, when we were free men. Carabao meat wasn't too bad to eat.,
either. My greatest bitch seemed to be I never had enough of whatever food there was.
~member that San Miguel beeT? Or that bottle of gin - the gin with a picture of the
devil with a pitch fork in hia hand chasing an angel? All on the label, of course.
One day a work deLail was called by His lmperial Majesty's officers. They wanted
300 men. The rumor was that they were going to Mukden. Manchuria. I did not volunteer
because my geography told me it w.s just too damn cold in that part. of the world. The
Nips didn 't want me, anyway. I was just too skinny. They wanted men with meat on their
booes, not wrinkles. They must have had a hell of a time making the selection.
Hey, here comes the Corregidor bunch, including the Air Corps men captured on
Mindanao. Many of them had been heJd in Bilibid Pri60n in Manila. I start watching them
to see if I know any of them. Some of the BaLasn bunch went to tbe Rock by banca or any
means; 80rne even swam the shark-infested waters of Manila Bay rather than be captured
by the enemy. I don 't know if anybody ever got to Col'Tegidor. But I'm s till looking. Today there must be more than 9.000 Americans here at Cabanatuan. It seems like a lot. AU
of the barracks of this one-time Philippine Army camp are full of POW's. Our rations
don't pick up any in spite of the great inflw: of POW's. In fact, they are cut consideTably.
Rice is our main dish. " Lugao" is the main fare_ Many POW's still don't have blankets.
shelter halves, or even shirts.
By late February 1943 about 7().8Q
It is now December 1942. Many
Americans have been shipped to Japan, to
POW's were dying daily, mosUy from lack
Port Area to load and unload ships, and to
of nourishing food . Beriberi was rampant,
other airfields on Luzon and Palawan. Men
and dysentery beyond description. Flies by
are now dying at tbe rate of 2().22 every
the millions. We finally figured out a way
day. By now. January 1943, I run into one
to control tbe flies. Every POW who would
catch or kill 1,1)()() flies would be given an
of the Gentry boya, with whom I enlisted. I
had referred to him as missing in action or
extra ration of rice. So be it. In a few weeks
the rues were gone. Today I find five
captured by the enemy in Part. I after we
retreated to Abucay. He is in very poor
quinine tablets on the ground. As I am sufphysicaJ condition. probably weighing 90
fering from the dreaded Malaria, I take one
pounds. He dies within the nest 10 days.
every day. No"" the Japanese bring in
po""dered quinine and everybody geta his
He told me about his brother. So I look him
share of the medicine. One morning I
up. He is .ble to walk yet. but will not live
swake and find a POW on each side of me
long as he has malaria and dYgentery.
Without any medicine many POW's will
dead. There were five dead in my barraw
that day. 1 take three mess kits to chow in
die and be buried in the coral cemetery
nearby. I don't, know what the date is, but
the morning, mine plus those of the two
it is late January 1943. The otber Gentry
corpses. I eat all three. breakfasts. Then 1
boy with whom I enlist«!. is dead. Once report the dead to our barrscks leader.
Their clothing and other posse8llions are
again I am lucky.
4 - THE QUAN
kept by othel"8 who have nothing,
A few weeks later I noticed a &Teat
change in the physical health of the
POW's. They looked better and appeared
to be bappier. I guess it must have been
the medication the Japanese hsd given us.
I suspected the Japanese must hsve bad
the hell kicked out of them in some sea bat,.
tle or air battle somewhere. They were
mean to us for awhile. Later things would
get back to normal The ch a~ W88 so
great that two bastards escaped from my
barracks. One of them was from my squad.
The Japanese promptly put 18 of us in the
guardhouse. We knew we would be (acins
the firing squad soon. Eighteen days went
by and nothing bappened. The nez~ day a
Japanese officer lined us up and said they
would not shoot us but we were to serve
another 30 days in jail. Tojo and Roosevelt
must have shaken hands and said no
s hooting of POW 's. Talk ahout being
lucky. I just barely got out of that episode.
I rmally was strong enough to go on a
volunteer detail that ....9 sent to Lipa,
Batangas Province. about 70 miles 80uth
of Manila, to work on an airfield. I was on
tbat detail for 17 months. It waa better
than O'Donnell O!' Cabanatuan where ""e
were burying up to 7().8() POW's a day.
Other than the usual malaria and
dysentery cases, and POW's being beaten
by Japanese guards, there were hardly any
burial cases brought to oUf' attention. We
were away from civilization. Had we been
closer to town. the townspeople ""ouJd
have smuggled food to us in some form or
another as they had done st O'Donell or
Caban.tuan. In s pite of that. 1 thought we
fared better than the POW's at tbe otheT
priaon camps. I guess I was again just
plain lucky.
The Lips detail consisted of 200 POW's
building an airstrip for Japanese light
bombers and for pilots to practice landing
on aircraft camers. What a scream. When
the Ilireraft pilots tried to land. tbe Nips
would use a rope tied to a sandbag on one
side of the runway, stretched across to the
otheT side and attached to another sand·
bag. With a Nip standing on each sandbag,
the carrier plane would come in for a po8llible landing. Sometimes it would make a
pass over and then circle. But when it real·
Iy tried to land and the hook would catch
the rope, the two Nips would just fly end
over end, and the plane never slowed up a
bit until it rolled off of the concrete runway
and stopped in the tall grass and brush.
This was late in 1944. We wor ked every
single day, rain or shine. A POW had to
h.ve a 103·degree fever before the
Japanese doctor would permit him to stay
in hie barracks. Very little medicine was
given to us. If a POW got seriously sick. be
would be replaced by a shipment of two to
three from Bilibid Pri80n. Our food picked
up considerably. Our POW doctors figured
we wert! getting about 1,200 calories a day.
Then of course we would steal mongo
beans and we were allowed to cook t hem in(Continued on Page 5J
•
•
•
(Continum (rom Poge 4)
di vidually. Sometimes we unloaded
Japanese trucks of food for them. That 's
how we were able to steal sugar or
whatever they had. But God help us if we
got caught. As punislunent, we would be
made to kneel on crushed lava day and
night and get beat up every time there was
a change of the guard. And that 9188 every
hour on the hour.
In Lip. is where I started to shave once
more. We made razors out of arch s upporh
in worn out shoes. The Japanese would br·
ing in IIOme clothing and medicine now and
then. In general, they were just a hunch of
dutrunies, if you ask me. One time. a
carabao couldn't, pull a heavy load and just
laid down and wouldn't get up. The
Japanese guards beat the anima] to death.
At another time 8 J apane!lEl railroad
locomotive couldn't pull a trainload of rock
onto the siding which was on an upgrade.
The guards told the whole detail to beat
the locomotive and nat cars. Then there
was the Nip truck driver who couldn't even
start 8 truck without first referring to his
manual. Not only once but every time.
Talk about stupidity. We must bsve bsd
all the " stupes" at Lip&.. And they WeTe
trying to CODqUeT t.he Far East and take on
the United States. The above incidents
provided the amusing anecdotes of my S4
months as a POW. I know I was well
treated in comparison to those in other
detaila in Palawan and Nichols Field.
To those of you who had been on t he
Lipa detail, do you remember Donald
Duck, Three Whiskers. and that fat. " sonnavabitch" we called Carabao? He was
graduated ITom a univer9ity in California
and could speak English quite well. But we
never could get much out of tum because
the war was not in favM of the Japanese.
Tokyo was being fire bombed and the
B·29's WeTe bombing the hell right out of
the Japanese heartland.
We had two men escape from Lipa. Both
WeTe later captured. but no one got shot.
Shortly after the escape. we were all loaded
onto Lrucks and shipped to Bilibid Prison.
At Bilibid the Japanese made another
selection of POW's to be shipped to Japan.
More than 500 were selected. There were
about 30 of us who were left bebind
because we were either sick or physically
unfit.. We were not suitable material fM a
work detail. We were loaded into boI. cars
and transported back to Cabanatuan,
Again. I was lucky because the unmarked
"Oryoku Maru ", with some 1. 500
American POW 's from Cahanatuan,
Bilibid and Davao, was torpedoed off
Subic Bay. There were few 8Ul'Vivon. My
put Minnesota Chapter Commander, Burton Ellis. a1so from the 31st Infantry, survived the tragedy of the "Otyoku Maru."
(Oddly enough. Ellis and I went to the
aame public IIChool in Waseca. Minnesota.)
Early in J anuary 1945, we learned from
the grapevine that the American forces
had landed at Lingayen. A few days later
we heard tbe roar of heavy artillery 8S the
American forces advanced eastward
toward Cabanatuan. This W88 followed by
groups of Japanese straggiers pouring into
our camp. They were retreating from the
advancing American troops. Their
unifonns were in tatters and they "ere
starving. Some were wounded. They
reminded me of tbe cbaos on Sataan during the first week in April 1942 when we
were retreating. The Japanese stragglers
stayed st our camp and the guards fed
tbem, but not for long. They were all killed
by the surprise attack of the 6th U.S.
Rangers aided by Filipino gueni.llaa.
January 30, 1945, is a date I will always
remember. On that day, 51S American
POW's were liberated. at. Cabanatuan.
Let's say t here were 512 because I saw one
die within a rew minutes after t.be rescue.
American fighter aircraft had been flying
over our camp for several days before our
liberation. We counted many bombers
heading north to Taiwan, escorted by
fighter planes. One day I W88 to ring the
gong every hour on the hour. We usually
88signed someone to ring the gong everyday. At the stroke of eight. that evening,
we heard gunfire but we bad no way of
knowing whether it came from mend or
foe. Then the news moved over the
grapevine. The first shots had wiped out aU
of the Japanese guards in the towers. Our
own troops were in command and once
again we were free men of the USAFFE.
The Rangers and guerrill8l:l improvised
bamboo carta and sleds for the bedridden
POW's becaU88 commando units. such 88
the Rangers. never carried stretchers. We
a1so had a lot of amputees in our group.
,Jne of the POW's still standing beside our
barracks in the prison camp grabbed a rifle
from a Ranger and fll'tld into a tree house
wbere a Nip guard was aLationed. Just
then a mortar shell exploded just outside
of the front entrance to the camp. It killed
the only doctor the Rangers brought with
them. I walked right by his struggling
body as he stopped screaming in pain.
Death once again took its toll at this prison
camp during t he rescue operations. 1
believe the doctor's name was Mucci.
They moved us westward where hospital
units were located. Those of us who were
ambulatory, walked many miles that
moonlit night, buoyed by a spirit of
froodom. It W88 a glorious and exciting
night. Yes, Joseph Wengronowitz,
18042820, was on his way home to Minnesota. RumMS had it that. t.he Japanese
forces in the nearby hills were to cut off our
escape. but we just couldn't move any
faster than the slowest stretcher case. The
sick and wounded were carried on carabao
carts by Filipino volunteers and our own
boye. Know something? Nobody was thirety. I j ust didn't give a damn about food or
water. although I did think abou t the
radiator in t he jeep from which some kid
and I had drained water into our canteen
cups one time. Excuse this interruption,
but I'm going to have a shot of brandy and
a great. bi.g whopping bamburger. Besides,
i
got to look for the names of all those
heroic Rangen who came into ocr camp on
that eventful night of January 30, 1945.
Remember our las t Christmae at
Cabanatuan? The menu consisted of fUib
heads jdried) and seaweed (kelp) and, 88
usual. very litUe rice. Fish heads and eyes
and all that goee with a fish head. Seaweed
wasn't too bad 81cept it W88 so blasted aaI·
ty. That was our menu for October,
November, and December of 1944, and
nearly all of January 1945. We had Mass in
late evening of Christm88 eve. The moon
was just abaolutely enchanting. It. shone
right down on our makeshift altar.
Everyone attending Mass received Holy
Communion. The Hosts were made of rice
flour. I don't remember if there W88 wine
used by the priest to celebrate Mus. We
did have a Japanese sentry who attended
Mass. ApproJ:imately 40 POW's and all
the stars in the universe were present. I
think it was the most beautiful Mass I ever
attended.
I have been looking for the list of thoee
Rangers but to no avail Maybe some of
you among the 512 rescued POW 's may
have a copy . God bless you if you do send
me a copy or send it direct to the editor of
The Quan for publication. By the way, 1
had a couple of shots of brandy and a few
shota of Old Crow during the Christmas
and New Year's vacation. I still couldn't.
find the list.
Do you remember Tokyo Rose? She was
the charming lady wbo entertained us,
especially if you belonged to the 194th
Tank Bn. I believe Tokyo Rose did lees too
contribute to the Japanese war effort of
any other persons I know, uruesa it was
Axis Sally from the E.T.O. We never heard
Sally but we did on occasion listen to
Tokyo Rose. You see, the Slat Infantry
had no radios. so we bad to live on rumors
from the 194 th boys.
To get back to our march from Cabanatuan following the rescue, we finally all got
to a river mmy miles north of Cabanatuan,
where we were met by American Infantry
personnel who finisbed guiding us to their
transportation unit8. We WeTe all loaded in
trucka and ambulances and driven to
Lingayen Gull. We survived a heavy bombing attack from the Japanese when we
got. there. We stayed there about three
daya and then we were loaded intoo a plane
and flown over Sataan peninsula and Corregidor, where we got some ack ack thrown
at us. No harm W88 done to our planes.
I looked at Manila and it seemed as
though the whole city W88 on fue. Dense
smoke came from burned out Manila. We
landed at Leyte where we stayed about
three days. Again. the Japanese bombed
us every day and especially nights. But. no
casualties in our group. One early morning
the ex·POW's were moved by ehi p to New
Guinea. It took abou t 12 days for our
transport to reach San Francisco, where I
was hospitali.zed for two weeks. The amputees and very aick patients wen nown to
(Continued on Page 6)
MARCH, 1981. - 5
1 (Continued from Page 6)
San Francisco and entered the Letterman
Genera] Hospital. I guess I a]ways did
have confidence in my faith.
My wife Theresa and a son Mark made
the trip with me to the Philippines April
1977 with a large delegation to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the fall
of Batun and Corregidor. It was also in
connection with the Reunion for Peace program sponsoTed by President Ferdinand
Marcos, who also served on Bataan with
the 21st Division, USAFFE. It was on Mt.
Samat, Bataan Province, during the
ceremonies that I met one of the Filipino
guerrillas (Sgt. Pete Iglesia) who took part
in the rescue of the American POW's at
Cabanatuan. He was awarded the U.S.
Bronze StaT by USAFFE headquarters for
his heroic action in helping the Rangers
liberate the POW 's. I have never seen a
more loyal, patriotic Filipino soldier.
American ex·POW's who made various
trips to the Philippines on Bataan Day told
me that Sgt. Igleaia WIl8 a]ways on hand at
the airport to welcome the American
delegation. He had served on Bataan with
the 31st USAFFE Division under Genera]
Clifford Bluemel. escaped during the death
march, and joined the gueniUa movement
on Luzon Island under the overall com·
mand of American Colonel Robert
Lapham. Sgt. Jglesia participated in
various campaigns and other forms of
harassment against the Japanese all over
Luzon. He marched through the Sierra
Madre jungles to bring in supplies. am·
munition. weapons and medicine t hat had
been landed by submarine on the east
coast of Baler, Tayabas Province.
At Mt. Samat I didn't think I'd be able
to climb the hill to witness the ceremonies
becau8e of my poor physical condition. A
Philippine Army Major was kind enough
to give me a ride in his jeep. After the
c:eremonies, my son returned to Manila
with others in the delegation. However,
Theresa and I considered it an honor to be
invited by Prea.ident Marcos and the First
Lady Imelda to return to Manila aboard
the Presidentia) yacht from Bataan. We
made the return trip in style with s handful
of AmeriC8ll8 from our delegation. We
visited Baguio. My family and I had a
memorable reunion in Manila with Sgt. Ig.
lesia and his family. It was an enjoyable,
sentimental journey to the Philippines for
my family and me.. I'm glad I 'm one of
tho8e who made it back to the United
States after surviving the war, the death
march, and the Cabanatuan prison camps.
Joseph Wengronowitz
RR2, Box 41.
Waaeca, MinD. 56093
•
AMERICAN DEFENDERS OF BATAAN & CORREGlooR
36th NATIONAL CONVENTION April 26·May I, 1981
SANDS HOTEL, LAS VEGAS, NV.
Hotel Chairman - Al Senna Activity Chairman - Ralph
Levenberg
Convention Co-ordinators - J . Vater & A. Patrizio
(-) HOTEL FUNCTION
DATE
Sun. 4/26
T IME
4 p-7p
Mon. 4/27
9a-3p
10 a·ll a
Appointment
AllDay
AllDay
1 p-4 P
Evening
The. 4128
9a-3p
9 a-l0 a
Appointment
AllDay
All Day
1 p-4 P
12:00 N
8 p·12m
Wed. 4/29
Thr. 4/S0
10 a-2 p
12 n·l p
10 a·4 p
All Day
AllDay
I p-4 P
9 p-12p
ACTIVITY
-Registration
Bus Tour & Shows
-Registration
Dinner/Show Reservation
Convention Site Committee
-Service Officer
Bus Tour - Hoover Dam
Sightseeing Tour (10-4)
-Western States Activities
Individual Activities
-Regisuation
Oinner/show Reservation
lnvestment Board Committee
-Service Officer
Bus - Hoover Dam
Sightseeing Tour
-Executive Board Mtg.
-24th Pursuit - "Dining In"
-Infonna)- Meet & Talk
Cash Bar
-Regisuation
GISIP Luncheon
-Gen. Bus Mtg.
Shopping - Maul
-Pow Art display
-ThuDderbirds Movie
-Past Com'ds. Dance
Open Bar
10 a-2 p
-Registration
11 a·12 n
-Memoria) Services
1 p-4 P - Business Meeting & Veterans Seminar
All Day
Shopping - Maul
5 p-6 P
-Cocktail Party
6:30 p-8:30 p
-Banquet
9 p-12 m
- Hospitality - Dance
Open Bar
Rooms: 144.00 per night - Single or Double
YOU MUST REGISTER TO RECEIVE TICKETS FOR ALL
ACTIVITIES.
REGISTRATION: 125.00 per person, includes:
Sightseeing bus; Librace Museum; Hoove!' Dam - Lun·
cheon - Lake Mead boat ride; Thunderbirds Movie; Memorial
Services;
Wednesday: Past Commanders Dance & Complimentary
au
Thurs.: 1 hr. cocktail party; Banquet, dance & Complimen.
tary Bar.
6-THEQUAN
CHESTER BRUCE HANSON
STANLEY HOLMES
Funeral services for longtime Albuquerque resident and Public relations veteran,
Chester Bruce Hanson was held Tuesday
at the Santa Fe National Cemetery. He
was the director of public affairs for the
Nuclear Defense Support Agency at Old
Sandia Base. When he resigned to accept
the position of Administrator of t he
Cancer Research and Treatment Center at
t he University of New Mwco. Also served
as press secretary to Mayor Harry }(jnney
and served as the public information director for the State Highway Department.
Also was a Member of t he AJhuquerque
Press Club, a Director of the Batsan
Veterans Organi;tation. He was named as
the 1964 George Washington winner by
the Valley Forge Foundation of Pennsylvania. Hanson is survived by his wife
Suzanne, one daughter Pat Mitchelen, one
Major STANLEY HOLMES, U.S. Army, died on a Japanese prisoner-of·war
s hip, sunk on Dec. 15. 1944, while eru-oute
to Japan from the Phillipine Islands where
Major Holmes had been captured..
I an preparing an obituary for Maj.
Holmes for ASSEMBLY, a publication of
the Association of Graduates, United
States Military Academy. West Point.
N.Y.
Stanley Holme! lived in New Castle, PA
when he entered the Military Academy July I. 1930. Hegraudated June 12, 1984. He
served with t he 45th Infantry Phillipine
Scouts and with the 33rd Infantry
Phillipine Army in Bat8an in 1941 -42. t hen
wit h the Guerillas in the Phillipine Islands
and was captured. in Ju ne. 1943.
That is all t he information I have of
Stanley Holmes. I have not been able to
locate any kin.
I f you have any information please send
it to me and please include your area code
and phone number.
I hope you can help, but will certainly
unders tand if you can not.
Col. Jrunes D. Wilmeth
850 1 Heron Drive
Fort Worth, TX 76 108
Pho.817-246-4444
son Bruce, three sisters.
GEORGE A. TIMM
Services were held Dec. 26. 1980 at.
Moore Howard Mortuary for George A.
Timm. a retired Army master sergeant. and
a aurvivor of the Bataan death marcb of
World War It. Burial was in Crown Hill.
Timm. 8 1. of 1415 Glenarm Place. died
Dec. 16 at St. Lukes Hospital.
He. was born Feb. 4. 1899, in Anchor III
He had lived in Denver for 35 years.
Timm was captured by the Japanese in
194 2, was in tbe Bataan deat.h march and
WlU! a prisoner of war until 1945. He retired
from !.he service after that. He was 8
member of the Disabled American
Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wan,
Fraternal Order of the Eagles and Masonic
Lodge.
S ur vivo rs include 8 sister, Mary
Caspers. Swaledale, Iowa.
EVERm A. HORRELL
Everett A. Horrell, 60 ~U .S. Army RET.I
of 885 N. Ashe Street, Southern Pinea,
N.C. died January 23, 198 1, after an ex·
tended inness. He served with the 60th
C.A.C. on Corregidor and was held prisoner
of war for 40 months. After return to t he
States, he served with t he 8200 AiTborne
Division at Fort Bragg. N.C. as a gliderman and later in Supply, ~g.41. When the
3rd Missile Command was activated at
Fort Bragg. he was runong those "handpicked" personnel chosen for specific
duties. - his being in Supply. After retirement £Tom the Army in 1960, be was an accountant for tbe Pinehurst, N.C., resort until 1972 when he was totally disabled..
Among those s urviving are his wife Annabelle. a son Everett J erril. a grandson
and his mother.
MARION J . NICHOLSON
... retired librarian
TARPON SPRINGS. FLA. - Marion J .
Nicholson of 521 Riverview Lane died Feb.
23. 1981 at Morton Plant Hospital. Clearwater. She was 77 .
She was hom in Brooklyn and moved.
here 20 yean ago from Americua. Ga.
Before she retired Mrs. Nicholson was a
medical records librarian at Anclot.e
Psychiatric Cent.er.
S he was a member of Tarpon Springs
Garden Club, and past president of the
Women'a Auxiliary of American Defenders
of Bataan and Corregidor.
She is survived. by her husband, John T.,
and a sister. Alphonsine Garrity of
Dunedin.
THOMAS H. GARLAND
of Chardon. Ohio. Born April 7, 1919. Died.
in Geanga Hospital of a heart attack. J an.
28.198 1. He is survived by his wife Vera of
Chardon. 0, twin daughters Carol Anthony and Cora Baird of Cleveland. 8 son
David of Mentor, 0 ., and 3 grandchildren.
Thomas was a life member of t he
American Defenders of Bataan & Cor·
regidor. H e was in the 192nd Tank Bn. He
served in the US Army of WWII and Willi
captured by t he J apanese and was a POW
for 3Yt: years. He was a survivor of the
death march.
LEO G . OSTERMILLER
Leo G. Ostermiller, 59. of 1611 Martha
St.. Boise, Idaho, who died. of natural
causes in a Boise hospital Feb. 19, 1981.
He was born July 18. 192 1, in Dubois.
He was reared in Nampa and graduated
£Tom Nampa High School He entered Lbe
U.S. Marine Corps on Jan. 5. 1940. and
served in Shanghai, China. in the Fourth
Bat-talion. He fought on Bataan and Cor·
regidor in the Philippines and was captured by the J apanese on Corregidor. He
was confined in Billibid Illld Cabanatuan
POW camp in Mukden, Manchuria. where
he remained until the end of World War II.
He was released by the Russians after
three and a half years asa POW. He was in
the last group of POWs to be returned to
t he Uni ted States.
He originated and activated the United
Veterans Council of Idaho. He was appointed by Gov. Cecil Andrus to the
Veterans Affairs Commission in 1970. and
was vice chairman until his death. He was
featured u a Distinguished Citizen by The
Idaho Statesman on July 17. 1966. He was
a pas t department commander of the
Veterans of Foreign Wara and a member of
the Disabled american Veterans, American
Legion and Elks Lodge No. 310. Boise.
Survivors include his wife, a son, Jerry.
and a daughter. Kathy Lechot. all of Boise.
A TRIBUTE TO
LEIF REISTAD
Leif Reistad. 68, of 4432 Hidrasund,
Norway died at his home on 11th January.
1981.
He had been a prisoner-of war for 3 years
in Osaka, J apan and WlU! a Life Member of
tbe American Defenders of Bataan and
Corregidor.
In accordance with his wishes. a simple
funeral was held in Hidra Kirke on 19th
January. 1981. In spite of s nowstorms. the
church was full of family. friends, fellow
seamen and comrades from his prisoner-ofwar days, who came to pay their last
respects. The Pallbearers were feUow war
veterans and former prisoners-of-war from
Osaka.
He is survived by his wife Solveig.
During his las t days he expressed his
happiness at having been able, through
" The Quan." to express his gratitude to
the American people who had rendered him
such a great !ervice during his term as
prisoner-of·war in Osaka. (See " A Thanks
to America", "The Quan", November
1980).
Leif Reistad was a quiet and generous
man, beloved by us all. who believed in living every day to t he full - a philosophy he
followed to the end.
CARPE DLEM.
Reidar and Mahala B. Mathiassen.
ANGELO PLUCHINO
Of Forest Park. ILL died I)ec. 8. 1980.
Survived by wife Mary. No other details.
MARCH, 1981 - 7
(Continued from Poge I)
The Veterans Administration made other concessions concerning former prisoners
of war, but it always seemed only after hearings by boLh Veterans Affairs Committees
and then, only after these Committees expreseed grave concern and asked s pecifically
that the Veterans Administration, during application of the Jaw, give a liberal interpretation of those Jaws. Admittedly, and {ollowing testimony before this body, administrative
chang1l:s were invoked, amended or changed in Veterans Administration Program Guides.
One such change with a tremendous potential and impact. was the announcement concerrung the ·'Benefit of the Doubt" provisions. later followed by a momentous policy proclamation in which the "Burden of Proof" was to be shifted from the former prisoner of
war to the government.
Somewhere., however, between the es:. the absolute ridiculous in that a plethora of
pressed intent and desirea of our lawmak- medical records, many the result of governing bodies who had the welfare and well· ment sponsored research projects. inbeing of those prisoners of war in mind, cluding the POW study of 1980, have ofand between the period of announced fered evidence and findings which reveal
changes in policy by the Veterans Ad- beyond any doubt these former Japanese
ministration, and the actual and factual prillOners of war suffered more than any
application of those changes, something other group of former prisoners of war.
serious during the final translation was
The paradox we cannot seem to overeither lost or ignored. These changes in come ia that. on one hand the Veterans Adpolicy, as they applied to the "Benefit of ministration ·announced they underst.ood
the Doubt" and the "Burden of Proof" pro- medical records did not exist. Ouring the
visions took on added significance when deliberation and period of weighing the
coupled with the announcement the claim, if such evidence ia not present. the
Veterans Adminiatration recognit.ed and former Japanese prisoner of war is pena.l..Uacknowledged formet" Japanese prisoners ed. To add to this complexity, you adof war were not given proper physical es:. vocated and passed a Public Law concernaminaUons upon release, and that there ing "Presumptions" as such presumptions
were litUe, if any, medica.I records available relate to diseases incurred in prison camps.
for scrutiny, a study and/or use in ad- If we can interpret your intent, you
judicating claimaaubmitted by this former- " presumed" that as a result of incarcera'
Japanese prisoner of war.
Lion, particularly in the case of the former
Please ponder with us a little while Japanese prisoner of war. these diseases
longer aa we pursue these seeming did exist. We do grant that the law did
paradoxes. Generally following teatimony state they had to become manifeat during a
during these hearings, you, the members of one or two year period. But then, it did
this Veterans Affairs Committee, are ob- take the Veterans Administration to admit
viously moved by compassion a nd neuroses and psychoses did not and would
understanding and in response to the not become manifeat in response to a
many diatinguiahed individuala who limited period of one or two yean. We have
render testimony, you ask a liberal int.er- acknowledgment there are no recorda, but
pretation of the law on behalf of these auch fact is used as a negative factor. You
former prisonera of war. In turn. the provided us with a "Presumptive
Veterans Adminiatration either an· Di.seases" provision, but that too aeemed
ticipatea such teatimony, or, in response to to be overlooked. In spite of the fact that
these same hearings, invariably issues a veteran POWs cannot come up with the
seeming appropriate announcement con- deaired proof, and in spite of the fact ancerning one of the issues. But just 811 in- nounced policy stated the burden of proof
Variably, and in spite of steps initiated by now falls on the government, a former
this Committee with good intent, the fina1 Japanese POW is expected to provide a
results prove evasive or, {or all practical proof that doea not erist.
purpotM!a non-exiatent.
Again, it is opportune to emphasize once
As one example, when one o{ our more the ao-called " Benefit of the Doubt"
Japanese prisoners of war manages to get provisiona which are highly touted as
his claim to the level of the Board of Policy·making levels. If that proof is not
Veterans Appea1s, documentation ahowa part of the claim·fiIe and is still required,
his claim is denied between 75% and 88%
the claimant finds himseU in an impossible
of the time. Most often, that claim is situation. Again, a paradox exist! and t.he
denied on the baais of lack of evidence and "Benefit of the Doubt" then becomes
in each instance, if you can accept thia, he meaningless.
is asked for further proof. That proof. 1
We realize and are aware that, at this
need not remind you. would be most point, we are voicing strong sentiment in
desirable in the fann of medical records our opinions and viewpoint!. If we give the
medical records they, t.bemgeIvea, have imptassion we are anti-Veterans Adacknowledged, do not wat! Following Utia ministration, please permit ua to interject
procedure one more step and in line with our gratitude for the fine servicea we do
policy. those who eumine t.he&e claims and receive from the various medical facilities
are upected to render judgment in these in the Veterans Administration system.
c.laima. do eo 1¥ith the premise that if a Unfortunately, it is true that many of oW'
record does not erist, then the di&e8888 former Japanese prisoners of W8T did not,
themselv88 did not erist. This approaches do not, and will not, avail themselves of
8-THEQUAN
these facilities due to their inability to get
attention when they wanted or needed it.
We can truly sympathize with their
fruatrations.
We are deeply greteful to you, the
membera of this Veterans Affaira Committee, who mandated the POW study which
was conducted and completed by an es:ceUent research team from the Veterans
Administration in 1980. Certainly we have
no intention of injecting a " lIOur grape.9"
attitude concemi.ng the study, but we,
those of WI who are intereated in prisoner
of war matters and Issues, aaw nothing
new or at8Ttling in the publication. We are
utremely grateful that the publication
performed three outstanding servicea for
•••Number one,
the atudy refocused the
plight of fonner prisoners of war, which in
turn resulted in the hearings this Committee conducted in June 1980. Secondly. it
again emphasized that the former
Japanese prisoner of war auffered more
than any other group of former prisoners
of war. And thirdly, it provided a
bibliography of hundreds of sources who
have contributed infOJ'maUon and findings
concerning former prisoners of war to this
study.
In line with our reasoning, if only a small
portion of all available medical publications were given proper scceptance and
weight, it follows for us that it is inconceivable that any person in this chain of
adjudication could escape being collceTned
with the apparent problems, especially the
" Benefit of the Doubt" provisions, which
seem to plague us. All these publications
give comprehensive findings and the
results of long study, especially concerning
former Japanese prisoners of war. How can
there be any doubt as to the lasting effects
of prolonged malnutrition? How can there
be any doubt as to the lasting effects prolonged incarceration had on the body. more
specifically, as the mind in that body? Can
anyone doubt that those of us who were involved from the very beginning of World
War II, were in top - absolutely ti~top
physical condition? How many of ua can
make that same claim today? Ravages of
age not1¥ithstanding. actuaries now show
each of us should have a longer, healthier
life. And we former Japanese prisoners of
war cannot make that claim.
It seems we continue to belabor one mao
jor and always overlooked issue as it
relates to us former Japanese prisoners of
war. We remain firmly committed to our
opinion and viewpoint that until the total
story is known and underst.ood especially
by those who sit in judgment and adjudicate our claims, we ahall be denied just
adjudicaLion and the justice which is ours.
We firmly believe the background and
culture of our former Japanese captors haa
to be known if only to fully understand
why we were treated with su~ brutality.
Nowhere in the annala of modern day warfare have 80 many been treated aa bad.1y aa
(Co1ltinu.ed from Page
•
•
•
BJ
those under Japanese control We have
recommended and we continue to recommend that anyone connected or related to
former Japanese prisoners of war please
read "The Knigbtsof Buahido" and we beg
and plead that those, bere on this Veterans
Affairs Committee, and t.hose with the
Veterans Administration who adjudicate
OW' claims, please secure a copy t.o read.
This book was written by Lord Edwaro
RuSBell. Lord of Liverpool, and it is based
solely and only on evidence fully
documented. Once read and understood,
there will be no further need or requir&
ment. for the "Burden of Proof" or the
"Benefit of the Doubt" doctrines professed
by the Veterans Administration.
Finally, if not conclusively, we reach
another highpoint as it relates to us. In
publications relating to World War It
Pacific former prisoners of war, aD error
which could have consequences. has been
committed. We believe this error was not
intentional, but we believe also it should be
rectified and corrected to reOect a true picture of what has happened to us in a
numerical sense. The overall figures
published and accepted as gospel, reflect a
total of some 33,587 Americans, including
sixty-eight (68) of our nurses, the only
females captured as a group and interned
aa prisoners of war, were captured by the
Japanese. Those same figures now show
that, as of January I, 1981 , there were
14,690 of us remaining and alive as of that.
date. We feel we must. invite your attention
to the (act that some 12,000 Philippine
Scouts are included in that figure and since
the overwhelming majority of them ac·
cepted parole and were released from
prison camp statua, a correction is order.
Wit hout conection thOlte figu.-es would indicate that some 44.73% of us are alive t&
day. A corrected interpolation, which we
believe more accurately reflects the facts is
contained in the revised figures of some
21,587 Americans who were captured and
incarcerated. Today, the best figures
available indicate there are only 5,858 of us
alive {excluding the com!<:ted Philippine
Scouts figures) and this figure, when tarried out to percentagea. shows that. our
numbers are not 44% alive but only
27.14%, and that, Gentlemen. is hardly
anything to be proud of! If nothing else,
that figure should give you some
understanding of what it was to have been
a Japanese prisoner of war.
Now in conclusion, we respectfully request that you be more specific with the
'"Intent" of this Body as it relates to
former prisoner of war issues. and the fmal
"cold let.ter of the law" interpretation
which always 900ms to evade the inten·
tions you express. We are aware of the
tealimony of our other prisoner of war
organizations and how initiation of new
Isws could and will affect other prisooen
of war from other theaters. In our instance,
M.r. Chairman. and Membera of this Committee, if you mandate other laws to
CAPTAIN EDMOND PETER ZBIKOWSKI
BOOrd ENG.
AMERICAN DEFENDER OF THE PHILIPPINES
8 y JOHN J . DENEHY JR.
Shortly after noon on December 8,1941, Japanese bombers and fighters from bases
on the island of Formosa swooped down upon American airfields in the Philippine
blands. despite an early morning alert. that t.he expected hOlltilities between Japan and
the United States had commenced at Pearl Harbor, over half of General MacArthur's
growing, but meager. air force was caught on the ground and destroyed. The reason why
the Army Air Force was, once again, taken by surprise nine hours after tbe disaster at
Pearl Harbor, remains a controversial mystery to thia day. The devastation dealt to
American airpoWeT by the Japanese on the fU"st day of the W8l" would doom the ar·
chipelago to almost cerLain defeat in the months ahead.
Among the 31,000 American military personnel stationed in the Philippines on
December 8, 1941. was a thirty·year-old reserve engineer officer from Bristol. Connecticut, First Lieutenant Edmund P. Zbikowski. Zbikowski. a former teacher of science at
the Bristol Freshman Higb School, had arrived in the Philippines on October 23, 1941. He
was a member of the newly-organized S03rd Aviation Engineer Battalion which had been
f<n"med at Westover Field, Massachusetts in early 1941. He commanded company A,
which. with the rest of the battalion, went immediately to work set-ting up a tent city at
Clark Field's Fort Stot.senburgh.
Within a few days, the battalion was split up and Company A was assigned the task
of building a new airfield at Camp O'Donnell on a jungle plateau located approximately
twenty miles north of Clark Field. All of the 803d's companies were busy building airfields to accommodate the expected arrival of many new B·1 7 bombers and P·40 fighters
which would be ostensibly arriving in the coming weeks from the U.s. mainland. Genera]
MacArthur was, at last. going to get the men and material which be felt he would need to
thwart any possible Japanese attempt to invade tbe Philippine Islands. Defense prepara·
tions were expected to be completed by the late spring of 1942. Unfortunately, the
Japanese had other plans and they were not going to wait.
Edmond Peter Zbikowski was born October 31, 1910 in Terryville, Connecticut to
Julian and Veronica jCheichowski) Zbikowski who were immigranta from Poland. Ed attended grammar school in Terryville and then moved wit.h his parents and sisters Mae,
Gertrude, and Doris to nearby Bristol in 1924. Ed at.tended Bristol High School where he
consistently obtained top grades and also participated on the school track team. He had a
passion for learning anything, but be was particularly fond of science and mathemat~cs .
He enjoyed working with his hands and he had an insatiable curiosity about anythmg
mechanical. He built a glider in his father 's cellar, a working camera out of a shoe box.
and a beautiful book case and blanket. chest out. of wood which his sisLer, Mae, stili
treasures. He could t.ake apart and fix just. about any godget.
Ed graduated from high school in 1928 and entered New York University in the fall
He majored in aeronautical engineering. Ed's parents ran a small neighborhood grocery
store and helped with Ed's college expenses as much sa their modest income would permit.. For the most part, Ed worked his way througb college by holding down a host of
part·time jobs after classes and during the summers. For his senior thesis, Ed completely
deaigned a flyable biplane which he called the Burak. Burak means " bee~ " in PoUs~. Ed
also participated in the Army ROTC, and he was commissioned a second Ueutenant m the
Army Reserve upon graduation in 1932.
In the fall of 1932, Ed took a job as a teacher of science at the Freshman High School
in his home town of Bristol He would have preferred a job as an aeronautical engineer,
but because of the depression, teaching was one of the few jobs open for a young, college
graduate. Induslory 's loss would be the gain of many freshman science students whose
lives Ed would touch in the next seven years.
Ed was totally devoted to his pupils and his profession. He was strict. but fair . Being
extremely proud of his Polish heritage, he would write his name on the board for his
benefit them. we will be proud of your ef·
forts. In our SpeciflC instance.. however,
and as it relates to only former Japanetle
prisonera of war. we do not ask for new
laws. Instead, we do ask that your stated
intent be made more specific and that the
changes in the past be given those "liberal
interpretations" you asked by ex8l'ci.sed on
our behalf. As it stands now, and certainly
without intent to be impertinent, there is
some doubt as to whether the dog wags the
tail, or the tail is wagging the dog.
We again express our gratitude. We are
grateful for this opportunity to address
you and we certainly do appreciste the attention we bave received.
THE QUAN
The last issue of the Qusn was mailed to
about 4.160 members and associates. We
also had about 160 changes of address. We
feel the members could help in this respect
as we must pay .25 for each returned Quan
plus the fact the member doeso 't receive
that issue of the Quan.
If you plan to move in the near future
send in the change as soon as possible giv'
ing the date you plan to move.
MARCH, 1981 - 9
(Col'ltil'lued (rom Pag~ 9)
Dear Mr. Vater,
I am engaged in researching the history
das~s at t~e beginning of eacb school year. He would then pronounce his name correctly ,
of the Manils and Sabic Bay Harbor
~~r ~IS pU~II,~ so that no one would have an excuse for misspelling or mispronouncing
. Zbikowski. He expected one hundred perCJlnt effort from his students; he gave as much Defense Command. Enclosed is an article I
m return. He often spent many hours after 9Chool working with interested students on did on Ft. Drum. You can publish this in
"Quan" provided you state it has been
projects and research. In order to have his dasses better understand power mechanics,
Ed. and some of his students, pulled an engine from a junk car and reassembled it to republi!lhed from the "Council of Abandon
POSt.5 Periodical"
working condition in the 9Cience Jab.
The reason I am writing is to ask that
Dr. Henry Zatunewicz of Bristol, who recently retired as the Dean of Medicine at
Saint George University, Grenada, remembers Edmund Zbikowski wit.h great fondness. you put, if possible, a notice in "Quan "
"He was the landmark in my own scientific education, He encouraged me, and others, to t.hat 1 am interested in contacting former
follow through with our scientific curiosities and ideas. He individualized his teaching to Coast Artilliary Corps. personnel who
our varied interests in all phase! of science. He was a great inspiration to me and I will served in the Philippines for help in preparing a history of this command.
never forget him."
Also if you know tbe n&me and address
E.d·s interests outside Lhe classroom were many. He enjoyed tennis. and gall was his
favorite sport. He loved the outdoors, particularly hiking and camping. He hiked the of anyone that served in the CAC I would
Long Trail from the Connecticut-Massachusetts border to Strstton Pond. Vermont with appreciate your sending it to me so thst I
a group of teachers and s tuden ts in 1936. Harvey Grocock remembers Ed as a physical could wri~ to them.
I served in the USN from 1958-61, am a
specimen who many in the group could barely keep up with on the trail. " I would gel. up
at dawn before Ed and the othen and get myself a head start. Before too long. along member of VFW Post 4075 and work as a
would come 'Zib' wearing his thirty·five pound pack. With his long legs flying, be would planner for the Ky. National Guard.
In closingl would like to say if you could
pass by me like 1 was standing still. Up trail, he would wait patiently for me to catch up."
provide
any personnel information on the
Ken Clark was another member of the hiking group who also soldiered with Ed in the
CAC, duty at the Harbor Defense ports,
rese~e. "There were several reserve officers in the Bristol area that were quite active. Ed
was right at the top. Part of our group was interested in horseback riding. We rode once a preperation for war or any other comments
you feeJ would be of interest to me please
month at a cavalry armory in Hartford. 'Zib' and I never mis.sed an opportunity to rida
We did a little low hurdles." Like Ed, Ken Clark also was called from teaching into active write.
Yours,
duty for World War II, Ken stayed on to retire as a full colonel
Ed 's other interests included literature and good music. An informal family snap- Charles H. Bogart
shot shows Ed. long legs thrown over tbe arm of an easy chair, alone and deep into the EDITORS NOTE: Please write diTecLly to
Lboughts of a book, completely unaware of the camera. He frequently played chess and Charles.
bridge and he enjoyed learning t.o playa Mo%art selection on the recorder witb his 20 1 Pin Oak PI.
Frankfort, Ky 50601
neighbor, and feIJow teacher, Charles Demarest.
In April, 1937, Ed married an attractive Bristol girl by the name of Helen WO'reDski.
Ed had courted Helen since his college days. In June, 1940, Helen gave birth to a baby
" I am responding to the insert you placgirl whom Ed named Pola in honor of their parents' native land, Poland. Only a few moned in the locator column. I am of an·
ths before, Lhe nation had been ruthlessly invaded and conquered by the armies of Hitler
other generation than those who served
and Stalin. The tragedy of Poland greatly influenced the new father :' choice of a name for
time
in Omuta, but 1 am intere!lted in cerhis daughter.
tain aspects of t.he Camps. Specifically, I
Ed was called into active duLy in November of 1940. Several pupils at the Freshman
am a numismatic researcher specializ.ing in
High School began to circulate a petition in an effort to keep him home where they felt he
Japan, and co-author of "World War 11
was needed more than he was needed in the army, Wben he became aware of t.he petition,
Military Currency" . In the ned edition of
he discouraged their efforts. He strongly felt that he had a patriotic duty to answer his
t.hat book I would like to include POW
country's call. In a letter to his sister Mae, written while enrout.e to the Philippines, Ed
Camp
.scrip used in Japanese-run Camps
asked her to help look after Helen and Pola. "Some people will find it hard to understand
(Scrip could have been made by t.he in·
why I am leaving them at this time, but I also have this obligation."
mates, however, not necessarily issued by
On September 24,1941, the 803d left Westover Field for Fort McDowel, California.
Lhe
Japanese). If you have any knowledge
Helen, with baby Pola in her arms, was there to see her husband and his unit depart on a
of
such
scrip, from any Japanese Camp, or
troop train. The poignant farewell would be their last, By October 4, ue 80ad was aboard
if you know of someone who might be able
the former President liner, Cleveland which had been renamed the Holbrecll. While sailto held my research, 1 would appreciate b&
ing in convoy across the Pacific, the ships travelled after dark with no lights and smoking
ing put in touch. Even better, if you have
was nolo pennitted on deck, even though the United States was still officially at peace.
any of the actual scrip, or know where
Many of the men were noL aware of their fmal destination. The liLtie convoy arrived in
same
is I would like to purchase or
Manila on October 23, 1941, So iL was that peacetime soldiers, like Edmund Zbikowski,
photograph
it. Also, if you know of other
would find Lhemselves preparing the Philippine Islands for a war that would come all too
associations
of POW's who spenL time in
ooon.
Japanese
Camps.
please let me know who
While constructing the airstrip at Camp O'Donnell, the engineers found it necessary
to contact to pursue the same s ubjects.
to drain several large rice paddies. Filipino laborers were employed by the army to help
Thank you for your time and attention."
the engineers. Ed wrote of their friendliness and he mentioned how they referred to the
Lt. Col. Joseph E. Boling, PO Box
Americans as "Joe." Ed found the oppressive heaL and humidity of Luzon 8][tremely un16188,
lndianapolis, IN. 46216.
comfortable. As a man who was always busy and active, he expressed concem that the
sultry climate mighL make him become too indolent. He was fascinated by the sights of
the Orient and while on a military journey to the cool. mountain resort town of Baguio
with his friend Lt. Robert Montgomery, Ed wrote of how he was overwhelmed by the wild
and primitive beauty of the tropical landscape.
Approximately a week before Lbe Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. the officers of
t.he SOSd w~ passed information that war in the Far East was imminent. The wbole
command was put (,In. 24-hour alert and some slit tr>encbea were dug In nticipatioa of air
•.Uackw. The men of company A worked witb e"en greatu determination to finish the air
fle.I~. Sadly, most of the airstrips being constructed by the 803d would end up being
uLillZed hy Japanese, rather than the American tJrcraft which ne....er came.
ft'orlfinued 01'1 P(lg~ 11)
10 - THE QUAN
tNFORMA nON WANTED
Wm. R. Barna. 4 Carawell Way,
Louisville, KY 40220 wants information on
James G. Barna Co.M 3td BLn. 4th
Marines. Jim enlisted from Detroit, Mich .
Bill al!lO wants to know hol' be could gel. a
copy of Jim's service record. Please con·
tact BiU directly,
(Continued from Page JOI
foUowing the attack on Clark Field. the Japanese made some landings at Aparri.
Vigan. and Legaspi between 10 and 12 December. These were only small detachments
wruch were charged with the job of establishing 8£lvance air fields . On December 22. as
anticipated by GeneraJ MacArthur. the main Japanese invasion of the Philippinea LOOk
place at Lingayan Gulf. approximately 120 milea nOl'th of the capitaJ, Manila. Embarking
from eighty-five troop transports were forty-three thousand troops of Lt. General
Masaharu Homma's crack 14th Army. They waded ashore at dawn. Contrary to g lowing
reports of a great American victory, Filipino-American opposition to the landing was con·
fused and ineffective. Two days later. another force of seven thousand Japanese troops
landed in the south at Lamon Bay and began pushing northward towards Manila.
Opposing the Japanese in the north was the Northern Luron Force under the command of Maj. GeneraJ Jonathan Wainwright. Although the Filipino-American force outnumbered the Japanese invaders, many of the Filipinos were ill-equipped. raw conscripts
with little, if any. military knowledge or experience. Despite the heroic performance of
some of Wainwright's units, eapecially tbe 26th Cavalry-Filipino Scouts. many of t he
green Filipinoa broke and ran when es.posed to Japanese t.ank and artillery fU'e for the
fltat time. Hundreds more deserted Wainwright's force and returned to their barrios. It
quickly became evident that any attempt to force the Japanese invaders into tbe sea
would now be impossible. MacArthur reverted to "War Plan Orange II I" which called fOt'
the withdrawaJ of rua army to the Sataan Peninsula. Once on Bataan, MacArthur could
concentrate his forces for a determined stand. By December 26. Manila was declared an
open city and evacuated by the military.
Both the North and South Luzon Forces, through a series of brilliant and
courageous delaying actions. withdrew step by step into Bataan. Lt. Zbikowski's Company A WB5 ordered to evacuate Camp O'Donnell on December 21. The airstrip waslelt
seventy-five percent complete.
The nellt 8top was at Dinalu pihan. a s hort dis tance north or Bataao where Company A,
aided by Headquuterl' company. built three emergency airatrips in three dll.)'s.
While at Dinalupihan. Ed wrote a letter La his parents. The letter. dated December
28. 1941 , waa not received until April S. 1942, the day after Ed died on Corregidor. I.n his
eternally optimistic m8DJler. he consistently emphasized that he was perfectly aJl right
and that hia oruy worry was that rus family would worry about him. Ironically, Ed'a
father had also fought the Japanese in tbe Russo-JaptUl War and Ed mentioned it in his
letter. " I think of how Pop fought the Japs back in 1905 and how he used La tell us about
it. I wish sometimes that I could have him here with me for a couple of weeks . .. what a
kick he would get out of it. This is the time I'd like to write him a long. detailed letter full
of descriptions so that he could tell hia friends about it. It is difficult to find time to write.
Every hour of the day is full of action and necessary work." However. he was also prophetically aware of his part. in the uant ic. yet significant activity taking place around him
on an island 80 far removed from Bri,Lal Connecticut. " I hope He1en is aa ving aU the
Time magazines she can of thia whole thing 80 t hat I can read about what the world
thought waa happening while I was really here in the middle of history." He ellpressed
complete confidence in his men. "We are not new soldiers. All of us have had a lot of training and military seasoning. We can take good care of ourae1vea at any time, no matter
what."
On December 29. Company A and Headquarters Company moved south inLa Bataan
and built another air s trip at Orani. It was here that Ed 's company would suffer its first
battle C8.SuaJties. Joseph Vater recalls, "We were bombed and strafed about J 0:00 a.m. on
January 1. Again. about noon. while in the chow line. the Japa dropped some bombs and
s trafed the area and we had five or six men injured. One man lost his leg.'· The unit waa
bombed for the third time in the afwnoon. One bomb landed within a shovel-length from
Vater and six others. It was a dud. Trus scenario would repeat itself again and again in
the months ahead with deadly effect.
By t he 4th of January. 1942. the803d had moved deeply into Bataan. The peninaula.
a strip of j Ungle-covered terrain wruch measures twenty-five milea long. and twenty miles
wide. contains a series of steep mountailUl wruch ru n down the center. The geography of
Bataan would provide the defenders with a better opportunity to fend off the invadera
and he1p to offset the Japanese superiority in airpower, tanks. and artillery. Here the
" Battling Bastards of Bataan" could hold on and await the mile-long convoy which they
believed was on the way. No auch convoy ever came.
Bataan was traversed by a series of primitive roads. jungle trails. and rampaging
rivers. Improving. constructing. and repairing the roads and bridges. in order to keep the
infantry supplied. would be the responsibility of the engineers. Company A was assigned
the West Road of Bat.aan. They worked on the road right up to the front lines. Often they
worked at night and alept during the day. if poasible. to avoid Japanese ai r attacks. Joe
Vater remembers t hat the company built spare parts for every bridge in the area. If a
bridge was bombed. aU or part of it could be quickly replaced. Other responsibilities included building an eight-inch gun emplacement.. clearing fiekls of fire, and stringing barbed wire. During this time Ed was promoted to the rank of captain.
The overworked engineers of Bataan endured inCJ"tld.ible phySical and emotionaJ
(Continued on Page J2/
HOAX
Emerging on the heels of the knnual an·
nouncement of a G I life insurance policy
dividend for veterans who have kept their
policies in force. is the erroneous story that
those who do not have policies in force are
s till entitled to a dividend.
The only dividend that the Veterans Adminis tration (VAI pays is on policies still in
force for World Wars I and II . and Korean
war veterans. s v esses S. W. Melidosian.
director of the Philadelphia VA Regional
Office & Insurance Center.
Thousands of Pennsylvania veterans
have been led to believe that they are en·
titled to dividends on lapsed policies.
Melidosian noles. but they are not.
He said the VA is receiving thousands of
telephone calls and letters weekly from
World War II veterans and others who
have been deceived into ex pecti ng
dividends on G I insurance they allowed to
lapse years ago.
According to Melidosian. the hoax crops
up each year when offi cial-looking application forms. complete with an address
where t hey are to be mailed. mysteriously
appear in various parts of the country. As
a result. Melidosian said. newa stories and
reprints of the phony application are appearing in such publications as those put
out by unions. company peu:mnel offi ces
and some veterans ' publications.
" Even reputable newspapers have in·
nocent ly carried such stories." the di rector
said.
VA has been payi ng an annual dividend
on those policiea sHU in force . This is
customarily announced at the beginning of
each year and is usually paid automatil.'Rlly
on the anniversary date of the policy.
Thua. the direc tor ia quick to point out.
there is no need for a veteran to make any
contact with VA about trus payment.
The Philadelphia VA Centet. where the
insurance operations are handled. has been
recei ving upwards of 1.000 letters a day,
and because each has to be ac knowledged
the cost is staggering to the government
and taxpayers because of mnn hours and
mailing costs involved.
The hoax has been visible since 1948.
but the director said the bogus application
may have surfaced after a special dividend
was paid in 1950 and 1951. All payme nts
under that program. however. were ended
by an act of Congress in 1970. The annual
di vidend paid on policies in force annou nced at the start of each year Clay be another
reason that the hoax aurfaces he said.
REUN IO N: POW Camp 17. Omuta.
Kyushu. Japan. August 23-27, 1981. in
conjunction with Bataan-Corregidor Survivors Reunion at Fontana Village Resort,
FonLana Dam. N.C. Write J ohn R.
Mamerow. 7676 Carriage Lane, Boise. LD.
83704 or Wayne Carringer. Box 46. Robbinsville. N.C. 28771. for details.
MARC H, 1981 - II
(Continu4!d from Page 111
hardships. Sleep was always a rare luxury. In addition to confronting a cruel and cunning
enemy. the men of Bataan faced serious food shortages. Immediately after arriving on
Bataan. the command was placed on half rations. The one main meal of the day consisted
of boiled rice and canned fish. Within time. the meat of the cavalry horse, water huffalo,
monkey, and python, when available, would provide the protein for the slowing starving
Americans and Filipinos. Most men were victims of tropical diseases of one type or
another. Malaria, dyse.ntery, beriberi, and dengue fever wert! putting badly needed men
into the overcrowded jungle hospitals at an alarming rate. Helen recalls a letter from Ed
which indicated a lack of medicines and food . " He mentioned our own bacon and egg
breakfasts - indicating hunger. A picture taken at this point showed him thinner than
his usual. slim self."
Altogether, Helen would receive a total of six letters from Ed which were written
after the start of t.he war. A constant noLe of optimism prevailed in his writing. He asked
his loved ones to keep their chins up. and he frequently, and poignantly. refelTed to his
daughter. Ed considered it to be an honen- to be one of the fu-st Bristol boya to be called to
his country's defense and "to be right in tile thick of it."
Ed Zbikowski and his entire company would indeed find themselves right "in the
thick of it" during the early morning hours of January 25, 1942 at a place called Quinauan
Point where the Agloloma River runs into Agloloma Bay. The region of high sea cliffs and
almost impenetrable jungle along Bataan's west coast waa the site of a major Japanese
landing by 600 men of Colonel Tsunchiro's 2d Battalion, 20th Infantry. The Japanese
plan was to land at three points behind I Corps ' front and then push inland and cut off
Wainwright's front line troops.
The beach area was guarded by the 34th Pursuit Squadron. but the airmen had failed
to make proper provision for lMlCUrity. The landing fOra! was not. detected until the in·
vaders were all ashore and well into the jungle and on their way to cut off the West Road.
Early in the morning of January 25, A Company, being bivouacked only a few miles
north of Agloloma. was quicldy ordered to help repulae the landing party. Other units in·
volved were the 21st and 34th Pursuit Squadrons and the 1st Philippine Constabulary.
None of the units was experienced in infantry tactics. Company A was equipped with Spr·
ingfield rines. World War I and home-made grenades, and two .30 caliber, water-cooled
machine guns.
Former Sergeant Floyd Niday remembers the battle well. " The Captain met with an
Air Corps major who Lo1d him that about forty J aps had landed. We were to help an·
nihilate them. Not being combat soldier!!, we did the best we knew how. We lined up as
skirmishers and started across the peninsula shooting at every tree that looked like it
might have a s ni per in it. We made so much noice coming through the jungle that I bet
theJaps thought there were about a thousand men instead of our one hundred fifty. I can
stiU remember Captain 'Zibby' with his chin thrust forward and telling us to follow him.
He did not have one cowardly bone in his body. We could see the tracers coming over our
heads and we got pinned down . . . we had them pushed back to the water's edge." F loyd
Niday recalled that during the fu-st night. it was so dark in the jungle that the men actual·
ly held hands and, in single file, followed a path along a cliff above the coast. With no
smoking or talking allowed. they spent the night right over a Jap command post which
was located about 200 feet below. On the third day. Company A was met by fierce
resistance from the now dug in Japanese. Captain Ed Dyess in his 'book, The Dyess Story,
mentioned the battle. "We had no entrenching tools and were forced to lie on top of the
ground and fire from behind trees. Our casualties ran high. " Dyess commanded the 21 lit
Pursuit. Squadron which was on A Company's flank.. Company A suffered almost. fifty
percent casualties. The unit regrouped and feU back. Out of the company's ninety
engineers, nine were killed and thirty-eight were wounded, some seriously, but they had
contained the invaders. Captain Zbikowski angrily blamed some of the casualties on the
old grenades which often failed to uplode. Another failure was the homemade "Casey
Cookie" grenade which was named in honor of General Hugh Casey, who commanded all
the Philippine engineers. The device was made from a hollow joint of bamboo which was
six inches long and three inches in diameter. It was filled with a half'stick of dynamite,
two and one half inches of nails, broken glass andlor sharp sLones, and sealed with con·
crete with a three inch fuse. Moat turned out to be duds.
The engineers and airmen were relieved by the 3rd Battalion, 45th Infantry, Philippine Scouts, which W83 led by Major Dudley G. Strickler. This ucellent unit W85 later
reinforced by Company B of the 57th Infantry and five tanks from the 192d Tank Bat·
tallon. The battle againat the fanatical Japanese, who were now holed up in cliffside
caves, raged until February the 8th when the last of the landing party were finally wiped
out. Six hundred Japanese were killed and one was taken prisoner. To finish the job, it
had taken almost a battalion of infantry supported by artillery, tanks, and several small
navy gunships.
On the 29t.h of January, Company A prepared to embark for Corregidor Island, bet·
tef' known as " The Rock." On February 2, the unit arrived on the island and set up camp
near North Point, below the airfleld on the Bataan side. The main task assigned to
12 -THEQUAN
IContinuw OJ'! Page IS)
Dell{ Mr. Vater:
I am writing you in your capacity as
editor of The Quan to let you know that I
am writing a book about Bataan and Cor·
regidor with the emph8lJis being on life in •
the prison camps and the treatment of the
American prisoners of war by the
Japanese.
If you could C8TTy a short announcement
of t.his in the next issue of The Quan I
should appreciate it very much. I would
very much appreciate any information any
of the "Bataan boys" could aend me to im·
prove the quality of the book and to let
many Americans. particularly younger
Americans who have grown up since
1946-45, know what it was really like being
in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. Also,
of course, any fresh information on the
"Death March" would be most useful.
1 was in the 41st. Division. Sixth Army,
under Walter Krueger and saw first hand.
wi t hin !l day or two after the Americans arrived, what it W 88 like at O'Donnell,
Cabanatuan and Santa Tomas. In fact. I
wasn't very far behind that flfst tank that
broke down the gate at Santa Tomas and I
went to Cabanatuan the day after the
rangers freed t.he pitifully few remaining
prisoners there. I talked to a lot of them at
the 92nd Evac. Hospital
I have talked to a number of " survivors" already and hope to visit with
more at the convention in Las Vegas.
Sincerely, Roger B. Farquhar.
EARL E. JOHNSON
Hq. Co. 31st lnt. died Feb. 23. 1981. He
was 62 years old. Survived by wife Rosarie
Johnson. Sorry No other details.
•
CHARLES M. SMITH
Macogdoc::hes, TX died Jan. 21, 1981.
Survived by his wife. No other details.
ROBERT E. COLLINS
Born Dec. 8, 1911 died Jan. 1, 1981 at
Carson City, Nev. Bob was with 3lat In!.
captured on Bataan and was in the death
march. He is survived by his wife Joyce
and wishes to thank the many members for
their cards and letters.
JOE D. CHAVEZ
JO(! D . Chavez 64. of Albuquerque and
forn1er resident of Belen. He died Tuway,
Fe bruary 10. He was a Member of the
V.F.W. and an EX· POW of Bataan War
Veterans. He belonged to Our Lady of .
Fatima Catholic Church. He is aurvived by
one sister, Anita C. Raff, four brothers,
Ernest, Louie, Leo and Ruperta Chavez..
Interment. was at the Santa Fe National
Cemetery.
~
,
(Continued from Page 12)
Zbikowski's company W88 to construct a 2,6(1().foot by lOO-footrunway. with revetments,
st Kindley Field.
Handicapped by the loss of good men while <tn Bstaan, the lack of adequate construction equipment, BDd frequent interruptions by ,shellinga and air raids, A Company
was still able to extend the runway fifty feet wide and fifty feet longer Bnd complete all
five Ilircraft revetmenls. They also managed to dig a well, which provided the best water
on Corregidor construct and set up the 8 inch gun which they brought over from BaLaan,
and string barbed wire for beach defenses. "Nobody worked harder or longer than the
8Oad, " wrote Joe Vater with pride.
On March 24, 1942, General Homma began 8 massive air offensive to soften up
American-Filipino positiona on Bataan. This would be followed. by an all-out ground sttack which he hoped would finally overcome the battered defenders. Corregidor, only five
miles off the southern tip of Bataan, would also be bombed,
The bombing on Corregidor began at 0924 when air raid alarm number 77 sounded,
Army and Navy bombers from Clark Field, escorted hy Zero fighters, bombed Corregidor
on nine different occasions throughout the day and night of the 24th. Twice during the
afternoon, Kindley Fie1d was the target and it was then that Captain Zbikowski was
seriously wounded. Chuck Agostinelli was also wounded. "While the Captain and I were
discussing grade changes on the airfield, Jap Zero fighters caught us by surprise with a
strafing and dive bombing raid. We were both wounded pretty badly and, while enroute
to the Fort Mills Hospital on the Rock, he assured me that e .... erythingwould be O.K. and
that both of us would be back with our outfit in no time at all. "
Ed was taken to the hospital lateral in Malinta Tunnel where he underwent surgery
for a massi ....e back wound. During the last week of March, there were sixty air raids on
Corregidor lasting 74 hours. Concussions from the bombings could be felt in the hospital
which was deep in the tunnel. Bottles, dishes, and loose objects would ratUe on the
shel ....es, lights would flicker, and the stale air would fill with dust,
For nine days, amid the overpowering odor of disinfectants, ether, and draining
wounds, Edmund Zbikowski fought the last great batUe of his short life. Pneumonia set
in. On April 2, 1942, Good Friday eve, Ed died. Chuck Agostinelli heard of his C.O.'s
death from a medical corpsman who was keeping him informed about Ed's condition. "I
saw the Captain as a man of integrity - a good leader -a fair, but firm man - and a fine
gentleman." A week later Bataan fell. A month later, so did Corregidor. For the survivors
of the 803d, and for thousands of other gallant Americans and Filipinos, a horrible ordeal
of imprisonment in filthy, disease-ridden Japanese concentration camps awaited. A large
percentage of the men would not survive.
Word of Edmund Zbikowski's death was recei ....ed by his wife on April 7, 1942. World
War II had come to Bristol. The entire community was saddened. Ed was the f1l"s t man
from Bristol to gi ....e his life in World War U. When approached by a reporter from the
Bristol Press, Helen pointed to twenty·two month old Pola Louise and said, "That young
lady has a big, big heritage to live up to, She and I will ha ....e to be good soldiers and carry
on." Ed's memorial mass was celebrated at his church, Saint Stanislaus. The largest
crowd ever to attend a church service in Bristol gathered to mourn and to pray for his
~u1.
•
A speciaJ assembly was called at Ed's school and he was eulogjzed by his principal,
Anthony Towle. "One could seldom pass Ed's class without seeing interested students
gathered around their teacher to talk about science, or any subject, Even after freshmen
became sophomores, they would return to continue a lasting friendship with the man
they saw as an ideal science teacher."
Helen Zbikowski carried on and ran for the State Legislature in the fall of 1942. She
was elected by a large plurality and became the firat woman from Bristol to be elected to
a seat in the General Aasembly. On April 19, 1943, Helen was chosen by her fellow law·
makers to escort Mrs. Jonathan Wainwright into the chamber of the House to receive the
State Legislature's resolution praising General Wainwright, his men, and the Filipino
people. She also had the honor to meet President of the Philippines, Manuel QUe1.:on and
his family who accompanied Mrs. Wainwright. In 1945, Helen married Doctor Walter
Nawrocki and she now makes her home in Wenatchee. Washington.
Pola became the first Wi to be accepted at Stanford Uni ....ersity from t he city of
Wenatchee. S he inherited her father's intellectual bent for science and mathematics and
further pursued her studies at the University of Washington, the University of Marburg,
Germany, and the Goethe Institute of Languages in Berlin. She is now a doctor of
medicine at Phillips University Hospital. West Germany. According to her mother, "She
has an imposing height and bears a striking resemblance to her father."
In remembrance of Edmund Zbikowski, a housing development on Lake Avenue in
Bristol bears his name. Zbikowski Post No.2 - Polish Legion of American Veteraos,
located on North Main Street, also proudly carries Ed's name.
On the third floor of the Memorial Boulevard School, formerly Bristol High School,
is a plaque on the wall in the science department. The inscription reads:
IN MEMORY OF
CAPTAIN EDMUND P. ZBIKOWSKI
SCIENCE TEACHER
AT FRESHMAN HIGH SCHOOL
WHO DIED IN THE SERVICE or
HIS COUNTRY ATCORREGIDOR
~
APRIL2,1942
HE LOVED YOUNG PEOPLE
HE LOVED TO SERVE THEM
HE GAVE HISALLFORTHEM
31st. INFANTRY
The 31st Infantry Regiment-Association
will hold their annual luncheon and ELEC
TJON OF' OFFICERS on Wednesday,
April 29, 1981 in Las Vegas, Nevada in
conjunction with ~he National AOBC con·
vention. Those planning w attend please
notify Wayne B. Lewis, Commander 31st.
Inf. Org. 1101 5 Baldwin N.E. Albuquerque, N.M. 87112 immediately.
Luncheon and meeting room ar·
rangements must be made not lawr than
March I, 1981 and this does not leave
much time for the commander to make the
arrangements. Since a guarantee and pay·
ment must be made at that time. We hope
to hold the cost to approximately $7.00 per
person. Notification of plans to attend the
meeting and luncheon shall be treated as a
guarantee that you will pay your share of
the cost whether you attend or not,
Remember, an organization is only as good
as the members make it.
Sincerely,
Wayne B. Lewis, Commander 31st Inf.
Assn.
11015 Baldwin N.E.
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87 11 2
Phone I (50Sl 296·8423
As your National Historian, apparently
one person in particular feels that I made a
mistake and failed to identify that he,
William Mattson, sent me the list puhlish·
ed in the QUAN . . . I want to thru this
media apologize to him Also I wanL to
THANK REAR ADMIRAL ALAN R.
McCRACKEN, 5619 McLean ori .... e,
Bethesda, Md. 20014, for his nice letter
and his gift of "SOUTH FROM COR·
REGmOR'· by John Morrill, USN. l have
read part of the book and I think it is just
GREAT . . . We will still accept with
great thanks to the GiVER any books of
the QUAN list of books that we NEED.
THANKS, Jerry McDa .... itt.
I'm sending you my Prisoner's Iden·
tification Card I sal.... aged from Camp
O'Donnel. I was wondering if anyone else
got home with one.
I would like to inquire about a Byrom
Sapes Gibson he was with ~he 21st Persuit
Sqd. and died at one of the Osaka Cwnps.
We do not know the number. If anyone was
with him or knew anything about him we
would appreciate any information. Thank
you.
Leonard M . Adams
P.O. Box 1055
Crystal Beach, TX 77650
MARCH, 1981 - 13
THE CONCRETE BAnLESHIP - FORT DRUM
Repub lished from "Council or Abandon Posts Periodical."
By CHARLES H. BOGART
One of t he world's most unusual coastal fortifications was Fort Drum, the "concrete
battleship," built by the U.S. Corps of Engineers to help defend Manila Bay .
Shor tly after the capture of the Philippines by the United States in 1898, plans were
drawn for t he defense of the vital bay. The Army proposed to fortify the islands of Corregidor. Caballo, and Carabao with their guns to command the channels giving entry to
thc inlet, with the small island of El Fraile. 850 feet long by 150 feet wide and topped by a
90 foot rock pinnacle. to be developed as an observation post and torpedo launching
station.
When these plans were reviewed by the newly formed Coastal Artillery Headquarters at Ft. Monroe. Vi rginia. questions were raised as to their effectiveness. The
main problem concerned the ability of the fortifkations on Carabao (Fort Frank) and
Caballo (Fort Hughesl to control the eight mile wide channel between them at night.
Radar was still far in the futu re; in fact, Manila's coastal fortifications were never to have
an effective radar warning system during their lifetimes. Warning depended on the
human eye aided by searchlights. Each fort would thus be responsible for a minimum
distance of at least four miles. In practice a s hip could pass unobserved at such dist.ances
on II rain·s wept or cloudy night.
In response First Lieutenant John J. Kingman, Corps of Engineers, later a Brigadier
General, proposed on JuJy IS, 1905, that a fortification be built on EI Fraile Island. He
suggested tha t the island be cut down to eight feet above mean low water and t hat a reinforced concrete s tructu re be built on this foundation. The fort would house two twin 12'·
guns on Naval carriages in mus hroom turrets of cast nickel steel 2 1 inches thick on the
sides tapering to 10 inches thick on the top. These turrets were to rest on a reinforced concrete bunker having 30 feet of horirontal protection and 10 feet of vertical protection.
Each gun would be supplied with 200 rounds of ammu nition. The turrets would be
located at each end of the bunker with an observation station between them, each turret
having approximately a 270 degree angle of fire . Thus both turrets couJd cover t he chan·
nel to either side of the island but only one tu rret could fife out to sea. The other turret
pointed inland toward Manila. While Kingman 's proposed fortification was turned down,
his idea for cutting down EI Fraile and fortifying it met with approval.
In 1909 the Corps of Engineers was guns were limited to a range of 19,200
ordered to start levelling EI Fraile for the yards (17,300 meters).
construction of a concrete fortification.
The turrets were faced with IS inches (46
The proposed work was named Fort Drum cm) of armor plate and the sides and rear
and was to consist of two twin superimpos· were covered with 6 inches (15 cm) of ar·
ed 14 " turrets. The fort when finis hed mor. Each gun was housed in its own com·
resembled the fore part of a bat tleship, Its partment. Sighting was by a 3 inch (7.5 em)
dimensiona were 350 feet long (110 meters) periscope, one for each gun, plus the gun
and 144 feet wide (44 meters), The gun captain. The turrets were elec:trically
deek was 30 feet (9 meters) above mean low powered, hand traversing requiring three
tide. Protection consisted of exterior walls hours for 90 degrees.
20 feet thick and an overhead protection of
Extending rom each side of the hull were
'I S feet.
casements carrying two 6" naval guns, one
The resemblance to a battleship was so above the other intended for the protection
great it is claimed that many merchant of the minefields around the fort. The
ships entering Manila for the first time casements consisted of six feet of concrete
would render honors for a warship to the backed by six inches of armor plate. The
lort.
upper guns were separated horizontally
When the fort was completed in 1919 its from the lower by three inches of steel. The
armament consisted of two twin 15 " tUr- field of fll'e of each gun was limited to 120
rets Model 1919 designed by the Army degrees, and with a maximum elevation of
Corps of Engineers and manufactured at 12 degrees they had a range of 11,400
Newport News, Virginia. Mounted on yards. The port or south 6" was named
separate levels the after or B turret (Bat- Battery Roberts while the starboard
tery Marshall) was 9 feet higher (2,S became Battery McCrea.
For antiaircraft protection two 3 inch
meters) than the other turret. The forward
or A turret (Battery Wilson) was limited to guns !Battery Exeter) were mounted, one
230 degrees of traverse while B turret off to each side of B Turret. These were
could rotate 360 degrees. B turret'!! field of backup with 13 30 caliber and four 50
fire was fouled aft, however, by a 60 foot caliber machine guns. Communication bet·
fire control cage mast and a temporary ween Drum and the other forts was via
(permanent) wooden barracks. Living con· underwater telephone cable, blinking light
dition!! inaide the fort were considered and radio. The main weakness of the fort
detrimental to health and the troops were was the lack of astern fire and limited fuel
housed topside, although in the event of and water shortage.
war the barracks was to be dismantled.
The guns were first proof fired in 19 18
Each gun fired a 1,680 pound shell but butanactualtargetshotwasnothelduntil
could only be elevated 15 degrees: thus the March 27, 1923. With six shots the guns
14 - THEQUAN
destroyed a 20 foot canvas target 15,000
yards to sea, observation conducted by a
plane from Kindley Field. As l.en
rounds had been provided it was decided to
fire the remaining rounds at a target position out of sight of the fort. Spotting would
be done by an aircraft flying the direction
of the target from the fort and signalling
when over the target. The fort would track
the aircraft and fire at his range and bearing, corrections to the fall of shots would
then be provided by the aircraft. While no
hits were scored on the targut located
IS,ooo yards away from the fort, the hits
were close enough that further investiga·
tions were later carried out with t his
method of firing.
Except for a few practice fIrings after
this date the fort remained in caretaker
status from 1925 until 1940 when war with
Japan threatened. It was garrisoned in
1941 by Battery E of the 59th Coastal Artillery and its machinery was brought up
to war conditions. The topside barracks,
however, was Dot removed until December
12, 1941 , four days after the start of the
war which began December S, by Philippines reckoning. The date with the bombing of Ft. Wint at Subic Bay, also marked
the first Japanese attack against the
Manila·Subic Bay fortification .
With the Japanese capture of Manila
Fort Drum's inability to fire dirtlctlyto the
rear posed a problem . It was not
vulnerable to a water borne attack through
the dead area marked by thelort's fire control tower. To remedy this a 1906 model 3
inch gun, pedestal mounted, was shipped
to Drum in early January. Designated Bat·
tery Hole, the gun, mounted aft of the fire
control mast, was ready for action on
January 12, 1941 ,
The very next day battery Hole went into action when an inter-island steamer with
Japanese troops bore down on the fort in
the supposedly dead area. Due to over ex·
citement the s hip was taken under fire as
soon as it came into range, with the resuJt
it managed to escape after taking only one
hit.
Drum itself came under fire on February
6 when it was bombarded by I05mm guns
positions establi!!hed by the Japanese in
and around. Cavite. This fire was returned
by Fort Drum and Fort Frank. However,
!!ince the Japanese guns only fired with the
sun behind them, their exact positions
were not located by the Americans. These
guns were reinforced by the Japanese on
March 15 with 240mm howitzers .
Previously the forst had suffered little
damage but the more powerful 240mm
guns did serious damage to Frank and
minot damage to Drum. Battery Exeter
tbough previously damaged three times
and then repaired was now permanently
destroyed. Also damaged beyond repair
was the upper or Dumber one gun of Battery Roberts. This 6" gun received a
240mm hit that penetrated the casement,
wounded two men and cau8ed a minor fire.
.8
(Contin.ued, from Page 14)
The shelling continued until March 21
when the Japanese transferred their guns
to Sataan to support a final attack down
the peninsula.
Fort Drum did not come under fire again
until April 20 when it was struck by
AMERICAN DEFENDERS OF BATAAN AND CO RREGIDOR
April 26-May l. 198 1
PL'EASE RESERVE THE FOLLOWING ACCOMMODATIONS
',' .
ARRIVALDATE , _ _
_ _ __ __ _ HOUR, _ _ _ _ _ __
Japanese bombers. These attackl!l were
e
e
repeated on April 23 and 29 and on May 1 DEPARTURE DATE: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __
and 6. Thougb Drum was defended only by NAME, _ __ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ __ _ __ _ _ _ _ __
60 caliber machine guns the Japaneae did
little damage to it. In tum Drum's gunners
managed to destroy one Japanese dive HOME ADDRESS, ___________________________________
bomber during the lut attack, the fort being surrendered to the Japanese at 11;40 CITY' _________________________ STATE _____________
on May 6, 1942. During t.be course of the
siege Drum received by count. 586 artillery ZIP: _ _ _ __ __ __ _ TELEPHONE NO. _ _ _ _ _ __ __
hits roughly divided between I05mm and
240mm shells plus seven bomb hits, five One night's deposit is required to hold reservation.
from dive bombers and two from bigh
altitude bombers. Casualties caused by tbe Mail To: Sanda Hotel. Attn. Room Reservationa, P,O. 8oJ:
bombing and shelling amounted to five 14277. Las Vegas, NV 89114.
wounded, two when Battery Roberts was PLEASE CHECK ONE
hit, two by shrapnel from shell hits passing
SINGLE
$44 net & 6% tax.
down the gun muzzle and out through the
open breach block and ODe by malfunction- DOUBLE _ __ _ __ _
$44 nel & 6% t tlll .
ing equipment. All of the fort's equipment
was rendered inoperable by its garrison (plus 6% Clark County Room Tax)
before surrender.
The Japanese upon capturing Fort
NO. PERSONS IN PARTY
Drum made little effort to put it back into
operation. The fort 's Japanese ganison at REQUESTS FOR RESERVATIONS AFTER 415/81
the time of the Americans' attack on TO BE TAKEN ON A SPACE AVAILABLE BASIS.
Manila in 1945 consisted of 21 soldiers and
47 sailors from the sunken battleship
Musashi. The garrison armed with rifles
and machineguns, while not posing a
threat to shipping, did prove to be a
nuisance, and the fort was therefore
An intimate glimpse of the memorabilia that helped make
ontered captured.
" Mr. Showmanship" a legend in his own time.
Assigned to take Fort Drum was the
"It's always seemed to me, that when you have something
ISlet Regiment of the 38th Division. As a
beautiful, it's a shame not to share it. " And 80 " Mr. Showmanstraightforward assault through the fort
s hip" is sharing some of rus most famous and opulent cars,
wouJd prove too coatly the tl3th Engineer
costumes and collections in the new Liberace Museum.
Battalion suggested flooding it with an oil
Featured in the fleet of classic and personally custoJfli.ted ears
and gas millture to burn the defenders out,
is a red, white and blue RoUs Royce that. Liberace had designed
and this plan was thus adopted. A LCM
for his bicentenniaJ salute in his Las Vegss Hilton, 1976 Show.
was converted to carry 2,200 gallons of the
Along with the car is the matching red, white and blue feather
millture while a LSM had a landing ramp
BE SURE TO
cape
he used to literally fly off the stage, 35 feet in the air,
built out from its side to allow infantrymen
MAKE YOUR
amidst blazing flreworks.
to secure the top of Fort Drum.
One of Liberace's most photographed costumes is also on
RESERVATIONS
The 88sault was launched on Friday,
display .. . the Czar Nicholas Uniform with 22 karat gold
april 13, 1945. While the infantry secured
BEFORE APRil braiding. Visitors will also see a regal cape styled after the cor-the top the engineers pumped the oil gas
5, 1981. WE
onation robes of King George V. It's a velvet cape covered with
mixture down the fort's ventilation pipes.
$60,000
worth of rare ch.inclillla. The cape fulfilled it.s royal proAs the troops withdrew a delayed action
HAVE ROOMS
mise . . . Liberace wore it for his command performance for
charge was dropped in on top of the oil
BUT CANNOT Queen Elizabeth II.
Some 30 minutes later Lbe resulting expl~
There are also some remarkable pianos from his collection, in·
HOLD BEYOND
sion blew concrete and metal hundreds of
cluding
rara miniatures, a piano that Chopin himself once
feet into the air and set off a fin! that burn·
THE 5th
played, and a Chickering concert grand owned by George Gered for days. Amazingly the two 14 turrets
CAll
shwin. Another rare artifact among many is the inlaid cruciflll
remain in place. The pride of the U.S.
presented to Liherace by Pope Pius XII in Rome in 1956.
Coastal Artillery, however, was not but a 102·133· S000
Among the large collection of photographs and awards is •
useless hWk.
SANDS HOTEl life-sized
oil painting of Liherace by Ronald Lee Anderson. the
Though blasted and torn apart Fort
Drum still s tands to greet ships sailing in. L _ _ __ __ - ' famous portrait artist. Aa if to guide visitors on their tour, the
smiling eyes seem to follow them as they pass.
to Manila Ba.y.
The museum structure itself is in tbe graceful Spanish !ltyle,
THEAUTHOR
with the arched windows draped in velvet. Marble floors reflect
Charh, H. Bogart of Frankfort. Ken·
the I!Iparlde of candelabra, ttyl!ltal and jewels. GueI!Ita are greeted
tucky, i, a nuclear civil prouction planner
at a pian~l!Ihaped desk. Welcome to the world of " Mr.
and a member of CAMP.
Showmanship. "
MARCH, 1981 - 15
THE L1BERACE MUSEUM
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move what your new address will be. Be
sure to supply us with both your old and
new address. including the address label
from your current issue. Copies we mail to
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the Post Office and we must. pay 25 cents
for each returned Quan.
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,
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Balaan & Conegkior, Inc.
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Please Send Correct Address When Moving
My new address will be:
NAME: _____________________
(Continued from Page 3)
ADDRESS: __________________
CITY _____________________
STATE: ___________________
ZIP' _____________________
Mail to:
JOSEPH A. VATER
Editor, the Quan
18 Warbler Drive
McKees Rocks, Pa. 15136
64.
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67.
68.
69.
70.
71.
72.
73.
JamesV.Palone
Raymond E. Fox
Eugene E. Vess
W.C.Ahachwade
Ted D. Huntley
Charles R. Tolbert
Arnold J. Funk
Judson D. Simpson
Raymond L. Baggett
RobertJ. Mackie
Died Jan. 7,1980
Died Jan. 20, 1980
Died Jan. 14, 1980
Died Feb. IS, 1980
Died Oct. 11, 1980
Died Oct. 28, 1980
Died Dec. 1980
Died Nov. 19, 1980
Died Nov. 25, 1980
Died Aug. 22, 1980
REQUEST
OYKUMARU
Survivors of the Qyko Maru are asked to
contact Charles M. Browne 13680 Andover
Dr., Magalia. CA 95954. So far Charley has
47 names of which at least 20 plan to attend the National Convention in "Vegas".
A short meeting will be IllTsnged.
request information of one James
Donald Cass former Japanese P.O.W. last
known address was Concord, Calif. Am
unable to locate. Was assigned to 31st In·
fantry, Philippines.
Joseph J. Carbonaro
7 Oak Road M.D. 14
Beacon, N.Y. 12508
Pennsylvania
Nevada
Virginia
Florida
Florida
To...
Florida
Alabama
Missouri
Idaho
REUNION
REUNION: Former POW Camp 17,
Omuta, Kyushu, Japan, April 26-May I,
1981, Las Vegas, Nevada, Sands Hotel, in
conjunction with American Defenders of
Bataan & Corregidor Convention. Contact
John R. Mamerow, 7676 Carriage Lane,
Boise, 10. for det.ails.
AMERICAN DEFENDERS of EATAAN & CORREGIDOR, Inc.
INCLUDING ANY UNIT OF FORCE OF THE ASIATIC FLEET, PHILIPPINE ARCHIPELAGO
WAKE ISLAND. MARIANNA ISLANDS, MIDWAY ISLAND AND DUTCH EAST INDIES.)
Dues - $6.00 PER YEAR
APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP
Nome (pi ",. prlnl) ____________________________________________________________________
Address ___________________________________________________________________________
City _____________________________ Stote _________________ Zip _______________
Organization and rank in the Philippine Islonds ____________________________________________
Membership ______ New ______ Renewol _____ Associote ______
Would you like to be active in the organization?
Y.' _____ no -----
PLEASE MAKE ALL CHECKS PAYABLE TO:
American Defenders of Bataan &: Corregidor
414 Richmond Place
Leonia, NJ 07605
LIFE MEMBERSHIP
50-60 Over ~ - $25.00
$35-9!!

March 1981 - Philippine Defenders Main

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