Rempang Island War-Prisoner Camp Part II (by Tetchan)

Part II
SHIZUKA-Village KOBO-Hill camp, Rempang Island

We, all the members of the TAKIMOTO Party, camped at vacant lot near TAKARA-KO and departed there next morning in squall, marched through narrow road covered with shrubbery and swamps, cutting down wood and stepping in the mud, and finally arrived at the destinated campsite on an elevated hill,which we named KOBO-Hill,SHIZUKA-Village.

From there, we could see the ocean and seashore covered with mangroves, which laid a little less than 10 kilometers away, I thought.

I had no idea if there would be our temporary place of residence or permanent one, surrounded by reddish soil, jungle, rubber plants, mangroves, hard weeds, fernery, and so on .....but, nothing we would be able to eat.

Farm cultivation and reclamation:
The TAKIMOTO Party, an elite group mainly consisted of soldiers who came from the Miyazaki and Oita prefectures, and maintained military discipline of the imperial army from the time of defeat to the day of homecoming. And, the party was a galaxy of talented men as a farmer, a fisherman, a hunter, a carpenter, a fish dealer, etc.

Living for day by day, we stole the eye of the British soldiers and did various kinds of preparations for a long days of local self-support. We carried seeds of vegetables and edible weeds, some saws and axes, and knives, with us. And soon after we arrived, immediately composed were professional groups for lumbering, farming, fishing, construction, and salt making. Construction of temporary billet was very quickly and vividly done.

We cut bush and shrub, leveled the ground, collected weed similar to cogongrasses, held lumbers with vine instead of nails, and used tent, to construct our billet with an annex of lavatory.

The biggest subject for us was to reserve food. When we were ordered to move to Rempang, the British army permitted us to carry food for four days, which were rice stuffed in army-socks, cracker and some subsidiary food.

At the Rempang Island, our one day supply of food per person by the British army was only 280 grams, which were lost on the way of transport to about 220 grams, and very few of subsidiary food. The heat value of them were 500 calories.

We caught almost all the edible living things which lived on and around the island, such as alligators, lizards, snakes, scorpions, centipedes, mice, fish, shellfish, seaweed, buds of tree, wild grass, etc.

We fought a severe fight against starvation every day. One day, a soldier on duty caught and brought back baby alligators from a brook in mangroves. It was precious protein source for us.

We cut them and threw their meat into the pot of hodgepodge cooked with little rice, some ferns and young buds. We ate, limitlessly ate. A full stomach makes people smooth and gentle. We could hear laughing voices after a long absence of them.

The most painful memory related to the farming project was scramble for human excrement to be used as manure. The human excrement gave us the best result to grow plant, tapioca, as our staple food. Everyone of us carried stalks of tapioca in hand and planted them on the reclaimed land, and waited a week to see buds.
The excrement worked well to grow rich plants. As we were the state of malnutrition, it took a long time to defecate and the quantity of defecation was little. So, there took place were scramble for the excrement, to get fat tapioca.

Rempang dropsical swelling (malnutrition)
Almost all of us suffered from so-called "Rempang dropsical swelling (malnutrition)."
Our faces were swelled, calves were left with dents whenever we pushed them with a finger, and bodies were kept only with bones and skin, because of malnutrition by starvation.

Rice of 220 grams/a day (lost in weight) supplied by the British army were divided into 70 grams for breakfast of gruel, 60 grams for lunch of more thin gruel, and 90 grams for supper of boiled rice.
Adding to this were ferns, young buds of tree, lizards, scorpions, centipedes, and whatever we could get for the day to gain about 1000 calories at most.
We worked hard to get something to eat and to construct road from the headquarters of SHIZUKA-Village to TAKARA-KO, so that we needed more than 3000 calories to maintain physical strength while we could get only 1/3 of it and suffered from starvation.

With sunken eyes, we felt it troublesome to talk anything without any laughter.
We all laid down at free time to prevent consumption of physical strength even a little.
The stick was necessities for everyone of us, since it was hard to get up readily once we fell down.
Nothing is more fearful than "starvation" in this world, I think. The Rempang island was REN-PAN (lovesick for meal) island,for us.

Rations (British army rations.)
About 20th November, we could see a big cargo ship off the coast.
Then, in a few days, we were told that the cargo ship, named RISHURI, was loaded with a large quantity of pocketable rations as supply from the British army.

One order came to our TAKIMOTO Party to dispatch a work party to TAKARA-KO.
According to the note of a divisional staff officer, he previously chose another party for unloading cargoes, but he had to withdraw it because of the riots occurred within the party by fatigue and starvation.
Then, he picked up the SHIZUKA Corps which had been kept with severe military discipline, to order to dispatch a work party to TAKARA-KO(treasure pier).

On 8th December, to us in extreme fatigue and hunger, long-awaited British army rations were delivered with an order to consume one-day-box by three days.
In addition to these, we were issued 6 ounces of rice a day for every day.
The box of ration, issued by the US Forces, was separated into three parts, of breakfast, lunch, and supper, which made us astonishingly surprised at their magnificence.
It contained cookies, cans of meat and salmon, packed cheese and sugar, a chocolate bar, a pack of cigarette, powder soup, sweets, and chewing gum, which were so varied in kinds and rich.

From this time, our former physical strength began to return, vegetables we had planted at field grew good enough for our dishes, and I slightly began to feel human being in myself.

The New Year holidays, 1946
For our first New Year holidays in the Rempang island, we prepared some special New Year dishes with some rice, starch, sugar, bean paste, etc, which we had saved every day little by little.
It was the biggest feast for us.
We made three big imitation of rice-cake with mud, piled them in front of our billet, and for both side of it, we prepared the New Year's pine and bamboo decorations imitated with mangrove.
And, thinking of home, we celebrated the New Year's day and sang "TOSHI-NO-HAJIME (a New Year celebration song at the beginning of a year)" led by First Lieutenant KODERA.
Then, we sang a song "thought of taking the battlefield", our customary song in chorus.

"Thought of Readiness for Fight"
Words by Captain TAKIMOTO; Composition by First Lieutenant KODERA.

We look up Mt.Takachiho(the Japanese Olympus)in the morning and worship the god pillar in the evening, 'Go healthy young men from NIPPO(the districts along the east coast of Kyushu)'
The god order us now, the god order us now.
Farewell our mother country, our hometown, beloved our friends and countrymen.
Till we meet at YASUKUNI Shrine,under cherry flowers in full bloom, Under cherry flowers in full bloom,
Look where selected army goes, where the army goes with sword of righteousness,There would be no one fight against us.
Our troop will win always with dignity, our troop will win always with dignity.
It's easy to die, but hard to live. Oh, various strong men! The road is only one.
let's go our road of rightousness, let's go our road of rightousness.

Following parts is omitted.

End of the part II:

To be continued to Part III