Were there any sea battles?
Not when we sailed from the Philippines to Formosa. After we left Formosa, submarines attacked the convoy.

What happened when the attack began?
The Japanese had a machine gun on deck they brandished at us. It was like they were saying, "You better not try and come up!"

Did the attack happen during the day or at night?
The hatch on our hold was open and it was dark. We knew for sure that something was happening. The Japanese were running around up on deck and were very excited. We started to hear and feel a lot of "thuds." We later learned these "thuds" were exploding depth charges.

What was the mood of the prisoners?
We were getting desperate. Many people were saying, "Hit us!" "Hit us!"

Do you recall what you were thinking during this attack?
I was thinking, "Hit us."

You felt that way too? Were you afraid?
Surprisingly, no. I would say 99% of us were calm during the attack.

There wasn't a mass panic of trying to climb out?
No. I don't know what would have happened had we been hit. But, there was no panic.

Where was the rope ladder?
They had pulled it up out of the hold.

We heard and felt one tremendous explosion and saw a big glare in the sky. This had to have happened when a Japanese tanker was hit. Since we were in the hold, we couldn't see any actual fire.

Did everyone get excited?
Yes! When we saw the glare, everybody hollered, "Yeah!" Right after that, the Japanese closed the hatch so we couldn't see anything.

How long did that attack last?
I would guess it lasted several hours. We continued to zigzag. The submarines chased us for quite a while. I don't know if any other ships were hit. After the attack was over, they peeled off the hatch. Shortly after that, it was daylight. They figured we might try to riot or cause trouble, which we didn't. The crew stayed up there anyway with the machine gun just in case. Nothing else happened on the voyage except the awful time we spent in that hot, stinking hold. We headed for Japan!

Except the unspeakable conditions in the hold, the major incidents of the hell ship's voyage to Japan was the bombing in Formosa by US B-17s and the submarine attack?
Yes. We left the Philippines on August 15, 1944, and arrived in Japan on September 6, 1944. We spent a total of twenty-three sailing days in that awful hot and stinking hold! As we approached Moji, Japan, I was assigned to a detail. I don't remember what it was, but they put the ladder down and I went up on deck. I was in the first small group to climb out of that hold. When I got on deck, I knew my name, rank, and serial number. That was all! If I would have been in that hold much longer, I probably would have gone insane. I never had to go back in that awful hold again!

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WRITER'S NOTE: Out of the approximately eleven "Hell Ships" which left the Philippines, only five or six safely reached Japan. The others succumbed to attacks, resulting in the loss of thousands of American lives.

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