<Begin Segment 15>

[Translated from Japanese]

TY: Okay. Now, let's go back to the times just before and right after the war started. You said that you spent those days without knowing if and when your husband would be taken away.

YI: Yes.

TY: How did your children react? Were they worried? Since other fathers were...

YI: Let me see. Well... just before we left, one of my daughters -- did I talk about this before? -- just before we left, she contracted the chicken pox. A childhood illness. It is contagious. It was Hiroko, the one who lives in Port Townsend now. Then another girl, a Japanese girl, contracted it. Then a Health Department official came and told me that we could not take her with us. "Either your family stays here or this girl stays here." I didn't want to stay there when everybody else was leaving. Besides, I had six other children. So I felt sorry for her but I left her with the Health Department. The other girl went there, too. After we arrived at the camp, Shinya got some rashes. Small ones. But they did not become worse. Then a drug store man and a dentist told me to cover him with a blanket so that others would not notice. So I hung a blanket inside the house so that people would not see us. Shinya had some rashes. But he healed rather quickly. Then Hiroko was brought to us by the Health Department. They said she was cured.

TY: How long did it take for Hiroko?

YI: Huh?

TY: How long did it take before Hiroko could return to her family?

YI: Oh, she remained in Seattle.

TY: How many days did it take before she came to Puyallup?

YI: Well, probably ten days or so.

TY: She must have missed her mother.

YI: Yes. I felt sorry for her. A man held her in his arms and took her in a Health Department car. They gave her a piece of candy. She was still small. He passed away.

TY: Then the arrest was made in late April. In late April, 1942, your husband was arrested by FBI.

YI: I wonder which date it was. It was at the end of April.

TY: He was prepared. Then finally he was arrested.

YI: FBI took him away.

TY: How did the children respond? Of course, the children must have been sad.

YI: The children and I were left alone.

TY: Yes. Did the children understand the situation?

YI: I don't know. Probably not. Satoru was only thirteen. He might remember that time his father was taken away.

TY: By the way, why do you think your husband was not arrested till almost May?

YI: Why he was left alone? I wonder why? Maybe because there were so many and his turn was late. He said he wished he could go soon. He couldn't concentrate. He couldn't work well, he said.

TY: Then after he was arrested, you had to raise seven children by yourself.

YI: What?

TY: You were left alone with seven children. Then you knew you were going to Puyallup.

YI: Where were we going?

TY: Puyallup. To Puyallup.

YI: Oh, yes. We were going to Puyallup.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 1999 Densho. All Rights Reserved.