<Begin Segment 39>

JA: But was there much illness amongst the Nikkei?

MH: Oh, yeah. There was quite a few, especially with the younger kids, real little ones like my kid, and older people, the old Isseis. It was hard for them because they're not used to that kind of diet. No way. There was no nice fresh vegetables for us or anything, those sole fish, you know the white fish, flat one, sole. That's the kind of thing they used. They used mutton. Well, Japanese don't eat mutton and those things made a big difference in their diet.

JA: And how were they prepared?

MH: They were just cooked, fried or whatever you call it. Fried, fried I think it was. But the Japanese need the vegetable and rice. Yes.

JA: Which you neither got.

MH: Which they did not get. [Laughs]

JA: And you spoke of these long lines, again, this is in the hot sun.

MH: Hot sun. You stand in line for miles, it seemed like, going into these cafeterias to eat. Sometime I wish, "Forget it. I don't want to eat," but you almost have to eat something to keep surviving, is what it is, but they were long lines.

JA: It was like you had force yourself to go.

MH: That's right, that's right.

JA: Because you knew you had to.

MH: You don't -- uh-huh.

<End Segment 39> - Copyright © 1998 Densho. All Rights Reserved.