<Begin Segment 9>

AI: Because before we get to Minidoka I just wanted to finish up a little bit, a few other questions about your time in school. And during these years, although the United States wasn't in the war yet, the war in Europe had been going on for some time, and in Asia also. And I was wondering, what was your thinking at the time? Were you very much aware of what was happening in, in the war elsewhere? Did it occur to you that the U.S. might possibly enter the world war?

RC: Yes, because the draft took place. I was a 4-F, after my physical. I had a problem that they couldn't quite figure out what was wrong with me. And even when I was at Stanford, my roommate was going to be a med. student. And his father was head of, head of the medical department at University of Oklahoma. And so he was used to cooperating. (Volunteering when) there was a request for students to go to the healthcare center and volunteer for tests. (...) He and I then volunteered. It was there, that at Stanford, that I, I failed the physical, and the doctors knew why I failed the physical. It had to do with my thyroid. They were very afraid that the thyroid would cause a breakdown in my physical well-being. By the time I graduated I must have lost thirty or forty pounds, which was due to the thyroid deficiency. And they did everything they possibly could to help me. And it wasn't until after, I guess I must have been in my thirties, (...) a doctor came to Sacramento from Wisconsin, which is an area where thyroid and goiter problems were known. And I heard about him, and I went and he cured me. But I did not, I did not participate in the war other than going to be part of Minidoka, you see. (...) I felt was giving. But my two brothers, my eldest brother was already with the Army Corps of Engineers. And he had a, had a very important position in Utah in the underground explosive project that was going on there. And my next oldest brother went to officer's school and was stationed in the Aleutian Islands. So, basically, we were prepared for it. And we had had a good education and we could see what was happening. We didn't know (when or where) it was going to happen, the bombing at Pearl Harbor, or anything like that, but, but somehow that it was going to be coming from some direction.

AI: So, at that point, it seemed perhaps somewhat inevitable that the U.S. would get, become engaged --

RC: (Yes).

AI: -- in war?

RC: (Yes). But it was one of those things, I think, that there had to be an attack to trigger it. And basically, I think the country was prepared. But they weren't prepared at where. It was a mental thing. And I know my eldest brother was privy to a lot of things that he couldn't discuss. And my other brother was in officer training school and I'm sure he was privy to information.

AI: When you say that, in a sense there had to be an attack, what did you mean by that?

RC: I guess it (...) seemed to be a worldwide situation of a showing of strength to see who was stronger than the others. And we had quite a navy, too, you see. And there were people going in the draft and being prepared for a problem. So...

AI: So, in a sense, it, it wasn't so surprising when something did happen?

<End Segment 9> - Copyright © 2003 Densho. All Rights Reserved.