<Begin Segment 82>

TI: So we're back together, Roy.

RM: Okay.

TI: And where we ended up on the last tape was, we were talking at that point about how you met your second cousin and your brother Isao in the prisoner of war camps. And the one thing I didn't establish or ask you about was, how did you become a military police, an MP?

RM: Well, that's a long story, but short, when I was supposed to be rotated to stateside as soon as we finish our mission, but then we were held on account of this is more important than givin' the people rotation, so we were called up to New Delhi. Then we were sent to China, they needed us, so went to China. Then I was staying there, meantime my girlfriend passed away so I lost the desire going back to States. But anyway, so in order to -- well, I like, happened to be fond of Chinese food there and of the people, I like it so I gonna try to stay there but in order to do that I'm in the service so I have to reenlist then, so I inquire at the office, they says I cannot reenlist, find out how come, then find out that I was classified as infantry because we went to Military Intelligence school and supposed to be Military Intelligence personnel but since we went in with the combat unit as an infantryman, so they classify us to infantry. So there is no infantry troop in China to enlist. So I asked is there any other way, see, any other branch you qualify, could. But being a Military Intelligence I didn't have any experience in quartermaster, signal corps, or engineer, anything else. And I found that there was the military police were there and so I said I could do the investigative work. Then okay, that was permissible. So all of a sudden I was a Corps of Military Police so they assigned me. So then it became my duty as a military police escort; meantime, pending the war crimes trial for missing airmen. So just fit in there because I speak Japanese and I could talk to the Japanese soldiers, therefore I was assigned to Judge Advocate General's office to help out this War Crime Tribunal. And so assigned me to pick up the suspect or the material witness to the case and they were wanted the person list, but roster is all in Japanese. So have to read that screen so we requested that passenger list goin' back to Japan.

TI: But that was, that was useful for you and for them because, because you were an MP and so you were an escort but you understood Japanese and could read it so they didn't have to send an interpreter with the --

RM: No, that's why didn't need my own interpreter because I'm an investigator but normally they have to have, see, enemy troop, you have to have an interpreter to understand but whereas I was able to comprehend the Japanese and therefore --

TI: Right, okay.

RM: They send me there.

TI: So, good --

RM: And before do that I have to screen where the wounded person was located, because they had a million troop there and they don't know what unit they're in. But we have a general idea that around people stationed around Hankow, and city of Hankow, so the unit were there were all be suspected. So they, well, we requested the unit roster --

TI: But this is where, how you, you found out and met your second cousin and your brother --

RM: Yes, I will go through, then come up with his name, but, of course, I didn't know it was him, until...

TI: Right. Yeah, you told us that story on the last tape, so, but I wanted to ask about the other brother, Noboru, because he --

RM: Not Noboru.

TI: Noboru.

RM: You mean Isao.

TI: Yeah, you met Isao, but Isao told you about your other brother.

RM: Right.

TI: And so can you tell us what happened to him?

RM: Well, other brother, well, according to him, he was in China but then this artillery regiment was sent to Guadalcanal, Guadalcanal, to reinforce their troop there and he was a corporal but fortunately or unfortunately he became ill and vitamin deficiency and had the beri beri and he couldn't walk too well. And then, at the time, there was one other soldier who had a bellyache and very sick, so commanding officer told Corporal Matsumoto look after him. And meantime, rest of the people made a banzai charge and perished. The next day, submarine came to shore and they floated a rubber raft and came to shore, only found two people living there. So they picked 'em up. The reason is, they cannot move during daytime, the ship, supply ship be strafe and so forth so they re-supply by submarine. But anyway, didn't find anybody so these two were picked up and sent to Manila, then sent to Japan on hospital ship. And then since he was weak, he served in the rest of the duration in Japan. So he survived.

TI: So that's pretty, that's pretty fortunate; in your family, there were two men who fought for the United States.

RM: Yes.

TI: And there were two men who fought for the Japanese military.

RM: Yes.

TI: And all four of you survived.

RM: Yes. So that was a miracle and there was an interview about my brothers, but my (mother) refuses to be interviewed because she had mixed emotion, 'cause the two in America and they don't want to lose, either side to lose or either side to win and so that would be safe. But fortunately, she was very glad that both sides soldiers, the one, sons survived.

<End Segment 82> - Copyright © 2003 Densho. All Rights Reserved.