<Begin Segment 86>

TI: So you're on this twenty-day pass --

RM: Yeah.

TI: And so you're in Hiroshima for about ten days. Then you go back up to Tokyo --

RM: Tokyo.

TI: And there, again, it's sort of like your life, you keep on sort of, the circumstances are always really fortunate. You came across a, an officer that years before, you had helped as a tutor.

RM: Yes, a few years before.

TI: Okay, why don't you tell that story about how you got to see him again?

RM: Well, the reason I recognized the name was, he was one of the few officers, language officer assigned to Camp, Camp Savage, there brushing up Japanese. But since, after I finished basic training, just waiting for the assignment so I'm practically doing nothing so they put me to, asked me to help officers, especially the conversation --

TI: Right, yeah, so you told that story already about how you helped conversational Japanese. So you're in Tokyo walking through the hallways and you recognize the name.

RM: Recognize the name.

TI: And so what did you do?

RM: So I knocked the door then they said come in. So I went in there, then he recognized me right away and he was glad and talk about old times for few seconds and then he told me that, "I like to have you here but since not authorized only (one) enlisted, authorized is the chief clerk and we have one already and so good one, so I wish I could use you. By the way," says, "I gonna send you to Wayne," but I didn't know what "Wayne" meant, look like someone first name, but I didn't know who talking about. But they know each other, classmates and same, just a civilian and military difference but same intelligence section under G-2 under General Willoughby so he told me report to Colonel Homan, Wayne Homan. Now I found out that his name was Homan, so told me the Sanshin Building there and office, so I walked down there because I went down there and then I knocked the door and he expected me. So tell me, "Sit down." Then he told me, "Get rid of your uniform right away." He thought that I was put to work, you know, assigned, but he didn't request me. But by talkin' to, they thought he could use me. But then I told him, "Sir, I have to go back to China." So in that case, if you wanna work, get a job waiting for you, so he says, "Well, this what I can do for you. I give you a letter of recommend -- I mean, acceptance," so that means I'd be accepted if I ask for it. "So best thing is go back to unit, then get transferred here, then give me call, so cut the order and assign to me." Said, "Yes sir," then I salute back. Then I know now I got the job here in Tokyo. So, since in Tokyo, the all, were, of course, bombed out but since the war ended almost, well, year after, this is '46, it's the end of '46, and happened to be November of '46 now, it's almost the end of it. But anyway, I went back, then order was waiting for me because my job was finished and no more prisoner to take care and no more investigation, nothing, as MP. So my job is abolished. So meantime, they found out I was, even though MP, but I was in infantry before, the record shows, in combat, and veteran, so to train the Chinese infantry in 6th Army, in 6th Nationalist Army. But then I thought I've already got job, I wanna go there and find out what can I do. Oh yes, I gonna use this enough points to be repatriate, send it back to stateside, rotation, see.

TI: So what did, so --

RM: Then record show that I never been back to Japan. So...

TI: So let me just recap because this is a good story. Because of the, in some ways, the good deed you did back at Camp Savage to help this junior officer with conversational English, you had a connection there.

RM: Yes.

TI: And so when you went through Tokyo and you walked down the hallway and saw that name, because of that good connection, you knocked on the door -- because you wanted to actually be stationed in Tokyo because you're --

RM: That's why I'm lookin' for --

TI: You're looking for a new duty.

RM: -- meet somebody or nice because all Japanese and also lotta classmate were assigned to ATIS, you know, at the Yusen Building there in Tokyo.

TI: Right, so good, so, and because of that good deed again, he remembered you and so he put you in contact with --

RM: Colonel Homan.

TI: Colonel Homan. And so he had a job ready for you. So when you went back to China, if you didn't have this you would've been assigned to train infantry in China at the 6th Division.

RM: Yes, 6th Division.

TI: Which was a division that was wiped out by --

RM: By communist, 6th Army.

TI: -- the communist army. So in that case if you went up there, there was a good chance that you might've been killed.

RM: Right, right.

TI: If you were up there.

RM: Come to think of it, this is my luck, you know. Says, oh, think do a good deed then you're rewarded, you could get out that hazardous thing, so...

<End Segment 86> - Copyright © 2003 Densho. All Rights Reserved.