<Begin Segment 24>

[Ed. note: This transcript has been edited by the narrator]

TI: And then eventually, you made your way to Tokyo?

FT: No, (...) we were in Nanking for about a month. Then (we were told to go to Shanghai). So we went to Shanghai, but I got (sick).

TI: Malaria?

FT: (A touch of) malaria. And I had a hundred and something temperature and (...) so George (...) took me to the YMCA and (...) looked after me for three days, until my fever went away. And (when) we reported into headquarters, (the commander accused us as being (AWOL). And as punishment, (ordered us) to Japan for Occupation. So we took the next place over (...) to Okinawa, en route to Japan. We got to Okinawa (and were) bumped off the plane. And we stayed there (...) one week (waiting for a flight to Japan). Finally, we got on a plane to (...) Tachikawa. (After we were trucked to our billets), the old finance building (in Tokyo). (...) The next day we reported to ATIS (in) the NYK building (and) I was a staff sergeant. (...) (I was ordered to take a) language team to the 77th (Infantry) Division. (...) George (went) to Taiwan. (...) It was the last time I ever saw him. We worked together so closely all that time, and they split us. (...)

TI: And they split you because they needed your experience to kind of manage or look over other teams, is that why?

FT: I don't know. (I was told to) be the sergeant in charge of the language team. (I had six in my team).

TI: And were they all kind of more newer recruits?

FT: (...) They were (...) from later --

TI: Classes?

FT: Later classes. They came straight from the mainland. Then the thing (that) made us, 'peed' us off was that we had, like I was a staff sergeant already, (...) these (people from classes after us also) went to the Philippines (came) for the occupation in the Philippines, (...) got field commissions, (...) were second lieutenants. They (came) to Japan (as officers because) MacArthur (wanted) to make the Nisei look good to the Japanese. Well, (...) the people from (CBI were ignored) because we weren't supposed to go (to Japan). (...) We were eligible to go (...) home (to) get discharged. We had enough points.

TI: Just for three days, when you were sick with malaria, you had to do this. But then that gave you time in Tokyo.

FT: Yeah, so we got to (Japan and) I took a team to Sapporo (...). Assigned to the (77th) Division. And (...) since I was (team leader), I was an interpreter for the general. And (the) other (men were) assigned to other (...) jobs, translating and stuff like that. One of the interesting things was that our general (...) would sit down with (his) Japanese (...) counterpart (...). They'd meet and I'd sit with the general and I'd be his interpreter. And across the table (would be) the Japanese general and his interpreter. Well, sometimes, I'm not that good in Japanese, and so I'd stutter and mutter and (the Japanese interpreter) would help me. And I learned that his name was Yoshio Tanaka. He was a Hawaiian Nisei, (ith the) nickname, Kaiser (...). And he was a catcher for the Hanshin Tigers in prewar (Japan's professional baseball).

TI: So he was caught in Japan and then conscripted into the...

FT: During the war. He was there before the war playing professional baseball.

TI: And so he served in the Japanese army.

FT: I don't know if he served in the Japanese army, but he was there, sitting as (an) interpreter. And then later, he became the Japanese director of all the (...) Japanese concessions (in the military PX system). (...)

TI: So that sounds like kind of an interesting job, interpreting for --

FT: And then I got hepatitis, so I was in the hospital. This was in May ('46), and (...) when I came out of the hospital, the 77th had deactivated, and the 11th Airborne had come in. And so I was assigned to the 11th Airborne Special Troops. And they wanted me to stay on, in fact, they offered me a commission to stay on. I said (that I was) going home." So I went (to) the replacement depot (...) in Camp Zama, near Tokyo. I went there to get (...) transportation back home. (While) I was waiting there, (...) a bunch of guys from Tokyo came (and told me there were good jobs for civilians in) ATIS (...) in Tokyo. (They said the job rated officer treatment. And so I (went with them) to Tokyo (...) where you take a test. (...) (And was accepted as a Department of the Army civilian).

<End Segment 24> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.