<Begin Segment 18>

[Translated from Japanese]

I1: Here are the group policies. Mr. Sasaki had this. It looks like a rough draft. I see detailed revisions written in.

TY: We all were young and didn't need many words. I said, "Let's show that we are truly united in spirit by shaving our head. If you don't shave your head, you are not a member." We should be clearly distinguished.

I1: How short was the hair? Was it completely shaved?

TY: Well, it was only a crew cut first, but it became...

I1: It became shorter and shorter?

TY: We agreed to have a skin head. We wanted to establish clear visible division between the loyal and disloyal. We thought skin heads would be pretty obvious. We woke up at five in the morning to train ourselves both physically and mentally. We gathered in an open space and exercised. Then we bowed toward in the direction of the emperor's palace in Japan to pay respect. We ran in the camp shouting, "Hey-ho, hey-ho." [Laughs] We were in high spirits and ready to work hard for our health to win the fight. We also ordered uniform with the logo of "Hokoku" (serve the nation) through Sears Roebucks to demonstrate group spirit.

I2: How did you put the Hokoku logo? Did Sears Roebucks put it for you?

TY: Yes. We created a sample image and sent it to them. They put it together for us. [Laughs]

I2: Sears Roebucks must have been wondering what that was all about.

TY: I was flipping through the mail order catalog and saw a bugle. I said to Sasaki, "You can play a bugle. Why don't you play it for the march to drum up our fighting spirit?" He agreed, and we immediately ordered the bugle.

I1: What is this with the Hokoku logo? Is this something Mr. Yoshiyama did? This is hand-written and hand-made, correct?

TY: This is not important. This is one of the first hand-made ones.

I1: You placed an order for the official uniform after that?

TY: That's right.

I1: Was the design similar to this?

TY: Yes. Right. This frame wasn't in the design.

I1: Is that so? Was it only the letter?

TY: The letter was red. You know that gray-colored cloth. What is that called?

I1: Sweatshirts? T-shirts?

TY: We put the logo Hokoku in red here.

[Interruption]

TY: "Azuma is next [to be arrested]," we said. Azuma was the leader. We had instructions in place. "Do this and that." We were prepared to replace the leader with the next one when Azuma was arrested. The administration was surprised because they could not break us up no matter how many times they tried. Girls started to join us and made it more challenging to the authority to handle. [Laughs]

I1: They had to transfer people to Santa Fe over and over again.

TY: Right.

I1: They also began transferring to Santa Fe and Bismarck. This one is to Santa Fe and the next one is to Bismarck.

I2: Could you repeat the story again because it was interesting? On the tape. The administration thought that they could have control over the situation by arresting the leaders.

TY: Yes. The administration arrested and transferred leaders to Santa Fe in hope to break up both the Hokokou Seinendan and Sokuji Kikoku Hoshidan. We clearly anticipated the crackdown and knew there would be interventions eventually by the camp administration. We had the next leader appointed to take over the structure. We also instructed the person to have a successor lined up in case of his arrest.

I2: You could see what was coming ahead, and the next step was already prepared.

TY: Right.

I1: That's amazing.

TY: I had been involved in track and field as a runner for a long time. I always had someone to replace me in case something happened to me. I learned it from my high school track coach. You cannot reach great accomplishments by yourself. You need to be prepared for what is lying ahead of you.

I2: Was the coach in the picture with you?

TY: Mr. Bicknel?

I2: What was his name? He was in the picture, right?

TY: He passed away the year before last. This one. This person. Another one here together. He was a good person. His wife was collecting maneki neko welcoming cat figures. I once visited their house. They welcomed me in, and I saw the entrance and rooms filled with these cat figures. [Laughs] I asked her where she found them, and she said she had ordered them from Japan. She was very happy when offered I to mail her the cats I owned.

I2: It is amazing that the teachings of your track coach at high school in Fresno helped Houkoku Seinendan to keep going at Tule Lake.

TY: My personality could be a part of it too. I once made a mistake after returning to Japan. I retired from the occupation army. I received a large sum of retirement allowance. The army gave me a lot to show their appreciation for my hard work. I built a house in Hiroshima. The lot was something like 230 tsubo (about 8,184 square feet). I built a traditional house on the lot. A traditional house was almost impossible to build at that time. Onuki Construction in Kure City in Hiroshima did business with the occupation army, and I hired them. They ordered real roof tiles from the Shikoku region. Everything was built with high quality materials like window frames made with brass that must have been leftover from the army. My brother's friend lived in the neighborhood when I settled down. He was running his own business and did some work for the railroad. He asked me to be his co-signer. I agreed without thinking much. He asked me to sign the paper, and I signed and sealed without reviewing the details. He was killed in a traffic accident about half a year later. He got into an accident over a bridge. The court and bank came to my house and said to me, "The person you signed the paper for passed away. Therefore, you must burden the debt." I said, "Why do I have to do that?" They said, "You sealed the paper to be the individual guarantor." They said, "You sealed to agree to be responsible for any debt." I was in the States and didn't know anything about the system. My house and money, I don't remember how much, but a fair amount of money back then, it was all taken from me. I learned to be careful when co-signing a paper. It was ridiculous. I worked hard for that. But it was a learning experience. I lived in the States for just a while but learned a lot there too. Any experience could be an advantage when you learn from them.

<End Segment 18> - Copyright (c) 2004 Densho. All Rights Reserved.