Testimony of:
Mitsue Furuta
___________
Seattle, WA
Occupation: Housewife

I was the last Japanese-American to leave Seattle. I was pregnant and expecting a baby in May. This baby was to be a Cesarean because I had lost one baby trying to give natural birth. Dr. Frank Carroll was extremely cautious so as not to jeopardize my life or the life of my baby. He was afraid if I sent to camp to have my baby, not knowing what type of doctors we would have, did not want me "butchered," as he put it. I tried to get an exemption to remain in Seattle, but it was denied. We were scheduled to leave May 9, 1942, and my doctor put me into the hospital on that day so I would not have to go to camp to have my baby, but my husband had to go without me and the baby. I stayed with a friend until the baby was six weeks old and I was able to go to camp to join my husband and family. My mother was in Area "C" at Camp Harmony, and she was quite worried about me so I went to visit her and she wanted to hold her new grandchild. I could not get in, so we passed the baby through the barbed wire so she could hold the baby. I then went to Area "D" Administration Building, and after much discussion, I was finally allowed to enter camp to join my family. Thinking back on it now, I could have been the only Japanese-American in Seattle for the duration of the War.

At the time of the evacuation, my husband and his parents and brothers had a very successful supermarket. We had been in this supermarket approximately one year and had a lot of inventory, a fine meat department, a fine Japanese food

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Department, brand new equipment, new building which we had leased for ten years, and we lost all of it. We figure it was worth at least $50,000. Because of this loss, we had to work the rest of our lives, our children were denied college, and we suffered much hardship. We relocated to the midwest and did not come back for for years. We came back in a car that we had purchased with four years' savings. When we arrived in Seattle there were no jobs available for three or four months. My husband finally obtained a job washing dishes earning $20 a week, which we had to pay $22 a month for an apartment.

After eight years, we finally saved $2500 for a down payment to purchase our present home.

Instead of trying to start our own business again, since we had so little capital, my husband spent the rest of his life working for someone else.

Our store was to be our livelihood for the rest of our lives. It had been more of a gourmet or specialty store and the business was built into a very profitable one over the year we were open. We lost all of that plus personal belongings including a valuable stamp collection, furniture, etc.

We received from Evacuation Claims Act, $3,000.00 to be divided amongst three families: my in-laws, my brother-in-law, and my husband.

As compensation, I feel that everyone who was interned, should receive $50,000.00 plus $25.00 per day for each day they were interened.