The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-01-28
Starvation RatiOns

rice. Twice in two months they re-. ceived enough meat so that about a quarter of the prisoners managed to get a piece an inch square each. They received a few vegetables on three or four occasions.
 The Japanese worked many pris- oners to death. One week the death rate at Camp ODonnel was 20 Americans and 150 Filipinos day. After two weeks it was 30 Americans and 500 FilipinoS day.
 Prisoners taken on Corregidor, ln- cluding Mccoy and Mellnik, were concentrated in 8 paved square about 100 yards on each side for a week. They numbered 1000 Amer jeans and 5000 FilipinoS. There was one water Spigot. It usually was a 12 hour wait to fill a canteen.
 On May, 23, 1942, these 12,0O0 prisoners were transported to Manila by barge, forced to jump off and wade for about 100 yards, and then marched through Manila in what was intended to be triumphal vic- tory parade. But Filipino civilians everywhere demonstrated their friendliness. Those who tried to as- sist collapsing prisoners with ices, water and fruit were beaten.
 Once the Japanese gave the pri soners three chickens and another time eggs for 500 prisoners. Then they announced to the world they were feeding American prisoners eggs and chickens.
 At Cabanatuan three officers were caught trying to escape. They were beaten until they could no longer stand.
 Refined Torture
 'The next morning the three Americans, stripped to their shorts ' the report related, "were taken out on the road in full view of the camp, their hands were tied behind them, and they were pulled up by ropes from an overhead purchase, so that they had to remain standing, but bent forward to ease the pres sure on their arms.
 They were kept in this position in the blazing sun for two full days. Periodically the Japanese beat them with & two-by-four, and any Filipino unlucky enough to pass that way was compelled to beat them too. If he failed to beat them hard enough the Japanese beat him. After two days of this, one of the officers was beheaded and the other two were shot,"
 On October 26, 1922, Mccoy, Nell nix and DyesS, with 966 other Amer ican officers and enlisted men were crowded into captured British freighter and taken to the Davao penal colony. This time those who fell out were thrown in trucks and hauled along. Food was somewhat better, but insufficiently balanced to counteract the Beri-Beri from which many prisoners were suffer- ing. Oranges and lemons were abun- dant thereabouts, but the Japanese would not allow the prisoners to have any.
 Threats
 The colnmandant of the camp spoke to the prisoners thus:
 You have been used to a soft, easy life since your capture. All that will be different here. You will learn about hard labor. Every pri- soner will continue to work until he is actually hospitalized. Punishment for malingering will be severe" Hn m 60 rrNNd ~, 11{e 11,ord THY1a the three officers escaped from Da- vao April 4, 1943 only HOO of the 2,000 prisoners were able to work.
 The officers reported the few Red Cross boxes that reached the men caused joy beyond description. For some unknown reason, they were delayed seven months in Japan pro- per.
 For all his labor during 361 days of captivity Dyess received $1O in pay after he signed a statement say ing he had received more than $25O, as well as clothes, food and lodging.
 The Army and Navy disclosed that other Americans were known to have escaped from Japanese camps in the Philippines.
 Allied Headquarters, Southwest Pacific, Jan. 28-(UP)-Gen. Doug las Macarthur, commander of the American forces on Bataan until he was ordered to Australia, de- clined to comment today on the Army-Navy report on Japanese atrocities.
 Washington, Jan. 28-CUP)-Sec- retary of State Cordell Hull, com- menting on the Japanese atrocities, said today it would be necessary to assemble "all the demons available from anywhere and combine their fiendishneSs to describe the conduct Of those who inflicted these un- thinkable tortures."