Evening star., 1945-09-05
Beheoding, Beating Of American
Prisoners by japanese Is Bored
In Report Of State Department
Byrnes Promises
Guilty Will Pay,
Just as in Europe
BY the Associated Fress.

japanese troops captured an
American flyer forced to para
chute into the sea off New
Guinea.
They beat him with sticks vir-
tually all that day, throughout the
night, and until 3 o'clock the next
afternoon.
Then, while the troops screamed
wildly, Japanese civilian named
: 1nouye hacked off the Americans
head with six slashes of a sword
The State Department told about
that incident and others like it to-
day in report it would not issue
during the war for fear the Jap
anese would increase their butchery
and shut off all shipment of relief
supplies to Allied prisoners.
Secretary of State Byrnes observed
with restraint at his news confer
ence yesterday. that the report was
not a pretty story.
The guilty will be punished and
war crimes will be prosecuted in
Japan, just as in Europe, Secretary
5yrnes pledged.
The report told of 240 protests
against mistreatment of prisoners
sent to the Japanese government
through Swiss Intermediates by
former Secretaries of State Hull and
otettln1us, Undersecretary Acheson
and FORMER Undersecretary Grew
An example:
On LAST May 10 Mr. Grew asked
the wiss 10 tell the japanese gov
errinient the United States was
profoundly shocked over "the
brutal massacre on December IA,
1914, of $50 American prisoners of
war" in the Philippines.
The incident: japanese guards
forced the $50 Americans into tun-
nels used as air raid shelters. The
guards then emptied buckets of
gasoline into the tunnel entrances
and threw blazing torches into
tn lem.
i Screaming victims who rushed
from the shelters were bayoneted
Tor machine-gunned The guards
threw dynamite charges into the
tunnels to take care of the Amer
leans left inside.
About 40 got out and hurled them
selves over a 50-foot cliff on to a
beach. Shore sentries and landing
barge gunners shot some The Jap
anese captured others and buried
them alive.
One they captured after he had
tried to swim out to sea. They
prodded him with bayonets, poured
gasoline on both his feet and set
fire to them. They Knocked, derided
and bayoneted him until he COL
lapsed. Then they poured gasoline
over his body and watched flames
devour it.
Barbarism Protested.
"Such barbaric behavior on the
part of the japanese armed forces
is an offense to all civilized people,"
Mr.. Grew told Tokyo. In diplo-
matte language, he demanded that
the japanese promise not to do it
again.
In a note dated last March 10, Mr..
Grew protested treatment of $50
American prisoners crowded into
japanese freighter. which was tor
pedoed and sunk off the Philippines
on September 7, 1914.
The prisoners starved, thirsted
and suffocated for nearly three
weeks. When the ship was tor
pedoed, they were machine-gunned
by japanese guards, acting on orders
of 1t. Hosimoto, as they foundered
about in the sea.
Other guards threw hand grenades
on the Americans trapped in the
holds of the vessel The japanese
recaptured 20 prisoners from the
sea, took them to another ship in
lifeboats, shot them, and threw their
bodies back into the ocean.
Prison Camp Cruelty.
There were less violent cases.
Many messages protested lack of
sanitation, food. medical supplies
and clothing. One told how two
Americans picked papaya from a
tree in their prison camp to relieve
their hunger.
Japanese Mess Sergt, Nishitoni
broke the left arm of both men
with an iron bar as punishment.
Another message said the United
See ATROCITIES, Page A-5D