The Wilmington morning star., 1945-09-28

Indian ocean on March 7, 1919
He reached Sumatra with To-
other survivors. In the follow
ing dispatch he tells of his in.
ternment-The Editor "
BY WILLIAM MCDOUGAr1
SINGAPORE, Sept. 27-QypNN,.
many people hear their own fns sr'
al orations. I almost did. A priss.
sat all night beside my bed in M,n'
tok Bank jail composing his sar'
mon as he waited for me IN I di.
from cerebral malaria.
That seems a long time ago mum
that am in Singapore and bres sa
tasted this morning on ham, epa s'
toast and jam. Only one thing 'S a.
mains to make me happy-cant..
loupe a la mode. I probably won,
| get that until arrive in New vn,,'
but I figure about six cantalouraAs
and a gallon of ice cream will tab
care of me. I dreamed about if for
three and a half years.
I'd like a long cool drink .,
scotch and soda, too, but that will
have to wait. For among my sou.
venirs of near-drownings, machine.
cunning and bombing as we tried
to escape from Bandoeng are tbe
ravages of tropical diseases and
doctors say a Scotch and Soda is
something I'll have to wait for 4
long time.
Allied internees in Sumatra were
held in the oil port of Palembapg
on the island of Banka, and at an
abandoned estate near the West
coast mountains. Palembang is two
degrees south of the Equator On
the edge of Sumatra's steaming
east coast swamps, and 30 miles
up the crocodile : infested Moesi
river. Banka, 20 miles off the
coast, is noted for its pepper and
tin production - and for malaria
and beri beri. The other place
wasn't quite that bad.
The Japanese rounded up the
survivors Of the Dutch ship Poelo
Bras, Dutch civilians, government
servants and others and sent us
by train to Palembang. l drew an
open coal car for the daylong Jour.
ney during which the train stopped
at all stations long enough for the
Japanese prodded population to
Ijeer at the white ''tuan besars'
now humbled by the japanese.
Tuan Besar is Malay for big
Shots" such as plantation owners,
oil executives and governors.
During the ensuing years-dur
ing which there were many politi.
cal squabbles between the tuan be.
sars and the lesser fry-the women
were. separated from the men and
we were informed in smelly ma.
tive Jail designed for about 49,
It actually held almost 400 Of us.
I was the only American and
the Japanese singled me out for
attention. They didn't actually
harm me but they spent many Of
their leisure hours going through
the pantomine of cutting my head
off with a bayonet. They kept me
isolated until I had my first bout
with malaria and then they forgot
all about me.
After I recovered resumed
normal Jail life. The Dutch resi-
dents had a few belongings with
them, but we who had been ship.
wrecked - including British and
Australians-had only the clothes
we wore. We slept on the bare
concrete floor until we obtained
few gunny sacks and other such
materials for bedding.
I developed scrounging to a fne
art-collecting tin cans, cocoahm
shells, rags, pieces Of wood ana
metal, rope ends-in short every
piece of junk I could find. lhey
were life's necessities, for from
these pieces of junk came our cav
ing utensils, toothbrHshes, com1S'
knives, clothing, footgear and Oea''
The Japanese gave us nothing
Never for a moment did | give
up hope of escape. Once | oesss
to study Malay and spent muy
hours lying naked in the sun IN d.. a.
effort to become % dark as Wv
natives. But l had lot to learn
about the tropics and their peops
and I finally decided white a Id.
can't disguise himself, no rla'''
how he tries.
My efforts turned 70 other cnan
nels then and without letting O'lsl
internees know of my actlolS
contacted Chinese outside W.
camp and worked out a plan y.
escape-a plan which failed a ,sd
a year of effort. The plan lfV W, Wv
hiding outside the camp un'n ~, ~
hue and cry over my escape ui ~
out, and then making my way W ~
foot and boat across Suma,la ~.
the west coast and across the W.
dian ocean to Colombo. 1t seei,.
fantastic now, but it was 0e''''
than stagnating in prison. .,s
About that time the japanese ~.
me and M. P. Allen, eastern w.
ager of Boots Drugs, Nottinga.naII
Eng, to work in the jail hospl'a..
dressing wounds. It was there 'Ic
an Irish Lieutenant Colonel d. .la
F. West, formerly of the hu ,,,d
Se1angor sector of Malaga, pun
me through the cerebral malal''
about Christmas, 1913. ~