Page 37 - Austin Roberts' Second World War

ISSUE : Issue 47

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1988/1/1

ested in the coffee and doughnuts than we were in the girls! They put us on a ship, then. The (U.S.) Na? vy took us over. Tooik all our clothes we had, gave us all Navy clothes. Throw all the other clothes away. They took us up as far as Guam, put us in the hospital in Guam. And the Marines ran the hospital at Guam. So, the Marines took all our Navy clothes and threw them away, and gave us green ones. So, that was all right. (I want to go back for a minute. Before the war ended. You were working on the docks. Tell me about when they bombed the city of Nigada.) Yeah, the Americans. We were work? ing on the dockwork there. And the Ameri? cans came over one morning. Now, Nigada was a city of about 2 million. And they came over (in) the morning, about 9 o'clock I guess--some planes, high up. They dropped leaflets, saying they were going to bomb the city that afternoon about 5 o'clock. We were right at the docks. The docks and the city were all combined, you know. Immediately--there were no cars to speak of there--but thousands of rickshaws. You know what a rickshaw is--a two-wheeled cart. So everybody loaded their stuff on the rick? shaws, started to get the hell out of the city--they were going to bomb it. And of course, everything jammed solid. Every street in the city jammed solid, 'cause ev? erybody was trying to get out at one time. We were on the dock now, working away. We knew they were going to bomb--we had the (leaflets) too. Oh, just about half past 12--about 60, 70 fighter planes came over. (Early). Yeah. Twelve o'clock. And they strafed her, boy, from one end to the oth? er. Well, the guards immediately got us to? gether and tried to get us out of that, get us back to camp. Well, I thought I was scared during the war, but I was never scared like that morning, boy. And mad. Look, they were rushing those guards, try? ing to get at us--you know, the (Japanese) civilian population--trying to get at us. And the guards beating them back with rifle butts and rifles, trying to get us through. They got us through, at the end of it. But (that's) why I dislike the Americans, you know. But I think if you'd have been there that morning and saw that, you'd dis? like them as much as I do. They killed thousands of people. For nothing. There was no need of it, at all, at all, at all, at all. If they'd have come and bombed the docks and the ships and stuff, I could un? derstand it. But to come and tell them they were going to bomb them, and then to come and strafe them just when they got them out into the streets.... (But looking back at the war, you don't seem to feel they were 5 lost years for you.) No, no. Somebody said to me the other day, "If you were back in the same spot, and you were going to join the Army again, knowing what was going to happen to you, would you join it?" I said, "I think I'd just be stupid enough to do it again." 'Cause I got to see more of the world than I ever would have any other way. (You got to see a lot of the dockyard in Japan.) No, well, you see, we were all through the dif? ferent islands now. down south, all the southern islands. And travelled through most of the States, and all of Canada. When we came back, we came back to 'Frisco, you see. The Americans, they took us over, when we came back to 'Frisco, and took us all over everywhere. Then they brought us all through up to Canada. And it was a real luxury trip, I tell you. As I say, I don't like them. But they'll spend millions of dollars on you if they just take the no? tion . You know, you hear people tell, like--I was listening to a fellow one night, talking about in Europe, and they had given him a couple of prisoners to bring back. And they Checkout Allstate's discounts on auto insurance BLAINE NEWCOMBE / Multi Car / Retired Adults V_ Low Mileage If you qualify for any of our discounts we could save you money on your auto insurance. Call or drop by for a quote* /instate buVe in good hands. Allstate Insurance Go. of Canada • Allstate Insurance Company 288 Welton St., Sydney, N.S. B1P5S2 539-1105 (37)

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