©2001 Mark A. Kelso

Timeline: September 21, 1944 - December 15, 1944

Cabanatuan POW Camp Luzon - September 21, 1944 -

        Events started taking place in September 1944 for the recapture of the Philippines from the Japanese Empire. On September 21, 1944, several American POWs worked in the muddy rice fields of Cabanatuan as if it were another day under the sun. These men two and one-half years before bravely defended places like Bataan and Coregidor and since then toiled at the hands of an unmerciful enemy. The Japanese subjected these men to just about every imaginable torture. Now the tide turned.
        On this date the men who worked in the Cabanatuan rice fields saw a sight they would never forget. The sounds of radial engines roared over the camp. Some in the camp thought the Japanese were sending aircraft to another field. As the Americans ate their lunch an American plane appeared over the camp an let out a burst of machine gun fire. The dogfight over the camp sent morale soaring. The American prisoners started cheering and crying at the same time. Their faith was justified. The Japanese were not impressed.
        Orders came down from Major Takasaki, the Japanese commander, to make rosters and prepare to move out. 500 dysentery patients were sent to the hospital and most of the Cabanatuan black market operators started "selling out". Rumors circulated that the whole camp minus 500 sick would move out for Bilibid in the near future.
        Large drafts of prisoners soon found themselves in trucks headed for Bilibid Prison in Manila. One of these drafts of 1800 men left for Japan on October 11, 1944 aboard the Arisan Maru. Only eight survived. The draft of men destined for the Oryoku Maru arrived at Bilibid on October 13, 1944 in the dark. At Bilibid the food situation proved worse than Cabanatuan. The ration at Bilibid consisted of 2 canteen cups of watery lugao and 1/2 cup of miso soup per man per day.  The men grew very weak during the time of arrival at Bilibid and the departure of the Oryoku Maru. Statements indicated that the men hardly had the strength to fight off mosquitoes.
        The attacks by the US Navy on the area stopped for two weeks. This enabled the Japanese to sneak several vessels into Manila. On December 10, 1944, the Oryoku Maru tied up at Pier 7 and started to load cargo.
        December 12 brought orders from the Japanese for 1619 POWs to move out for Japan in the morning. This proved a sleepless night for the men who found themselves on the list. Early the next morning the POWs fell in for roll call or "tenko". This process involved a Japanese guard going up and down the rows counting prisoners. After the count a council is held. During this particular morning the "tenko" proved inconclusive and the Japanese ordered a recount. The next step for the POWs was a shakedown. This is where the Japanese helped themselves to the personal property of the POWs.
        At 11:00am on the 13th the 1619 prisoners passed through the gates of Bilibid Prison headed through the streets of Manila to Pier 7. The march took three hours in the sun and humidity. Some ill prisoners passed out and were helped along by other prisoners and the encouragement of Japanese bayonets. After arrival at Pier 7, the prisoners waited on the dock apron as several Japanese civilians boarded a grey-green passenger vessel known by it's name on the bow of Oryoku Maru. The pier showed evidence of past attacks as well as empty hulks at the bottom of Manila Bay. According to Capt. Jefferson Speck, he sighted the Japanese loading several American automobiles into the number three and four holds of the Oryoku Maru.
        Around 5:00pm, the Japanese lined up the Americans for loading in the Number 1,2, and 5 holds of the Oryoku Maru. The forward hold consisted of around 600 men, the #2 hold held around 260 medics, and the rear #5 hold held nearly 860 POWs. Lt. Kelso found himself place in the stern #5 hold. The POWs descended a long ladder down into the holds. In the stern hold once the POWs made it to the bottom deck, a Japanese guard known as Kazutane "Air Raid" Aihara met the men with a vindictive smile, shovel, and bayonet as he pushed the men into the hold. As the prisoners moved toward the back of the hold, "Air Raid" used his shovel and beat the prisoners closer together. According to one account, "Air Raid" took great delight in striking the prisoners in the face or testicles. The men in this hold didn't have enough room to sit down.
        The loading completed around 9:00pm. The air in the #5 hold grew hot and foul. Latrine facilities consisted of 5 gal. buckets that overflowed quickly once they were issued. In order to empty these buckets the prisoners passed the buckets over heads in total darkness. These buckets were continually spilled as the prisoners passed them to the front.
        Conditions grew worse during the night. Many of the prisoners suffered from many tropical diseases. These included dysentery. Added to the diseases, starvation and exposure took its toll on the men. Several officers and men suffocated during the night in the #5 hold. The names of these men are included in the Erickson Database.
        On the morning of the 14th American dive bombers from the carrier USS Hornet (CV-12) located the Oryoku Maru off of Subic Bay. Attacks on the convoy continued all day. Japanese AA and machine guns attempted to fend off the repeated attacks with no success. The reactions of prisoners below ranges from sheer terror to complete exitement. Commander Francis Bridgett commanded the hold and made many attempts ease the suffering. Bridget then gave play by play events of the bombing. He even told a few jokes. Many later commented that this joking and announcing avoided mass hysteria in the hold. The Japanese AA gunners performed their duties even to the admiration on some of the Americans. These gunners took heavy casualties from the Hornet's aircraft. The POWs received no food or water on the 14th.
       The night of the 14th proved worse than the previous. Conditions resulting from the hysteria and the cruel treatment led to many prisoners committing acts of insanity. Men slowly died of the before mentioned diseases and in some cases murder by their fellow soldiers driven insane by the conditions in the hold. Some accounts indicate that men seemed normal one minute and then turned into raving maniacs the next. These insane men stabbed, fought, and killed others throughout the night. These men at times attempted to drink urine or bit the thumb of another prisoner to drink blood in attempts to satisfy thirst. The range of this insanity included men who simply sat and whitstled, banged mess kits, preached, and all the way to murder. This night of madness took the lives of nearly 50 men.
       About 5:00am on the 15th, the Japanese interpreter known simply to the prisoners as Mr. Wada called down into the holds and informed the prisoners to prepare to disembark. Many of the POWs knew Wada from his days as interpreter at Davao Penal Colony. Wada then went on to issue threats about escape.

Interpreter Shasuke Wada (National Archives: US Army Signal Corps Photo)

       8:00am finally found the Japanese ready to move the prisoners ashore. The Oryoku Maru lay off Olongapo point in Subic Bay. As the men started to climb from the holds, American carrier aircraft appeared overhead. The first aircraft dropped their ordinance and kept flying. As the move continued another flight of aircraft showed up and dropped a bomb directly into the #5 hold. The bomb exploded in the bottom of the ship. A second bomb hit close to the port side aft of the ship. In the hold beams and hatch covers fell everywhere. Men started to climb the ladder to get out of the burning hold. One of the Japanese guards assigned to the hold started firing his rifle into the hold. The men jumped back from the ladder. Reports indicate the guard shot a man named Volney in the shoulder. The guard then fired several more shots into the hold. After the smoke cleared, the scene in the #5 hold proved horrible. Mangled bodies and dead prisoners lined the deck. Lt. Walter Kelso survived. 250 others did not.
       The order finally came from Lt. Toshino, the Japanese Commander, to abandon ship. His interpreter Mr. Wada conveyed the order to each hold. The prisoners came out of the hold orderly and calm. Some prisoners ventured to the cabins looking for food and cigarettes. This food and tobacco proved to be stolen Red Cross supplies intended for prisoners. The prisoners noticed the bodies of several Japanese on the deck. As the prisoners started rummaging through the ship looking for food, Lt. Toshino came through the vessel looking for prisoners who didn't obey the order to abandon ship. Toshino approached the galley and found Lt. Will Brewster eating. Toshino drew his pistol, shot, and killed Lt. Brewster.
       Once the prisoners left the hold they received orders to swim ashore. The water and fresh air revived many of the prisoners. During this time Japanese machine guns periodically opened fire of the swimming prisoners. Reports indicate a current pulled many prisoners away from their instructed path. The result was death at the hands of a Japanese Marine machine gunner. As this happened the Hornet's aircraft returned and attached the vessel several more times. The POWs waved and yelled at the aircraft. In apparent recognition the plane dipped it's wings and ceased the attack.
      
       The Japanese walked the prisoners down a 1/4 mile path to a barbed wire enclosure. This barbed wire enclosure proved to be one of the tennis courts at the Olongapo Naval Base.
 

In memory of Lt. Walter A. Kelso Jr.

11/27/17 - 2/4/45