Letter of Howard Carthew Stevenson to 'Phil', 1945

P.H. 367

H.B. Stevenson [?]

Mess 1

H.M.A.S.  Pirie

C/O British Fleet Mail

Thursday 16th August 45

 

Dear Phil,

 

Well Phil how did you 

you enjoy the the peace

celebrations?  you better hurry

up and write and tell me

all about it.  Do you feel

any different?  I'm blowed if I

do, we received the "cease all

offensive a operations against

Japan," yesterday, but we still

had to keep morning watch

work the fornoon, and keep

the "first dog" and middle.

A bloke just can't

realize yet that the war is

over, we are still in the middle 

of the Pacific.

Friday 31st August 1945

I had to leave this

for a few days Phil, but as

 

2

as it happens it is just as

it ho well because now they have

lifted the censorship, so I can

write just what I want to.

I think I'll start by telling

about today.  Today is the day

of days for this ship.  Since

the day this ship was put in 

the water, it has been the

hope of the crew to take it

into "Tokyo" harbour.

 

Today our hopes have

been realized at six o'clock this

 morning we came through

the entrance to "Tokyo Bay", and

at nine o'clock dropped the

pick just off the shore from

the big Japanese dockyards of

Yokohama, on the outskirts of

the biggest fleet of fighting

ships the world has ever

mustered.

As we came into the

"Bay" the first thing we saw

were the white surrender flags

placed at intervals of about

 

 

3

a mile along the coast.

Next came their harbour

forts, but they were just an

island of rubble that will

never again be of any use.

Also there is a "Japanese

Battle Ship", but that too will

be of no use to anyone.

To get where we are

now we had to pass through

the biggest force of fighting

ships the world has ever

seen.  The two British "Battle

Ships", the "King George 1V," and the

"Duke of York", are here with their

"Cruiser", and "Destroyer", escorts

also the "United States" fleet

led by the "Battle Ship",

"USS Missouri", in company with

a half a dozen other Battlers,

and their "Cruiser" "Destroyer"

escorts, all tendered by fleet

tankers, supply ships, troop

ships, and Hospital ships.

On the other side there

are the smaller ships

 

4

such as "sloops", "fridgates"

and "Corvettes".

We have the honour

of being the first "Australian

built ship", the first "Aussie

Corvette", and the third

"Aussie" ship to enter Tokyo

with the fleet of occupation.

There are three other

"Corvettes" here now but the

"Pirie", led them all in, we

were quite proud to be

at the head of the col-

umn believe me.

 

The two ships that

beat us in were the "Aussie"

N class "Destroyers", "Nizam" and

"Napier".  Coming up the

harbour now are the "Aussie"

"Cruisers", "Hobart", and "Shrop-

shire", tendered by the "Aussie"

"Destroyers", "Warramunga", and

"Bataan".  I bet they got a

shock when they saw that

we were already here,

 

5

 

the boys are all lined

up on the foc'sle yelling

out comments such as

"where have you been" and

"were you frightened to come

in until you knew it

was quite safe, and a few

other things that I don't

think you'd like to hear.

From where we are

now we can see the Japanese

people moving around the

city of "Yokohama" and boy 

what a city it is, most of

it has been reduced to

rubble but you can still

count 400 factory chimleys

still standing.  I'd like to

go ashore and have a good

look around the place, but

I don't think it would be

wise unless you were well

armed, because the people

don't look too happy about

it.

 

 

6

I suppose you have read

in the paper about the

giant submarines the Japs

had just bought into oper-

ation, well we passed two

of them on the way down

the harbour and believe

me they are every bit as 

big as they are claimed to

be.  They were anchored right

astern of one of the "Yank"

"Battlers", and they are nearly

as long as them with three

aeroplane hangers just about

the conning tower, I'd hate

to see their armament.

It was announced that

one of them had just

returned from its maiden

run, down around "[?]"

on the same course as we

were on a few weeks ago,

so I guess we were very

lucky not to meet it.

I don't know how long

we will be in harbour.

 

 

6

only for a few days at

the longest, we have received

orders to go to "Hong Kong",

for the fleet of occupation

there as soon as we get

a relief to take over our

station here in "Tokyo".

 

I don't think we are

going to be in "Hong Kong"

for long either, because we

have been told that we

will be in Adelaide in the

middle of November to have

a refit, so you can expect

me home then.

I can tell you now

why you haven't been getting

any mail from me, since I

was home last.  From the

time we left "Brisbane", we

went straight back to

"Manus", island in the

Admiralty group, and had

one night in harbour, and

picked up a few tankers

and supply ships up to

 

8

the fleet to give them fuel

and stores and except

for one occasion, when we

went back to "Manus" with

an empty tanker to fill

her up again the next day,

for the past two months

we have been steaming

up and down the coast

of Japan.

 

On V.J. Day, when the

Japanese surrender was

announced and we received

the cease fire we were

750 miles from "Tokyo", and

at the time the closest an

"Aussie" ship had ever been

to it.

It made us wild

when we were told that

all the sailors down F.N.P.

had four days leave on 

the strength of it, because

we were working in the

rain when it was announ-

 

 

9

ced, I was splicing a

wire, and naturally we

fracked up work and

started to give a few

hearty cheers, but we weren't

fracked up for long, two

and a half minutes after

I left my work, I was back

with the rest of the crew

sent back to it, so we

celebrated V.J. day by working

in the rain just off the

coast of Japan.

There was a signal

from the "Admiralty" telling

us to "Splice the Main-

Brace", but we havent done

it yet, and as that was

a fortnight ago, our blood

sort of boiled over when

we read about the free

beer that was handed out

in "Aussie" but still our

time will come I suppose.

I for once am going to

have my celebration when

I come home and [?]

 

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betide any one who tries

to stop me.

The ships company

is going to have a banquet

when we get to "Adelaide", see

I guess I'll have to have

somebody to put me to bed

after it, how about you?.

Well Phil, there is not

very much more I can tell

you, and it is getting

late, and I want to write

to Mum before I get to

bed so I'll say cheerio

till we get to Hong Kong.

 

Lots of love,

Steve xxxxxxxxx

 

 

SIGNING OF SURRENDER TERMS

TOKYO BAY

2nd SEPTEMBER 1945

 

Assorted signatures

 

 

Back of envelope with signatures