Letters from Leonard Stanley Marquis to his mother, Amy Edith Marquis, 1945 - Part 4

2 in the ship's motor boat. I was in it as interpreter
& wore my loaded pistol. Two Jap
officers met us at the wharf & showed us
around. Unlike NAURU, the place was
clean & had no smell. Also, since there
had been but two or three raids, damage
was slight. Most of the houses were
still standing, even a red-letter Box

in the main street! We selected buildings
for our stores & troops & instructed them
to be cleaned out ready for occupation
the next day. We then went for a tour
of the island in two Jap staff cars with a
Jap drivers & ^an officer as guide. It is quite
a pretty island. Vegetation is very green
with coconut trees everywhere. Also
there was were lots of bougainvillea
in flower. The houses were all tiled
roofed with cream outer walls & it

looked for all the world like a place

down in one of the outlying suburbs

of Adelaide before closer settlement had

set in. We returned to the ship for lunch

& cruised off shore until Monday. It is

impossible to anchor there due to the 

great depth just off the reef. Like NAURU,

you see, OCEAN Is is not so large as NAURU

however & is really one big hill, where

as NAURU has several rolling ones with

a lake in the centre. It has very little

beach - mostly cliffs about 20 feet high &

as the swell crashed up against them it

made a most delightful sight. A ketch

from TARAWA arrived in the afternoon

whi with the British officers & natives to

take over the administration of the

7/ lot about conditions on the island

when he left. This bore out the Jap

CO's statement (as regards drought &

lack of food). I cannot help ^but feel that as a 

result of my statement about the 

Brigadier being reasonable, that he

decided to tell the truth & rely on

our understanding why such extreme

action had to be taken. (I know that

English Military Law has the same

provision in it under similar

circumstances) - Well, enough of all

that. To return to my movements. We

reached NAURU at 6 o'clock next morning.

(Wednesday the 3^rd Oct) & I went

ashore to look around & see what had
been done. I was amazed to see the

difference. No smell, rubbish burnt,

wrecked buildings cleared & others

patched up. A heavy shower of rain

had just fallen & everything was

clean looking & cool. Boarded ship

again at 10 o'clock & we sailed at

10.30 for Bougainville & here I am

on the third day at sea, sitting in the

ward room in the afternoon penning

away. My hand is a bit sore from

holding the pen - I'm not used to

writing these days - the typewriter

has spoilt me. Talking of pens, reminds

me. The one I'm writing with is an

American fountain pen which I bought

at TARAWA canteen. I haven't been able

to use my other one you gave me since

being in the tropics, as ever since I

boiled it with a shirt back in Brisbane

3/ place & it also cruised offshore the while.

At night, we had a bit of mild excitement.

I was asleep on deck, when a sailor

awakened me at 10 o'clock & said the

captain wanted me on the bridge. Going

up, I he told me they had seen a

vessel off the end of the island & thought

it might be a Jap barge. We proceeded

towards & he wanted me to tell it to

return to the boat harbour, if it were.

The lights then disappeared & we 

wondered what had happened, then

remembered there was an old boat harbour

half-way around the island so went

went to the place & standing offshore,

switched on the ship's searchlight, which

lit up the shore & cliffs like daylight.

Nothing was in the boat harbour & then

the captain had the idea the unknown 

vessel had gone round the other side

of the island so we set out to see. Just

then, the lights reappeared & came towards

us. It was weird up there on the bridge

in the dark & seeing this unknown vessel

approach. Suddenly our searchlight

went on again & there was another

ketch! It was another one from TARAWA,

but had not been expected until

the next morning. So our little flurry

was over & I went back to bed. Next

morning, the Jap commander came on

board at 9 o'clock with three staff

officers & the ceremony took place with me

standing at one end of the table & after

the Brigadier had read the terms out in

6/ rationed & under military law it

was a capital offence to steal under

those circumstances. The commander

told us this after I had visited his

HQ's during which visit I had told

him that the Brigadier was a reasonable 

man when he (the commander) 

had expressed anxiety that the Brigadier

was annoyed at the offer of

the archery bows & arrows. I told

him that the Brig was unable to give

a direct answer then as he was tied

by orders & had to think it over. I

feel that as a result of my statement,

he was prompted to come forward with

the truth about the native's fate. 

Previously, his officers had told us that

they had all been evacuated to

TARAWA when the Japs were in

occupation there. Monday night, SUZUKI,

requested to come aboard to see the

Brigadier as he had a further statement

to make about natives & he

thought it was important, which of

course, it turned out to be. It seems

that 100 were left behind to do menial

tasks for the Japs & after about

10 had deserted in canoes, the remainder

gave trouble as I stated above

& so were executed. (Incidentally we

rescued one of the natives who

deserted in a canoe, seven months

after he left the island. He was found

in his canoe near the Admiralty Is

(West of RABAUL) & he had told us a 

4/ English, I read the same out in Japanese.

Ceremony over & Japs having returned

to shore, Maj. Clarkson & self went

ashore & busied ourselves with giving

further instructions & the work of

unloading be "River Burdekin's" cargo

began. Was ashore again in the afternoon

& again Tuesday morning. As 

there were two other interpreters

ashore (they had come along in the

merchantship), I thought I'd done

enough & so stayed on the ship Tuesday

afternoon. We set sail at 6 o'clock

that night for NAURU. I forgot to mention

that on Monday afternoon I

went up to the Jap HQ's & had a chat

with the C.O, Lt/Comdr SUZUKI. He gave

me his binoculars - a large pair which

will be most useful at home on the

sea-front. You may have read in the

paper that at the ceremony he had

made the offer of two bows & arrows
to the Brigadier, who was then undecided

what to say. However on Monday

afternoon, SUZUKI asked me to take

them along & if the Brig. didn't want
them, maybe the Captain of the ship would

like them. Failing that, to be hung

in the ward-room or burnt. I then

left in a Jap motor-cycle & side car

(arrived at the HQ's in the same fashion) 

driven by a Jap Petty Officer, going to

the HQ's & wondered if I was being foolish

5/ in going alone, but then told myself,

that as they had been so cooperative

& implicitly carried out everything

we'd ordered, they it was quite

safe. I carried no gun or pistol, but

told them back at the boat harbour

to where I was going, so felt alright.

The Japs asked me if I was scared in

coming, but I said no & they then

assured me all was well. X SUZUKI
was quite a pleasant fellow & would

speak some English. Also his adjutant,

SAKADA & paymaster NARA, could

speak it fairly well. They were all

university men. I was glad of the 

informal chat as it gave me an insight

into how they feel about the

surrender & what they think of us.

They I believe Japan lost the war &

that Guadalcanal was the turning

point in Japan's fortunes. Are glad it

is over & want to return to Japan as

soon as possible.

The health of the island is good - 

dysentry was about all there was & only

2 cases of that. Food has been pumpkins

& potatoes with some fish, only

for the past year. About six months

ago water & food were scarce due to

no rains for the previous six months.

It was then that the Japs shot the

remaining 100 natives on the island

since they were stealing food over

& above their share. Food was all