Hello Falcon,

We had been transported by submarine and put ashore on a island, we were extracted by the same method, jap patrols were quite active, that was in '43.

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All the Best
Jack

Skipper,

Quite a bit of surgery went on in tents, quite a bit more on a stretcher at aid stations, if the fellow was stable, he would be transported away from the line. If there were ships in the area they would evacuate the wounded on landing craft, or whale boats. If we held an airstrip, a C47 could fly them out. In those days, many men died of their wounds, or the complications days later when they did get back to get proper medical care. There were extraordinary infections from simple cuts or tears in the skin,
that swell up red overnight, in a matter of hours.

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All the Best
Jack

Jack,
Can you compare the weapons the Japanese soldiers carried to yours? I assume rifles, bayonets, grenades. Did they carry anything else?

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Have a great day!
Lefty

Good Question. I'm sure the Thompson was a favorite!

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Hello fellas,

A Thompson was more of a necessity. The japs carried simple gear, a rice bag, a bowl, water bottle, a machette, 60 or so rounds of rifle ammunition, some carried what we call prayer flags with them, those that were not wearing boots, wore a split toed rubber sneaker.

The officers and nco's wore a pistol belt, field glasses, and carried a sword.

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All the Best
Jack

Just 60 or so rounds? For me that means that the average Japanese infantryman is only good for short firefights. But when I look at this again, carrying a light load means they can move around better and, maybe more silently, especially in the bush. When we took our basic infantry course, we were taught to keep all harnesses secured, buttons buttoned, nothing should be flapping about, etc. This aid in noise discipline especially at night but it sure made things hot. We were told that wiping tobacco on our skin helps leeches away. We never found out if this is true or not. Is this true?

How about you, sir? When you're going into the bush or jungle for a patrol, what are the stuff you always bring or find indispensable? What are the things you look out for?

Hey Jack!
I would like to add one more question to the above, were there items you were required to carry?
Thanks!! Good to hear from you!

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This is a pair of Dutch resistance crystal radios, built into a small metal can, and a matchbox. The image is from a postcard bought at a Dutch Resistance Museum in Amsterdam. The matchbox is marked in Swedish, but Swedish matches were sold in Holland for many years..
Scott

Hello fellas,

Well, this is hard to answer, so I'll say the minimum to carry would be, your weapon with an extra magazine at the ready, a trench knife, .45 with three or four clips, web belt, canteen, aid kit with a straight razor, a couple of hand grenades, a watch, a cover for your head, helmet, matches in a water proof case. note pad and pencil, poncho, compass, machete, and a short length of cord can come in pretty handy.

A second layer of items would be a magazine pouch, flash light, small musset bag with a meal or two of rations, dry socks, small can of weapon oil, towel or rag, tooth brush and a bar of soap are useful too.

Falcon, background noise like running water, or the sound of the rain against the leaves can cover the sound of movement, if there was a tropical rainstorm, we would take up positions, the japs would be on the move when it rained. One thing to look out for is moving too quickly or changing direction, not watching for areas which may be a prepared position. The other is that quiet that sets in before something happens, or you get the feeling someone is watching you.

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All the Best
Jack

Once again I'm impressed with all the vivid details you remember. You make it sound it was yesterday. Funny to read that toothpaste was not the most essential those days. Better a hole in a tooth than a hole in the head I suppose. The weight must have been a real burden with all those items. There must have been moisture on the objects too at least that's how I imagine the warm humid climate.

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Yes. I can just imagine how humid it could get. This leads me to ask how well your weapons functioned. Sir, how often do you have to clean and maintain your weapons in such an environment? Were there sometimes a problem with the ammunition you carried?

Skipper, Falcon,

Brass turns green, steel turns orange, leather and canvas grow white fungus/mold, paper gets damp and mildews.

Falcon, once in a while there might be a dud round for one reason or another. The most troublesome weapons were the carbines, failing to feed. There was no time or place to fully field strip and clean a weapon up on the line, as you would see in a rear area, on a bunk or on the deck of a transport at sea. You would fiddle with it as best you could on a daily basis, keeping mud and grit out of it, but it was kept loaded and at the ready.

Skipper, the toothbrush was intended primarily for your weapon, and that sorry little bar of soap was your toothpaste, after a while one gets accustomed to the taste of rifle grease and gunpowder. Soap was useful to disinfect wounds, bug bites, and cuts, many times it was the only thing to put on a wound prior to a dressing, dry soap was useful as a lubricant for weapon bolts, when nothing else was available. 45 mags had a blued finish and rusted very quickly if wet from salt water, a bit of soap would protect them, and make them slip in and drop out quickly. It also kept a clean sharp slippery edge on blades.

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All the Best
Jack

Wow! I never realized that a bar of soup could have so many uses.
Keeping your weapons clean was already a difficult thing to do in the conditions you described. I could just imagine that things would be worst when the typhoon season comes.
You learned how to do things the hard way. Those on the front for quite some time must've looked quite different from the those fresh from basic. What was the first thing you think a new guy on the front should learn in order to increase his chances of staying reasonably intact?

Hi Jack,

I just joined this website and just read this thread through. You should write a book about your war years. You have great recollection.

My dad, Phil Thornton, was also in the 186th infantry of the 41st division. The same as Lefty’s dad. He was born in 1924 and didn’t get overseas until towards the end of 1943. I believe Hollandia was his first action and he was there for the Philippine battles. He was a heavy machine gunner. He was a sergeant when he left the army.

He was from Boston.

I was his youngest child of 5 and he seemed to have mellowed by the time I was growing up. He was 40 years old when I was born and no longer hated everything made in Japan. He told me a lot about the war. I don’t think he really talked about it much to other people. He was never the type to hang out at the VFW or boast about his exploits. He told me that he never wished his experience on anyone else but that experience was by far the most influential event in his life. He loved to watch documentaries about the war and that is when i would ask him most about his experiences. I think I was closer to him than my other siblings and I was always interested in what life was like back then.

My father died in 1990 and I wish the internet was around during his life so he could have caught up with some of his war buddies. Since we lived in Boston he never was able to make it out to the Northwest for reunions.

But your stories ring a bell with me. Especially the Bonsai attacks. My dad told me that the Americans were so superior in battle tactics. And the japanese were fanatical but he also thought they were kind of dumb in tactics.

My dad told me that the natives of New Guinea were paid for dead japs as well but he told me that they would collect ears. I think he said it was the right ear that they would need for verification. He also said the natives would try to get sneaky and try to get paid for the left ear as well. My dad concurred that the Aussies were tough bunch of guys and great allies.

I could probably write a book about my dad and his stories so; I’ll just leave you with a couple of more tidbits.

My dad was terrified of snakes after the war. Any harmless kind of snake. My mother told me that he would have nightmares about snakes.

Remember the song “Oh, the Monkeys have no tails in Zamboanga” – My dad used to sing it sometimes. I guess it’s an old song from the war.

My dad ended up occupying Hiroshima after the war. He got his only trinkets there. A ceremonial sword and a Japanese flag that he had some buddies sign. I think my brother still has the sword and flag. I have a couple of photos in bad shape that I will scan and post. I have a few other papers and a copy of a division newspaper published during the war.

I look forward to hearing more of your memories.

Best Regards,
Tom

Welcome Tom, glad you posted to Jack.

Go to the new member forum and tell us about yourself.

http://www.ww2f.com/new-member-forum/

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Best Regards,
JW

This is a great read isn't it! I have directed many people to this site, if for no other reason than to read Jack's thread!

Jack, The soap makes me curious as to what other items you used for something other than their intended peupose?

Thanks again Sir!!

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This is a pair of Dutch resistance crystal radios, built into a small metal can, and a matchbox. The image is from a postcard bought at a Dutch Resistance Museum in Amsterdam. The matchbox is marked in Swedish, but Swedish matches were sold in Holland for many years..
Scott

Hello,

Tom, it's a pleasure to me you, I remember quite a few faces from time to time, places and events sometimes, I know the name Thornton but can not say I was acquainted with your Dad. Be proud of your Dad, and what he had to do over there, don't take that deal about the snakes too much to heart, there is most likely more to that situation than he wanted let you know about.

Scott, I'll have to think about that question, quite a bit was improvised and rigged up beyond it's original intent or design. I'm pretty certain when the Navy contracted for torpedoes, they had not meant for the sailors to use it's fuel to make a little beverage they affectionately called torpedo juice. There was another liquid headache called jungle juice.

Falcon, the first bit of advice is watch and listen, no unnecessary noise or quick movements, if something is moving toward you remain still, don't bunch up in groups, don't silhouette yourself in the open if possible, if you stop find cover on at least one side of you, concealment can be as good as cover, I've had japs move right past me an arms length away, and not know I was there.

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All the Best
Jack

Once more it is fascinating reading this. Did you have any problems with poisoned jungle food (fruit you were not supposed to eat) or animals such as bugs or snakes?

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If that happened to you, it's entirely likely that you or your buddies passed concealed Japanese troops too. That's a though that makes me shudder. The question in my mind now, what made you held back from pulling your trigger, sir? I know there are times when it's necessary not to shoot, especially if the odds are against you.
Can you describe to us one specific incident of you allowing Japanese troops to pass you by?

Hello Falcon,

Yes, they would be there for days waiting for an opportunity, and seldom passed up the chance to announce themselves with the crack of a rifle shot, a grenade out of nowhere, or a burst of machine gun fire as you catch sight of one of your men going down out of the corner of your eye.

If the sealed orders of your mission state no contact, you do not engage unless there is no other choice, going off mission endangers everyone involved, which includes the future objective, and all those who would be involved in recovering the landing party.

A jap patrol maybe a dozen or so, or it might be a spread out single file column of fifty or more, you take every advantage that presents itself, size up the group, how were they armed, where were they headed, are they a combat patrol searching for you, or a supply detail. Waiting to confirm the last one has passed can be tense, you can move along and follow not far behind them unnoticed if the opportunity arises. You can take them all out of circulation at once if need be.

There were all too many situations of meeting them head on when they were ready, one does not silence a prepared heavy machine gun position head on while on foot, that was one thing the jap command never learned despite all lessons we gave them on the topic. You get around behind it or to the side, knock the gun over with a grenade, then you can deal with the gun crew.

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All the Best
Jack

Strange you would have expected experienced wariors to learn from their mistakes, but they kept building the same gun positions and they kept using Banzai charges. It's hard to figure out why they would "Waste" their soldiers like that, whereas they probably could have given you an even harder time by changing tactics.

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