Hospitality of Japanese Emperor

This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Mike Millington of CSV on behalf of Joseph Yates and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions. The story was originally recorded by members of the Brampton Museum Newcastle Under Lyme
I was a member of ‘F’ force on the Siamese-Burma railway and had been in the prison camp of Songkurai and Than Buzziart. Of the 7,000 men of ‘F’ force approximately 4,000 had died. The remainder were withdrawn back to Singapore having walked through the monsoon to finish the railway.
After a short spell at Changi where we worked on the airfield a party of us were drafted to Singapore on a working party. The job was tunnelling into the side of the hills.
At the time we were so hungry that we used to eat what we took out for dinner and take a chance on what we could pinch, mainly leaves, jungle stems and snails, then work 10-12 hours mostly without anything.
One day, having saved a few grains of rice and maize, I was sitting down having my meal. From a nearby camp there used to come Japanese soldiers to watch us.
As they were staring at me eating my few grains of rice and maize, on of them pointed at the maize and said, “Good eh? Good. Number One.”
I said “No good, in England we give this to the fowl.”
“Fowl” he said, not quite understanding (I guess).
“Yes” I said and made a noise like a hen laying an egg.
He spoke a few words to his mates and suddenly there were 6 of them hitting me with their fists. When they stopped I was black and blue, I got to my feet slowly and glared at them. Then one of them spoke (the one who could speak English) “You insult Emperor” he said.
“Me no insult Emperor, me never mentioned his name,” I said in surprise.
“You guest of Emperor, you prisoner, Emperor, he feed and clothe you”
I looked at my few grains of rice and maize on the floor and I looked at my clothes. All I had on was a G string and a bit of cloth around my shoulders
“If that’s the best he can do” I said as I slowly turned away, “he can keep it and stick it where the monkey sticks his nuts.”
I don’t think he understood that or else I would have got another beating.
‘F’ force was wiped out mostly by cholera, dysentery, malaria etc.

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