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John
Arthur Rix Royal New Zealand Navy Hong Kong - Hiroshima - Osaka Contributions by Nick Dooner, nephew |
| Main | Osaka Chikko Camp | About Us |
| On
February 7,
2011, at my motel while I was on assignment in Northern New
Zealand, my cousin handed me a small brown suitcase belonging to his
late
father, Jack. I had known of its existence for my entire lifetime and
was excited at the prospect of viewing the contents. As Russell handed it to me, I assumed the viewing would only be allowable while I was in town. “No,” he said. “Take it with you for as long as you need. You have the journalistic side and this needs investigating.” Struggling to contain my excitement, I put it on the motel table and popped it open -- the first time it was to reveal its contents to the world in more than 60 years.  My heart raced as I rifled through the
papers in
search of one item -- the small black diary that I had heard so much
of.
Finding it at the bottom my breath stopped as I lifted it into my gaze.
The cover read “J. A. Rix."Carefully opening the fragile pages, I was about to discover the experience of my uncle Jack, as a prisoner of war incarcerated in Hong Kong and five separate camps in Japan, including Hiroshima, for the majority of World War 2. Over several weeks of sorting, the small suitcase has provided me with over eighty individual items and numerous leads -- so many that is difficult to list everything.  However there are letters, P.O.W.
documents, telegrams and
correspondence from the U.S. 8th Army and N.Z. Governments
to and
from Jack, and to and from his parents. Some of the letters
are
heart retching to read to view details of the conditions suffered and
those of the parents desperate in search of a son.My most jaw-dropping moment was to discover in his diary that he was aboard the Lisbon Maru! On the website for the hell ship http://www.lisbonmaru.com/ there is a photo of Jack. The page listing for “The Men” in hold number one, fifth row down -- there he is, the sailor between the two chaps wearing caps. On returning from the war, Jack, a railway clerk and train driver, took up numerous postings around the North Island of New Zealand between Auckland and Wellington, living in railway housing through the 50’s to the early 70’s. One account his son told to me was that in the 50’s a group of Japanese businessmen visited his railway yards for discussions. He could not partake in the round table talks and sent other staff into the room. His reasoning was that he would have killed them. Daughter Diana was born with skin rashes and irritations that persist to this day. Son Russell was not hearing the teacher when he started school. A medical examination revealed he had been born without eardrums. Jack was in the vicinity of the Hiroshima bomb and visited the city soon after. One can’t help but draw conclusions as to any health defects passed on. Jack found the stress of having small children quite difficult. This was not surprising given what he had been through. He was a peace loving man that always had a smile or a joke at hand. His had a keenness and passion for the freedom of the great outdoors. Jack would take as all in his Holden car on long road trips deep into the interior. He could find the most exotic of locations next to beautiful rivers where we ate fried bread, and the Billy smoked away at the base of the fire, even if the tea tasted burnt. Jack never talked of the past and my mother had advised me and my brother not to ask. He passed away after a heart attack in Wanganui, New Zealand, in 1974, age a mere 54, having had numerous prior attacks over many years. This is an incredible account of a man whom used up eight of his nine lives during the war years. God only knows how he survived Hong Kong, the Lisbon Maru, the sickness and slavery of Japan, aircraft crash landings upon liberation, to step onto the wharf at Wellington, New Zealand, in January 1946. Attached is my transcription written in Jack's own words of the diary account as a P.O.W. in Hong Kong and Japan -- the most important item in the collection. --- Nick Dooner,
Television Cameraman, New Zealand
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| "While
in captivity, I have had scabies, tropical ulcers, Hong
Kong Dog (similar to malaria), yellow jaundice, chronic diarrhoea,
dysentery 3 times, boils, ulcer in ear, broken foot, dobie rash,
bronchitis, beri beri and pneumonia... I had to take the bombs,
torpedoes, dive bombers, and starvation along
with the enemy, instead of being with our allies on the dealing out
side... Many
times I had one foot in the
grave and the other on a bar of soap and the sky was black and
threatening to rain... Sometimes I nearly lost hope but always thought
of... that wonderful native land, New Zealand." ---Jack Rix, in letter home,
Dec. 23, 1945
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Transcript of WWII DiaryP.O.W. John [Jack] Arthur Rix 0/7426 RNZNNavy Telegraphist
Hong Kong and Japan P.O.W. 1940-1946 [Contains Japanese printing so assumption is made that this was given to Jack upon capture.] Page 1 J. A. Rix No. 656 Prisoner of War Camp No. 2 Osaka Japan Kapi Rekisu [name written in katakana; "Kapi" unknown meaning] Hoincho No.811 - No.656 Sham Shui Po No. 4191 Hiroshima. No. 15 1942-43-44-45
Page 2 Hand drawn NZ and British flags The letters N Z A crown and Anchor Pages 3 and 4 The Navy Blue [A poem -- some words missing] Say girl I saw you sneer just now Don’t I look good to you I’m not one of your class you say I wear the navy blue You think that I am not fine… snow? For such a girl as you Men who would not hold your hand Have worn the navy blue You bar us from your theatres full And from your ballrooms to When there’s room for everyone Except the navy blue How many folks in civil life Will ever stop to think That sailors do some other… Besides carnage and drink We're only common sailor boys Till wars start to brew And then dear folks you are the …first? To cheer the navy blue When we are gone and life’s Last cruise is through We’ll not be barred from heaven’s gate For wearing the navy blue So when you see a sailor boy I’d smile if I were you No better men were made by god Than those in navy blue Page 5 The Angler's Prayer Lord give me grace To catch a fish So large that even I When speaking of it afterwards May never need to lie Page 7 Troopships M.V. Boisevain [….] S.S. Soo Chow […] USS.Gen. Howze [USA] … Queen Elizabeth [ER] Durban Castle Page 9 Ports and Cities [Left NZ Oct 1941] Sydney Aust Madagascar Celebes Is. Surabaya ? Semarang Java Batavia ? Java Singapore Malaya Kowloon China Shanghai All of these by sea Moiji [Moji] Japan Hiroshima Japan Osaka Japan By Rail Kobe Japan Kyoto Japan By road Yokohama Japan Atsugi Japan By rail Okinawa Japan Naha Japan Loag North Luzon Manila Philippines By Air Page 10 Leyte, Philippines San Francisco USA Angel Island USA By Sea Oakland USA Cheyene USA Chicago USA Toronto Canada Debert Canada Tamro ???? Canada Halifax By Rail South Hampton By Sea London Devonport By Rail Port Said Aden Bombay Colombo Fremantle Perth Sydney Melbourne Wellington [Arrived back in NZ Jan 27, 1946] By Sea [Jack then writes from the rear cover inwards] 1940 Feb. Mobilized. HMS Philomel, Minesweepers. HMS South Sea, Cunnel [Currel?], Futurist. 1941 Oct. Overseas Draft. Left N.Z. HMAS Canberra. Sydney. Saw Queen Mary 81,000 and Queen Elizabeth 83,000. Celebes. Java. Singapore Nov Left Singapore S.S. Soochow. Dec 7th Arrived Hong Kong HMS. Tamar. Dec 8th Hostilities commenced 4am. First air raid 7.40am. Drafted HMS. Barlight. Dec 22nd Barlight bombed 27 planes. Missed by 50 yards. Holes below waterline. Later sunk. Dec 23 Dockyard W/T. and defense. Dec 25th Hostilities ceased. Capitulation of Hong Kong. 26th Prisoner Of War, age 19 years.  M.I.A. telegram, Feb. 25, 1942 1942 Jan Sham Shui Po P.O.W. Camp. 5,300? Prisoners. Later 5000. Rice diet. Malnutrition, no medical supplies. 1000’s of refugees. Tuckloads of dead Chinese. Atrocities. Diphtheria broke out, 2 to 4 deaths a day. First attack of dysentery and tropical ulcers. ???. Hong Kong dog. Whale meat, dog and cats, not bad to eat. Fever.  POW postcard from Hong Kong (rcvd. Jan. 1945) Sept. 28th Left Hong Kong. Lisbon Maru [This was a hell ship]. 1800 prisoners.  Letter from Hong Kong Oct 1st Torpedoed 7am. Battened down. No air or water. Oct. 2nd 6.30am Ship listed heavily. Mad rush to break out of hold. Stern under. After hold 200 prisoners trapped. Japs firing at us in water. 8:30am Ship sank. 5:40pm Picked up by Japanese tug. No food no water. Many died. Oct 3rd 0200am Shanghai. No clothes. Very cold. Given little water and hard biscuit. Unable to chew. 4pm First food after 72 hours. Oct 5th Left Shanghai Shin Shi Maru. Only 930 survivors. Oct 8th 8am Buried Tel. M. Stewart at sea. Oct 10th Arrived Moiji [Moji] Japan. Oct 11th Hiroshima Military Hospital. Weight 48.5 kilos. Dysentery again. Nov 58? dysentery cases. Dec 22 died. Food bad. Jap orderly? stealing our chow. Worse than a slaughter house. 1943 Jan. 11th Arrived Osaka P.O.W. Camp No. 2. Started work 10 sen a day. March Very cold, only 1 shirt, 1 pr trousers, 1 jacket, rubber shoes. Electric feet. Beriberi. Work hard. Rice and veg soup. Enifer stabbed in back.   Postard from Osaka, Mar. 12, 1943 July 27th Broken foot. Alassie? Doctors and Apples Yates. Aug 8th Dysentery again. Ichioka hospital. Many deaths. No toes and no feet cases. Food bad. No med supplies. Sept 25th Shigoto ["work"] again razor operations. Break into ships iceboxes for food. Everybody hungry. 3 oz. fish twice a month. 2 oz. meat once in 3 months. Seaweed, soya paste, squid, octopus, eel. Soap 1 bar in 2 months.  Letter, Oct. 4, 1943 Dec 25th 2 years a Horio ["P.O.W."]. Rec. Red Cross food parcel. Yellow jaundice.   Postcard, Dec. 28, 1943 1944 Jan. Only two rest days a month from work. Foundries, docksides and senpaku [shipping] unloading ships. Food cuts and rationing. Caught a snake. Just like chicken. Stealing on the increase. No mail yet. Bed bugs prevent sleep at night.  Letter, May 1, 1944 April 12th Collapsed at work, carried back to camp. Pneumonia. July 24th Blood transfusion. Aug Rec. 5 letters, first since Nov 1941. Sept Big flood, everybody upstairs.  Letter, Sept. 17, 1944 Oct Fairly Fit. Paper work, start of air raids. Nov Big earthquake. Dec 28th Out to Shigoto again 3 years a prisoner. Der. Tag ? 1945 Jan Work every day now 1 yasumi ["day off"] a month.  Letter, Jan. 11, 1945 Feb Worked on sugar ship, dried bananas and sweets. Got caught stripped in the road searched. Beat up with swords. Kneeling for 4 hours. March Worked for 6 weeks without a day off. 4 chaps taken away, told we won’t see them alive again! (stealing). 15th All night incendiary raid by B29’s 1/3 of Osaka flattened. No trams. No more work at the foundries. April Air raids very often now. B29’s like silver ghosts in the air. Enjoy raids. Stop work and take shelter. Fox holes. More rice cuts. Wheat mixed in rice, horrible. Green veg. seldom. Soya sauce soup, seaweed. Joto nai ["Not all right"]. Losing weight. Catch pigeons to eat. Made radio broadcast. May? Rumours about Germany. Lyne to Notogawa. No ships in harbour now. Only work on the docks. June 25th 9.30am. Big air raid in our area. Our camp burned down. Never seen so many planes or such destruction. Lost all my kit again. June 2nd No water. Rations burnt. Shifted to Samuri. Takusan ["A lot of"] fleas. Shipyards and factories close by abunai ["dangerous"]. Water sukoshi ["a little"]. 4 days no work. Joto! ["All right!"]. Travel by barge back to Chikko everyday 2 hours. Back late at night. Danger from mines in harbour - B29’s. Working in burned out godowns. Sugar like toffee. Saw ship blow up and sink. Mine.  Japanese-English dictionary used by Rix June Making new camp. Numerous raids. Started dropping H.E. 3 bombs 300 yards away. Took shelter in small woodyard. Shrapnel from AC AC. Watched bombs leaving planes. July 6th Shifted back to Chikko. Still no water. Don’t feel safe living in godown. Shipyards, power station, rail bridge, marshaling yards, AC AC Baty close by. Sleep on straw sacks on cement deck. Ventilation bad. Mosquitos deadly. Boil and abcess. Can hardly walk. Can’t get a day off. Temp 101º. One chap caught. Stood in rain for 2 hours. July Went 15 miles by truck to Osaka. City flattened. Why don’t they jag in. 1000’s homeless living in shelters and tin shacks. Saw many large bomb craters, dead bodies and horses.  Prison camp photos showing Osaka damage, camp life July Working at Senriyama oil dump. Dive bombers what a speed. Sheltered in the trees. So close could see the markings. Yankee P51! P38’s and Grummans. Also RAF from task force. Bombed and machined gunned air drome 1/2 mile away. Chow bad, no veg. Little rice mixed with plenty of beans. Catching pigeons. Cooking up weeds to stop boils. Feel weak. No soap, fag's, boots, few clothes. Dread coming winter. Everyboby making wooden go aheads? July The sirens on and off all day and night now. Dive bombing and machine gunning raids. Definite air superiority. Seldom see a Nip plane. Living in godown which seem to be targets for the yanks. Watch night air raids, incendiaries like firework display. H. E. terrible noise often shaking the building. Big flash when they hit. Some fires still burning from June 1st raid. No water. Found tobacco leaf in burned out godown. Good smoke. Had bath in bomb crater. Still no water in mains. Caught with salt, beaten bound up all night. Mosquitos deadly. Aug Another rice cut. Watery soup 70% beans 30% rice 350gms. Much stomach trouble. Everybody pessimistic. Gloom club. We’re doomed. Always tired many sleepless nights owing to AC AC close by. Two yank officers on trial for trying to escape. Aug 12th B29’s this morning but only dropped leaflets.  13th Big H.E. raid. Aug 17th Went for water today. Civilians have no tin hats. No work today. No announcements no raids. Something strange is happening. Aug 17th Sirens went during the night. Wakaran? ["I donno"; Jack adds question mark]. AC AC. Aug 20th Adjutants speech. War not over only temporary armistice. Tenko as usual. No outside working parties. Rice 600 gms. No beans. Onion and eggplants soup. Aug 21st Out on water party 10am. Ginger Quinn RM. Harry Pelham RE. strolled up and greeted us 10:30am, told us war was over. Came from Kobe camp. What an uproar in our camp. Deputation to jimusho ["office"]. Guard issued with extra amo. Garrison put up. Japanese still deny war is over. No veg for tonight. Our demands for food. 1:30pm 100 men left for food expedition. Guard just laugh and watch lads walk away. Tried to catch a bullock. Went out myself but food godown empty. Got back 4:30pm. Newspaper on board. Issued ultimatum to Japanese to have European chow in camp by 12noon tomorrow. We know there is godowns of food supplies for German raiders at Kobe. Aug 22nd Double guard on camp last night. Guards every 50 yards outside camp. No supplies. Arrived at 12 noon today. Everybody marched out of camp at 1pm to cover supply party. Caught tram to center of city. Nothing but ruins and desolation in city. Civies quite cheerful towards us. 2 trucks commandeered and went to Kobe. Returned 11:30pm with tin food supplies. Aug 23rd 2:30am couldn’t sleep for noise went for a stroll. 9am went on ration truck to Kobe. Saw Butterworth and Baker. Plenty of food. Lads wheeling sugar in all afternoon. Sugar is the currency there. Only 14 Navy there. Only 100 Navy in our camp. 3 years ago there were 350 of us survivors of the Lisbon. 1,115 deaths out of 4,000 P.O.W. in Osaka. 4 chaps from jail arrived in bad shape. 1 serving 10 years solitary confinement for trying to escape. Can't talk now. Aug 24th 9am went up the city. Went to Kyoto 50 miles away. Only 15 miles from Lyne. Do not pay on trains or trams. Nips bowing and saluting. Left Kyoto 2pm. Civies filling air rad shelters. 25th Went to Kobe. Saw Dog Baker. Back by 5:30. 26th Did some washing this morning. Watching waiting for planes to drop food and clothing supplies. Change in weather. Tail of a typhoon. Longing for mail. 1 bag came this morning but only 2 lads lucky. All the rest was for deceased. 27th Takusan planes over but no supplies dropped. Grumans. 28th Few planes over this morning. Some lads form Lynes camp arrived pretty thin and pale. 4 engined transport planes about 2pm. Food, clothes, medical supplies dropped by parachute. First time have felt full since Xmas 1941. Much excitement. So low see pilot's hands. Roof hopping. 29th Grumans and B29’s again this morning. Practically fence hopping so low. Before had to dodge bombs, now supplies. Few Nips killed. 30th More planes, more supplies. Low dives just above the wires, very thrilling. More lads from Lyne's camp. Very thin, some byoki ["sick"]. Sept 3rd Lyne came down for the day. Not looking well.  Letter from US 8th Army Lt. Gen. Eichelberger to Rix, Sept. 20, 1945 Sept 6th Shifted with 60 others to Osaka new hotel. Car driving. A real bed and room to myself. First class accommodation and attention. The tables have turned at last.
Sept 7th 40 American Army occupational staff arrived. 4 RN and some nurses. First Capstan since 1941. Sept 8th 7:30pm the lads left by train. Start of the homeward voyage. Sept 9th Finished driving 4am. Wake up 3:20pm. Missed bacon and eggs for breakfast. 11:30pm Shingai.  U.S. driving team that Rix belonged to. Rix is standing 5th from right, behind motorcycle rider. Sept 10th Station 7am and 8am. Kobe afternoon. Sept 11th Osaka castle. Tanoji atchi kochi ["Exciting here and there"]. Up in plane for 30? minutes C47. Sept 18th 9pm for Kobe in convoy. 10:50 train late. 4:30am left Osaka 8am. Hoincho 900 P.O.W. only 400 alive now.
Sept 18th Farewell party at Osaka new hotel. Admiral Byrd present. Sept 19 Left Osaka. Sept 20 9am arrived Yokohama. Big reception at station. Speech by Eichelberger and Admiral. Medical inspections. Players cigs. 7:30pm Transport to Atsugi Air Port.   Letter from Atsugi Air Port, Sept. 20, 1945 "The tables have turned after all these years." Sept 21 Weather bad, raining. Had look inside B29, C54, B17, Gruman, P88 and others. Took off at 10:40 C46. Landed at Okinawa 5pm. 5 mile ride through Okinawa battlefield to camp. Saw a picture show. Sept 22nd Plane Byoki. Went for a ride to Naha through the battlefield. Went to a show at night. Sept 23rd Got up …. 24th 2am left by lorry for airfield. Left in B24 at 4:30am. Forced landing at Loag Nth Luzon 10am 2 engines left. Arrived Manila 4.30pm. C46 transport Manila camp. Interrogation and medical. Saw Lynne, Harry Franklin, Jim Muller, Apples Yates. Sept 27th Left Manila aboard U.S.S. P134 at 1700 hours. General Howze.  Rix recovered telegram, Oct. 1, 1945 Oct 7th Crossed the date line. Oct 15th Golden Gate Frisco. Angel Island. Ferry boat Welcome Home music. 18th Left Oakland pm by rail. 22nd Chicago 9pm. Changed to CNR. 25th Debert, Canada. Rest camp. 30th Left Debert 4am. Nov 1st Embarked in Queen Elizabeth 1230. Sailed to Halifax 1400 hrs. Concert. Wee Georgie Wood. Commander Bisset (whale speech). Nov 5th Arrived in Southampton. HMS Shrapnel. Leave in London. Sightseeing.  Welcome letter from King George to Rix, Sept. 1945 Nov 27 HMS Drake. Awaiting draft. Home.   "Rix is safe" telegrams, Nov. 30, 1945 Dec 5 Drafted. HMS Devonshire in dock. 7th On leave again 7 days. 10th Went to B.B.C. 15th Sailed from Devonport. 22nd Port Said shoreside. 23rd Suez Canal. 25th Red Sea. Xmas Day. 26th Aden. 27th Arabian Sea. 30th Bombay. Shoreside. 31st 1700 Left Bombay. 1946 Jan 1st At sea. Jan 2nd Colombo. Jan 3rd 1700 Sailed. Jan 10th 0930 arrived Freemantle. Apples Yates on Jetty. Saw Q.Q.W. and got…. Kings Park and sightseeing. Picture show. Grand time. Jan 11th 1300 sailed. Jan 15th Arrived Sydney. Jan 22nd Train? to Melbourne. Jan 23rd Sailed for Melbourne in Durban Castle. Jan 27th Arrived Wellington. News articles:Nephew thanks U.S. Army for liberating uncle in 1945New Zealand man thanks U.S. Army for liberating uncle in 1945 |
