A collection of photos, maps and articles about the Fourth Marines, and writings, notes and poetry scratched in his diary while a Japanese prisoner of war during World War II. By: First Lieutenant George Francis, United States Marine Corps / Retired

TABLE OF CONTENTS

My children: Burton, Karl & Robert, to whom I owe a debt of thanks and to Robert for his generous sponsorship of this book.
My grandchildren: Justine, Jennifer, Brian, John, Sam, Jason & Sarah Francis and their son Ethan.
Colonel Robert Dickman and my sister Jean Dickman, for keeping my morale together.
Captain Earl Blount, USMCR, veteran of Okinawa and my former commanding officer, a true and helpful friend.
Bertie: mother of my children.
Ben Davis: schoolmate & best friend, king of the saxophone.
Ken Cambon: my Niigata brother.
And my many friends in the Marine Corps, many of them gone but never forgotten.

Some 30,000 Americans were captured in the Philippine Islands and imprisoned by the Japanese during World War Il. About 12,000 of these brave men survived the horror of those infamous camps. George Francis was one of those survivors. To deal with the tremendous shock of being taken prisoner and subsequent inhuman treatment as well as the severe deprivation of food, inadequate shelter, lack of proper clothing and sheer helplessness at facing an extremely bleak future required a tremendous faith and will to survive.

According to a report in the American Journal of Psychiatry by Cdr. J. E. Nardini, a doctor and himself a prisoner of war, factors needed to survive included: “a strong motivation for life with persistent exertion of will, good general intelligence and constitution, sensitivity, sense of humor, courage and some luck.” George Francis had such qualities in abundance.

George Francis is a very special and unusual human being. Sensitive, creative, intellectual, poet, writer, musician — he is not the prototype of the recruiting poster United States Marine. Yet, he served his country — and the Corps — with dedication, honor and courage in two wars which included three and one-half years in Japanese prisoner of war camps. His outstanding Marine service was recognized when he was commissioned out of the ranks as a second lieutenant in 1951. After retiring from active duty in 1953, George fashioned a new career in manufacturing where he established a successful furniture business.

What follows is a collection of George Francis’ writings ranging from notes scratched in his diary while a prisoner of war to poetry and a radio script from later years. It includes a transcript of his recollections as a POW and a surprising account of his visit to the site in Japan where he was imprisoned. The book, commissioned by his son, Robert, is intended for George’s family and close friends. It has been my privilege to assemble most of the material and serve as editor. Recently, George was asked to summarize his thoughts about the ordeal in the camps. Without hesitation, he replied, “I wouldn’t take a million dollars to do it again. But, neither would I take a million dollars for that experience.” He said he sat down one day for an hour, reflecting on what had happened to him and he finally decided that life was much too short to spend it hating the people who had captured or killed almost two-thirds of his regiment. “The Japanese weren’t all bad”, he concluded.

Sadly, the effects of the three plus years on a near-starvation diet in the POW camps have taken a late toll. George’s eyesight is now paying the price of severe vitamin deficiency and is slowly fading. He may be losing that eyesight but George Francis will never lose his vision.

Earl Blount, journalist, fellow Marine and long-time friend. March 1, 1997

First Lieutenant George Francis of the United States Marine Corps, Retired, received the Bronze Star Medal on May 7,1992 for his action against the enemy at Bataan and Corregidor in World War II. He was a prisoner of the Japanese Army from May 6, 1942 to September 8, 1945.

copyright ©January 1, 1997 by Francis, George. All rights reserved under International Copyright Conventions. No part of this manuscript may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the authors. Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data: Francis, George.