Love, Mother
Of course, these letters and packages were a Godsend. We passed the letters around to all of our friends, hoping there might be something of interest to them. We ate the cheese and malted milk in the packages-even when they had maggots in them. It was a great boost to our morale to know that someone loved us and was praying for our safe return.
Commissary: We were permitted to have a commissary; my ten yen each month bought a can of salmon or condensed milk, several bananas, a cup of mongo beans or peanuts. Once I was able to buy a live chicken and have a Thanksgiving dinner. The commissary was operated by Lt. Col. Harold K. Johnson (later to become the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army), Capt. Amos and Capt. Norton. Gradually inflation became so bad that the Japanese pay become almost worthless.
Chapel Service: We were permitted to go to church on Sundays.
The sermons had to be censored on Saturdays; there was often a Jap attending service-to keep the preachers honest. Lt. Col. Alfred Oliver, U. S. Army, was chief of chaplains in the Philippines by reason of seniority.
Two protestant chaplains built their own chapels with scrap lumber and prison labor. Capt. Frank Tiffany was a Presbyterian; I became an elder in his chapel. Capt. Robert Taylor was a Baptist. I became a deacon in his chapel. Other chaplains used mess halls, libraries and even barracks to hold their services.
Catholic chaplains were: Majors Stanley Reilly and Albert Braun,
Captains Richard Carberry, John McDonnell, Stober, Albert Talbot, Tom
Scenina, and Dugan, and Lieutenants McManus, James O'Brien, Mithias
Zerfas, John Wilson, Duffy, William Cummings, and John Curran.
Protestant chaplains included: Majors John Borneman and Ralph Brown,
Captains Sam Donald, Leslie Zimmerman, Morris Day, Arthur Cleveland,
and Lieutenants Quinn, Herbert Trump and Ed Nagle (a missionary from
Baguio).
Chaplains of unknown denomination: William Dawson, Joseph
Vanderheiden.
Jewish cantor: Aaron Kliatchko.