USS Wahoo Memorial

This is the Memorial to USS WAHOO (SS 238), to "Mush" Morton and all the gallant men who are still on Eternal Patrol. It will be placed on Cape Soya, near Wakkanai Japan and dedicated on 9 September, 1995. Many of the Japanese who took part in the battle that resulted in the loss of USS WAHOO will be there as will many Americans including GEORGE LOGUE (1879-LIFE-1991) whose older brother still sleeps inside WAHOO's steel hull as well as relatives of other WAHOO crew members.

The base of this Monument is grey stone, symbolizing the grey seas and the large, round black stone signifies the sun setting over the ocean. A view through the rectangular opening will direct the viewer's eyes at the global coordinates of the last resting place of USS WAHOO and her gallant crew.

This was a very expensive Memorial. Contributions from US Navy submarine veterans, their families, and interested people made up half of this cost. The other half came from people in Japan.

U.S. to Attack North Korea?

One of our Members is a chopper pilot and for obvious reasons, we will not use his name or Member Number. He tells us that he took part in Operation 'KERNAL BLITZ' which is the planned scenario for the invasion of North Korea - if necessary. He has flown choppers for many years, but was recently qualified for carrier deck landings and worked with the Marines on the beach.

This Member is US Army and he also says that he takes back all the bad things he ever said about the Marines. He says the Marines and the carrier guys are the best in the business.

U.S. Sub Spots Japanese Fleet Bound for Pearl Harbor?

In a letter received from ORMAL PALS (874-1988), he writes:

"I knew a submarine man who said he was on one of the subs that encountered the Japanese fleet heading for Pearl Harbor. He was supposed to keep this fact quiet.

Last winter, I found a book entitled 'THE RELUCTANT ADMIRAL YAMAMOTO and the IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY'. In this book on page 263 it states that they encountered a U.S. sub. A destroyer asked Yamamoto what to do. Yamamoto said not to do anything - they were not at war yet."

That's quite a statement. Does anyone have anything else on this? Is it fact? What boat? Is it nothing but scuttlebutt?

'MIGHTY MO'

LEN PORTZLINE (1094-1989) remembered the end of the War, and he writes:

"After the surrender aboard USS MISSOURI (BB 63) ending WW II, the famous battleship was eventually sailed through the Panama Canal and was taken to New York to hold 'open house' for all to see and visit. The New Yorkers did so much damage and lifted so much equipment, the MISSOURI had to be moved to the Brooklyn Navy Yard to be repaired and refitted before it could go back to sea. The New Yorkers did with their bare hands what the Japanese could not do with all their firepower - keep that battleship from sailing. It's hard to figure out which side they are on....."

USS Borie

This was the 'tin can' involved in a famous battle with U-405 in which the entire German crew was lost, 1/3 of the American crew was lost & both warships were lost. OTTO GIESE (45-1984) was part of the crew of U-405 but had the good fortune to transfer off prior to the boat sailing on her last patrol. BOB MAHER (221-1986) was on the Gun Director of USS BORIE during this action.

CDR. PETER NALLE (3537-1994) writes and tells us that his mother, Patty Neal Borie christened that destroyer! After the loss of this ship, she then christened the FLETCHER Class replacement in or about 1943.

Update on Ariizumi

YOYA KAWAMURA (1739-LIFE-1989) writes with a correction to BATTLE DAMAGE in KTB #111.

"It is wrongly stated that HIYO was formerly the passenger liner ship HITAKA. She was laid down as IZUMO MARU - a liner for the NYK Line but was taken over by the Imperial Japanese Navy before completion and then completed as the aircraft carrier HIYO.

I would like to take this opportunity to write a few lines about Captain Ryunosuke Ariizumi to whom you have been devoting a number of pages in the recent issues of KTB.

Captain Ariizumi was a graduate of the elite Imperial Naval College for whom the Flag Rank was promised if the Imperial Navy were to continue its existence. Indeed, before assuming command of the I-8, he held the most important post of the staff officer in charge of all submarine operations including the training of the crew and the weaponry in the Japanese Naval High Command. At one time he was a staff officer with the submarine command in Penang, and he cooperated closely with the German sub Flotilla operating from that base. He often entertained German U-Boat crewmen. I quote from the German officer's book SHOOTING THE WAR. (by OTTO GIESE 45-1984).

'Some days later, our entire crew was invited to a garden party in honor of a newly arrived U-Boat. The affair was sponsored by the Japanese admiral and Captain Ariizumi, a quick witted, slightly imperious officer with harsh manners. We could not but admire him and his record as a successful commandant operating in the Indian Ocean.'

Mr. GIESE further described the tiger-hunting party in Thailand sponsored by Captain Ariizumi, how well-organized the party was and how he enjoyed it.

Why did Captain Ariizumi and the crew under his command treat the Allied seamen so cruelly? One theory is that they were instigated by the Germans. One defense attorney at the war crimes court stated that Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop had asked the Japanese to treat Allied seamen harshly, on the ground that no matter how many Allied ships were sunk, they would very promptly be replaced by the tremendous production capabilities of the Allied Powers and therefore, it would be more effective if their seamen could be terrorized, causing them to refuse to serve aboard these ships.

(HARRY's NOTE - if all Allied seamen had been killed by the crew of I-8 as Ariizumi had intended, how would word get back to other Allied seamen to let them know of this torture so to then intimidate them? I am only asking a question, as I do not understand. Some of the US Navy SEALS I know tell me they would kill the enemy mercilessly in 'Nam but usually allowed one to get away to tell his buddies the story to put fear into the enemy troops.)

YOYA continues - "My own personal theory is that Captain Ariizumi and his men were being influenced by the relentless propaganda campaign led by the Japanese military and the media under its control. We were being told almost day-to-day of the horrendous atrocities committed by the Allies Forces against the Japanese fighting men and, later in the war, against Japanese civilians. I personally remember that during the Guadalcanal campaign it was reported that Japanese wounded were laid flat on runways and the Americans ran bulldozers over them. Another story said that the American Marines bound up the Japanese wounded with wires and threw them into rivers to drown them to death.

After the war, I asked a Marine veteran if these stories had any truth in them. He admitted that they used bulldozers to clear the runways of the Japanese corpses. It is also true that the Doolittle Raiders strafed a primary school, killing some children.

We did believe that Japanese hospital ships were daily being attacked and survivors were mercilessly exterminated. The hospital ship ARGENTINA MARU was sunk in the western Pacific by USAAF bombers and her survivors were strafed in the water and in lifeboats. Even the ship AWA MARU on a mercy mission with safe conduct was sunk by the US submarine USS QUEENFISH and everyone on board was lost except only one man.

(HARRY's NOTE - we ran the story of the sinking of AWA MARU told by the radioman on USS QUEENFISH. There were errors made by the Japanese at identifying this ship and by the US Navy at letting its submarines know to let AWA MARU pass safely. However, it was learned after the War that - in addition to items of mercy on board, there were a great many escaping Japanese high ranking officers with items of wealth and, it shows in various files, there was quite a lot of treasure on board as well. Professional treasure hunters are thinking about going after the wreck of the AWA MARU for this reason.)

YOYA continues - "As I recall now what frame of mind I was in at that time, I must confess that if I had been placed in the same situation in which Captain Ariizumi found himself, I might very well have acted exactly in the same way.

It is beyond doubt that Captain Ariizumi shot himself in his cabin aboard the I-401, after writing some letters, most of which to his comrades in arms. His body was buried at sea as unobtrusively as possible - they say - so as not to attract the attention of the sailors of the US submarine USS SEGUNDO put aboard I-401 as guards.

The atrocities committed by the submarine I-8 are almost unknown in Japan and, as far as I know, have never been reported by the Japanese media. I am sure, if they did, everyone would be deeply ashamed."

YOYA, many thanks for this information. I hope you know that there will be many letters sent here regarding this piece. We will print any that have merit and perhaps in this way, we can get additional information on this part of World War II.