The Indomitable Florence Finch by Robert J. Mrazek

Author:Robert J. Mrazek
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: None
Publisher: Hachette Books
Published: 2020-07-20T16:00:00+00:00

Though for now the abuse subsided, a deadly serious issue arose soon after that threatened the lives of many more prisoners.

Carl was summoned to the Japanese camp headquarters to meet with Lieutenant Colonel Mori. The lieutenant colonel angrily told Carl that one of the POWs had stolen the Japanese guard orders book. He demanded its immediate return along with the guilty prisoner. If he wasn’t surrendered for punishment, the food rations for the entire camp would be cut off.

Carl knew what the thief’s punishment would be. He also concluded there were only two reasons why the POWs needed paper: one was to roll the cigarettes they made using dried plant leaves. The other was to wipe their asses at the latrines. Carl was pretty certain it was the second reason that accounted for the theft. He could only hope that the guard orders book wasn’t already in smeared shreds at the bottom of one of the latrines.

Carl told Mori that he would attempt to recover the order book, but if he were successful, his own officer’s code of honor would prevent him from turning over the culprit. Mori didn’t respond.

Going straight to the camp POW headquarters, Carl explained the situation to the senior leaders. They agreed that the blocking of food rations for the whole camp would lead to a greater number of deaths.

Carl suggested that the word should immediately be passed throughout the camp that the guard orders book must be returned at once—and what the consequences would be if it wasn’t. He added that the book should be passed from man to man through so many hands that no one would know who had actually stolen it.

An hour later, the book was brought to camp headquarters. When Carl looked it over, it appeared to be fully intact. He took it immediately to Mori’s office, where it was inspected and found complete.

Lieutenant Colonel Mori demanded to know the name of the prisoner who stole it. Carl explained that this was impossible because it had been passed through too many hands before reaching him.

“Then I have every right to punish you instead,” said Mori.

Mori had acted reasonably when the lives of Carl and his hut mates had been in the balance after the attempted escape by Breitung, Briggs, and Gilbert. This time his life was at stake. He told Mori in Japanese that the prisoners were desperate for toilet paper and that if they received it, there would be little likelihood that Japanese books and documents would be stolen in the future.

Mori dismissed him.

Several days later, two rolls of toilet paper were dispensed to every squad of prisoners in the camp. The individual sheets were carefully counted and an equal share allocated to each man.

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