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The following is the true story of the experiences of Philton Joseph Hebert, a sergeant in the United States Marine Corps during World War II.
Philton Joseph Hebert was born on Septermber 21, 1916, in Houma, Louisiana. He was raised on a farm, graduated from Terrebonne High School, and then became an electrician.
On August 30, 1940, at the age of 23, he entered the United States Marine Corps, because there was already talk of war. He was sent to San Diego, California, for a very harsh training program that proved to be very useful to him in the future. After his training was completed, he was transferred to a Quatermaster Service company.
In April of 1941, his regiment sailed toward Shanghai, and in November they were sent to the Philippine Islands to prepare for war.
December 8, 1941, known as "D" day, is a day Philton will never forget. He was awakened at about 2:30 in the morning by the bugle. He was given keys to a bakery truck and instructed to go get ammunition and issue some to everyone. Then he dug his fox hole and waited. At dawn Japanese bombers attacked them and destroyed the village. The Navy sent PBY planes to fight, but were quickly knocked down. Then fighter planes came and shot up everything. They shot so close, he could reach out and touch holes made by the bullets. The Americans were armed very lightly, so were ineffective in their fight against the Japanese. This went on for two days. Four days later his camp was destroyed and they moved to Corregidor.
While in Corregidor, the Japanese shelled almost constantly. The seige was so intense and thorough that not one building remained standing. April 29 was the Emperor of Japan's birthday and they shelled from 1:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. All the troops were crowded into a two by five mile area. The constant shelling frazzeled the men's nerves because they never knew when a shell would land in an occupied fox-hole. The soldiers continued to resist, even though they knew it was of no use. They were surrounded by Japanese forces. Corregidor was the last bastion in the Philippine Islands still held by the Americans.
Then the infamous "Death March" began. About five thousand Americans died of starvation and disease or were murdered before reaching Camp O'Donald. Mr. Hebert was wounded by shrapnel from an exploding bomb. He said the bits and pieces of metal felt "boiling hot." He thought he was going to die, but his friends took him to Malinta Hospital, which was just a tunnel drilled through a hill. There they stitched and dressed his thirty-seven wounds. Since there was no available beds, he was given a chair next to the nurse's station.
The American forces continued resisting, but many were wounded and dying and there was a lack of food, medicine, and ammo. On May 6, 1942, at 2:30 a.m., the American forces surrendered to the Japanese.
The hospital was still handled by the Americans, but three weeks later, everyone was moved to Cabanatuan Prison Camp Number Three. They were given wormy rice to eat and there were millions of huge green flies in the camp. Men were dying daily and were buried in mass graves.
In September, 1942, the prisoners were moved to Cabanatuan Camp Number One, known as "Death Camp". Reportedly, three thousand of the sixty-five hundred Americans died there by the end of 1943.
The Prisoners (POWs) were treated very cruelly. Mr. Hebert was whipped three times because he didn't work fast enough. Others were stripped naked, tied to posts and beaten for three days for trying to escape. Then they were tied to the back of a truck and dragged to a creek, where they were executed.
During the first year, approximately fifty POWs died daily because of malaria, dysentery, beriberi or were tortured to death. The Japanese buried these men thirty or forty to a grave.
Then Mr. Hebert and some other POWs were sent to Los Penos camp where they carved an airfield with picks and shovels. The Red Cross sent food, but the Japanese took all they wanted and left the rest for the prisoners. Although food and water were short, and it was hard work, it was better because there were less beatings.
On October 1, 1944, Mr. Hebert and six hundred men were sent to Formosa. They were loaded into the forty-by-sixty foot hold of a ship that was partially filled with coal and ammunition. There was barely enough room to sit. They were never allowed to leave, and no rest rooms were provided. For three days the ship lay in Manila Bay in the hot July heat. During that time they received no water whatsoever. After the ship got under way, the captors fed them by lowering a wooden bucket of barley into the hold, which was passed around to everyone. They got water from a hose that was lowered into the hold for a short time each day, but many would not get any. Occasionally the POWs got cooked rice, fish heads or vegetable soup. That journey lasted forty days. During the trip, the ship was attacked by American Naval forces unaware of the POWs aboard. Everyone figured that the ship would be their tomb, but after praying all night, the explosions stopped.
The men that lived were weak by the time they arrived. They were cleaned up and fed fresh vegetables and fruit during the three months they stayed in Formosa. After they finished leveling off the side of a hill, they were transported to a prison camp at Oeyena, Japan. It was already crowded with British and Canadian POWs. It was cold and they were kept in a warehouse for several days without heat and only a thin blanket to cover with. Many froze to death.
The prisoners were moved again. This time to a mining town called Kosak. At Christmas time, they were allowed to receive packages from the Red Cross and send one postcard to their families. They were even given bowls to eat from!
Mr. Hebert was forced to work in a copper smelter. It was cold, but the food was better, usually barley, soy beans, dried fish and a wild mountain vegetable the Japanse called "cookie". Only about 25 men were beaten during the time he stayed there. Still, many died of lack of medical treatment.
The POWs entertained themselves by making up recipes and menus. Mr. Hebert remembers one man was so hungry, he ate some wild berries, but died because they were poisonous.
Then one day everyone's spirits soared as they saw a squadron of American planes overhead. They knew the American forces were near. Everyone cheered when the Americans bombed the area. The Japanese began feeding the men better, with foods they had not had at all since they were captured. They stopped working in the mines. On August 23, 1945, tons of food, medicines, and clothes were parachuted down by American aircraft. The men were overjoyed, but some parachutes didn't open and landed on a few men, killing them. With the parachutes from the drops, the prisoners made American, British, and Canadian flags and officially took over the prison camp by lowering the Japanese flag and raising the three Allied flags.
On September 12, 1945, an American hospital ship picked up the men and cleaned them of their fleas, lice, and bed bugs. Aftger 1221 days of imprisonment, Mr. Hebert weighed only 98 lbs. He sent a letter to his parents telling them he would be home for Christmas, then boarded a transport to Guam, then to San Francisco. From there, he took a train home.
Mr. Hebert received several medals, including a purple heart, four stars for battle honors and two stars for good conduct. After the war, he married and had seven children. He now has 17 grandchilden and 7 great-grandchildren, and is a retired Sheriff's Deputy. He served as Commander of the local VFW organization in 1980-1981, where he received the Cross of Malta award. At the age of 86 he still has scars on his body and the nightmares of his "living hell" have only recently stopped.
Link to 4th Marines Chapter: American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor
This page courtesy of BugsBunne.
