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THE STORY OF CLIFF MORRIS
122 Field Regiment RA
On August 12th 1942 1,500 men were marched to the docks in Singapore from Changi. We were all expected to board the hell ship 'Fukkai Maru' but this proved to be physically impossible so after a lot of bitter argument, 400 men were put aboard the 'England Maru'.
Included in that 400 were General Percival and the Governor of Singapore, Shenton Thomas, and other senior officers. I understand that they were sent to French Indo China.
The 'Fukkai Maru' was a cargo ship with a tonnage of 3,800 and was built in England in 1898. We sailed on 18th August, all crammed into the holds and we arrived in Formosa on 29th August.
A large number of men were taken ashore to work on the docks while the rest of us were set about to unload the cargo of bauxite stored in the lower holds. After cleaning out the holds we had to load a cargo of rice in straw bags.
We sailed again on 15th September passing through typhoons before arriving at Pusan, Korea. Here we were paraded around the town for the populace to pour their scorn on us. Then it was to the railway to be loaded into goods wagons. The rear half of the train was detached at Seoul for the Keijo Camp.
We went on to Inchon for the Jinsen Camp - we numbered 535.
1st December 1942 - 2 officers and 48 men left for Manchuria.
11th July 1943 - 60 men left for destination unknown.
13th September 1943 - 170 men left for Konan, North Korea.
28th May 1944 - 90 men left for Konan, North Korea.
2nd July 1944 - 50 men came from Keijo.
10th October 1944 - All the remaining men, but no officers, left for Fusan to board ship for Japan.
We landed at Simonogaki, Kyoto, trained to Tagawa then marched to Omine Coalmine Camp at the village of Soeda.
We knew that the War was finished when our work ceased in the mine and we took over the camp, making the guards stack their arms and move out.
It wasn't until 9th September 1945 that an Allied spotter plane located us. Then they dropped food to us by parachute and then took out all the men seriously ill. We so-called 'fit' men were eventually trained to Nagasaki on 29th September 1945 to begin our long journey home.
