Oral History Interview with William Sloman Page: 59
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and they went down the island, down on the beach, and I
says well, I missed them, you know? Well, in a short time,
here comes a Jap running at me, just in a red neck run. He
had a hammer in his hand and I thought they send him out
here to finish me off with that damn hammer. But he
didn't, he came and he handed that hammer down towards me,
gave me a motion and made me get a hold of it, and he
pulled me up and when he did, Captain Platt saw him. So,
now, Captain Platt was just this sort of man. He didn't
say anything to the Jap captain; he just broke on a run and
came to me. And as he got to me, we exchanged greetings,
and then I said, "This is a hell of a way to spend
Christmas Eve." Captain Platt said son, you'd done lost
some time, Christmas has already come and gone. So that's
-- the whole point is I don't know, it's an estimate, some
four or five days.
But at any rate, Captain Platt and Sergeant Hassig carried
me. All I had was -- apparently, the Japanese had given mea blanket. I didn't have any pants on, all I had was a
sweatshirt. They carried me up to the channel and across
the channel and put me in the back end of this little white
panel truck that this Jap was driving and when he went past
where the Americans were. Captain Platt called to his59
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Oral History Interview with William Sloman (Sound)
The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with William Sloman. Sloman joined the Marine Corps in October of 1939. Beginning early in 1940, he served in the 1st Defense Battalion, D Battery. In February of 1941, he deployed to Hawaii. In December, Sloman participated in the Battle of Wake Island. He was captured by the Japanese, survived transport aboard the hell ship Asama Maru and imprisonment in Zentsuji POW Camp in Japan. He was liberated in 1945, and discharged in early 1946.
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Sloman, William. Oral History Interview with William Sloman, text, Date Unknown; Fredericksburg, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1606153/m1/59/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting National Museum of the Pacific War/Admiral Nimitz Foundation.