The door was flung open and excited Japs pulled out the body of the sentry but forced all others back into the shed with their bayonets. The door was then closed and it must have been an hour before it was again opened. We quite expected there would be another direct hit. With apprehension we awaited the explosion but it never came. We heard the jabbering of Japanese voices and the doors were thrown wide open. They had reached a decision about us.
A dozen or more guards entered and began sorting the living from the dead, the seriously wounded from those who were able to walk. Those able to walk were crowded to the door and out onto the road, where their hands were tied behind them with wire. In groups of six or seven they were herded to one side. As the first group went past the door I heard a click of a machine gun. I thought, “This is it! They are going to shoot us!”
I thought desperately of some subterfuge to avoid this fate. I noticed that there were a few Imperial and Indian Officers present and that the Japs had put them aside from the first group. There was a dead Imperial Lieutenant near me and I thought of taking his coat and thus passing for an Officer but I gave up this idea when I saw that they were now wiring the Officers as well. I thought, “What’s the use? Might as well get it over with.”
So I staggered to my feet and joined the next group feeling eager to die a clean death to end this horror.
Out in the glare of the sun our party’s guard hurried us to join the other groups standing against a small bluff or cliff. Here we faced two machine guns and their crews. The gunners sat behind the tripods and swung the guns backwards and forwards, covering us all in turn. Our guards withdrew to the sidelines and waited. Two Officers jabbered. I do not know if anyone prayed. I was too sick to care what happened but I hoped that if they were going to shoot us they would get it over with quickly.
We were a forlorn and helpless looking band, a pathetic mixture of Indians, Chinese and whites, old and young, officers and privates. We were evidently waiting for final instructions to be received. As we waited some sunk to the ground. Now a message had arrived and evidently it was in our favour for we were herded back onto the road and each group was wired together back to back with at most only a foot of wire from the next man. Some, like the big Englishman wired to me, were wired wrist to wrist. There must have been at least one hundred prisoners in the party and possibly more as fresh arrivals were coming in all the time. I supposed we were to be marched for some distance as we were arranged in column of route along the road. There was still plenty of traffic. The air was thick with red dust and the ever-present black flies.
Like myself many of the prisoners were wounded and wore bandages. Many were half naked as the Japs at this assembly point had systematically searched all the prisoners and taken away everything they had fancied. Some had lost their boots and walked bare footed. All were bare headed and exposed to the blazing sun. I had been lucky in keeping my boots. I had on at this time underwear, socks, khaki shirt, battle dress, boots, and my web equipment. I also carried a water bottle that was, unfortunately, empty.
Among the badly wounded left in the shed was Lieut. E.L. Mitchell. His brother Lieut. W. V. Mitchell refused to leave him when ordered to do so by the Japs. He chose to stay with his wounded brother and share his fate. That was the last time they were seen alive. There is little doubt that all those left in the hut were killed.
