Rare Document Announcing the Retrieval of Fallen Soldiers of the Bataan Death March (1945/6)

JF Ptak Science Books   Overall Post 5140

This short announcement¹--a carbon copy of a press release from the US Army Forces Western Pacific, Public Relations Office--while only reaching 150 words or so, establishes a very compelling and passionate statement on a terribly cruel episode of the Pacific War in WWII—the recovery of bodies of souls lost in the Bataan Death March of 1942. General MacArthur evidently personally requested T/Sgt Abie (Abraham?) Adams accompany Graves Registration ("a little-talked of activity of the Quartermaster") to aid "...in the mission of recovering, identifying, then burying in individual graves, the body of each American soldier killed". Adams--"regarded as a 'ghost' by many of the Filipinos who saw soldiers flogged and bayoneted en route to prison camp"--has "the painful task of steering the Unit over the same path so they may locate temporary graves..."

In any event this is probably a unique item and may be of interest to those interested in the war in the Pacific, so I reproduce it here.  (In brief searches I've not been able to find any mention of it online, nor of Sgt. Adams.)

• I'm fairly certain that this is not necessary but here anyway is a quick summary of the event from Wikipedia: "The Bataan Death March ...was the forcible transfer by the Imperial Japanese Army of 60,000–80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war from Saysain Point, Bagac, Bataan and Mariveles to Camp O'Donnell, Capas, Tarlac, via San Fernando, Pampanga, where the prisoners were forced to march until they died. The transfer began on April 9, 1942, after the three-month Battle of Bataan in the Philippines during World War II. The total distance marched from Mariveles to San Fernando and from the Capas Train Station to Camp O'Donnell is variously reported by differing sources as between 60 and 69.6 miles (96.6 and 112.0 km). Differing sources also report widely differing prisoner of war casualties prior to reaching Camp O'Donnell: from 5,000 to 18,000 Filipino deaths and 500 to 650 American deaths during the march. The march was characterized by severe physical abuse and wanton killings."--Wikipedia

Notes:

1. (Bataan Death March) Headquarters, United States Army Forces Western Pacific, Public Relations Office.

[Dateline] AFWESP HQ, Manila (Army Forces, Western Pacific). 11"X8.5", single sheet, carbon copy from typed original. Undated, ca. 1945/6.

Provenance: Lt. David Katcher, correspondent/writer in the public relations office of the U.S. Army Headquarters of the Western Pacific (GHQ USAFPAC), working for U.S. Commissioner to the Philippines, Paul V. McNutt. Later Mr. Katcher would becoming founding editor of Physics Today