After training in Victoria, "Jack" was sent to Port Moresby from where he was marched to Bootless Bay. "Jack" experienced homesickness in the early stages of the war, but given that the camp had "no water, no food, no blankets and no tents" and the men had "only what [they] stood up in", it is hardly surprising he missed home.
In the early stages "Jack" was widely engaged in various construction work. Following this Jack was sent to Koi Taki from where he began the climb over the Owen Stanley Ranges, with the much-valued assistance of indigenous carriers. The carriers, despite hauling most of the troops equipment, would manage to move ahead of the troops and build grass huts that for overnight shelter. The indigenous carriers were also vital in keeping the forward troops supplied with the basic necessities- rations and ammunition- that were transported into the major bases by the small boats.
The Ranges imposed a very difficult climb on the men. Not only were they steep, but they were slippery with mud and moss. This incessant damp meant that their boots were never dry. The resulting decay often caused the soles of their boots to fall off. The moisture did not just come from the ground, it also dripped from the trees that blocked the sun, and from the skies. This created an environment in which leeches fought with mosquitoes in competition for the soldiers blood. At times the foliage blocked that much light that the troops had to rub phosphorous on their sleeves in order to be seen.
At one time Jack and his battalion were pushed back along the track by the Japanese advancing from Buna. During his retreat Jack accepted the possibility of death. He felt that if he was going to die, he was going to die, there was not much he could do about it. Basically, the retreat plan that his battalion were following involved “kill what you could and move back to set up another ambush." This pattern continued until the Battle of Uribia Ridge, following which the Japanese began to retreat toward Gona.
In response the 39th battalion pursued the Japanese, but on reaching Gona they found that the Japanese had "dug in". In December 1942 Jack was shot in the hip by a Japanese sniper positioned in a tree. The bullet passed through his "ammunition pouch missing grenades and exploding, setting fire to a clip of 303 bullets." Jack had to crawl out wounded over a log before he was rescued. "My main worry when I was wounded was how am I going to get back over the log as I thought I might get a bullet up my backside as I crawled over it". Jack was carried by Fuzzy-Wuzzy Angel's on a home made stretcher to a casualty station- the tents with "Tilly laterns".
Jack was incapacitated for thirteen months and unable to go back on active service. His war contribution did not end with his injury though, as he was employed in the packing of medicine and medical stores for the war effort.
(Source: Australian War Memorial PR00332)
Kokoda (part 2):
Overview text Longer text Images Readings Jack Lloyd MIYASHITA TetsunosukeClick images to enlarge.
AWM 026851
AWM 013645
