Last Letter of Flight Petty Officer 2nd Class Makoto Saegusa to His Parents
On January 12, 1945, Flight Petty Officer 2nd Class Makoto Saegusa died in a special
(suicide) attack at the age of 18 when submarine I-58 launched his kaiten manned
torpedo at Guam Island's Apra Harbor. On December 30, 1944, submarine I-58 made a sortie from Ōtsushima Kaiten Base in Yamaguchi
Prefecture with four kaiten pilots who were members of the Kaiten
Special Attack Corps Kongō Unit. Saegusa was from Yamanashi Prefecture and
was a member of the 13th Kō Class of the Navy's Yokaren (Preparatory Flight
Training Program). He received a
promotion to Ensign after his death by special attack.
He wrote the following last latter with a death poem at the end:
Dear Father and Mother,
If a military man's life is a course of study in death, then it is
expected that he should write something especially when facing this time. I
just apologize for my lack of filial piety and my not staying in touch for a
long time.
Father and Mother always guide a child on the path to live life for the
Emperor and for the country. I cannot suppress my joy at getting the
opportunity now to repay to you a ten-thousandth of these teachings by only
the best path of filial piety.
In my opinion, although there have been many people from time immemorial,
you do not hear about many persons who obtained a true place of death.
However, I individually cannot accomplish what I desire. I appreciate
that entirely due to kind acts of my ancestors I obtained a good opportunity
that happens once in a thousand years.
If on this occasion I can die splendidly, I am extremely satisfied that
this is the key to repay a ten-thousandth of the kindness of persons who
made me what I am now.
It is a young man's long-cherished desire to be able to serve on a
mission to repay the country. Please let my younger brother also follow
after me. My original intention in dying for the Saegusa Family and the
country was a promise to my brothers. Please send Older Brother a message
that I promise to die splendidly. Finally, I earnestly apologize for my lack
of loyalty and lack of filial piety until now.
December 29, 1944
Makoto Saegusa
Proceeding to great southern sea
I go to Emperor's battle
Letter and poem translated by Bill Gordon
September 2018
The letter and poem come from Kojima
(2004, 25-6). The biographical information in the first paragraph comes from
Kojima (2004, 25), Konada and Kataoka
(2006, 125-30), and Mediasion (2006, 46, 48, 80).
Sources Cited
Kojima, Keizō, ed. 2004. Kaigun hikō yoka renshūsei isho
• iei • ikōshū (1) (Last letters, poems, and
writings of Navy Preparatory Flight Trainees (1)). Tōkyō: Unabarakai.
Konada, Toshiharu, and Noriaki Kataoka. 2006. Tokkō
kaiten sen: Kaiten tokkōtai taichō no kaisō (Special attack kaiten
battles: Kaiten special attack corps leader's reminiscences). Tōkyō:
Kōjinsha.
The Mediasion Co. 2006. Ningen gyorai kaiten (Kaiten
human torpedo). Hiroshima: The Mediasion Co.
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