大象传媒

Mrs Corrothers
This story is taken from an interview with Mrs Corrothers, and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions. The interview was by Deirdre Donnelly, and transcribed by Bruce Logan.
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[how did you lose your husband?]
He was fighting. He was a soldier. He was in the British Army, and he was in the Far East. He was taken prisoner by the Japanese, and put in an awful time. He died out there with them.
Very trying. I was left with 2 wee boys to rear on my own. I had to go out and work because the pension was 11 shillings a week to rear 2 boys, so I had to go out and work. I didn鈥檛 mind that, but just with the loss of my husband 鈥� what the Japanese Government weren鈥檛 very kind. And things happened. They were so cruel that they had to pay us after the war was over, for the things they did to our men. Our Government made the Japanese Government pay up. But that was poor compensation for the loss of your husband. It was a bad, bad time. But we just have to forget.

I remember us parting at the Midland railway station. And we didn鈥檛 think he was going out so far. We didn鈥檛 think where he was being shipped then. We thought maybe we鈥檇 just, he鈥檇 be back again soon. But he wasn鈥檛. He didn鈥檛 get back.

[did he come home on leave?]
Oh yes, that was the last leave. He went 鈥� at that leave then, whenever he left, I can remember leaving at the Midland station, and that was the last I saw of him.

No [letters], he was taken prisoner. All we got was a card. The Japanese, just this card 鈥� and it was printed, and all he had to put in, he was a British Subject, and because they had different countries鈥� men with them, they had to just put that in. Fill in, sorta. They gave the card to them, 鈥淚 am 鈥︹�� and he wrote in 鈥淏ritish Subject鈥�. That was all.
That was sent to me.
There was no, they didn鈥檛 get writing or anything. The Japanese didn鈥檛 let them write. That was all we got, was that card. I think one of my boys has that card yet.

[did the British Army come and talk to you?]
They were very good now, right enough. There were ladies who came, and they asked me if things was all right with me. Well, I couldn鈥檛 live on the pension we got, so I went out to work.

[was the pension less than what you were paid?]
Oh yes, it was. But it was really nothing. I think it was 11 shillings I had. For to bring up 2 boys.

[And when he was a POW, were you still paid his wages?]
oh yes, the British government still paid me. Oh yes. But it wasn鈥檛 enough. I still had to go out and work. Because 2 growing boys, you know, their clothes especially. They were growing up and if they sit down the sleeves would be half-way up their arm. So I had to get out and 鈥� well, I had the go-tell to do that so I didn鈥檛 mind.

[how long was he a POW?]
From 1942-44. and then he died with the, he drowned. He was on a ship out there, a matter of fact he was being taken as a hostage. So he didn鈥檛 get to the destination. Their ships wasn鈥檛 perfect, so 鈥� he was drowned. That鈥檚 all I heard. The British Government told me. They鈥檇 got a list of the men they鈥檇 sent out, and they informed everybody, the next of kin.
It was very hard. very very hard times. When I look now and see, although I鈥檓 glad for it, I see my family and my granddaughter, whenever I look at her and think, she鈥檒l come in and she鈥檒l say, 鈥済ranny, we鈥檙e going such-and-such a place鈥� and I couldn鈥檛 do them things in my day, but I was so proud that she was able to do it.

[do you remember what Derry was like during the war years?]
Indeed I do. I remember it very well. It was very drab. But you know what? Everybody was so happy with each other. There was no such a thing as 鈥淚 don鈥檛 like that neighbour because she鈥檚 not my religion鈥�. We had one person only, and that was us. We had one lady especially, and I can remember. She was a Mrs Adair. She went out to Australia, her and her family. She had a family of boys, 2 girls, and ... if one of our countries had, say we beat Italy, she come and knocked on our doors every night just to tell us. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 another country, it won鈥檛 be long until it鈥檚 all over鈥�. This is the kind of things. It wasn鈥檛 in them days the way it is now. You didn鈥檛 care what your neighbour was or who she was, she was a friend.

[did you hope your husband you come home?]
Oh yes I did. I did. I prayed hard. But God seen different.
It was a very trying time. It wouldn鈥檛 have been so bad, I think, if the news hadn鈥檛 have been so bad. We didn鈥檛 get good news. We heard things that wasn鈥檛 very nice, so we just had to sorta get over it. It was a terrible time.

He joined up just at the very beginning of the war. He stayed that Xmas, the last Xmas, 1939. He said 鈥淚鈥檒l stay, but I must go for my country鈥�.
He went after Xmas, joined up.

[how did you feel?]
V sad. But very proud. And I was left with 2 boys to rear. But he came on leave a few times. One of the boys was born after the war started. The youngest.

[Did you ever marry again?]
No. I don鈥檛 believe in second marriages. I don鈥檛 believe in it, I think there鈥檚 only one love. I don鈥檛 know how anybody could live with another man after, especially having 2 boys. I could not picture myself living with another man.
That definitely was [the love of my life]. I didn鈥檛 have very long, but what I had I crushed a life into it. Just a whole lifetime.
[his name was] Ernest David. I have a grandson David now, called after him.
But that鈥檚 life.

I just knew I had to carry on. It never dawned on me that I was trapped or caught, no. 2 sons would like to go to the place where he last was safe, before he had to go on the ship he was drowned in. they would like to go. I think perhaps some day they will, the 2 of them was talking about it. It鈥檚 funny how things turned out.

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