Yesterday was the remembrance of the "Day That Will Live In Infamy", the 65th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. I did not post any reports or testimonies regarding the account, as those blogs by Randy Prothero and others were extremely well done and complete. There is one story however, that isn't as widely known about that Infamous Day in 1941, so I would just like to share it with you here, if you don't mind.
Tales from Niihau, The Forbidden Island
sent in by Keith Martin
During World War II, Niihau was the only island of Hawaii (and the only part of the United States) to be occupied by Japanese forces. Actually it was only one Japanese pilot who abandoned his Zero aircraft after the air assault on Pearl Harbor. He was taken prisoner by the natives, but managed to escape. After securing the machine guns from his aircraft, he terrorized the island and the Hawaiians fled to seek refuge in the nearby hills.
Only one old woman, Barbara Fritchie, stayed and refused to leave even after his threats. She told him to go ahead and shoot her, but to please stop being rude and try to be nice and stop making a nuisance of himself. He demurred and left her alone.
Finally, after the Hawaiians were tired of hiding out, one big strapping Kanaka, Benehakaka Kanahele, decided to come down from the hills and approach the pilot with Aloha. He came to convince the Japanese pilot of his lack of Aloha and the error of his ways. Perhaps they could live in peaceful harmony.
The Japanese pilot declined the offer of Aloha and shot Ben. But, Ben didin't die and persisted in his entreaties. The pilot responded by shooting Ben again. Expressions "of pain, disgust and disbelief at the stranger's poor manners spread across Ben's face..." he did not die "but still tried pleading with the [Japanese Pilot] who shot him for the third time.
Ben had enough, and grabbed the astonished pilot and flung him headlong against the wall, cracking his skull and killing him instantly." The incident became well known in the islands and gave rise to wartime ditties: "Don't shoot a Hawaiian 3 times or you'll make him mad" and "You can't conquer Niihau, Nohow!" Ben Kanahele lived to be an old man and died on Niihau over 20 years later. And people listened when he sat down to talk story.
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Here's another little known fact; the attack on Pearl Harbor actually began several hours before the generally recognized time when several midget Japanese submarines tried to breech the submarine nets acorss the harbor entrance.
One was sunk by naval gunfire, one was sunk when a destroyer rammed it, another malfunctioned and was washed ashore after it's crew abondoned it, and two remain unaccounted for.
Their attempted attack started an hour or so before the first wave of Japanese planes attacked.