Escape to Pagan by Brian Devereux Read Free Book Online Page A

as “father.” My eldest daughter Kim is sure James Talbot was my mother’s biological dad.

    â€œIn Taunggyi the problem was which escape route to take? Just across the border was Yunnan Province, China; this was the shortest route of escape. But Yunnan was a lawless country dominated by war lords and bandits. Plus the route into the mountains would require pack horses.
    â€œMy mother and I had a more immediate worry – the copies of my marriage certificate and your birth certificate. Both could still be at the town hall. These documents could be our death warrants. We may have been classed as spies. Anyone in Taunggyi who knew us could denounce us under torture. Mother was also well known in Rangoon and Mandalay, therefore these towns had to be avoided at all costs during our escape. That is why my mother led us into the wilds of Burma.
    â€œThe day before we left Taunggyi my mother quickly rushed into town; she found the Town Hall closed and shuttered; all the civil servants had fled to India. There were files and papers lying everywhere, some had been only half burnt. We prayed they had taken all the important documents with them, as Burma was governed from India. But we could never be sure. This made my mother’s mind up, we had to leave Taunggyi. The bank was shut. We had little money in the house, just over five thousand rupees and some valuable rubies.”

    The question of the whereabouts of the copies of our documents was always a constant concern to my guardians. But I know for a fact that the originals were kept or hidden somewhere by Grandmother, for I still have my original birth certificate, battered, worn and yellow.

    â€œAll the Indian shop owners had left Taunggyi earlier; they wanted to reach India before the monsoon. A Chinese ruby merchant my mother knew advised her to leave Taunggyi and trek into Yunnan Province; he would give her letters of introduction. This was most important concerning personal safety and lodgings etc.
    â€œThe Chinese traders and shopkeepers seemed to have had better intelligence regarding the war situation than the Europeans. They told my mother the Japanese had crossed the Sittang and were heading for the Shan States. We left on the 17th April. The Japanese entered Taunggyi on the 20th April 1942.”

    To add to the collapse of morale, the retreating British troops waiting to cross the Sittang were bombed by the RAF who believed them to be the enemy. The static British vehicles, equipment and men made a perfect target; so much so that the bombers returned after rearming to attack again.
    The bridge was then blown prematurely. This left many men trapped on the wrong bank and at the mercy of the Japanese. Many Ghurkhas who were non-swimmers drowned attempting the crossing. The men left on the wrong side of the Sittang were extremely bitter, feeling they had been sacrificed.

    â€œThe worst news of all to reach us was that the British Army was heading for the Irrawaddy River, towards India. Our hopes that the approaching Chinese Army would defend the Shan States were dashed when we were informed by the Chins and Kachins tribesmen that the Chinese army were not fighting the Japanese but were looting and burning their villages, conducting a scorched earth policy.
    â€œWhen my mother returned from the town hall, she said we should go to the market and buy as much food as possible for our escape. On our way there we saw British soldiers standing by a convoy ofstationary vehicles, chatting and smoking. Their relaxed attitude gave us confidence. They said they were waiting for fuel and that the Koylies [The King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry] were coming to defend Taunggyi and the dump of stores. They seemed unconcerned.
    â€œThe market was crowded; we bought as much as we could carry. On our homeward journey a single Japanese plane swept in low; we could see the pilot waving at the crowds below, some of the people waved back. Many of the