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An excerpt from the diary of 1st Lt. Francis A. Bleecker, Executive Officer of Company "D" 2nd Battalion,
330th Engineer Regiment (General Service), which documents the 43-day voyage of the U.S.S. Monticello from
Los Angeles Port of Embarkation, Wilmington, California, to Bombay, India in 1943.
Color indicates added comments. |
| Monday | January 18 | Left Camp Anza 8:00 A.M. Already to go by 6:00 A.M. We are advance detail for boat guard. Took company aboard on P.M. What a thrill at sight of the Monticello. |
| Tuesday | January 19 | Received guard instruction, 98 posts. Getting acquainted with ship. Continuous stream of soldiers loading all day. Nurses on at night. What a time. Rough guard. Monticello used to be Conte Grande, 27,000 tons, taken from Italians at Rio. Met our C.O. (D Company). |
| Wednesday | January 20 | Pulled away from dock at 8:00 A.M. Some medic Colonels going to get bopped before trip is over. Ship under strict guard. Colored troops below. Nurses on C Deck. |
| Thursday | January 21 | What a guard! Good boys. What a job. What a load. 6,500 troops and officers - 700 ships crew (including 221 nurses) engineers, 20th general hospital, 48th evacuation nurses, 73rd evacuation nurses; Red Cross, dietitians, physical therapists, veterinary ordinance, 30 men, Q.M. (3 units) Inf. and combat engineers, (Shipment 4201 A). |
| Friday | January 22 | Smooth Sea. Heading south maybe we will cross equator then I can get rid of cold. Guard officers have a rough day. Long way from bottom to top of ship. |
| Saturday | January 23 | Sea Smooth. Getting warmer. Alarm and our first target practice. |
| Sunday | January 24 | Reported with U.S. Battleship. What a scare. Ship taking no chances. Everything blacked out at night and running from everything. Real war times now. Playing for keeps. |
| Monday | January 25 | More alarms and drills. The guard has a job on their hands. Things getting under control. Medics still worse trouble with nurses next. They all need field training on how to take officers. |
| Tuesday | January 26 | Cross equator 4:28 P.M. Shell Buck celebration. Had to slack up on enforcing orders but afterwards everything under control again. I also need more clothes. |
| Wednesday | January 27 | Same old routine. What a responsibility in case of torpedo. |
| Thursday | January 28 | Lots of water. Zig zagging on and on. Rumors and rumors. Drills and alarms. |
| Friday | January 29 | More water. |
| Saturday | January 30 | Everyone getting tired already. |
| Sunday | January 31 | Need more clothes. To church and I enjoyed it. Just another month gone. |
| Monday | February 1 | Same old thing. I am still weak and sick. I hope I can keep going. Can’t sleep between guard reliefs. |
| Tuesday | February 2 | Same. |
| Wednesday | February 3 | Cross International Date Line at 3:26 P.M. After midnight it is Friday. |
| Thursday | February 4 | Only nine hours long. Doing same as Wednesday. |
| Friday | February 5 | Here it is Friday and yesterday was Wednesday. Rumored that we are due into Wellington tonight or tomorrow. |
| Saturday | February 6 | Monticello docks at Wellington, New Zealand for supplies and refueling. On guard at 8:00 A.M. and we are in bay. Good old land. Thought I would have to slug medic colonel to make him stay off deck. Docked and I took "D" Company for hike. Beautiful country. Just like movies. Men giving away money and cigarettes. |
| Sunday | February 7 | Another hike in New Zealand. Men broke rank to get ice cream. Took guard to town in A.M. Wonderful country, I wish my family could see it. Talked to many Marines from action in Solomons. They are unloading, no clothing. They have surely seen living hell. Also talked to British officers while on guard duty on docks. Two men AWOL. |
| Monday | February 8 | Monticello departs Wellington. Cast off at 11:00 A.M. with plane escort. Very comforting. Hope to bring family to Wellington, New Zealand some time. I wonder how long they will hold our mail? Troops all settled again and a rough trip ahead. Rumors are we head toward north. |
| Tuesday | February 9 | Follow down south island. Still have plane patrol. |
| Wednesday | February 10 | Plane patrol gone. Headed south toward Antarctica. Can’t get used to using Southern Cross for direction. We follow close to the ice flow and it really gets cold. Hot in hold of ship on tour of duty, and cool off on decks. |
| Thursday | February 11 | Rougher and rougher. Everything is lashed down. Hard to walk posts. Many sea sick. |
| Friday | February 12 | Reach farthest point south (48) and then turn west. Most of guard relieved because of sea sickness on my relief. A disaster would be terrible this day. |
| Saturday | February 13 | Going west - cold and rough. Water rationed. |
| Sunday | February 14 | Course W.N.W. Headed back toward warmer climate. Guard duty very tiresome. Barely can make relief. |
| Monday | February 15 | Changing course slightly to N.W. ground swells on after port quarter. The ship really rolls. Sounds weird at night with everyone asleep at 4:00 A.M. and all the squeaks and groans of ship. What a strain for such a mammoth piece of construction. |
| Tuesday | February 16 | Really rough. Roll of ship almost threw me in room 324 nurses quarters. Wouldn’t that been hell. Dark decks, dark ship with salt spray blowing. Such a life for guard officer. |
| Wednesday | February 17 | Dock Fremantle, Australia. Beautiful country. Take troops off for exercise. Co D, E and F officers confined to ship because we allowed men to break ranks at New Zealand. Other officers off to Perth. |
| Thursday | February 18 | Restriction lifted. All officers have shore leave. I am on duty in P.M. so can’t go. I am Provost Martial, Battalion Commander, Company Commander and Guard Officer. 12 - 10 P.M. Men turned loose. What a time. I have quite a time with drunks and etc. Americans and Australians love one another. |
| Friday | February 19 | No one else allowed off except in formation. First ride on left side of street. Had swell time from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. Back on duty. Nice time on dock. Colonels still can’t take orders. |
| Saturday | February 20 | Escorted by an Australian cruiser, Dutch destroyer and three British flying boats. Sail at 10 A.M. for dangerous seas. Australians love Americans and want to be under us. Ships everywhere such as Queen Mary 79,000 tons - Ile DeFrance 70,000 tons - Aquitanic 43,000 tons - New Amsterdam 40,000 tons. I talked with lots of men that had seen action everywhere. |
| Sunday | February 21 | Protection of cruiser and destroyer for yesterday. Today destroyer leaves us. Have seen damaged vessels at port. Stories of Naval and Army and Marine battles interest me very much while on dock. |
| Monday | February 22 | Course W.N.W. Weather slightly warmer. More guard duty of same old thing. |
| Tuesday | February 23 | Sighted freighter at 3:00 P.M. - cruiser took after it. She is fast and almost leaps out of water. Friendly ship though so no shots fired. A guard officer has its advantages because he is on duty during action and knows what is going on. Everyone else goes to their quarters. |
| Wednesday | February 24 | Beautiful night. Officers and nurses didn’t want to go below at 10:00 P.M. |
| Thursday | February 25 | Getting hot. Sea Smooth. Will be glad when we land. Rumors are we land in Calcutta, Bombay or Ceylon. All can’t be right. |
| Friday | February 26 | We are as far away from home as we can get. Any direction is towards home. Hear Japs are loose in Bay of Bengal so maybe we will go to Calcutta. |
| Saturday | February 27 | More water. |
| Sunday | February 28 | Crossed equator second time at 1:09 A.M. Plane launched from cruiser in A.M. But came back at 5:00 P.M. QM outfit says they will whip the 330 Engineer Guard Companies. The men wish they would try. They are not soldiers. |
| Monday | March 1 | Sighted land vicinity of Ceylon. Cruiser leaves and sub chaser takes over. Sighted land southern tip of India at 1:40 P.M. Mountains remind me of scenery in Picture (Gunga Din). Lots of snakes and small boats. Safe at last. |
| Tuesday | March 2 | See land at right nearly all day. Rumored we land at 4:00 P.M. tomorrow. At last the trip is about over. I am off guard duty. |
| Wednesday | March 3 | Monticello drops anchor at Bombay, ending voyage of 14,177 miles. 43rd day of voyage. Tide is out so we ran aground in soft mush. No guard duty. I feel like a gold brick but Major won’t let me go on duty. He says rest. |
| Thursday | March 4 | Docked this morning. Changed dollars to rupees (1400.00). Mid afternoon before I got money distributed to company. Shore leave until 10:00 P.M. Drinking every chance. British Captain furnished car and driver and we rode all over Bombay. Terrible drinks. Such filth. Such strange people. |