ITALIAN CAPTORS

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24194, 9 February 1942, Page 7

ITALIAN CAPTORS

AUCKLANDER'S DESCRIPTION "Too much sympathy altogether is wasted on the Italian; lie is just a rat." said Sapper 11. K. Buchanan in a letter to his parents. Mr. and Mrs. hid ward Buchanan, of Remuera Road. Sapper Buchanan, who left New Zealand with the Second Echelon and served in Greece and Crete, was a prisoner of the Italians for 38 days in Bardia. "Oil some days things would look hopeful for the Italians," said Sapper Buchanan. "The Germans would bring good news and they would attempt to take it out on us. Next day the Royal Air Force would bomb severely or our chaps would shell them, and everybody would be smoking Italian cigars, which we were given when they had time to come out of their holes. Even the guards ran when we were bombed oj shelled." Describing the conditions as a prisoner of the Italians, Sapper Buchanan said that the treatment was not really bad. but food and shelter were problems which the Italians did not have time to consider. "We suffered from exposure, as the weather was extremely cold," said Sapper Buchanan. "We were exposed to all winds and rain night and day. and being starved made us worse. The ground was just barren rock overlooking the Bardia harbour." . The letter was written on a hospital ship en route to Alexandria. When the rescued men went on hoard they were greeted by a New Zealand Y.M.C.A. officer who was looking for New Zealanders. They were given cigarettes, chocolates, razor and soap, tooth paste and brush, and writing paper.