 You Finding life rather dull Dreaming again of exotic places Wishing you were somewhere else We offer you escape Escape with us now to the LOC and the story of a man who fought the entire Japanese Navy With an ancient submarine and an untrained crew as Alec Hudson tells it in his exciting story up Periscope It happened in 1938 Pearl Harbor was just another naval base somewhere in the Pacific and China's still further away was swarming with Japanese invaders And in 1938 a United States submarine the S-52 Dr. Pearl Harbor, and I walked on her gangplank No longer a commanding officer merely Lieutenant Thomas J Baker USN retired I Said a fun farewell to the Boson's mate tucked my commissioning pennant under one arm Nulled into the Moana hotel on Waikiki just outside Honolulu And an hour later. I was at the Moana bar sipping an exotic Hawaiian drink known as bourbon and water and Toasting my lost career in silence That was until a strange little man behind horn rimmed glasses tapped my elbow Excuse me, please Let me buy this drink for you Lieutenant Baker Beg your pardon. Oh, you do not know me of course, but I have spent some hours searching for you Rottenance. I didn't get the name. It is Lee Song Lee You are of course the former commanding officer of the submarine s-52 Yeah, you docked at Pearl Harbor on Tuesday and today at precisely 12 o'clock noon You were relieved of your command by your executive officer And I wait a minute you received what your Navy refers to as a medical discharge It was found that you are dead in your left here. Is that not correct? Lieutenant Baker. Yeah, you see my facts are accurate Yeah, I Am an unofficial representative of the Chinese government. I have come to you with a business proposition business proposition You are available. Are you not? Well Yeah, I think you could say that it is a pity that a young man such as yourself should have his chosen career Destroyed by such a trivial matter as the hearing of a watch ticking You must have been there for the examinations I am aware of these matters all too often your Navy acts somewhat history without you Consideration for all of the fact. What's your proposition, mr. Lee? You are direct. That is good The tenant Baker I have come to offer you command of a Chinese submarine for action against the Japanese invaders I beg your pardon. It is true The Chinese government desires that you take charge of a submarine for operations at the mouth of the Yangtze River The Yangtze you are familiar with this area, of course Then perhaps you would consider the following terms We will pay you one thousand dollars each month plus your expenses in addition to this amount You will receive a bonus Go on mr. Lee a bonus of fifty thousand dollars for each major Japanese ship. You might sink $50,000 Your answer lieutenant Baker Maybe it better give me a little time mr. Lee time is of the essence That is an American expression. Is it make it one week a week from today? well One week from today, and we will have your answer Need I remind you lieutenant that in this matter of the utmost secrecy must be maintained. Yeah, I'm aware of that mr. Lee good Thank you, lieutenant China will not forget you the market for slightly used submarine officers was at low ebb in 1938 So a week later. I met with mr. Lee and three elderly Chinese I made a counter proposal, but I'd be allowed to hire three key men of my own choice as assistants Mr. Lee and friends agree and I found myself promoted Lieutenant commander Thomas J Baker Chinese Navy I Wired three ex shipmates to answer Chuck young an engineer who'd been paid off after 16 years of service and Jimmy man my old chief to pediment from the boats in Panama A week later young and man arrived In two days after that young man and myself took the clipper for Hong Kong Our destination Amoy On the decks of Amoy We were met by a bright-looking young man and a light blue gown and a black silk Chinese cap. He introduced himself You are captain Baker. Is it no correct? I am well your first officer. How do you do one? This is our engineer chief young. Yeah, and our chief to pediment Jimmy man. Glad to meet you, mr. Wong with deepest gratitude and humility gentlemen. Yeah, thanks. Yeah Sure thing if your gentleman will follow me now, I'll show you your quarters this way please Hey skipper What does he mean show us to our quarters? I don't even see a boat you'll see a Chinese junk port side to up ahead Sure, but who signed up for a junk. I thought it was back in a pig boat Navy open your eyes, man It's a decoy subs under that straw and bamboo. What is this a game? They're fighting a war over here, man That means Jap bomber patrols. Oh, I get it Congratulations, it's start here comes one. Will you stop aboard now, please? All right, okay? This is lieutenant Lou captain use your second officer. How do you do lieutenant? Indeed a pleasure to welcome you aboard captain. What a nap tune. It's an S-bar. It is indeed ancient gentlemen But we have kept it in good repair Would you care to inspect our humble ship? Yes, I would. Thanks. Why lieutenant Lou and myself will see that your quarters I'd order gentlemen 1818 class 12 knots surfaced eights of merged that means two main diesels 500 or siege They put 10 years in on one of these fish and four torpedoes forward that ain't much bite skipper now. It's the best we've got All right, you tune I have seen her one S boat to fight the Jap Navy. Here's where you sign on or off Young I'm on skipper man We got a crew of Chinese farmers that can't speak a way to venglish We got an S boat somebody dredged up from under the main. We got offices wearing blue kimono man on or off Okay skipper. I'm on Man was right about the crew outside of Lou and Wong not a man among them could understand even pigeon English One thing about our Chinese S boat was universal the smell the smell of fuel oil and acid and humans at work And we worked around the clock. I Was given 30 days to mold 800 tons of iron into a ship and a mass of Chinese peasants into a fighting force Young complained constantly the way a chief petty officer or a sergeant complains, so I knew he was making out all right But Jimmy man came up with a unique problem Okay skipper, so now we got torpedo fuel best darn torpedo fuel. I ever taste this one Did you switch to grain alcohol? You know we ain't got no grain alcohol. It's just that I found us a substitute All right, tell me about it. Well, it seems there was some gin on the docks one day Several cases by rigging up my own little still I was able with tears in my eyes To change the gen at the torpedo fuel. I'll see if the Chinese government hasn't got a spare Navy cross Just call me Kentucky Jim man. We're serving old torpedo in a gallon I made an item eyes list out on the Chinese S boat It showed no deck guns sound gear worse than useless no fire control system for firing the torpedoes and no flood control Then one day toward the end of the month Chuck young brought up the real problem These old batteries are next to worthless You can't expect much of batteries that have been lying around a back channel for years expect much Skipper batteries are the life of a sub if we got no batteries. We got no bull I'm painfully aware of that Chuck. You know what happens to old batteries. They see hydrogen one of these days We're gonna be submerged in the hydrogen is gonna start leaking out and when They blow up like a Chinese firecracker, then we'll have to be cautious cautious with hydrogen You can't see this stuff. You can't hear it. You can't smell it. Something makes a spark the whole boat blows sky high All right, Chuck. Have you got any suggestions? Get your engine room in order chief. We're sailing for the ang see tomorrow We will return to escape and today's story up periscope in just a moment Did you know that for only $10 you can supplement the food rations of a family of four for a whole month? Just send that $10 to care spelled C a r e New York Care guarantees delivery of its packages to 11 different countries in Europe as well as to India Israel and Japan Don't forget to include your name and address and the name and address of the family You want to receive the care package because care is a person-to-person international goodwill service and now back to escape We sailed north through the Formosa Strait traveling submerged Surfacing only after sunset It took us 10 days to get to the latitude of the saddle Islands And in those 10 days my Chinese crew behaved like veterans Just north of the saddles we took up station across the most probable route of the convoys coming down from Japan Afternoon we were in the middle of one of those saddle Island fogs with a five-knot wind that blew the stuff in patches At about five o'clock a patch of clear weather blew in and we went down My first officer lieutenant wong was standing next to me When I brought her to periscope death and took a look around my heart nearly jumped out of my mouth You're excited something captain one two three four Good law it is Japanese convoy captain more than a convoy one get entire division heavy stuff battleships cruises destroyers Yeah, have a look Yes captain it is as you say for 5,000 yards lying stern to The rancor waiting for the forg to lift One stand by to submerge what an entire Japanese fleet. What do you think we're here for down periscope? Single general headquarters. We're going down to attack Long took the helm and low was the diving officer chanting his orders and sing song Cantonese to the bow and stern And in two minutes our s boat was ready to attack We'll run parallel at 1500 yards hard right ready Right rudder sir up periscope Study on course zero nine zero zero nine zero sir once again, how I Will take the battle I'm first one That's my Tzuyu class come left five degrees There she is one lying there inviting a tin fish Start timing Stand by to fire one One two three four fire three Fire four Left four right after speed ahead, you know, I Take it on a 100 feet Of course three four zero Down to one hundred feet captain Skipper it's a hit three Well, just don't stand there man reload we're going back for more Stand by to bring her up Lou I Battleships can take it wrong we want to be sure Charges they'll be spraying them like hand grenade right full rudder Good stand by course two five zero Take her up low I have time for one quick periscope exposure and I told me everything I want to know the jet battleship lay on her side her Rail under she was sinking on the horizon the group of destroyers were depth charging that daylights out of some Innocent fish the fog was drifting in it would be dark in half an hour Now there was no use wasting another torpedo on the battle ship and the destroyers were too tough to hit I had six torpedoes left now wanted to save them for the big boys. I'll at long have a look through the periscope Battleship we send battleship wait until we report this to our leaders. Yeah, we aren't finished yet Captain look quickly not a big ship close to us. Let me have it It's cruiser 10,000 tons at least All right sailors as our next target By the file one yeah, we'll have to gamble this one long Yeah, I guess it's speed at 30 knots Course to six zero We'll take a 90 degree track Down periscope Full speed ahead Start timing Just that instant a Jap destroyer passed over is going like a shark after berkuda But it was too late stop now I gave the word to fire one and two then three then four We headed down fast I gotta take a look one low take her up the periscope death periscope death. Hi captain Skipper, I gotta talk to a man just a minute periscope death captain a periscope Cruisers down by the stern Jimmy we got it Captain listen to me the fogs coming in again captain cell number 72 is revised itself the storage batteries are going out Well rip up the battery decks and get those jumpers across I'll hold her speed down as low as possible I'd skip it take her down to 100 feet captain through telescope destroyer bearing down on us full speed. Let me look Forget the batteries full speed. Take her down low. Take her down crash dive We moved down in a hurry whatever Lou was saying in Cantonese did the trick Luck was with us, but we'd had a lifetime of luck in the past 20 minutes It couldn't last forever and it didn't Followed the hope plates and flashed wherever moisture had collected it made a blue halo around the sweaty faces of the man Didn't seem hot no one was burned but the Chinese crew screamed in terror Hydrogen hydrogen given up by the storage batteries Something it touched it off before enough could build up to make a human bomb out of all of us Now we had to surface, but we couldn't destruction was up there in the form of a Jap destroyer destruction down here Hydrogen suddenly I glanced the depth gauge. We were coming up The bomb planes paralyzed with fear it froze the controls and hard rise get it down low get it down I am trying captain. He does not understand I Breaking surface captain. I cannot free the man from the controls captain Destroyer bearing down The impact through all of us to the deck I got back up in time to see water gushing down through the conning tower hatch a Direct hit a silver structure destroyed Pause our water tight doors Captain it lights the lights are gone out Switch out the emergency lights young can you work on the circuit breakers? Never mind that man help young with the circuit breakers What's our depth We are singing rapidly Hard rise on the bound stern planes But the pumps can't handle this water take charge of the air manifold Jimmy lower a little of number two main ballast Captain 200 feet captain. We're going down to pass captain 225 feet captain. No no captain wait now. We are rising at 200 feet captain. I do not understand 175 feet we are rising rapidly man. Let a little air out of the ballast tank Then what is happening first? We are too deep then we move up to swiftly It's the water inside the boat it rushes forward and we dive then back after and we go up still coming up In 100 feet it's no you skip it a pumps can't handle a weight faster now You're sure the Kingston bowels are open in the main ballast tank. Yes, 50 feet captain nearing surface Well, we'll have to take our chances on the surface man blow all main ballast blow all main ballast captain What is it what? He don't understand what is happening water is filling ship. Well, we'll be surfaced in two minutes But they have taken the knives from the ship's galley. They are crazy. We feel hold them off I tell you we're nearing surface periscope depth captain. Oh, never mind that blue take her up to the surface We're okay. Skipper. We're coming up. Captain. Listen to me. These poor farmers know nothing. Those submarines. They must be stopped Skipper to go for the hatch on stop them. We're not surfaced yet nearing surface captain Captain the waters pouring in on the batteries those crazy close of open our hatches surface captain Skipper the batteries the salt waters pouring onto the batteries What is this green gas past the word for all hands to abandon ship? The pouring guest tours were finished. Let's get out of here. Okay. Where's young? I don't know he was in Chinese mob a few minutes ago Skipper the chlorine spread. Yeah, let's get young follow me Skip I don't Skip a look young young a me cleaver buried in your skull. He's dead skip They're gonna stop that mob. He got that for his efforts. Let's get out of here skip. Yeah, you're right Jimmy We can't help young This way You're okay Jimmy sure thing skipper those poor devils forgot to take their life jackets. We can't help him skipper They brought it on himself You all right. Yeah, all right warren. Where's Lou? They don't know we can still save this ship. Can't we skipper? It's the gas that drove a son free man can rub a sub Well, I'm the escort belongs to your country believe her this way she might drift into the hands of the jabs my My country needs a submarine. We we have so few weapons. Well, it's you and man and me You think we can save her? No You you're done your best captain It is for you to decide all right man Take the forward hatches Long you take aft We're going to scuttler We scuttled the S boat long man and myself Then we drifted apart in the black muddy Yankee River. I Looked back just once to see my boat go down steadily by the stern She was a pig iron lunch of uncertain answer deans, but she'd been all mine And she met her end like a lady The last thing I remembered was the black water in the night When I regained consciousness. I was aboard a Chinese fishing junk And with the fish I was delivered the following day to Ningpo Enough Gentlemen, you must contain your emotions this man this American must be tried Fairly as fairly as he has sunk our submarine. Do not forget that where they won you have heard his story It is now up to us to Believe it, but you haven't heard my story. You've kept me locked up in your filthy jail for two days You haven't let me wire my government you haven't let me do any please lieutenant You are making this most Unpleasant indeed we have listened to your strange tale You yourself have admitted ordering our noble submarine to be sunk Yeah, but what about the rest of it the Jap battleship we sunk in the cruiser surely lieutenant You are not still portraying yourself in this ridiculous heroic fantasy, but I tell you we sunk them a battleship in a cruiser Then we were forced to abandon ship Ask the Japanese they'll tell you we got two of their major ships before they got us Surely lieutenant you are not so naive as to believe that our enemy the Japanese would admit to this even if it were true It tell your distinguished superiors these gentlemen gathered here Just who saw these imagined sinkings I did And so did Wang my first officer lieutenant Wang he saw them both of them ah So there was someone else and pray tell us then where is lieutenant Wang I Don't know He does it away from me during the night. He drifted away from you during the night. I Believe we may now weigh the evidence the crime is treason against the government of China gentlemen How do you find this man? You see lieutenant you deserve the maximum penalty death tomorrow morning before the firing squad However, we are all too aware of your American citizenship Therefore we shall suspend this sentence under one condition that you leave at once and Never return to China again is so So I left China My thousand dollar a month salary My bonus now worth one hundred thousand dollars the unofficial mr. Lee I Saw none of it or him In the end I was glad to be alive And to have discovered that I had my belly full of submarines for life Under the direction of Norman McDonald escape has brought you up Periscope by Alec Hudson especially adapted for radio by William Frugue and starring high ever back Featured in the cast were Harry Bartell and Edgar Berrier with Luke Krugman Ben Wright Byron Kane and Charles Lung the special music for escape is composed and conducted by Leith Stevens next week Escape with us to England and the story of an innocent man caught up in a murderous web of international intrigue as Jeffrey household tells it in his exciting new novel a rough shoot A dramatic milestone on Broadway playhouse tomorrow night and most of the same CBS stations It's the petrified forest starring Wendell Corey in the noted Robert E. Sherwood drama of romantic adventure For a listening treat be sure not to miss the petrified forest on CBS radio tomorrow night It's a sparkling addition to Broadway playhouses long list of outstanding dramatic productions This is Roy Rowan speaking This is the CBS radio network