RECONNAISSANCE, ROPE, RUBBER, RATIONS, RIVALRY, RESISTANCE, REPATRIATION AND A RESCUE - THE “H” FORCE STORY

[Edward Willis]

 

“H” Force, or more appropriately “H” Detachment, was a group of 11 men initially lead by Lt Col Doig and latterly by Capt. George Boyland, that operated in the provinces of Sao Domingos and Lautem at the eastern end of Portuguese Timor between 19 August and early December 1942.

Reconnaissance was a primary role for HF “In the event of it becoming necessary for the Aust Det to move East from its present area”.

The eastern provinces were rich in natural resources and early on arrangements were made to gather consignments of rope and rubber that were sent back by boat to Australia.  Vegetables and fruit were also transported back to the main Force to provide a useful supplement to its rations.  The local Portuguese administrator assisted these endeavours by organising the provision of Timorese labour and ponies.

Inter-allied rivalry became evident when a Dutch contingent arrived on the scene in late August.  This was partially resolved by allocating them clearly demarcated areas of operation separated from that of the Australians.

Timorese resistance to the Japanese occupation was energised by the presence of a group of Portuguese dissidents (former members of the “International Brigade”) and Z Special personnel (Operation LIZARD).  With the active cooperation their traditional leader, local men were supplied with rifles and trained in their use.

“H” Force protected Portuguese citizens being repatriated to Australia, by conducting them to evacuation points on the south coast.

Finally, the “H” detachment men rescued a downed Australian pilot from under the noses of the Japanese and ensured he was safely returned to Australia.

 

INTRODUCTION

The war diary records that Sparrow Force HQ was re-established at Mape 15 April 1942 “in large native house”.  A few days later on 20 April 1942:

“Capt PARKER and sigs from KOEPANG with Sigs LOVELESS and RICHARDS attached from 2nd Ind. Coy made contact with AUST on set constructed from Port[uguese] owned receiver, a damaged 109 set and salvaged parts from ATAMBOEA”.

On the following day (21 April) a “Conference Brig VEALE Majs SPENCE and CAPE and Capt ARNOLD. Decision on action in event of being forced from present area.  Operation instruction no. 2”.

Operation instruction no. 2 included the following provisions: “In the event of it becoming necessary for the Aust Det to move East from its present area … the party will move through the area in the direction of southern areas of SAO DOMINGOS Province”.

To prepare for this contingency: “Recce report of route and resources of SAO DOMINGOS Province will be made available as soon as possible”.  Accordingly, on “2 May – Capt [Reg] NEAVE and party of 3 O/Rs left for recce EASTERN TIMOR”.

Neave completed his epic assignment and presented a comprehensive report on 6 July 1942.  His report included the following recommendation that is relevant to the H Force story:

37.        SUGGESTED ROUTE TO SAO DOMINGOS

Owing to the position in MANUTUTO, I would suggest that any future moves by Australians to SAO DOMINGOS be along the following route ALAS-KICRAS-LUCA-VIQUEQUE.  This has the advantage of delaying information of movement which, when given, is only from native sources.  Disadvantages of this route is that it would be necessary to arrange horses and carriers from ALAS to LUCA.  As it would not be wise to depend on native help at KICRAS. [1]

A week later (14 July) Neave was sent east again on another reconnaissance mission lead by Major J. Chisholm and accompanied by Staff Sergeant L. Ross:

INFORMATION

1 . In the event of enemy operations making the use of SUAI as a supply point impossible, it is necessary to have a suitable supply point further east reconnoitred and developed if necessary.

…..

OBJECT

4. To make a recce of the south coast PORT TIMOR between BETANO and ALIAMBATA for alternative supply points and recommend any further action if necessary to make them suitable.

Chisholm submitted his reconnaissance report on 25 July:

From a study of the map and local knowledge, four points on the SOUTH Coast were selected as being likely suitable supply points; these were BETANO (locally known as NUTUR), KICRAS, BEACO, and ALIAMBATA. BETANO, BEACO and ALIAMBATA have been reconnoitred and a separate report made on each.

Two weeks later (5 August) Sparrow Force HQ issued an order establishing H Force and defining its role:

SPARROW FORCE

OPERATION INSTRUCTION NO. 5

5 AUG 42

ROLE

1.               A small det will move to VIQUEQUE and be maintained there.

“H” det will be used in all future reference to the det.

2.

(a)     to collect and forward all information likely to be of value to the Force.

(b)    establish and maintain contact with all Portuguese in the area.

(c)     recce of the area with a view to its possible occupation by the whole of SPARROW Force.

The Sparrow Force war diary recorded:

7 AUG 42  Lieut McKENZIE and Lieut DOIG moved out with party for EASTERN TIMOR.

                   PV [Patrol Vessel] VIGILANT arrived SUAI 1725 hrs and dept 2100 hrs … Embarked for AUST Capt R.C NEAVE, Lieut I.S. SCOTT and 7 ORs. [2]

COL DOIG’S STORY OF “H” FORCE

Col Doig, who took over as Officer Commanding H Force the following day, wrote two accounts of the mission – one for his unit history [3] and the other for his personal memoir [4].  The following narrative incorporates text from both accounts.

"H" FORCE ORIGINS

Late in July, 1942, it was decided by the powers that be that it was essential to have a small recce force established in the east end of Portuguese Timor in the provinces of Manatuto and Lore [Lautem].  This area was served by quite a useable motor road from Dili and again from the town of Baucau on the north coast to Beaco on the south coast.

It was considered that should the Nip decide to move he could occupy this area very rapidly and the flank of the whole show would thus be exposed.  Also this area was quite rich in most of the food commodities and could easily be the granary of the force if we were pushed away from our present productive areas in Frontiera, Suro and Sao Domingos.

The small force was to comprise two officers and ten other ranks to be supplied two from each platoon and the rest from H.Q.  The original force was Lt. C.G. McKenzie, 0.C.; Lt. C.D. Doig, 2 I/C; Sgt A. Coupland, "B" Pl.; Sgt J. Walton from the 2/40th Bn. group; Cpl Jones, Postal Cpl from 2/40th group; Ptes. Harold Newton, "B" Pl.; Harold Rowan-Robinson, "A" Pl.; Jack Carey, "C" Pl.; Geo. Timms, "C" Pl.; Sig. Keith Richards, Sig. Tarzan Yates [5], 8th Div. Sigs.; and Jimmy Clout, who had been batman-driver to Brig. Veale.  For code purposes the name chosen was "H" Force.

H FORCE PERSONNEL

H FORCE PERSONNEL

Lt Charles Francis Gerald (Gerry) McKenzie	WX5369	A Platoon, 2 Section
Lt Colin Douglas (Col) Doig	WX11054	D Platoon
Sgt Alfred Allan (Alf) Coupland	WX12137	B Platoon
S/Sgt Albert Claude (Jack) Walton	TX2326	D Platoon (ex 2/40 Infantry Battalion)
Cpl Alfred Forbes (Alf) Jones	NX46653	Q Staff
Pte Harold Francis Newton	WX11582	B Platoon, 6 Section
Pte William Harold Rowan-Robinson	WX12935	A Platoon, 3 Section
Pte John William (Jack) Carey	WX12423	C Platoon, 9 Section
Pte George Ormond Timms	WX11477	C Platoon, 8 Section
Sig Keith James (Tex) Richards	VX50708	Signals Section
Pte James Heathcote (Jim) Cloutt	NX48453	Sparrow Force
Sig Lester Marsden (Les) Shadlow	NX69624	Sparrow Force

 

The gang were to assemble at Mape for briefing by C.O. Major Spence and were then to move as rapidly as possible to a suitable point on the Baucau-Beaco road.

The object was the force was to completely recce the whole area and establish O.P.'s and listening posts with the aid of area Portos and natives and keep H.Q. advised of any Jap movement in the area.  It was essential that all members familiarise themselves with the whole of the area and be in a position to provide guides should the major body of the whole show be forced to move to the east end of the island.

A survey of the resources was also to be made with a view to supplying food or materials to the main force in emergency.

FATU CAUK [FATU CUAC]

The party set off from Mape in the early hours of the morning, early in August with a one of carriers to portage the radio set and what few stores were being carried.

Fatu Cauk [Fatu Cuac] was the first staging point and this was made by mid-afternoon the same day. [6] The Jap bombers and recce planes were over the area all day and it was obvious that Mape, Bobonaro and other postos were getting a good going over.  Efforts were made to contact H.Q. by radio but all efforts failed.  Lt. McKenzie decided to go back and try and contact H.Q. to find out if there was to be any change of order.  After a most eventful trek he did eventually contact Major Cape who was B.M. but apparently he did not know what was going on and was on the run.

It appears that the initial bombs had fallen on the signals set up at Mape and put all the sets capable of contacting Australia out of business in one fell swoop.  Chaos reigned supreme with H.Q. out of contact with Australia and also out of contact with the Coy.  The Japs had made a landing at Suai on the south coast, had pushed in from Dutch Timor behind a screen of Dutch Timor natives and had also thrust out from Dili.  This appeared to be the major push to rid the island of the nuisance value of our Coy.

McKenzie got caught up in this maelstrom and was pressed into service by Capt. Callinan to sort out a bit of the chaos and never rejoined "H" Force.

 

57. Fatu-Cuac Posto (native-constructed) [7]

In the meantime, what was happening to "H" Force at Fatu Cauk?  Doig was in a dilemma.  McKenzie had left to clarify orders and it appeared that the group should await the outcome of McKenzie's mission.

The following morning the bombers and fighters were particularly active and were shooting up and bombing every posto in sight.  The carriers promptly shot through and the only natives in the area were the local villagers.

Bombed at Fatu Cuac

All the morning the Jap planes flew up the road to Fatu Cauk and each time "H" Force thought it would be their turn and dived into the local gaol to use it and the coral fence surrounding it as an air raid shelter.  Each time it was only a scare and no bomb or bullets happened in their direction.

Eventually Doig and Timms decided to try and get something to eat and went to the Posto and cooked some rice.  They were in the process of filling dixies when planes were heard flying directly overhead in their vicinity.  The main body of the force was down the hill planted in the scrub.  Doig and Timms took off out of the posto down the hill in the direction of the planes, being quite certain that the bombers couldn't possibly miss the posto, which, although perched on a hill with a sheer drop to one side, was a perfect target.  Four planes flew in and appeared to be right over the posto when the silver glint of bomb dropping could be seen.  This was it!!  Doig and Timms were in distinct trouble and right in the middle of the target!

The bomb missed the posto by about two chains, one stick falling square on the gaol.  The other fell on the opposite side of the posto.  A cloud of dust flew up and the two men appeared to be right in the middle of it. The gang thought they had had it!  Then all of a sudden both men came out of the cloud of dust still with their dixies in their hands and travelling at a speed that would make Jesse Owens look like a tortoise!

Leaves and limbs were sheared off trees right above their heads and the coral wall was blown to smithereens but apparently took up all the metal shrapnel and bomb blast as neither Doig nor Timms received a scratch.

Two natives who were on the other track were not so lucky as the stick of bombs which dropped on their side of the posto fell right among them and sheered them clean in half and lopped the tops of Pawpaw trees as if they were butter.

The planes circled and returned to the task but apparently were fresh out of bombs because they went for a shoot up of the posto.  The coral walls were turned into a sieve by the .50 bullets but apparently the planes did not achieve the right elevation as the wireless set and gear which were on the verandah were untouched.

When the raid was over Doig decided this was no place to tarry in and the boys grabbed all the gear and carried it to the bush for safety's sake.  Doig then tried to round up some natives to act as carriers.  He had decided that as no information had been received to the contrary by this time that the force should go ahead with its initial task.  He reasoned that if the Jap push was really on the recce of the east end to receive the main force was more imperative than ever.  Natives were just not available and it was not until some pressure was brought to bear on the local chief that he reluctantly assented to rounding up a few criados to carry the loads and then only with the object of getting the force out of his area!  Carriers were always a difficulty as most Timorese were reluctant to move very far from their own village areas.

LUCA

The trek along the south coast was truly a hungry one and the only feed seemed to be pumpkin leaves and a bit of flint hard maize.  We spent at least a couple of days on this stage and were not only hungry but bone tired.  It's a long road with no pubs in it so we hoped that we would come into a land of milk and honey pretty shortly, and this we did.  We could see the outline of quite an extensive village in the distance and this seemed to be sited on a flat just off the coast.  The lads spread out and went from oomah (house) to oomahlooking for anything they could find in the way of fodder.  They accumulated a lot of eggs.  These were small as the fowls on the island were not much larger than bantams.  As a matter of fact everything on the island apart from the water buffalo were of a pigmy nature, something to do with a lack of iodine in the soil, so someone explained.  Burdened with this supply of eggs we headed for this village and a most unprepossessing joint you have never seen.  The oomahs looked bedraggled, and the whole atmosphere most depressing.  The populace looked terrible and many of the older men and women had Elephantitis, a disease brought on by swamp mosquitoes, and the legs and feet swell to mammoth proportions and the toes have vicious looking sores and appear to be about to drop off.  If I had had anything in the gut I would have brought it up for sure.

A Sumptuous Meal

Then the miracles started to occur.  The chief sent for his Cuisiano (chef or cook) and he appeared with his knives and various accoutrements including the giant cooking dishes and proceeded to start on a meal for us.  He had a native chop down a Pawpaw tree, cut it into about twelve inch lengths to put his cooking dishes on, then a fire underneath, and then he started on his task.  Firstly something to pick in the way of green bananas cooked in coals and for all the world like potatoes done in the same manner.  While the cook was going to town on the meal, out came folding tables and chairs and then beautiful damask tablecloths and high grade silver, and to top it all about a sixty piece Willow pattern crockery set.  All in such a dump was just about beyond comprehension.  Apparently this was always in reserve for when the Portuguese Administrator for the area carne around taking the annual census. [8]

The meal consisted of some sort of soup, omelettes made from the eggs we collected, prawns and other things in them, and then chicken cooked in oil, finished off with beautiful coffee.  We nearly broke out in boils at the richness of this repast, after the previous hungry days.  This was the village of Luca. [9]

Next day we had all the carriers we needed plus a guide to take us to the major Posto at Viqueque.  On the way we noticed the magnificent stands of trees on the swampy delta, they were Rosewood, and about 60 to 70 feet to the first branch and as straight as a die and about four to five feet through.  They were held up by huge strut-like appendages about eight to ten inches through and four to six feet at the base.  This was apparently nature's way of supporting these magnificent trees in this sort of terrain.  The Rosewood when sawn makes beautiful furniture.

 

Viqueque map from H Force reconnaissance [10]

VIQUEQUE

Viqueque was a top grade Posto with a fairly large village attached, and we were made most welcome by the Portuguese Chefe de Posto, Senor Olivera [11], quite a young chap who had been born in Timor of Portuguese parents and down in the Posto, and then I thought it was time to take stock of the job I had inherited with McKenzie’s departure.  Firstly to try out the wireless set.  The Traegar Transceiver as used in the outback stations in Australia for intercommunications was invented by Traegar for the Royal Flying Doctor Service and required one person to pedal to provide the power, and another to do the sending.  To our dismay the bloody thing didn't work, so the sigs set to try and fix it without success.

 

Traegar Transceiver [12]

A runner, Jimmy Cloutt, was dispatched on a pony with native guides to contact our H.Q. and to tell them of our dilemma and also bring us news of the current situation of 2/2nd Ind. Coy.

Meanwhile we became aware that there was an abundance of food in the way of rice, maize, pumpkin and Pawpaw in the area.  It was very densely populated and had more than enough in the way of pack ponies for any usage.  I realised that there would be no trouble in sending supplies to the Unit if they were required.  We started on a quick recce [reconnaissance] of the area, which was in the province of Lautem and the most easterly province on the island.  From Senor Olivera I gathered that the Japs had not yet been in the area, but some recce planes had flown over at odd times.

Reconnaissance

A small party went down to the south coast, another party headed north to the capital Baucau, and a third headed inland to see what that had to give us.  In a very short time we had a fair picture of our field of activity and made rough maps of what had been encountered.  The southward party went to a port of a type at Beaco, and then along the coast to a place called Aliabatta [Aliambata], where there had been an oil well drilled by Shell Oil, and it was being watched over by one named Bryant, the uncle of one of our Unit cooks. [13] There was a distinct seepage of oil in the vicinity.  The party that went north found quite substantial towns on a good road from Viqueque to Baucau.  The first town was Ossu, then Venilale, and each had a fair sized Posto with surrounding villages.  The patrol to the central section also reported that there was a large population, and seemed to be well stocked with food, but was terribly mountainous.

H FORCE RECONNAISSANCE REPORTS [14]

Map showing H Force Reconnaissance Routes

Cloutt Reports

Jimmy Cloutt returned from his mission to find H.Q. and brought bad tidings.  The aerial bombardment we had suffered at Fata Cauk was only the prelude to a big push from the west, north and south by the Japs, assisted by natives from Dutch Timor in an effort to drive us off the island, or capture the whole Force.  They went to within a whisker of attaining their goal, although they had been bitterly opposed at every possible occasion.  Just when success for them seemed assured they pulled out and the Company was able to regroup.  The tragedy was that we had lost the good feeding provinces in the battle, so food was now in worse short supply than before.  It was now that we could assist hopefully in a big way.

As I predicted at Mape, we lost all the wireless sets once again and it was only by a stroke of luck that a “Z” Force [Special] set became available and contact with Australia restored.  The code allotted to us had been compromised, and Jim had brought back a new set of codes for our future use.  By dint of good luck my sigs had discovered the problem of our Traegar Transceiver to be that it had been wired back to front, and by the relatively simple process of a rewind, we were back in business.

Food and Rope

The essential job was to get supplies of foodstuffs to the main body, and Senor Olivera soon had a huge band of Timorese gathering rice, maize, pumpkins, bananas and tobacco.  This was loaded onto a pony train of a hundred horses and with Harold Newton in charge set off for Alas where H.Q. was now situated.  This was the first of about three pony trains despatched in the space of three or four weeks.  Senor Olivera said he could muster as many as ten thousand natives if this number were required for any given task.

They were soon required as H.Q. sent a request for as much tali (rope) as we could lay hands on.  When this request was received the rope was still growing in the form of sisal plants.  These are a thick leaved plant, each leaf about three feet long.  The natives cut these leaves, mashed them with batons to get rid of the mush, and left the fibre.  This was then sun-dried and spun into lengths of rope about 3/8th inch thick and as long as desired.  In a remarkably short time this rope was ready for despatch and one hundred pony loads was on its way.  Each pony could carry about one peco (62 pounds) on rough pack saddles.  This is an enormous feat as Aussie packhorses three times their size could not carry that much day in and day out.  The rope was to be sent to Darwin to tie up the cargo that was despatched to us by small boats, so that it could be rapidly transferred from the ship to the pony and away into the bush, and then onto its destination in Timor.

OSSU THEN OSSU RUA

I thought at this time that although Viqueque was a good living place, it was also bloody prominent and we were too small a force to defend it.  Besides, intelligence was our main role.  We moved firstly to the next northerly Posto, Ossu, for a short while, and then into a small hamlet nearby called Ossu Rua (Ossu 2) and had the natives build us oomahs to camp in.  It was here that Alf Coupland received word that he had been appointed C.S.M. and been given the rank of W.O.II [Warrant Officer II].  To celebrate we got some palm whiskey which is really only wood alcohol of indeterminate strength.  I got so full that I rolled off the bamboo bed a native had made for me and fell to the coral floor with much damage to the fizog [face].  I went crook at everyone, reckoning that they had dominoed me when I was shickered.  It took a lot of diplomacy to convince me that it was only a drunken fall.  That was the first and last time I tried the palm whiskey.

As Ossu Rua I had another unfortunate problem; I somehow caught a dose of crabs around the private parts and sent to Capt. Dunkley for a pound of "Blue Ointment", the usual cure for these mechanised dandruff.  Doc wirelessed back that a pound of blue ointment would kill all the crabs in the world.  I radioed back, "I’ve got 'em all!".  Alf Coupland acquired a razor blade of sorts to shave this wrinkled area, and cripes what a bloody performance this was.  I finished up with what one of the boys called ‘nicked nackers’.  The ointment soon did the clean-up job much to my pleasure as these bloody things must be the itchiest buggers in the universe.

 

Ossu map from H Force reconnaissance report [15]

THE DUTCH AND PORTUGUESE ARRIVE

A party of Dutch troops led by Captain Braemer had moved into H Detachment's area.  Some of the Portuguese Army types also came to Ossu.  I think probably very much A.W.O.L. [Absent Without Leave] from the main body of the Porto army and had very little intention of re-joining but were good blokes with a sense of humour.  Two come to mind: Zeko Rebella [Zeca Rebelo] and Sgt. Marteens [António Lourenço da Costa Martins] [16], they were most welcome as Zeko had a ukulele and a good voice and knew quite a few of the popular songs of the time.

Something I should have noted earlier was the number of red headed Timorese in this area.  They were rather taller and slimmer than the average Timorese, and it seemed that there must have been an Irish ship wrecked at some time off the south east coast.  The chief of this area was a real big-timer who had been schooled for some time in Portugal.  His name was Dom Pedro and he was very large by Porto Timorese standards, would weigh in at about 14-15 stone with huge feet as big as elephants ears.  A jovial soul who was very much in our corner. [17]

Of course as soon as we moved into the company of Portos the rumours of all descriptions started to fly madly and the intrigue was on with a vengeance.  By this time most of the area had been covered in a cursory manner and track reports and surveys had been despatched to H.Q.  The Nip had not yet decided to move to the area for some obscure reason but a band of Dutchmen had moved into Viqueque as soon as we moved out.  These were under the command of one Capt. Braemour [Jan Breemouer], a tall saturnine character …. . [18]

As the Dutch moved into the area it complicated the situation and Doig requested orders from H.Q. as to the role to be adopted by each of these forces.  ……. .

One of the Dutch officers, one Jan Zylstra, was an excellent type and would have been a good man in any situation command …. .  Another Sgt. known to our gang as the "Besok Professor" because of his thick glasses and goatee beard was also an exception to the rule and also had a fund of good light humour …. .

H FORCE TO THE RESCUE

At this time we got word that a Hudson Bomber had been shot down in a nearby area, and the only survivor was the pilot who ejected by parachute and was in a badly burnt condition.  The word we received was that he had been taken to the Province capital, Manatuto, for treatment, but the Porto Chefe de Posto was one of the few strictly neutral or perhaps Jap biased Chefs on the island.  He had made this pilot surrender his pistol and would give no treatment until he had signed a statement that he was a P.O.W.  Under duress the pilot had signed the document.  Word had got to 'B' Platoon who were in the near vicinity, and Lt. Nisbet and sapper "Tex" Richards set off for Manatuto and grabbed the chap and hustled him into the next province, that was where we were and took him to Baucau the capital.  The Commandant, Lt. Pires, suggested it would be better to move him further east and away from where the Japs knew he would be, so he was taken to Baguia and left with Tex Richards.  Tom Nisbet came through, and I saw him for the first time in over nine months on the island.  We were put in the  picture.  Jack Carey and Geo. Timms took off across country to confirm that the pilot was still there.

Meanwhile Tom Nisbet suggested it would be a good idea to grab the pilot from Baguia and bring him to our camp from where he could be moved to H.Q. for evacuation to Australia.  Pte. Harold Rowan-Robinson and I acquired an old Chevrolet car with a Porto driver from Ossu and decided to take off for Baucau and then onwards to Baguia to rescue this chap whom we knew was Pilot Officer Geo. Wadey.  The car we got at Ossu had a sound engine but a crook set of tyres.  When we got to Baucau we contacted Lt. Pires who was the best type of Portuguese who had been in the colony for over 25 years and did not ever look like going back to Portugal.  He had married a Timorese woman and had a large clutch of children.

Baguia

He showed us another car with good tyres but a not so hot engine.  We decided to stay with the original vehicle.  Lt. Pires then took us to the local cemetery and dug up two four-gallon tins of petrol, an appropriate spot to cache the juice.  We then took off with the Porto driver with Robbie in the front armed with a Tommy gun.  I was in the back with another Porto who was on for the ride.  The road from Baucau towards Baguia was a fair dinkum funicular railway, winding around down and up a mountain, the curves so tight that the driver drove on his horn.  Being a Porto he could not keep his mouth shut and talked to his mate in the back seat incessantly, even turning every now and again to emphasise some point.  My patience and my guts were starting to wear bloody thin and I let loose with a flood of good bullock driver language which the driver could not comprehend, but it had the effect of keeping his mind on the job.  The view on this trip was fabulous, the rice paddies had been terraced from top to bottom with the water overflowing from one terrace to the next.  It was as good a piece of primitive engineering feat as you could wish to see anywhere in the world.

We arrived at Baguia in the early evening.  Jack Carey and Geo. Timms had been and gone, and Tex was there with Pilot Wadey who was really badly burnt where his body had not been covered with his shorts and shirt.  He had put up his arm to save his eyes and the arm was a mess, but he had saved his eyes.  The attention being received by the Infermera (partly trained Medic) was as good as possible under the circumstances as he had no special burns jelly to apply, and he was bandaging the burns many times daily and dressing with whatever he could find.  I told the Chefe de Posto that we would be taking Wadey with us the next day for security reasons.  He wasn't all that mad about the idea, and I'm afraid Wadey wasn't either.  This was natural on Wadey's part as he was in terrible shock with his multiple experiences.  When we were due to move it came to a showdown and I told Wadey that he was coming with us with or without his consent.  He had been fixed up by the Infermera and we put him in the back seat with Tex, and I was in front with the driver.  Robbie was to walk back with Zeko Rabella who had materialised at Baguia from nowhere.

Return Journey – Mission Completed

The trip from Baguia to Baucau was not all that nice.  Wadey was in extreme pain and moaning at Tex in a big way, and once again I had to be brutal in quietening him.  I can assure you I didn't like this role a little bit but it was essential that he be quietened, and his fears made as groundless as possible.  We stayed at Baucau long enough for Wadey's burns to be redressed and then started off for our hide-a-way at Ossu Rua.  We got to Venilale and discovered the Dutch had blown the bridge over the river there and we could not cross with our vehicle.  It looked like a big stretcher carry was in front of us when somebody found an old car with body intact but engine hors de combat.  At least it would prove to be a mode of transport.  So we stretchered Wadey over the river into the car and proceeded to push and pull with as much manpower as possible.  Thank heaven Lt. Jan Zylstra was on hand and took charge of the Dutch troops on the scene.  It took a ton of hard work pushing and pulling to get the car plus Wadey to Ossu.

Wadey was settled down at our campsite and left to the tender ministrations of Tex Richards plus anything any of the others could give him.  He was to say the least a difficult patient, and his morale was on the floor. I realised soft-soaping him was not going to help him, so on the say-so of the little gang I got stuck into him and told hint of all the bad cases we had like Alan Hollow, Keith Hayes, Gerry Maley and more.  This talk had a truly miraculous effect.  Wadey suddenly took an immense stride for the better and improved every way daily.  We were able to send him to H.Q. for evacuation to Australia, Tex Richards and Geo. Timms escorting him on ponies to H.Q. where he was to be evacuated on the Voyager, but due to the grounding of this destroyer he had to wait quite a few days to be taken to Darwin.  He made an excellent recovery. [19]

Z SPECIAL ON THE SCENE

The arrival of the Dutch with Captain [Breemouer] in charge looked like being a headache for me, so I contacted H.Q., asking for an allocation of areas between us.  Force H.Q. gave the Dutch the road area to patrol and defend, and my party all the rest of the area.  This suited us down to the ground. [20]

It was at this time that we ran in with a special force which had come to the island to take over in the event of the Company being driven out or captured.  This was known as "Z" Special, and consisted of two Captains, Wiley and Broadhurst, who were ex-Malaysian police officers. [21] They had escaped Malaya when it was over-run.  What they were doing in Timor was something in the nature of a dummy run to equip them for similar duties later in Malaya.  They came under direct command of Special Duties Branch at Australian H.Q. in Melbourne and had access to many things unavailable to the Company.  Besides the two captains they had a wireless operator named Jack Sargent [22] and another chap whose name I forget, but who had had previous experience in Porto Timor in the upgrading of the breed of ponies, and who knew the area very well, and was to be the guide, philosopher and linguist.  I remember him as Gordon, an old timer who knew his "Ecker". [23]

They were magnificently equipped …

This "Z" contingent landed by submarine at Beaco on the south coast which was the southern end of the Baucau-Beaco road.  They were magnificently equipped with the latest in everything.  Their wireless set was about as compact as one could imagine.  It fitted into what was a twenty-inch suitcase, and when the aerial was put up a tree was powerful enough to handle Australia easily.  All their rations were in sealed four gallon tins and contained the works for reasonable living, even including bottles of Corio whiskey.  Their weaponry was the most modern, and the envy of all us mob.  These "Z" blokes had made a previous contact with our Force H.Q., and we had been told to liaise with them and give them as much assistance as possible.  This was not going to be any great problem, especially with those bottles of Corio for medicinal purposes only being available.  We soon had a demonstration of just how much power these boys had.  They called for an air strike on a target pointed out to them and that strike happened within hours.  Force H.Q. would have been battling for days to get a similar result.

Arming the Timorese

This "Z" crowd decided in their wisdom that it would be a great idea to train and arm the natives as a strike force.  I can't say that the idea appealed to me one little bit as the natives did not like their Porto masters all that much and had risen in a bloody rebellion in 1912 which was crushed with much loss of native lives.  The mere thought of a bundle of natives wandering about with lethal weapons which they knew bugger all about, did not appeal to me one little bit, but "Z" convinced Australia of the potential efficiency of this idea.  In no time flat a great bundle of .303 rifles with much ammunition arrived, and “H” Force were delegated to teach and train selected natives to handle these weapons.

I firstly impounded all the live ammunition just to play safe while initial instruction took place.  None of my party were that hot with knowledge of the language.  This was called Tetum and was a sort of Esperanto of the dialects of the island, Portuguese and Roman Malay.  I was probably the very worst as I hadn't tried too hard to master this language apart from enough to get a light for my cigarette or a feed of sorts.  Some of the others were fair to poor, and others just average, so the communication of orders was not going to be easy.  We had the idea of pressing Don Pedro into service as he knew some English, and we had found him a more than reasonable communications man.  We cleared a kind of bull ring and then erected a platform about two feet high of bamboo slats as a sort of stage, and then we would put this huge frame of Don Pedro on it with one of our gang to manoeuvre him, and he would go through the motions of rifle drill, and then in a voice like a fog horn, bellow instructions to the assembled squad.  To see Don Pedro thumping up and down on this improvised stage and bellowing and gesticulating had us in stitches of laughter.  We made certain all weapons were unloaded and very safe.

Target Practice

When it carne to aiming practice we found the natives were quite unable to shut the disengaged eye to sight through the front and rear sights to aim correctly at the target.  This was no problem to Don Pedro, he got lengths of thickish rope and tied a large knot in the middle, placed this knot over the disengaged eye, and tied the rope onto the rifleman’s head.  Very effective in closing the eye but don't think it was going to help the Army much.

Naturally it carne a time when it was necessary to give the squad target practice with live ammunition.  I can assure you I had a sleepless night just thinking about it.  We erected about four or five targets, made a firing mound, and then lined up the firing gang, handed them one bullet each and then got Don Pedro and a couple of his minions to put them on the mound, and get them ready for firing.  We took refuge behind large trees in the rear of this makeshift range.  I gave the first firing order and the result was as expected, no hits on target and a vast disturbance in the near bush.  This sort of training went on for many days and my nerves were anywhere but where they belonged.  Each of the boys had their turn at the firing instruction because I felt everyone should be in the same condition of nervous disarray as I was.  It had been noted during this firing of live ammo that "Z" Force was most conspicuous by their absence.  Afraid we helped ourselves liberally to the Corio.  The "fighting" force was very gradually coming to hand, and I didn't have a rough clue as to how it would be used.

BOYLAND REPLACES DOIG

About this time there was a change in command.  Doig was ordered to report to H.Q. and take over "D" Platoon from Capt. Turton and Capt. Boyland was to take over "H" Force.  This exchange was effected in October, 1942, and Capt. Boyland continued in command of this unique Force until the Coy. was evacuated in December.  There was no "takeover".  Doig and Boyland met about half way between Force H.Q. and the "H" Force base and yarned about the general situation for a short while before going their respective ways.

 

Capt. George Boyland (WX6490) [24]

The job of "H" Force was a watching brief only with strict instructions to report Jap movement (if any) and to keep out of any trouble.  The Japs remained considerately quiet and life was a real rest cure after the hurly burly of movement at the other end of the Island.

Boyland had been entrusted with delivery of a present from a grateful Australian Government to Sousa Santos, who by then was living near Viqueque.  On arrival there, however, he discovered that the family had left for Aussie the day before by boat and he was left holding the parcel.  A message from H.Q. arrived to say that the contents useful to the troops could be retained and the balance was given to Don Pedro.  From then on the lads revelled in the use of scented toilet soap and powder and the luxury of luxuries, sugar etc.

Operations Around Ossu

"H" Force was camped at Ossu Rua a bit north of "Z" Force and overlooking Ossu.  A well-defined native track ran south from Ossu through the camp and part of the job was to act as a "distant early warning line" for the "Z" Special blokes.  There were the usual "alarms and excursions" and hardly a day passed without Timorese rumours of Jap movements towards the area from Baucau.  However, recce patrols failed to confirm any of the rumours.  The only "Jap" seen comprised a sub-section from "B" Platoon under Mick Morgan, who enjoyed “H” Force hospitality for a short while.

The main road from Baucau to the south coast passed a little to the west of Ossu Rua and was a matter of some concern.  It was in good condition as Timor roads go and would present no obstacle to transport if the Japs decided to move that way.  In an effort to prevent this, the idea of blowing and otherwise destroying a bridge south of Ossu was considered.  The bridge crossed a foaming torrent running through a deep rocky gorge but proved to be so solidly built that available material would make no impression on it.

Little contact was had with "Z" Force - it was decided expedient to keep away from an area where trigger happy Timorese were playing at soldiers.

One bright spot was the possession of the Traeger "Transceiver" (pedal wireless) which, although uncertain in the transmitting and receiving of signals, was excellent for receiving short wave broadcasts.  News bulletins were eagerly awaited and the music sessions were a delight to all - especially the criados.

EVACUATION

As the "wet" approached, observations became difficult and it was necessary to rely to a large extent on Timorese rumours.  It was apparent that some movements were expected in the area when a signal was received during November to move to the west of the road.  There was no thought in any minds that evacuation might be in the offing.

The first day's march ended at Be Manus - a place of hot sulphur springs.  Everyone revelled in a good hot bath and it was some time before it was realised that the oddly misshapen and deformed inhabitants were in various stages of leprosy.  A smart move was made the next morning.

The new H.Q. was set up on a large bluff over a river which gave some views of the north-south road but was not an ideal position - apart from availability of food supplies.  The usual rumours of Japs in the area kept coming in but the local Timorese were not alarmed (which seemed a good sign).

One day firing was heard to the south-east but a patrol found no existence of Nips.  Perhaps it was some of "Z" Special’s Timorese having a party.

Discussions these days centred mainly around the possibility of ever seeing Aussie again.  Then came the dramatic message which threw everyone into a fever of excitement.  The message, which arrived in the evening, gave instructions for hiding the radio, mapping its position, and moving smartly west to a rendezvous.  The message concluded; "You know why, but keep secret" or words to that effect.  How silly can you get?  Everybody knew in a stride what the message portended … .

Moving to the Rendezvous

It was worked out that by leaving next morning - after hiding the radio and erasing signs of occupation - 48 hours would be available to keep the deadline at the rendezvous.  The only difficulty was that the journey east originally took two days and now they had the "wet" to contend with.

The first move was south to Luca once more, a very large native village presided over by a King who was very friendly to the Australians.  Here it was hoped to obtain "kudas" to ease the strain of the long journey ahead.  Alas for plans!  The cross country trip was more like an obstacle course and when Luca was reached about 1 p.m. it was found to be deserted.  After some time a lone native appeared who explained that a party of Japs had come there the day before and all the boongs had gone bush.  Eventually the King was summoned and living up to his reputation, soon had his subjects rounding up horses from various hiding places.  By 5 p.m. all but two of the party were mounted and set off west.  Capt. Boyland and one other remained and did not get horses until after 6 p.m. by which time it was pitch dark.  They set off to catch up with the others, and did not find them until about 10 p.m.  They were bedded down on the bank of a river which was running a banker.  Worse was to follow - dawn revealed that the river had divided during the night and instead of being on the bank they were now on a small island.

END OF MISSION

Aussie called, however, and away they went.  The river proved to be less of an obstacle than it looked and was soon forded - not without a few narrow escapes as the ponies stumbled.  This set the pattern for the day and a flooded stream was encountered every few miles.  It was not without a modicum of humour!  Geo. Timms, an accomplished horseman, was tossed into the middle of one particularly bad stream and Boyland, the veriest tyro, laughed so much that he was soon in the water too.

The worst feature was a series of water courses up to 12 feet deep, which became raging torrents after every shower.  Luckily the water subsided as quickly as it rose and there was nothing for it but to wait for the rain to case.  This was possibly one of the hardest trips of the campaign but no-one complained.  It was all in a good cause and the thought of home spurred them on to such good effect that the rendezvous was reached that night - 12 hours ahead of schedule.

So ended the saga of "H" Force …. typical of the type of work required of a unit such as ours and showing the benefit of a versatile training and how we could operate in a small command to good advantage.

REFERENCES

[1]     Ed Willis “Captain Reginald Claydon Neave’s service record on Timor” https://doublereds.org.au/history/men-of-the-22/nx/reginald-claydon-neave-r513/

[2]     All quoted text in this section was extracted from the Sparrow Force war diary March - December 1942 AWM52 1/5/55/2.  https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1360931

[3]     Ch. 21 “The story of ‘H’ Force” in C.D. Doig. - A history of the 2nd Independent Company and 2/2 Commando Squadron / compiled by C.D. Doig. - Carlisle, W.A. : Hesperian Press, 2009: 139-149.

[4]     Ch. 13 “’H’ Force” in C.D. Doig. - The ramblings of a ratbag. – [Perth, W.A.]: The Author, 1989: 94-99.

[5]     Tarzan’ Yates is a mystery.  Doig lists him as from ‘8th Div. Signals’ (p.139).  In an earlier reference he refers to him as a signaller from Sparrow Force (p.108).  Without Yates forenames or even initials it is difficult to find his WWII service record on the NAA database, also complicated by the variant spelling of his surname – there are 389 ‘Yates’ and 49 ‘Yeates’.  He is not listed in the nominal rolls published in Ayris or McLachlan.

Doig probably mis-identified Sig Les Shadlow as Yates.  Shadlow was a Signaller, originally assigned to the 2/1st Fortress Signals, who had escaped from Dutch Timor and had been a member of the Sparrow Force HQ Signals team.  He is listed as one of the men responsible for reporting on the “Road and bridge recce Viqueque – Uato-Lari – Ossu” along with Sgt A. Coupland and Cpl S. Jones.  He did not remain with H Force and was evacuated to Darwin and his service record states he disembarked there on 17 September 1942 and was subsequently admitted to hospital in Katherine with suspected malaria.

[6]     “Fatu-Cuac (see Photo No. 28) is 31 miles (50 km.) southeast of Aileu at a bearing of 153° and only a few miles off the south coast.  It is a small settlement and coconut plantation.  Several native constructed huts stand in the coconut grove.  It is 1,000 feet (300 m.) above sea level with a commanding view of the south coast for 10 miles (16 km.) west and 20 miles (32 km.) east.  Air cover is good.  This village was one of the main camps of Australian troops in 1942”.  Area study of Portuguese Timor / Allied Geographical Section, South West Pacific Area. - [Brisbane] : The Section, 1943. – (Terrain study (Allied Forces. South West Pacific Area. Allied Geographical Section) ; no. 50.): 28-29.

[7]     Area study of Portuguese Timor: 134.

[8]     The Chief or King of Luca at this time was Dom Jeremias dos Reis Amaral (1933-1943); see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rulers_of_Timor#cite_note-66

[9]     Also known as Quibular.

[10]   Map from report included David Dexter papers – Australian War Memorial - PR00249

[11]   Chefe de Posto, Eugénio Vaz de Oliveira.  See Manuel de Abreu Ferreira de Carvalho. - Relatório dos Acontecimentos de Timor (1942-45). – Lisbon: Instituto Da Defesa Nacional, 2003: 744.

[12]   Flynn, John. (1929). Mr. Alf Traeger transmitting by a pedal-powered wireless Retrieved July 9, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-142495257

[13]   J. Carey “[George Bryant] Link with the past’ 2/2 Commando Courier September 2002: 10-11.  https://doublereds.org.au/couriers/2002/Courier%20September%202002.pdf

[14]   Reports included David Dexter papers – Australian War Memorial - PR00249

[15]   Map from report included David Dexter papers – Australian War Memorial - PR00249

[16]   See Ernest Chamberlain. - Forgotten men : Timorese in special operations during World War II. - Point Lonsdale, Vic. : Ernest Chamberlain, 2010: Annex A 10-11, 44 for biographical profiles of Rebelo and Martins.  Rebelo was a member of the “International Brigade” and SRD Operations PORTOLIZARD and ADDER.  He was believed to have died when he fell off cliff - or was shot and killed by the Japanese in August 1944.  “Rebelo Zeka” is listed as a “civilian” on the Honour Roll of the SRD monument at Rockingham, WA.

[17]   “At about this time, Pedro Jerónimo of Iliomar (Ailebere) – a traditional leader, established a liaison system to the Australians and Portuguese in the Ossú area (north of the Viqueque Posto) through Dirinu (west of Larimi).  Several Iliomar leaders also attended “flag loyalty” ceremonies conducted at Uaibobo near Ossú by Sergeant António Martins a Portuguese Army senior NCO”. - Ernest Chamberlain. - The Struggle in Iliomar: resistance in rural East Timor. - Point Lonsdale, Vic. : Ernest Chamberlain, 2017: 40.

[18]   For the Dutch perspective on these events, see Capt. Jan Breemouer “Translation of a letter from the C.O. Dutch Forces in TIMOR to G.O.C. Netherlands Army Forces in Australia, 12th September 1942”. Report included in Colin South papers – National Archives of Australia, Melbourne Office – PR91/136.

[19]   See also Ed Willis “The Sid Wadey Story – Rescued On Timor” https://doublereds.org.au/forums/topic/207-the-sid-wadey-story-–-rescued-on-timor/#comment-370

[20]   “Sparrow Force Operation instruction no. 7, 26 Aug 42” AWM 52, Australian Military Forces, Army headquarters, formation and unit diaries, 1939-1945 1/5/55 - Sparrow Force March - December 1942 https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1365575

[21]   Capt. Ian Standish Wylie and Capt. Douglas Keith (Dougie) Broadhurst.  See Alan Ogden. - Tigers burning bright : SOE heroes in the Far East. - New York: Bene Factum Publishing, 2013: 601-613.

[22]   In fact Sgt John (Jack) Raymond Patrick Cashman (VX109980).  See following footnote for reference source.

[23]   Lt Gordon Henry Greaves (VX102688).  “LIZARD party member Lieutenant G.H. Greaves … had lived in Portuguese Timor for 10-15 years, had ‘a large number of Portuguese and Native friends’ – including Lieutenant Pires and chiefs in the Ossu area, and ‘knew the native Tetum dialect and some Portuguese’” - The Official History of the Operations and Administration of] Special Operations - Australia [(SOA), also known as the Inter-Allied Services Department (ISD) and Services Reconnaissance Department (SRD)] Volume 2 - Operations Part 1:12-22. National Archives of Australia: 46-66.

[24]   https://doublereds.org.au/history/men-of-the-22/wx/george-boyland-r34/

ADDITIONAL READING

Ayris, Cyril. - All the Bull's men : No. 2 Australian Independent Company (2/2nd Commando Squadron) / Cyril Ayris. - [Perth, W.A.] : 2/2nd Commando Association, 2006: 306, 311, 319-320, 333, 335.

Cleary, Paul. - The men who came out of the ground : a gripping account of Australia's first commando campaign : Timor 1942. - Sydney : Hachette Australia, 2010: esp. Ch. 14 “More Special and Secret”.

Manera, Brad "’H’ detachment Sparrow Force at Viqueque 1942” Wartime: official magazine of the Australian War Memorial 17 Autumn 2002: 56.

Wray, Christopher C. H. - Timor 1942 : Australian commandos at war with the Japanese. - Hawthorn, Vic. : Hutchinson Australia, 1987: 115, 126-129, 132-133, 142-143.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 18, 2025 by Edward Willis
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