Amelia Earhart: The mystery continues with one secret disclosed

By William H. Stewart
Special to the Saipan Tribune

Part 2 of 3

Forty years after the disappearance of Amelia Earhart, four Chamorro women were interviewed on Saipan by Father Arnold, a Catholic Priest, in November 1977. Their names have been intentionally omitted from this brief summary for obvious reasons. Their comments and recollections of the late ’30s were provided to a U. S. Navy Admiral on Guam for forwarding to an unknown inquirer in Washington.

Summarizing the interviews, one woman stated that when she was a young girl, sometime around 1937 or ‘38, a foreign woman, thin in stature with brown hair—cut short similar to that of a man, would sometimes pass her house and on one occasion, looked “sickly” with one side of her body and one hand burned. The foreign woman, with whom the Chamorro lady could not communicate as she did not speak English at the time, was believed to be staying in a nearby building referred to by the local people as a hotel. This woman gave a ring with a “white” stone in it, along with some pleasant smelling balsam to the young Chamorro girl. Later, two Chamorro girls were asked to make two wreaths and, when asked why—the girls were told that the “American” had died of “amoeba” (dysentery or diarrhea). The Chamorro woman related that when the foreign woman was alive she was guarded. The other Chamorro woman recalled that as a child she remembered hearing that a plane had crashed “southwest of us” and the pilot was a woman. The Chamorro recalled that the Japanese were ‘very startled” because she was piloting the plane.

Still another Chamorro woman, when interviewed stated, “it could be 1939 or something like that when I first heard there was a woman spy who came to Saipan but they said she was most likely killed. But I did hear that an American woman was caught spying.”

A third Chamorro woman when interviewed recalled, “hearing about a plane that crashed, the topic of conversation on Saipan. I remembered going to church, I wanted to light a candle for my husband because a battleship was scheduled to come into port about 10 o’clock in the morning. The plane was exhibited and that was when the Japanese made an announcement to all the people that those who wanted to see an airplane may come and see it. That was the year 1937 or 1938.”

“There were talks (sic) about the plane having fallen down (sic) in the island south of us in Micronesia. I know of a ring that belonged to that woman. I don’t know what ever happened to it.”

The deposition in which the above comments were included was located at my request by the late Father Gary Bradley in the Cathedral archives on Guam. It should be noted that at no point in the deposition was the name Amelia Earhart or Putnam mentioned.

The possibility cannot be ignored that Earhart flew off course, strayed into air space over the Japanese Mandated Islands, ran out of fuel and was picked up by the Japanese and taken to Saipan. It should be noted that the Japanese have consistently denied having any knowledge of Earhart.

Many bizarre stories have been advanced surrounding her disappearance. Among the strangest story includes that of a United States soldier stationed on Saipan in 1944-‘45 who claims to have seen the Lockheed Electra destroyed by American military in a damaged Japanese aircraft hanger at As Lito Field.

Still another intriguing story concerns that of a bottle with its cork sealed with wax that washed ashore on the coast of France in October 1938, with a note inside. The French language message stated that the writer had been a prisoner of the Japanese on Jaluit where he claims to have seen Amelia Earhart and a male individual, both of whom were being held on the atoll for alleged spying on Japanese installations. The writer of the note stated he had been placed on a Japanese vessel bound for Europe and would throw the bottle overboard when the ship neared port. This message is in the U. S. National Archives in Washington after having been given to American authorities at the U. S. Embassy in Paris.

These factors have kept the issue before us through the years. The possibility cannot be ignored that Earhart flew off course, strayed into air space over the Japanese Mandated Islands, ran out of fuel and was picked up by the Japanese and taken to Saipan. Rejecting this possibility, one must consider the alternative that she ran out of fuel and either went into the water and drowned or died on an uninhabited island.

Whether Amelia Earhart was ever on Saipan or not, only her grave will tell. But she will inextricably be forever linked to the island as a result of the activities of the CIA and a curious and intrepid writer that inadvertently stumbled upon a secret U.S. government training base.

To be continued.