Researcher's Note

The USS Trout was to continue her war patrol and sink two more enemy vessels prior to her delivery of the securities at Pearl Harbor. The securities shipment placed on board the USS Trout at Corregidor eventually made its way to the US Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, where is was subsequently transferred to a light-cruiser and shipped successfully to the vaults of the San Francisco Mint in the United States.

Over the next year or so, Capt. Mike Fenno, commander of the USS Trout, attempted vainly to claim appropriate "salvage" of the securities with his superiors for the benefit of a small percentage to be shared among his crew. However, suspiciously the maritime salvage laws of the United States Navy were changed one month after Trout’s successful mission, thereby 'clarifying'  the Trout mission as a "Government to Government Transfer".  Mike Fenno and his crew never did receive any sort of salvage award. In fact, the USS Trout was subsequently lost with all hands in the South China Sea in 1944. As far as this researcher is aware, only two men were transferred off the vessel prior to her demise in 1944 – the only two who could years later accurately reflect the events described above.

Mr. and Mrs. Willoughby safely evacuated Corregidor via a second US submarine shortly before the surrender to the Japanese on 6 May, 1942.

Ed Michaud
Framingham MASS.