Bill Chong Story — page 5

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"Most of the time I slept on bare ground. That's why I smoke a lot. My grandkids ask, 'Grandpa, why do you smoke so much?' Because there were mosquitoes, bedbugs, and leeches. I smoke a lot to keep them away. Then when I got tired and fell asleep I let them bite me."

His near execution came after he was discovered hiding from a Japanese patrol. He was saved because his travelling companion had gone to a Japanese school in Macao.

"The paper [in his pocket] was a personal card with the name of a retired Japanese officer who taught school in Macao," says Chong. "Later on, I found out this teacher was a master spy; he taught people Japanese so he could get information."

For his efforts, Chong received the Order of the British Empire in 1946. The presentation was done by the governor of Hong Kong. The British also asked him to stay on as an agent, and he agreed, remaining with the secret service until he left Hong Kong to retire in Nanaimo in 1976.

"They didn't want me to quit," he said. "I told them, 'I'm over 65.' They said 'We'd sooner have an old dog than a young pup.' "

In Hong Kong, he had become a restaurateur. Back in Canada, he taught Chinese cooking at Malaspina College on Vancouver Island.

Because he had worked for British intelligence, no one knew of his war experiences in Canada. Then one day an electrician working on his apartment noticed a photo of Chong getting his medal, and suggested he join the local legion. He did, and word of his secret war career spread --he was featured in a CBC documentary on spies.

He will be coming to Vancouver Nov. 13 for the 90th birthday celebration of another Chinese vet, John Ko Bong.

"When I came back I found out all my buddies had fought in Europe," he said. "I was so pleased to know I wasn't the only one in the war.

"Every time we have a meeting we have a lot of fun, a lot of jokes. That's how it should be, I guess."