By 1938 the number of colporteurs distributing magazines and books had grown to 110.

In contrast, consider Jizo and Matsue Ishii, who were among the first Japanese colporteurs. They covered the entire country during the years 1929 to 1939. In June 1939 they were arrested and jailed in Sendai. Matsue still remembers her first year of solitary confinement in a tiny, filthy, flea-infested cell. She was not allowed to shower or bathe, and her flesh was eaten by bedbugs. She was reduced to 70 pounds [30 kg], just skin and bones, and came to be near death. On being sent to another prison, she regained some of her health, and she was released toward the end of 1944. Her husband received like treatment, and later he showed his integrity also when he refused blood transfusions. (Acts 21:25) He died at 71 years of age. Matsue has continued as a faithful Witness to this day. She remarks: “Most of those from before the war who excelled in ability and intellect left God’s organization when subjected to great pressure. . . . Those who remained faithful had no special abilities and were inconspicuous. Surely all of us must trust in Jehovah with all our heart.”—Prov. 3:5.

Another faithful couple were Katsuo and Hagino Miura, who entered the colporteur service in 1931. They too were arrested in 1939, in Hiroshima. They refused to worship the emperor or support Japan’s militarism. Katsuo was severely beaten, and he suffered in confinement until an atom bomb destroyed the prison in August 1945. Though he was only 38, his health had been ruined. On release, he looked like an old man. He returned north to Ishinomori, where Hagino, released earlier, was raising their young son, Tsutomu.

How did Katsuo meet up with Jehovah’s organization again? Japan’s leading newspaper, Asahi, learned that five young ladies, Watch Tower missionaries, had come to Osaka to live Japanese-style in a Japanese house. Reporters visited them and prepared a splendid illustrated article that compared the five sisters to angels who, like cherry blossoms, had floated down from heaven. The article also supplied the address of the missionary home. Hundreds of miles to the north, Katsuo chanced upon the article. Immediately he made contact again with the organization and enrolled as a pioneer. He served faithfully until his death in 1957.