D.C. Edmonston died. A bank official, he was imprisoned in the gaol; his wife and daughter Mary (in camp) were notified that he was dying and were allowed to go and see him, but he didn't know them, and died. ((Mrs. Edmonston had in January bought Olive's gold manicure set for Mary's birthday. The Japanese allowed Mr Edmonston's body to be buried in the camp cemetry.))
Diary pages from this date
David Charles Edmondston, Hong Kong manager of the HKSBC, dies in Stanley Prison of malnutrition, sepsis and medical neglect. He was 54.
He was arrested on May 24 (or May 3), 1943 and interrogated under torture, most probably either about his role in raising money for the British community and smuggling it into Stanley or about his contacts with the resistance or with Consul John Reeves in Macao. He was tried on October 19, 1943 and sentenced to ten years in prison.
According to Japanese medical officer Sato (or Saito) Shunkichi he first entered the Prison hospital in May 1943 suffering from indigestion. He was eventually discharged but frequently returned for treatement for colitis, beri beri and dysentery.
He was finally admitted with a carbuncle that covered the whole of the back of his neck.
Dr. Harry Talbot examined him and later stated that his continual sepsis contributed to his death. Sato, defending himself at his post-war trial, claimed that he'd adminstered various appropriate treatments, but Dr. Talbot stated that Edmondston had received no help from the medical officer, and this is supported by the banker's own statement, two days before his death.
Just before Edmondston died his wife Kathleen and his daughter Mary were called in from Stanley Camp to see him. He was so emaciated she didn't recognise him and his state was such that no meaningful communication was possible. The Japanese refused to allow a doctor to enter the Prison to inspect him, but did allow drugs to be sent in. The injections came too late.
Sources:
Date of trial: George Wright-Nooth, Prisoner of the Turnip Heads, 1994, 180
Age: http://www.roll-of-honour.org.uk/Cemeteries/Stanley_Military_Cemetery/html/e.htm
All other details: Reports of War Crimes trial in the China Mail:
January 9, 1947, page 2
April 3, 1947, page 2
April 9, 1947, page 2
April 12, 1947, page 2
Note:
When Edmondston's body was taken into Stanley, Dr. K. H. Uttley carried out a post-mortem, finding that death was caused by beri-beri and nutritional anaemia. The camp doctors took such investigations very seriously - they refused to come to any conclusions about Vandeleur Grayburn because his body was too decomposed when they recived it - so this is likely to be reliable.
China Mail, April 4, 1947, 2
I'm rather confused about the 'sepsis' at the moment as both Dr Talbot in his brief post-mortem report and Vincent Morrison in his war crimes evidence say the large carbuncle on the back of Edmondston's neck had healed (Morrison adds it had left a star-shaped scar.) Perhaps there had been further carbuncles, More research necessary!
Death D C Edmondston ( ) ((ie MacNider didn't know Edmonston's age and left it blank)) in Prison
20 men sent to town to unload rice
Congee and condensed milk
Fine. Showers forenoon. Wind E.
Chopped wood.
Lorry went in am with some of our fellows & armed guard for rations. They were fed on congee & condensed milk in town.
Germans retire to their own borders on Eastern Front. Sweden stopped shipping to Germany. Street fighting in Paris. Churchill had 45 mins talk on important questions with Pope in Vatican.
With Steve pm.
Parcels expected at any time now & a party detailed to deal with them right away. Some taken to Bowen Rd. Hosp. for the patients there.
Lorry arrived back 10pm with rice & veg.
OBJECTIVE: Block channels in Victoria Harbor with anti-ship mines
RESULTS: Six B-24s drop their mines, but only four release their mines accurately, and at least two mines are destroyed upon impact with the water when their parachutes malfunction. Two B-24s fail to locate the target and return their mines to base. The mission is judged less than 50 percent effective by the U.S. Navy.
TIME OVER TARGET: ~8:24 p.m. on August 29 to 12:41 a.m. on August 30
AMERICAN UNITS AND AIRCRAFT: Eight B-24s from the 373rd, 374th, 375th, and 425th Bomb Squadrons (308th Heavy Bomb Group)
AMERICAN PILOTS AND AIRCREW: Unknown
ORDNANCE EXPENDED: 24 x anti-ship mines
JAPANESE UNITS, AIRCRAFT, AND PILOTS: None
AIRCRAFT LOSSES: None
SOURCES: Original mission reports and other documents in the Air Force Historical Research Agency archives at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.
Information compiled by Steven K. Bailey, author of Bold Venture: The American Bombing of Japanese-Occupied Hong Kong, 1942-1945 (Potomac Books/University of Nebraska Press, 2019).
OBJECTIVE: Staggered single-aircraft night raids to harass Canton airfields and prevent JAAF from flying night bombing missions
RESULTS: Six B-25s bomb aircraft revetments at White Cloud and Tien Ho airbases, but damage is unknown.
TIME OVER TARGET: ~8:10 to 10:25 p.m.
AMERICAN UNITS AND AIRCRAFT: Six B-25s from 491st Bomb Squadron (341st Medium Bomb Group)
AMERICAN PILOTS AND AIRCREW: Lt. Sussdorf
ORDNANCE EXPENDED: 72 x 100-pound fragmentation bomb clusters
JAPANESE UNITS, AIRCRAFT, AND PILOTS: None
AIRCRAFT LOSSES: None
SOURCES: Original mission reports and other documents in the Air Force Historical Research Agency archives at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.
Information compiled by Steven K. Bailey, author of Bold Venture: The American Bombing of Japanese-Occupied Hong Kong, 1942-1945 (Potomac Books/University of Nebraska Press, 2019).