Christopher Paul D'ALMADA E CASTRO [1910-1993]

“My activities commenced in Argyle Street Camp towards the end of Summer of 1942 when I began to speak to one of the Chinese drivers of the ration lorries, which used to make daily visits into the Camp.  I got some items of local news from him and then started the system of bringing in Chinese newspapers through him.  This went on for many months.

I am rather vague about dates as I kept no diary, but I think it was some time in the month of February or March, 1943 that I became involved with Col Newnham.  He wished to know whether my driver friend was reliable.  I replied that I had not known the man before the war, but that he seemed all right.  Col. Newnham then gave me a letter for the driver to deliver, which he apparently did unsuccessfully, because thereafter there was a regular exchange of letters and small packages which lasted until the day of Col. Newnham’s arrest.  I was never told who our outside contact was nor what the letters and packages contained, nor did I wish to know anything about it, being content to obey Col. Newnham’s orders.

My usual practice on taking delivery of these letters etc. was to go up to the lorry immediately on its arrival at Argyle Street.  The driver, if he had anything for me, would casually open the door of the lorry.  There at his feet I would see a few rags formed into a bundle and I, after making sure that the coast was clear, would snatch up the bundle and walk away.  If I had anything for the driver, I would hand it to him, if he gave me the signal to do so, or drop it at his feet inside the lorry.  This sort of thing went on for about a month, when Col. Newnham told me that he had brought in the services of another Chinese driver owing to the fact that the one driver we were working with could only make irregular visits to the Camp and that valuable time was being wasted.  The new man was pointed out to me by Col. Newnham himself, but I never to my recollection, received anything from or delivered anything to him.  As far as I remember, my dealings were only with the driver whom I had recommended to Col. Newnham.

I think the introduction of the new driver was made about 2 months before Col. Newnham was arrested.  A new system of lorry watching was now introduced, involving man from different huts.  No doubt full details of this system is given in Capt. Bird’s report.  By this time, I had roped in Lieut. Ian Tamworth to help me.  Although Col. Newnham had devised a means whereby messages could be sent by a faked wooden bolt secured under the lorry, “my” driver always seemed to prefer delivering the messages himself and generally wished to do so to me personally.  As I couldn’t always be on the spot, I one day pointed out Tamworth to the driver and told him that Tamworth could be trusted.  Thereafter, Tamworth and I would quite often act together.  It was sometimes necessary to distract the attention of the Japanese ration corporal who used to sit nest to the driver.  While Tamworth engaged him in conversation on one side of the lorry, I would do the necessary on the other side.

On the morning when Col. Newnham was arrested, I was not on the parade ground when the ration lorry arrived.  Col. Newnham came quickly into my hut and told me that Haddock had been taken out of camp and that the message which Haddock had taken from the driver was a faked one.  He asked me to take a good look at the driver (the lorry was still parked on the parade ground) and I did so.  He was not “my” driver, nor the one who had been subsequently brought in by Col. Newnham.

My activities in this sphere naturally came to an end after Col. Newnham’s departure.  I next turned my attention to obtaining necessary drugs for the hospital, being requested so to do by Dr. Strahan and others.  In this matter, Tamworth was more active than I, as he was teaching English to one of the Formosan sentries, Tsunekawa, who proved most obliging, and who purchased the required drugs cheaper than any other sentry.  Eventually Tsunekawa was shifted to Stanley and then to Canton and I have not seen him since.

In April, 1944, I saw among the sentries one whom I had not seen for more than a year - Okamura by name.  He told me he had just served a year’s sentence at Stanley prison where he had met Major Boxer and others.  He gave me all the news he could about the prisoners at Stanley.  This was, in fact, the first authentic news we in Camp received about the officers who had been removed from Argyle Street in the previous year.  Okamura told me that these officers were all suffering from malnutrition and needed medicine badly.  I got Dr. Strahan to give me a bottle of “Metabolin” which I handed to Okamura for Major Boxer.  Subse­quently, on 2 different occasions I handed 200 yen for the officers at Stanley.  I have since heard from Major Boxer that he received neither the medicine nor the money.  I do not, however, think this was Okamura’s fault.  It was not easy for him to contact his friends at Stanley as their respective leaves had to coincide before a meeting could be arranged.  Incidentally, the money I sent was provided by Lt. Francis Carey HKRNVR.

My next activity began in Shamshuipo, to which camp we had been shifted in May, 1944.  The Camp was once more badly in need of drugs and Co. white, the Camp Commandant, asked me to see what I could do.  The problem was to start up new “friendships” with the set of sentries guarding Shamshuipo.  I soon found a Guard Commander by the name of Arrai who was prepared to give me some help in exchange for some business in the way of watches, rings, etc.  His prices for medicine were cheap, and delivery was prompt.

On the night that Goodwin escaped from Camp (some time in July 1944) Arrai happened to have been on duty.  He told me after­wards he was severely punished for his “negligence”, and thereafter for a few months would not take any risks in getting medicines for the Camp.  I therefore obtained the services of two or three other sentries for this purpose.

Round about October 1944, Arrai spoke to me.  We had a long conversation.  To my surprise, I discovered that he was prepared to act for Chungking, and was in fact in negotiations with people who were in constant communication with our agents in Waichow.  To cut a very long story short, he wanted, among other things, to organize a big escape from Camp.  The party would leave under his guidance and that of 2 other Formosan sentries.  I now became greatly involved in this matter.  The telling of it would take many pages but I only propose to give the barest of outlines.  I brought various officers into the secret including Tamworth and Ian MacGregor.  At that time (it was Nov/Dec. 1944) we heard that Capt. David Pinkerton and others were planning an escape.  We got them to put off their trip so as to see whether Arrai could be of help to them.  Finally, after much argument, discussion, and many conferences both with and without Arrai, we decided that his scheme was not very practical.  Arrai next turned his attention to the escape of the 2 other Formosans who originally were to accompany our escaping party.  He was anxious to get them away as soon as possible.  I dared not give them anything in writing except a list of the officers in the Camp, with particulars of which were fit and which were not.  I obtained these particulars from Dr. Strahan.  These sentries left Camp (I think in January).  Two days later we heard of the occupation of Waichow by the Japanese.  Neither Arrai nor I heard from, or of, these sentries again, until after the surrender when I met Major Holmes of the BAAG, and he told me that they had got through and had given useful information to the Allies.

After the departure of the sentries, Arrai continued to be active over other matters.  Ever since Goodwin’s escape, he had lost all interest in trading, so that it cannot be said that he had ulterior motives in his efforts to help us.  I had by this time introduced him to Wing Commander Bennett and nearly all subse­quent conversations took place in Bennett’s presence.

Arrai was still anxious to help, and this time he got us into communication with Dr. Fred Kew of 102, Boundary Street, Kowloon.  We thought the Dr. Kew could possibly get us in touch with some Chungking agents so as to facilitate the sending of any instruc­tion by them to us in the event of Hongkong being attacked.

I have, since the Surrender, met Dr. Kew a few times.  I have now discovered that he is definitely a mental case, and I am very glad that nothing resulted from our correspondence with each other.

The above, then, is a summary of my activities in Camp.  In spite of all my efforts in certain directions, nothing definite was achieved - to my lasting disappointment.  (sign) 19 Sept 1945.