Diary of George Gerrard in Stanley Internment Camp Hong Kong: View pages

This is the day of the famous San Francisco conference and now that we have the news of the Russian entry into Berlin (reported in Hong Kong on Tuesday 24th April, message dated 22nd April) it will be a momentous meeting big consequences. Japan must see the writing on the wall and the Lord help them. We must wait and see what their reaction is to all this.

On the strength of the entry into Berlin I opened my last tin of meat (steak and tomato) and it was the most glorious meat I've had in ages. Meat of any kind is simply delicious to us who haven't tasted meat for 18 months and as well we haven't had fish for 4 months so actually we are strict vegetarians and poor ones at that. Full credit must be given to the kitchen for their efforts to make the soup or stew or dish (any name you like to give it), as tasty as possible but when one only gets lettuce or cucumber well I ask you.

However now that Europe is being over run by our folks surely it can't be long before our release comes. We are having a change of Japs in the camp. Hera and Walaiche are going away (back home) and Kadowcki and Kodie are taking their place. Every change made in the administration of this camp has always been the worse for us, not with standing their good? promises.

I still go to Dr Grooga with regard to beri beri pellagra and other malnutrition troubles and also to Dr Talbot about my eyes. I have been getting thiamine injections for the last few weeks but the dose is so small. I sometimes wonder if it does me any good, at any rate I'm not worse. I manage to keep my weight (154lbs) although I don't get extra rations. 

Since writing the above I have received your two loving and wonderful letters of 21/3/43 and 2/5/43, old ones but very nice and newsy. What the Japs have done with the letters all this time fair takes the biscuit. We haven't been allowed to send postcards for last month and this (March and April), but they still give us instructions that we mustn't mention release or reunion and so on, and no postcards to send anything at all. The Japs are well just trash and treat us like pigs.

Peace in Europe at long last. I always remember the German broadcast say 'England always stood for the Was but Germany will finish it once and for all' Well it is finished and we hope once and for all but in a vastly different manner from what he had intended and we trust and longingly hope that all war will soon be finished out here as well. The might of the world is against Japan so she had better pack in while the going is good and at least save something (that is her country) from the wreck which is inevitable if she continues.

Surely wiser leaders in Japan will have the common sense to see her destruction looming ahead. I see by the paper that the jubilation in New York and London far surpassed 1918. We tried to be cheery here but had nothing to celebrate on, poor vegetables and rice only and this is one of these very stormy days, high winds and very wet then it is the day on which the water is on. Tom Weller hid a bottle of current wine kept over and made when the Canadian parcels came and this he opened and we each had a small mouthful and Andrew McBride being flush gave each of us a cigarette.

The food just now is at its lowest ebb, due principally to our terrific blockade and also to the bombing of all the craft on the way here from Canton and other river ports. However we can stick it out and trust our release will be soon. 

There are lots of rumours about repatriation to Manila and Ceylon ,but I've my doubts. We were the first to be captured and I think the last to be relieved. ' The first shall be the last'.

We have not been allowed to write our usual postcards for March, April and no sign yet of any for May, the last one I wrote being for February. The Japs assure us that the necessary postcards are not yet to hand, in other words even if we wrote them they couldn't get away in any case owing to no shipping getting here. It seems a long time since any ships made the port of Hong Kong unless they now use the Lyemma entrance which they haven't done previously.

Life goes on here as usual, a lousy life, living so close to one another, arguments, quarrels, joy at the news, laughter at some silly cases and so on but nothing constructive. My eyesight is not so good nowadays and my memory for things that happen and things said is not retentive also I am having a lot of intermittent malaria with headaches and fever every second day and sometimes on successive days. J.T. has given me some quinine which I hope will help. My weight still remains about 150 lbs.

Now that Europe is cleared up and all is quiet on all the various fronts, the next move will be a terrific concentration of war material out East to be waged against Japan and it would be politic for her to pack in now than bear the horrible onslaught which will be loosed on her all over. I wonder too what happens to your job now that is over as I have presumed what you have been working at was Good work of some kind. However I hope you will be all right. It must be fine at home now, with no lighting restrictions and the start of the summer.

Nell I must tell you of what my idea is if and when this bloody war is over and should I get home and that is that you and I get in touch with the Conn's at the Grange Farm, Bermounth Halt or some place of similar nature and stay there for a few weeks and so build our health up. I know I need it badly to help me in the future to renew defective tissues, bring back memory and restlessness, eyesight, get rid of malaria, beri-beri, pellagra and albumen in my water and so on. A good lazy rest with plenty of rich food. Boy oh boy. I look forward to our day Nell.

I was delighted to receive your letter of 19/9/43 and postcard of 16/5/44 and am so glad that you are all right and I think that you are liking Edinburgh and your work there. Thanks for all your encouragement which cheers me no end. I also received a letter from Cubey dated 26/6/42 which has taken about 3 years to come. They are all well.

I wasn't able to finish my notes last Wednesday as I developed a terrific fever and had to lie down then in the early hours of the morning bowels just opened wide and in the morning I made an attempt to the lavatory but only got half way and Davie Bone managed to revive me and bring me back to bed. I suffered a lot from looseness, red hot urine, fever and terrific shattering headache and finally was forced into Tweed Bay Hospital on Monday night 29th May. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday I was very lousy and spent a measurable time both day and night, but I'm glad and thankful to say that today I am more like myself tho' still very weak and not yet allowed up. My water works got into a bad way and generally speaking I am not as well and as strong as I used to be. I'm on Sulphathiazole, 2 tablets every 4 hours and they are a splendid cure all right.

This time I am in ward no 3 the Medical ward and double the number of beds to ward 1 but not nearly so dreary. I'm benefiting from the eggs procured from our chicken farm, I have received 2 (pigeon?) eggs since except Thursday (1 only).

On Friday I received your two glorious and loving letters of 16/5/43 and 30/8/43 and for both of these I was very grateful and so glad to know that you were well and doing so well and the greetings and news contained therein were very welcome and pleased me very much.

I hopefully trust that it wont now be very long before we are celebrating together again. For me it can't come too soon. I wrote another postcard to you last week the previous one being February last, but I hae me doots as to whether you'll ever get it.

The Japs have made a new switch in rations, reduced the one issue drastically but have promised us once a week beef, pork or pheasants, which I'm inclined to think is all baloney however we'll wait and see. Also they have promised to increase the vegetables quantity but as they can't supply proper veg as it is well I ask you.

The Japs have stopped the supply of newspapers to the camp as from the end of last month (May) so that we get no news war or otherwise at all, rumours are expected to be wild rumours.

Glad to say I am much improved in health and getting better every day, tho' still very weak. On the 3rd the doctor changed me onto Sulphadiquid which is a branch of streptocide group (Pyelitis).

On Thursday 7th I received your loving letter of 28/2/43 from Inverness and I was very thrilled with it and so glad of all your glorious encouragement. Thanks a lot.

There is no news from the outside world so we are in the dark as to the on goings of the war tho' there are rumours about the capture of Pung and expected landing on the China coast. There has been a lot of --- by the Formosan guards amongst the Black Market people, two of whom are in hospital. Glad to say I am keeping a lot better and enjoying my food better. Also I sleep better at night-time.

I was discharged from Tweed Bay Hospital this afternoon and am feeling a wee bit exhausted after the long walk from the hospital to our room here. Davie Bone and C. Greig ((probably G. Craig, who shared a room with Bone and Gerrard)) came down and carried my things back. I was given splendid attention in the hospital and am very grateful for all that the doctors and sisters did for me.

Keeping very much better and getting stronger again every day. Not much news except that last weekend we got beef which caused great excitement as this is the first beef we have had since January 1944 and we have again got beef for it came in last night so we'll get a decent stew today.

As we have not been allowed newspapers since the end of May, any news trickling into the camp is very scarce and most unreliable but sifting it out and using our grey matter thing must be moving rapidly and our release should not be long delayed.

Conditions in the camp are very poor, the food supply being well just water, rice, water melon and pumpkin all water, but with beans added it is palatable. There is not any body building material except the meat that we are now getting at the weekends. We have had beef for the last 3 weekends, but in very small quantities. I have had to buy in the Black Market what I can as after my illness I was very weak and still suffer from fever and so I've sold things to get the necessary Yen. The water supplies now better being on every day for part of the day. Weather Typhoony.

There was a big Stemozzle on Monday 9th which incidentally was the anniversary of my first landing in Hong Kong 31 years ago. Edward Reed in our block was arrested by the guards over stealing sugar from the godowns where the Japs keep their stocks of rice etc. This sugar was being sold on the Black Market, I bought some myself (1/2lb) from Toder who was selling or acting as agent for T. Edwards who was ditto for Reed. Evidently the guards put the screw on Reed and he broke away and hid himself. At 8 o'clock the general alarm was sounded and we had to fall in for role call. We stood at attention then at ease, then heels were clicked because we stood at ease and so on, after an hour of this the whole place seemed to be swarming with Japs and Formosan guards it then appeared that Reed had given himself up and so we were dismissed but we all thought that we were going to be beaten up. Reed is now in hospital after having a very rough time.

Planes over on Thursday. Weather slightly better but the chow very poor.

This has been an exciting week. On Wednesday 25th at noon a large plane passed over St Stephens and dropped a large parcel of bombs or depth charges or what have you. I heard the plane and rushed out to the veranda but on looking up to see I was blinded by the sun and then suddenly there was a terrific Swish as if bombs were falling, actually one went through' the roof of Block 8 and landed on Henderson, Keen and Goodwins room but didn't go off. Another on the road which slid under the --- and 2 went through' the roof of Bungalow A and some landed over onto the bank but strangely enough not one exploded, altho' there were a few causalities though none very serious. May Call, girl Woods and Ewan Houston were the worst. ((Probably Rev. Myhill, Leilah Wood, and Mavis Hamson, based on other reports of the incident.))

We were then ordered out of the buildings and told to go to block 10 where we spent the afternoon. Poor homeless victims but W Fyffe and I went to Dow Houston and so were made welcome with plenty of tea. Then we had a chow on the Tennis court with borrowed utensils and later we were allowed to go back to our own block (9) but the people in Block 8 had to park themselves all over the place. We took Waters and Mitchelson into our room. It is all a mystery as to whose plane it was and why out of about a dozen bombs not one exploded otherwise the casualty list would have been tremendous. The conjecture is that the plane was in difficulties and jettisoned his cargo so that they accidentally fell out of the bomb rack.

The people belonging to Block 8, bungalows A, B and C got permission to return to their own rooms on Thursday 2nd August. All nonsense and typical of the Japs mind to keep these people more or less street sleepers as the bombs? for want of another name were removed last Saturday several days after the actual bombing. How much longer we are going to be here I wonder.

The small news we hear is said to be good and there are good prospects for our early release I hope. Another new Prime Minister 31 years since 1st Great War.

Happy Birthday to Nell and all good loving wishes. I had hoped we would have been outside and free, but not yet, and so would have been able to cable you. However that day can't be very long delayed now, especially as the meagre news we get is so good. Thanks your letter of 6/3/44 received yesterday

A big shock on Friday 10th August when news came that about 175 men including the wives of those that had them were to proceed to town that same day. They were mostly electrical, wireless, civil and mining engineers. We had to bustle around and give them their rations etc. Tom MacIntyre from our room, W. Little ((probably W. Littler)) and S. Docherty ((probably S T Doughty)) were the 3 T Dockyard ((Taikoo Dockyard)) workers who went. They took all their luggage and left the pier by the Prep. school sometime late in the evening on an N class of vessel and said to be headed for Kooloa ((Kowloon)) somewhere.

This forenoon we had a special pasting from a lone plane which machine gunned, cannoned and shot small vessels which attend to the boom. Russia in the war against Japan, splendid. Now it shouldn't be long.

If the war is not over then the end is not far away if the stories we hear from the Formosan guards have any semblance of truth. They are running round in circles and trying to be friendly.

According to Chinese newspapers which have found their way into camp the war is over and the Japs have accepted our terms. Glory be if true.

Thank God the War is over. Mr Gimson has just issued official statement that the Japs have accepted the terms as laid down by the Potsdam Conference. He is now in command of the camp. We now hope for an early release when the army and navy arrive. It wont be long now Nell.

Everyday is now Momentous and thrilling. Yesterday (Saturday) D.B.B. and I were at J.F's and were arranging our programme for an immediate survey of the yard when we are allowed to go to town. A priority list of the staff here was made out with D.B.B and G.G. and so on.

As we were discussing things a wave of planes came over and dropped pamphlets signed by Wadeneger. One of the most remarkable reactions in this camp is the reaction of everyone's stomach to rice. Most internees could until recently could eat all the rice they could lay their hands on, now people have taken a scunner to rice. Rice is being wasted and now today extra rations of rice are being given but the people can't eat more.

Today's lightner was the allowing of visitors to visit the camp and in comes Yatchumen and his two sons what a thrill J.F. and I got. We went to J.F's place and got all the news of the Dockyard which I recorded. The details I have left with J.F and will record the particulars later. He brought us bananas, sugar, tea, cooked meat and buns which I divided out to our lads here in the room.

((This is the last entry in the diary. Following the relief of Hong Kong in 1945 he was repatriated on a hospital ship which docked in Liverpool towards the end of 1945. He weighed approximately 6.5 stone, a loss of 10 stone over the internment period. After recuperation he returned to Hong Kong and retired in 1951. He returned to Glasgow and was employed by RB Stirling and Co Ltd. He was made redundant in 1962 and moved shortly afterwards to Whitley Bay. He died around 1970.

You will see from the diary that he did not keep in good health in the camp and he lost more than half his bodyweight. This despite being quartermaster for his block so he does not seem to have taken advantage of this position. You will also see from the entries his love for his wife and it is very poignant that having survived the war he was not reunited with her. I do not know the reason or anything beyond the barest of facts. Nell was evacuated to Australia before the invasion and then back to Scotland. She later moved to Canada and that is the last I know of her. The diary indicates that she wrote to him and certainly at the time of liberation he gives no indication that he did not expect to be going back to him.))