Father William J. Downs was a Maryknoll missionary and ordained on 17 June 1916. In 1925, he was assigned to Kaying (Meizhou/Meixian) in Guangdong. In 1939, Father Downs came to Hong Kong to teach the Hakka dialect to new missionaries.
After the fall of Hong Kong, he was interned at Stanley Camp. In September 1942, Father Downs and other Maryknoll missionaries were released from Stanley Camp and permitted to proceed to their mission stations in China. See here. He returned to the United States in 1943.
After the end of the Pacific war, he returned to Hong Kong and South China, and finally leaving Hong Kong in 1969.
Source
1. Maryknoll Archives: https://maryknollmissionarchives.org/deceased-fathers-bro/father-william-j-downs-mm/
2. Photo of Father Downs: https://digitallibrary.usc.edu/archive/Father-Downs-with-his-dog-in-Meixien--China--1935--2A3BF1A4ZX3I.html