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A Happy New Year everybody!

Maryknoll Sisters Mary Christella and Mary Eucharista, who stayed behind to help Fathers Hessler and Murphy (see September 12, 1942), are released from Camp some time between Christmas and the end of January. Sister Mary Eucharista described the situation outside:

New Year's Eve deadly quiet. Contrast against noisy crackers and revelry of other years. Bleak weather. Cold. Using more electricity. Firewood is wet, heavy and hard to burn.

Eating plenty corn these days. Everybody buying corn mixing with flour. $1.35 catty. Later price rises to $1.60, then to $1.80. Word spreads and profiteers quick to take advantage of any demand.

Nice day.

Monthly I.R.C. rations issued.

Children’s Party during afternoon.

Concert by Co Optimists PM.

Extention of curfew to 9PM.

Played MaJong with Steve.

Ended with G. Lousy. Wonderful start for the New Year.

Optimists concert

2pm. Hosp. concert

((G.))

To Moring’s rehearsal 2PM.

(Brown) / Alton

RC nativity play

Death of J. Ross pensioner CMSNG, 69, S'hai

Death of marine engineer John Ross, aged 70. He'd been held in the Kowloon Hotel before being sent to Stanley.

Sources:

Geoffrey Emerson, Hong Kong Internment, 2011, 186

http://www.hongkongwardiary.com/searchgarrison/nonuniformedcivilians.html

Cookhouse.

((G.))

Nativity play

Colder.

((G.))

Blue coat back and no windbreaker.

Members of the Medical faculty of Hong Kong University discuss the future of the University 'on the hillside beside the entrance to Tweed Bay Hospital'. They agree unanimously that schools of dentistry and tropical medicine and hygiene will form part of the post-war University.

This leads to a meeting of the Univesrity's Senate at which Dr Lanchester will present the dentistry propsoal in more detail. The Senate will make no immediate decision but set up a sub-committee to look at the whole question of the University's reconstitution.

Cold fine day. Didn’t go out all day or PM.

((G.))

Move to kitchen, fixed up light, home 8.50PM.

((G.))

Moring's “Uncle Ned's Cabin” (p. Bill Colledge)

((G.))

Eve came during evening with a couple of cigs.

((G.))

Waste of time at Moring’s show.

Cold.

Up at Shamshuipo the POWs are woken at 6.30 by a bugler blowing the 'fall in' at the double. They stumble out of bed and into their clothes and make their way to the parade square. They find that the Japanese are changing the Camp Commandant. It will now be Lieutenant Wada, former head of North Point POW Camp, just returned from three months in Japan.

Moring's “Uncle Ned's Cabin”

((G.))

Walk with Steve pm.

((G.))

Moring's “Uncle Ned's Cabin” & matinee