Franklin Gimson sees Lady Mary Grayburn in the afternoon and is pleased that she is now willing to 'reserve judgment' on 'many incidents' {presumably connected with the death of her husband} until after the war. She is, however, bitterly resentful that some internees believe that the uninterned bankers at the Sun Wah Hotel had lived a life of 'luxury and ease'.
Source:
Gimson Diary, Weston Library, Oxford, p. 53 (verso)
Note:
Things go on as usual in this place and with the weather being so cold one is always hungry, so that will be beneficial in that respect when the warmer weather arrives.
There is nothing much to report as regards our rations, tho' the vegetables we are receiving have improved slightly in quality and quantity, but we are receiving fish every day and so one missed beef. To give us the necessary fats and of course the loss of the flour for bread is a serious business for us.
Sandbach / Martin
(Drown / Jenner)
BO
((Lt Kerr has spent a second night hiding in an old foxhole in the mountains above Kowloon…waiting for Small Boy to bring the guerillas))
Fine. Wind changed 3.30pm. Cold & cloudy.
Ration carrying.
Saw Steve pm.
Night duty.
All lights off 9.30 & on again about 10pm. but no more lights allowed anywhere.
Air-raid?
OBJECTIVE: Attack southbound convoy that has just departed Hong Kong
RESULTS: B-25s search without success for convoy reported to be offshore between San Chau and Hong Kong. The pilots fly within five miles of Hong Kong, which they can see is not blacked out.
TIME OVER TARGET: ~6:00-7:00 p.m.
AMERICAN UNITS AND AIRCRAFT: One B-25H and two B-25Ds of the 11th Bomb Squadron (341st Medium Bomb Group)
AMERICAN PILOTS AND AIRCREW:
Frank 'One Arm' Sutton celebrates his sixtieth birthday.
He writes in his diary:
I am young no longer, ambition to take the world by storm has passed me and gone. I remember my many failures. I flee from life and do not pursue it, as formerly....Enthusiasm in starting each new job and brushing aside all obstacles is not wholehearted. What's the good? comes too easily to my mind.
Source:
Charles Drage, General of Fortune, 1973 ed., 259
((Lt Kerr has spent a third night hiding in the mountains above Kowloon…this night in a crevice among rocks))
…Two o’clock now …There’s a bay or something at the lower end of this valley and maybe a town……The shortest distance to any part of Free China must be thirty or forty miles away, and part of it is over water.
((6:00 pm)) The valley’s quiet now, not a movement anywhere. Just a little smoke coming from the House. …Hey, look! I nearly didn’t see those guys. Lt Kerr sees four boys walking near him
Fine.
Did my washing.
Finished n. duty.
Frid’s air-raid confirmed.
Choir practice pm.
Black-out.
Good nights sleep for a change.
((Lt Kerr has spent the night in a “charcoal cave” where local villagers had hidden him. Lt Kerr’s journal is not clear whether the events described here occurred on February 15 or 16, or spanned over the two days.))
Thomas Edgar sends a card to his parents in Windsor:
Dear Mother and All
We are still keeping very fit. Also getting enough food.
Weather has been ideal.
Best regards
Lena and Tom
'Stanley' is crossed out on the front of the card before 'Internment Camp' and 'Military' substituted.
Fine, colder, cloudy.
German lesson aft.
Jap paper news poor.
Choir practice 5pm. Carried harmonion [sic – harmonium?] down from A3 but it was found to be useless to us due to pitch A.
With Steve pm.
Black-out cancelled.
Fine, cloudy.
Ration carrying.
We seem to be doomed to fish for evermore.
Ground rice for Mary.
Paper news pessimistic as usual.
Saw Steve pm.
((Lt. Kerr has been hiding in a “charcoal cave” for several days…))
Cloudy day. About nine o’clock…I saw a Chinese girl dressed in a tattered lot of rags and carrying a pole over her shoulder with faggots of twigs hanging from each end. She whispered “Friend, friend” in English, put down her burdens and moved aside my careful camouflage. She crawled in, replaced the branches and began to talk.
Overcast, colder wind.
German lesson aft.
With Steve pm.
Prepared canteen list. No 25.
((Lt Kerr has been hiding in a “charcoal cave” for several days…))
6:15pm Y.T. arrived He asked me to hurry and eat, he said that tonight we’d go to another place…
Better day but still cold.
Canteen shopping.
Ground rice for Mary.
No news.
Choir practice 6pm. Saw Steve after.
Heavy explosion to N. 6pm.
((Lt Kerr has been hidden in tall grass near Siu Kung…))
I sat in the reeds all day. The weather was very peaceful and sunny. …
At meeting of Camp Rep. & HQ. rations & repat. discussed, also allowance. Something may be done for our benefit yet.
3 Pkts cigs issued.
Tea & cake with Steve aft.
Fine day, got washing done.
Saw Steve pm.
Old “Life” mags very interesting.