23 Jun 1943, Diary of George Gerrard in Stanley Internment Camp Hong Kong

The big news this week is that we have each received 20 Yen from the International Red Cross. It was paid out to us on Tuesday and very welcome it is too. There are many things that are absolutely necessary and unfortunately with prices rising so high most are out of our reach but soap, shoelaces (string often has to do), sugar or wong tong, bananas (eggs are now 70sen each an impossible price) bean curd, soy sauce and so on.

The past week has been terrible with continuous heavy rain making washing if not impossible, at any rate the drying of the clothes a knotty problem with the consequence that washing has just not been done and clothes are smelly and damp, also the bedding is damp and clammy. However we hope that the sun will shine soon in more ways than one.

J.F. had a letter from his sister in Dundee (Kerr) saying that Mrs F. had received his letter which he had written in May last year before the Americans went away and which presumably went with them when they sailed on 1st July.

D.B.B. and I were at J.Fs' on Saturday evening for our usual. There is no further news of repatriation tho' it is fully expected that it won't be long before the women and children go.

Hugh Smith and Margaret Black are getting married on Saturday by Ken Dow and the ceremony is to be at the Tweed Bay Hospital and the reception is to be held in the Sisters Quarters on the top floor.