15 Dec 1941, Colin McEwan Diary

A telephone call in the morning established the fact that the ship had been well and truly finished and I personally had my first real feeling of satisfaction at something which had been done.

The previous day Mike had seen the C.P. and today Tai and I were taken along to see him and learn our next job. P.H.Q. had been pretty heavily hammered in the morning with some casualties and preparations were being made for transfer to the Gloucester Hotel. However, we got all our information and arrangements made for our return in the evening to carry out our real job. The early evening was not too pleasant as the work was not of the kind we relished but had to be done. P.H.Q. in the evening presented a queer scene – with no lights and the bar where we made our contacts lit up by flickering candles only. Here for the first time was noticeable the lack of cohesion among the police and a tendency to herd together and talk.

At last 10 o’clock came and with the feelings very confused we had the jail opened and our prisoners handed over. I had expected to feel some sympathy for them but instead felt only a slow anger and a feeling that they were not human beings in the real sense of the word. Coming out into the street was dark as hell and all we could feel was the presence of the Punjab guard, the rasp of their boots, and the occasional whimper of one of the prisoners who was taking it pretty badly.

In Queen’s Road they were soon lined up and shot, though one of them, who all along had preserved a dead silence, made a break for it and was cornered in an alley after a chase. Duly placarded they were left and home we went again via the Punjab H.Q. where some marvellous crusty bread, cheese, and whisky proved exactly what the doctor ordered. On the way home we were all pretty quiet – I personally had a mindful of thoughts – the changes we had seen – the difference in our lives – different attitudes to life and its value – change in occupation – all these provided plenty of interesting material for thought and in just such a ruminative frame of mind we went to bed in our ARP basement and, as was our custom now, while Mike and Betty had their little room Tai and I slept with our French girl friends - and mother – and slept well at that.