19 Mar 1945, John Charter's wartime journal

The individual parcels that were sent to a few fortunate internees by friends in Canada, have been distributed. There were some 200 parcels I think, quite a few of which were addressed to people who have long since left camp (Canadians) or died. The wife of Bill Evans, Harold’s cousin who was here during the blitz, sent him a lovely parcel. But Evans had managed to escape from HK between the surrender and our internment and has never been in this camp. Harold put in a claim to the parcel as being Evans’ nearest relative here and eventually he was allowed by the Japs to take possession of it. This has happened in the case of all ownerless parcels. Unfortunately neither Y nor I have had any departed relatives in camp!

Harold’s parcel contained clothes and toilet accessories: I cannot remember all the items but it included: a hand knitted pullover, 2 pairs hand knitted mens stockings, 3 pairs socks, two or three shirts, underpants and vests, 2 pairs shorts, handkerchiefs, 5 large cakes Palmolive soap, 5 big tins Gibbs Dentifrice, 3 Lek toothbrushes, a Gillette razor in case with 30 blades! And I almost forgot the two boxes of Keatings insect powder! I think every parcel that arrived in camp contained bug powder of some make! How did they guess?! I wonder who recommended it. It was a lovely parcel and has quite set up old Harold for clothes, though it does not help Elsie much. He had 2 towels also, so Elsie can use these, the soap, toothbrushes, dentifrice etc.

Marjorie Fortescue had a parcel too, full of lovely clothes for herself. She does not know the sender and it is someone whom her mother contacted from England and requested to buy and dispatch the goods. The Fortescue’s still recieve monthly parcels from town that Zindle purchases with money sent by Marjorie’s mother through the Red Cross. Marjorie’s mother seems to be a clever woman, for I don’t think many other people in camp receive goods in this way.

There has been a good deal of activity of late – chiefly reconnaissance but a few bombs have been dropped. Of shipping activity there has been very little; most of the Jap ships seem to have cleared out by about the end of last month. I wonder if it presages anything.