R. E. Jones Wartime diary: View pages | Gwulo: Old Hong Kong

R. E. Jones Wartime diary: View pages

Showers, hot, no wind.

No work today.

With G on roof 6.30 – 8pm

?G

Meat affecting some peoples tummies.


Cloudy, hot, light airs.

Odd jobs. Rings for Pope, Mary, Brown, Raymond, Dawes & G. Window frame from P.O.C. for Leprosarium. ((Several choices for the other names. "P.O.C." = Prison Officers' Club))

Slept on roof but rain spoilt. Full moon, eclipse. [Little pencil drawing of moon]


Rained, hot & bright later.

Ground rice for G.

Window frame.

Got my Canteen W.T. & salt.

Rumour re Internees shifting to Gaol very persistent.

McArthur in Kunming. Fukien coast in our hand. 56,000 Chinese troops. Quelpart Is. attacked.


Rained all day. Cooler.

Rings for Pemble & Jowett. Window frame.

Rec. letter from Hilda Jan. ’44. Mother rec. card from me Dec. ’43.

Workers cigs issued (15).

Landing S of Swatow of Chinese troops. British take Bankok?

?C Fin.


Planes about all night.

Rained heavily.

Window frame.

3 landings on Kyushu after big naval battle 21st.


More planes.

Heavy showers all day. SW wind.

Lep. window fitting.

Very fed up. No G no smokes.

Extract from Statement re Rations covering 1942 – May 1945 sent to Tokyo

  Min. by L of Ns.
[League of Nations?]
Supplied
Protein 75 36.8
Fats 50 21.4
Carb.Hyd. 400 348.9
Calories 2,400 1738
V.A. 5000 610
V.B1 250-500 172
V.B2 400-800 94
V.C. 50-75 54
Calcium 0.8 0.287
Phosph. 1.2 0.591
Iron 0.012 0.0081

Average weight of fit man 129 lbs

?


Bright & hot.

Fitted in window frame at Lep.

Lorry with meat & veg 6pm.

Made 3 more rings.

Some meat stolen, thrown off the lorry before arrival & later sold.


NE wind, warm, showery.

Slight temp 101’ this am but normal by 10am on G’s thermometer.

Workers’ sugar.

Spring-cleaning finished.

We all hope for a happy month, for something to happen for our good. 

Lorry with veg 7pm.

Mrs Harrison barging about 10pm.

Booze party at Franks. ((Probably fellow Prison Officer, E S Franks.))

Beach open & a pm ∴


Bright, hot, no wind.

Planes about early am.

Glazing in Lep.

With Steve pm.

No smokes.

Sugar 1.6oz & tea 1oz issued.

Russia warns Japan to surrender? ∴


Hot, cloudy, NE wind.

Window panes for Lep. window.

Thompsons room change with G. ((Not sure which Thompsons))

German lesson.

Med. inspection by Hackett of workers. B.P.125

∴ warm.

Lorry with 2 days veg & private parcels.


Another US Independence Day.

Cloudy, hot, showery. S wind.

Window in Lep.

Awfully fed up am.

(Rumours. Enough British troops in Luzon to re-take Singapore & HK. Chinese warned to be ready for an attack on Colony. Chungking & Red Armies converging on Ning Po)

Dug potatoes pm 7lbs Gs


5 yrs. since Marj went away. I’ve forgotten what married life was like now.

Cooler, showery, E wind. 

Lep. window.

German lesson.

Cigs’ up to 50Y per packet.

Set more pots for G((He's planting more potatoes, replacing the ones he dug up yesterday))


Cool, showery, E wind.

Outside roll-call. Some unpleasantness, the rats are bad tempered about something.[He’s drawn an arrow linking this statement to the one about Russia declaring war]

Ring for G’s friend.

Cigs now 35Y. 4/1d each.

Mary lent me Y75 for Canteen, to G.

Russia declared war on Japan 4th?  

W.T. ¼  Tea ¼  Salt ¼  ½ box matches. ∴


Overcast, showers, strong E wind, cool.

Finished glazing Lep. window.

Spoon for G, sat 3.30pm – 4.30pm. so nice.

No smokes, no news.

Lorry in 10.30pm. Meat & Black market goods.

∴x


Overcast, showery. Cool, S wind.

Chopped wood V & G.  

With Steve aft. real flour cake.

Ring for Ying. 

No flag up. No rescription [?] in East.

Black-market stuff: Lard 875Y. Sugar 300Y. Sardines 400Y. 

Weather improved pm.

Lorry with veg. 10pm. ∴


Humid, showery SW wind.

Finished off Lep. window.

Col. came in.

Engineers etc. checked up by Japs. Much conjecture re reason.

Flower vase from ½ “ U.S.A.F. cartridge to G.

Outside roll-call due to Reid being absent. (Some trouble re sugar stolen from go-down) ∴


Guard about Camp all night in connection with Reid.

Humid, cloudy, showery.

Made door etc. for Hosp.Cookhse fire. Ring & small urn for V.

Reid found & retained re stolen sugar.

Lorry with veg 7pm. 

New Moon.

G not so good ∴

Workers sugar.


Showery, hot, SW wind.

Franks hid sugar in Clubroom chimney but it had gone at 1am. Got sooty in process of “retrieving” some of it but I was unlucky.

Odd jobs.

2 more rings for Chung & Ying.

Reid released.

Shortage of soap & salt & news.


Hot. SW wind.

Reid supposed to have attempted suicide, is now in Hosp. (for safety?)

Taps in Hosp.

A/r alarm 12.30-1pm.

G seems to be off today in temp.

Walk with Steve & Monty pm. ((Who was Monty?))

£50 G & V & £50 myself through Mary Y2000

∴x


Hot, showery. SW wind.

Odd jobs.

Outside roll-call. No incidents.

A/r alarm 11.45-1.30pm.

Another vase ex ½ “ cartridge to G.

3 ½ pkts. cigs issued Y5-60. Black-market price Y36 per pkt £2-2-0 ∴

Trouble re Reid apparently over. He is a bad lot altogether it seems, a future gaolbird.

R.C. beans & bran arrived.


Pages