42
Thompson then goes on the Luk Hoi Tung Hotel words:
to describe an incident outside which is as follows in his own
"While interned in the Luk Hoi Tung Hotel I personally saw an elderly Chinese lady waiting for a sampan to cross the harbour molested by two Japanese soldiers. Her bundles were kicked into the Harbour and she was cut across the head and shoulders with their bayonets. When I last saw her she was being led off by sympathetic friends with blood streaming from her head".
Thompson then goes on:
•
"On the other hand there were many instances of kindness and sympathy by individual Japanese soldiers. While at the Luk Hoi Tung Hotel I saw several acts of kindness and sympathy towards elderly persons and children. Mrs. Priestwood can quote instances of personal kindness towards herself."
I personally have received little disagreeableness from the Japanese and have on two occasions received definite kindness, actually on more than two occasions, but will give you the two incidents here.
+
-
After I was told to leave the flat in which I was living in Hongkong I was standing in the road outside the building with my luggage stacked around me and having considerable argument and difficultywith six coolies who were endeavouring to charge me eighty Hongkong dollars, which is the equivalent in National Currency, at the exchange we received, of f our hundred, to move this baggage to the next street. This charge to put it mildly was slightly exhorbitant when two Japanese officers came up one spoke English. - and, asked me if I had to move and when I said I had he asked me if I had anywhere to go and I said "No I hadn't" they then asked me if I had any money and I said I had a little Then they enquired as to what the argument with the coolies was about and I said they were demanding too much and I had in my hand at the time Hongkong dollars twenty which I considered a fair price for what I was requiring this Japanese officer took the twenty dollars out of my hand, handed ten to me and ten to the coolies and told them to get on with their work and they then both ranged themselves behind me and insisted in no mean manner that the coolies did as they were told. They then offered
-
me
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.