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Human nature does not change much, even with modern civilization. Isn't there a series of Egyptian frescoes or mosaics depicting the triumphal return of victorious armies. If I remember rightly among the items of interest is a royal barge. The King and various inenbers of his entourage are shown, and on the side of the barge near the prow, is the captive King attached to the
side of the hull by hooks through his body. D:.:.
The Japanese, Germans and Russians may be a little more subtle in their inhumanities, but the pain and suffering they inflict is as great if not greater. And the scars left on the mind are worse if anything than the scars on the body.
The people on the Abama Maru were a very much steam rollered lot, most of them. There were very few that had not had some pretty awful experience, And if things had not been done to them they had seen and heard them done to other people. Many of them want to return to the East as soon as possible. I heard one wanan say, "I want to go back as soon as they will let me. I'm not going
to talk, the Japanese might get to know about it and it would go against me later on." Despite all she had seen, she had been in prison for six months, and had heard people in adjoining cells dying slowly of starvation, that was apparently the favorite way of polishing people, chinese, off in her part of Manchuria, she was ready to go back, under the Japanese. wonderful people, these missionaries. what she and her friends told me gave me the horrors. I had seen quite enough on my own, and been through enough, to unsteady my nerves. I have just heard that a few days ago, they had a aceting on this ship, to discuss among themselves methods for smoothing things over, minimizing them, pacifying the Japanese, so that they can return to their jobs.
when we reached Lourenço Marques Mr. Darcy koŭreer the Canadian Chargé D'Affaires was good enough to take along Bone letters to the Consulate General, to be sent off by airmail. I had also asked his advice about what could be done for the Blackburna and the others of the Embassy at Stanley Prison. He had thoroughly approved my suggestion that a telegram might be sent off to the Foreign office asking for immediate help for them.
He sent a message through the British Consulate. And later on in the day, the lat day after we were allowed to go ashore, I called on Mr. Ledger, to ask his advice and to enquire whether any word had come for me from home, I was not able to see him, but the young vice-consul was helpful, and also a kir. Garnet, I believe he was in charge of shipping. He handled telegrams, and thought in view of additional information I gave him, that it would be advisable to send a further message about the Blackburns giving more explicit recommendations for relief for them, as the matter was urgent. He also sent off a telegram on my behalf to the Foreign Office in London, and to the British Consulate General in New York, asking them to advise my people there that I would be arriving on the Gripsholm.
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