92 of another parent in the same predicament. The three of us decided to ask the Swiss representative if he could contact Tokyo and try and get some information about the five children. The Swiss was reluctant to do so. However he finally complied and within forty-eight hours we had this reply from the Japanese Foreign Office: - "Children now assembled in Shanghai awaiting embarkation on the Kamakura." The Kamakura, the next repatriation ship, was scheduled to leave Shanghai August 16th, four days from then. We had a prayer of Thanksgiving. I knew the children were now in Shanghai and would almost surely follow me. At Saigon we picked up another small group of Britons. Some had come around by sea from Siam. Our next stop was Singapore where we anchored twenty-five miles for the port opposite the Johore Strait. Here we had to take over 2000 tons of fresh water for the non-stop run to Lourenco Marques in Portuguese, East Africa. An old tramp steamer had been converted into a water carrier and brought the water. We stayed at this anchorage for 48 hours. We were all impatient as we dreaded that some incident might arise which would cancel the exchange and we would be sent back to Japan. There were still many long sea miles between us and Liberty. During our stay at the anchorage some Japanese planes stunted over the vessel as a last gesture to show their might. The next time I saw that well-known insignia was in combat over Buna [almost due north of Port Moresby] where I was not an impotent spectator. We passed into the Indian Ocean via the Sunda Strait and soon began rolling, with the SouthEasterly Trades, on the long diagonal drag across the Indian Ocean. Our spirits revived as we entered "home waters." Out there, passing with darkened lights were our own vessels. Thirteen days to Liberty and the family. I had the latest map of the National Geographical Society, a map of the Indian Ocean and China Seas (Western Pacific). It included our itinerary from Shanghai to Africa. No one else amongst the prisoners had a map. I could plot our position daily and was able to lend it to Sir Robert Craigie, our ambassador to Japan and his counselor Bothwick Houston.
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