Odds and Ends: Before the war you could buy a Ford truck for P2,500 or less — a brand new one at that. One of the Ossorios recently rented a used pushcart for one day sans personnel for P2,500. A friend recently bought an automobile for P40,000 then sold the used tires for P45,000. Another friend recently turned down a P15,000 offer for his bike because he wanted P20,000. Soon after he was held up in broad daylight and robbed of his bike, a new P1,000 shirt and some cash.

Coming from San Juan to Valenzuela on the long isolated stretch after the San Juan Bridge, on either side of which rice is growing, is a little pond. The poorest of people have been known to spend a considerable time fishing there for a minnow or two for supper. Recently, two Japanese officers and 40 men jumped off their truck, bailed the water out and grabbed all the fishes.

Yes, the Japanese are more than hungry. Anyone taking food home in a bayong always feels uneasy passing Japanese sentries. For the most part though, the Japanese take only what their 8-10-man garrison needs for just one or two meals. They get plenty of rice but not much else. The friendly Sergeant near Maurice recently traded a ganta of rice for some of Maurice's eggs. The rice was worth P300 and the eggs only P165 so Maurice was pleased. After a few trades, the Sergeant started sending Maurice two pails of garbage a day for chicken feed. The pails are full of uneaten rice fit for human consumption. You should see Maurice's chickens now!