A few nights ago, Hans told me that Dunckel ordered the internment of every German at Bilibid. Well, they're at the Holy Ghost College, where the menu beats Santo Tomas and includes apples and a merienda of biscuits and chocolate — five meals a day! They are living the Life of Reilly in the main building with the Sisters, and it's like a hotel.

As a matter of fact, there's a lot of discrimination going on right here in Manila with food and rations. The Spaniards and the Swiss get a special ration, as do the Americans outside Santo Tomas. The ordinary civilians get a ration too, but it's not comparable.

. . . .

At Santo Tomas, Mike Mihailoff told me he moved from Florida-Tennessee to Indiana when his house caught fire on the 9th, staying there until he was wounded. He saw no atrocities at all. "The Japanese didn't bother us — not once. They did snipe though.... I was probably hit by a Japanese bullet and not a stray." In the open field on the 14th, people warned him that the Japanese were killing anyone found with genuine pesos or dollars.

He had just walked out of the Remedios Hospital when the shell hit it on February 13. As for Nenuca Campa, she deserved half a dozen medals. "She was with us on the 14th in the open field, completely oblivious to shells, shrapnel and snipers, doing nothing but passing out medicines and changing bandages.... Gosh, she sure had guts." It's unanimous — Nenuca was a real heroine.

. . . .

Gabby biked by this evening for a chat. "That guy Hailil," he told me, "I feel sorry for him but for the most part it was his fault."

The day before, a shell exploded just before us with one hell of a clatter — the wonder was we escaped death. 'When do we eat?' asked Hailil a split second after. 'Leave me alone with your food!' I yelled back. The guy is fearless. At the moment he was hit he should have been in the air-raid shelter with all of us. Know what he was doing instead? Promenading up and down like Lord Nelson on his flagship! At that the Jap that shot him was a bastard. You see, nine of them were passing by and the first eight disregarded him. But the last guy, as an afterthought, stopped short, looked, and from but a few paces away shot him, after which he calmly shouldered the rifle and resumed his walk.

continues...