But the next morning, the 16th, after sleeping on it, we couldn’t understand our last night’s madness, and the market slumped heavily. The hospital party paraded and departed, and we said jokingly and feebly that they were lucky to be going that morning because they’d be able to stop in Bangkok and off they went.

But during the morning a rice-carrying party met Pong cycling up and down outside: ‘Peace. Finish!’ he whispered. The tide finally turned at that point, and from after lunch stories and rumours of the unconditional surrender of Japan poured in. God, how we wanted to believe it! It just could not be true! Surely the bloody Nips couldn’t have packed in already! No one could eat or sit still. We visited our friends and talked it all over from every angle. We waited. And then, just before dusk that evening, Mashusta officially confirmed all and every glorious rumour we’d heard: THE WAR WAS OVER! And the camp went mad!

CHAPTER 19

WELL, really, mad was not the right word. It was the most peculiar and emotional feeling that tried and wanted to express itself immediately but didn’t know how to do it. As soon as they heard the definite news, the huts, which had been buzzing with speculation and excitement the whole evening, broke into a babble of voices and laughter. People rushed round, tears of emotion in their eyes and with that gooseflesh feeling up and down their spines, shaking hands with each other, grinning, swearing and swapping the latest rumours and developments. Somehow or other we all gravitated to the area at the top of the huts facing the big padang that separated us from the town of Kamburi. Amid the knots of people standing in the darkness several senior officers were forcing their way with jungle torches, collecting a few musical instruments so that at least our pent up emotions could have some outlet in singing God Save The King. The King was sung then probably as sincerely as it ever had been; the line ‘Send him victorious’ thundered its way across the padang into Kamburi itself. Then the American and Dutch National Anthems were sung, and we began to feel a little better.

At 10 p.m. there was to be an official announcement from the stage, and every man was there a quarter of an hour early. Then we heard that the Japanese had surrendered unconditionally due to the Atomic Bomb and the entry of Russia into the war. Some Koreans had said that one bomb had caused over 250,000 casualties. As regards ourselves, the Nips were still responsible for guarding, feeding, and looking after us! We couldn’t yet leave the camp, for no Nips would be disarmed for some weeks, and there might be marauding bands from Burma in the neighbourhood. As the Nips had to concentrate on us, the move to the new camp would continue. Oh yeah!