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Merriam Press Military Monograph 64 . Third Edition (March 2012).
"It's only a matter of days..." These words were spoken with
conviction by Americans caught in the Philippines after the
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Within hours of the raid on Pearl
Harbor, Japanese planes were attacking Clark Field and other
targets in northern Luzon in preparation for a major landing. The
Bailey's lives changed drastically that day, for within a month
they were snatched from a comfortable home and lifestyle assisted
by five servants and deposited on a stark University campus along
with three thousand other Americans and other "enemy" nationals.
They brought with them only what they could carry-food and clothing
for three days. As the days grew into weeks, the weeks into months,
and the months into years many were still hopeful that in only a
matter of days something was going to happen to drive out the
Japanese and free them from Santo Tomas Internment Camp. Those
years were meticulously recorded in a "Line-A-Day Five Year Diary"
that Caroline's father, Fay Cook Bailey, kept at great risk during
their thirty-seven months of imprisonment under the Japanese. The
recording of events was strictly forbidden by the Japanese Military
Authority. After the war they were all eager to put the experience
behind them, and the diary remained in a box of memorabilia from
Santo Tomas which Caroline inherited upon her father's death in
1983. Believing that it might be of historical interest, at least
for their family, she transferred it to a safety deposit box. In
1995, the 50th Anniversary of the Battle of Manila and of their
Liberation from Santo Tomas Internment Camp, she returned to the
Philippines with a group of fellow "POW Children" and three of
their liberators. The trip revealed just how deeply this wartime
experience in their childhood had affected them all, and it
motivated her to learn more about how they managed to survive the
ordeal. For a start, she turned to the diary. It became apparent to
her that her father had an important role in the camp both as
Treasurer of the Philippine Red Cross/American National Red Cross
and as Chief of the Finance and Supplies Committee, a function of
the Internee Executive Committee. Besides the personal entries, his
diary contains a great deal of information about the operation of
these two entities. A third aspect of interest is his recording of
all the rumors that nourished the faith and hopes of the prisoners.
Except for expanding the numerous abbreviations, the diary is
presented in its original form, a historically interesting account
of life in Santo Tomas Internment Camp as recorded by Caroline's
father, Fay C. Bailey. Shortly after the war, her father wrote an
article, primarily for the New York office staff of the National
City Bank, which describes in greater detail the events leading up
to their internment and also explains transactions he left out of
the diary during their incarceration. Therefore, it has been
included as a prologue to the diary. Contents: * Bits of Manila,
December 1941-February 1945 * December 1941-December 1942 *
January-December 1943 * January-December 1944 * January-March 1945
* Epilogue * List of Persons * Documents * 4 photos * 11
illustrations * 1 map * 144 documents.
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