Evening star., 1942-07-25
Mrs. White
Continued From First Page.

WUIhulS /4-NOuI pdtION anu 4 SdQl"
tation and health department with
more than 500 workers.
There was also a sizeable hos
pital and a newspaper called Camp
Affairs" published semi-weekly and
edited by Russell Brines of the As
SOciated Press; a central kitchen,
community feeding, a fire depart
ment and a sports and music COM
mittee. There were college courses
in everything from engineering to
Chinese and there was schooling for
tn children.
We converted a Junk pile into
vegetable garden which eventually
supplied tvo-thirds OF the commun-
ity's needs.
Organized Own Clubs.
The internees built portable
stage, weekly entertainments were
held, fund for indigents was estab-
lished and there were religious serv-
ices for all sects. There even was
Rotary Club and Junior League.
If we needed anything we didn't
have we generally made it out of
odds and ends.
The first internees arrived at
Santo Tomas University on January
4. Originally the Japanese said we
were called merely for the purpose
of registration-which would be a
matter of three days. This was an
understatement. We settled down
to a regular, simple life at the
school.
Every one volunteered for work
for which he was best fitted. A sour
looking businessman enjoyed making
building repairs; debutantes asked
to scrub floors, and bankers volun-
teered for the garbage collection
detail.
Persons who had been living over
we'll began to look and feel better
than they had for years. Many were
tanned and hardened in the sun by
regular exercise. Some waistlines
shrank as much as eight inches.
460 Shared Three Showers.
The way Americans made the best
of what they had came to the rescue
in the crowded conditions. More
than AGO women on one dormitory
floor shared three showers which
internees themselves built. In my
room there were "a other women
and girls. On the mems side the
conditions were about the same with
per capita area in the dormitories
of 30 square feet
The camp had towns such as
"Shantytown" and "Glamorville, "
the latter being regarded as choice
! real estate. Signs like Fifth Ave-
nue." Broadway" Market Street"
and "Piccadilly" appeared and some
nostalgia soul put up one saying,
Subway Entrance. A prankster
marked LOS Angeles City Limits"
near the communal washing trough.
Individual shacks could be used
until roll call each night at 8 o'clock
Z Saw Few japanese.
Then we reported to the room
monitors who were responsible for
our presence and behavior to the
higher officials who were answer
able to the Japanese.
Generally we saw no japanese
except a few guards wandering
about in slippers watching the busi-
nesslike doings of their incompre-
hensible prisoners.
Santo Tomas was selected because
it had campus of 80 acres and was
distant from any military objectives
An American air raid in Janu-
ary brought an anti-aircraft bar
rage closely around us, necessitat-
ing the use OF gun on the roof OF
our building
The japanese insisted that we
were held in protective custody but
any infraction of the rules brought
definite retribution. Minor offenses
resulted in the cancellation of priv
ileges.
Three British seamen escaped
and were recaptured. They were
executed.
The camp population averaged g..
600, all Americans except 800 Brit
ish and Dutch. In addition there
were $500 free outside.
The welfare committee established
separate camp for mothers with
infants.
Fed Unbalanced Diet
The Japanese ordered the stop
page Of communal feeding of those
outside the university by the Phil
ippine Chapter of the American
Red Gross In April and organized a
Japanese-sponsored Red Cross.
A central kitchen served meals
twice daily. Breakfast was cracked
wheat, rolls and coffee. but by the
[ middle of March fha ,,aiu far cAeaaI