BOMBS AT MANILA

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24194, 9 February 1942, Page 2

BOMBS AT MANILA

EVENTFUL JOURNEY AIR RAID DESCRIBED (0.C.) CHKISTCHURCH, Sunday Two New Zealand missionaries who have spent 37 years in China have returned to Christchurch after an adventurous journey from Wei-hai-wei, having been in Manila during .the first air raid. They are Miss A. G. Gresham and Miss A. B # Rout. They had to wait lor weeks for a ship to take them to Shanghai and for a permit from the Japanese to leave. When they arrived at the wharf with their luggage they were subject to a rigid search. By what Miss Gresham described as a miracle she and Miss Kout were suddenly given passages on a ship leaving Hongkong for Manila and Australia on December 5. The Greek Consul_ had cancelled his passage on the ship at the last moment. She and Miss Rout were thus in Shanghai only a week, while many had already been waiting months for a passage. "We reached Manila on December 7," Miss Gresham continued. "No one in Manila had any idea that war was so near. We left the wharf at 4 a.m., December 8, and after steaming for two hours toward the exit to the harbour we were ordered back to port. Pearl Harbour had been bombed. Ships came in from various places and we were surrounded by them in the harbour, fully 40 large ones near us. "On December 10 Manila had its first big raid. Aircraft came over in two waves of 27 and 30, and soon the air was filled with the awful sounds of bursting bombs and anti-aircraft funs. Huge stores of oil at the naval ocks were set on fire and the flames rose hundreds of feet. Other objectives were struck and fires started. Several ships near us were struck and men were killed. One ship set on fixe quite near us burned for 36 hours, and was still burning when we left. Shrapnel fell on our boat, but fortunately no one was struck, and there was no panic. "On December 11 the captain of our ship had permission to leave at_ midnight. He offered to land us if we wished. No one left the boat, feeling it was better to risk the perils of the sea journey than to_ endure the constant bombing in Manila."