Singapore

[Captain Kong]

My son, wife, both Doctors, and family, got out of Singapore after arriving from Kuala Lumpur, which was in Lockdown, in transit.
Midnight Sunday Singapore stopped all transits and so they got out with an hour to spare or they would still be there.

[j.sabourn]

My boy got out of Japan not too far back by the skin of his teeth Brian. I didn’t even know he was there. Until he phoned the other night. Cheers JS.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Went to get a tattoo in Singapore while on a RFA ship in May 52, my mate got his, came out looking green around the gills, so i declined. I got some pics off the sister-in-law when they went there last year what a change, wouldn't recognize the place.
Des

[Harry Nicholson]

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REF # 11

Hello, Richard. Lt AJ Mann was 2nd mate of SS Vyner Brooke. In 1951 he typed a 35,000 word account of his escape after the vessel was bombed. His nephew was an old friend of mine. John Pickard gave me the faded foolscap pages of the memoir "One Jump Ahead". It's now typed into digital form and copies are now lodged with the Australian Memorial and Imperial War Museum. Presently I'm preparing it for publication as I think Lt Mann's escape from the tragedy to Australia should be more widely known. Lt Mann died in 1959.
regards
Harry Nicholson

[Richard Quartermaine]

Hello Harry. Thank you and I would be very pleased to be able to receive further updates on what you refer to and in my very small way widen the coverage.
I resigned from Queensland Ins and took up a position with an Indonesian group based in Jakarta in 1976. My Indonesian colleague and I went to Surabaya to formally open our branch there. Our manager there introduced me to one of our guests, a Mr Chin who asked if I was once with Queensland Insurance, which I confirmed. He then asked if I knew Ken Todd who was their manager for Surabaya that I also confirmed. He then told me that he was Ken's chief clerk and that Ken and his Dutch wife were prisoners of war in separate camps and if I saw Ken again to mention that he sends his regards.
Some years passed and I had returned to Sydney and happened to sit opposite Ken at a QI function. I told him about my meeting Mr Chin and passed on his regards. Ken gave me an astonished look and tears came to his eyes as he told me that Chin used to smuggle food through the wire to him even though it could have cost him his life.
Over the years residing in Singapore and Indonesia the absence of discussion about those terrible atrocities was quite surprising, but as one became friends with those involved, you got to get the true picture.
Regard
Richard

[Harry Nicholson]

Thank you, Richard - an interesting story.
I've lightly edited Arthur John Mann's memoir and now must prepare a potted biography to preceed his paper and to compose an afterword. Born in 1904 in London he followed his brother into the Royal Navy in 1920. I find him on HMS Repulse, then HMS Dwarf, then petty officer on HMS Cumberland on the China station. He buys himself out in 1933 and takes up work with the Chinese customs in charge of a motor launch. From family photos he seems to prosper with the China customs.
There comes a gap: from 1934 to 1941. In 1941 he is 2nd mate (and RNVR Lt) of the now HMS Vyner Brooke (he seems to have been with her when she was a peacetime trader. But I don't know when he joined). I've almost given up hope of discovering how he became a Merchant Navy 2nd mate after the China Customs in 33/34 - I suppose he would need to gain a navigation cert of some sort. What qualification would he need for the 1670 ton Vyner Brooke, I wonder.
After his struggles to escape the Japanese, and after he reaches Fremantle, he must have recovered his broken health and reconnected with the Navy for he is a beachmaster at the Anzio landings in Italy.
I have his diary for 1951 which tells of his work as customs officer in East Pakistan. It would be useful to know what he did between 1945 and 51 . . . there's a vague hint that he might have been with Blue Funnel and/or with a job in peacetime Singapore. He suffered a fatal coronary in 1959.
I've spent a bit on tracing details, but need to be cautious.

[Richard Quartermaine]

Thank you Harry. Lt A J Mann stands out as one of the great characters that followed those earlier in the nineteenth century that went East to seek their fortunes, but his fortunes were, in part, of a different kind to those canny Scots, Jardine & Matheson.
On the possibility that he may have been with Blue Funnel in respect of the Singapore Fremantle run serviced by their vessel 'Centaur'. Between 1947 and 1952 I not only called in to Fremantle but did 2 trips as crew from Fremantle to Darwin via all ports up the West Australian coast on the West Australian State Shipping Service vessel MV 'Koolinda' and was often in port at the same time as the 'Centaur'.
L(ance) H Quartermaine, Ships Chandlers and his son Murray of Fremantle could most certainly have known Lt Mann but both have now passed away.They are not related, though became very good friends, connected through name and my son keeps in touch with Murray's sons and daughter, although they were not around in this time frame.
Here are a couple of photos that relate to that time. I would point out that the Koolinda sailed that night on the rising tide.
There must be records that can be found, Harry, and maybe someone may still be around that would remember or steer you in the right direction.
Let me know what you think, I'm very interested.
Richard Q

[happy daze john in oz]

Richard, that menu is not too dissimilar to some of the ones in the tourist gallop on the Lavender ladies of UCL.
I wonder if menus were set ashore by some central body that many of the shipping companies used?

[Richard Quartermaine]

Spot on John, It seems to have missed out kromeskis a la Russe.
Richard

[Harry Nicholson]

Thanks, Alan. Interesting post. Now I need to understand what AJ Mann would have needed in terms of qualifications to become 2nd mate of the 1670 ton Vyner Brooke of the Sarawak Steamship co. Could he have got the post from sheer experience? I doubt it, considering the large number of passengers she carried - but those were days long gone.