Stevenson, Harry Salim

One original eight page handwritten letter dated 16 October 1945 and written by NX96823 Signalman Harry Salim Stevenson, 2 Australian Beach Signals. Letter is addressed to 'Dear Ross', surname not stated. In his letter, Stevenson says 'The section has started to break up' and mentions the names (often only first or nicknames) of other soldiers and their present whereabouts. The bulk of his letter is a description of his trip '...over to the mainland...' to towns in the Brunei Bay and North Borneo region including Papar, Beaufort and Weston. He gives detailed descriptions of his observations of the indigenous peoples (Chinese and Javanese) and the several festivals and celebrations he attended. Stevenson describes his journey to Beaufort by jeep train, a jeep converted with track wheels to travel on railway tracks. He also comments on the surrender camp of Japanese prisoners at Beaufort.