Felipe Buencamino III

Felipe Buencamino III (March 28,1920 — April 28,1949), Served in G-2, Philippine Army, in Bataan.

April 2, 1942

HQ, MIS, BATAAN This place has turned into hell. The Japs are battering the lines from morning to evening, pounding the front from the air

April 3, 1942

April 4, 1942

HQ, Bataan Japs pounding the front heavily, continuously, mercilessly. The boys are standing firm, fighting with the littler strength left in their sick, hungry,

April 4, 1942

HQ, Bataan The Americans in HPD are burning their papers. Others are packing their maps and clothes. They are transferring to Corregidor. This

April 5, 1942

Bataan Dead men everywhere. Uniforms red with blood. Guns red with blood. Bataan is a sea of blood. Some troops still fighting but

April 6, 1942

April 7, 1942

HQ, Bataan More men retreating, more stragglers, the rear area has become the front. Japs keep on following their gains, bombing, shelling, blasting,

April 7, 1942

Can’t write. I feel lost.

April 8, 1942

Bataan Saw a big rat eating what looked like the arm of a soldier strewn near a stream in H.P.D. Saw more troops –hollow-eyed, wasted,

April 8, 1942 (April 8-9)

April 9, 1942

Morning After the general heard my report, I took the field telephone and asked for Bat 108 –Manny’s code name in Corregidor. “What’s up, Primo?”

April 10, 1942

Morning came, and we were ordered to stack our guns and disarm. The white flag was raised on top of the highest hill. All Filipino

April 16, 1942

Capas, Tarlac Filipino Concentration Camp Am still alive. Have been here for two days. How long I will stay only God knows. Many are

April 17, 1942

April 18, 1942

Capas, Tarlac, FCC There is only one faucet for our regiment. At nine o’clock today, the Japs opened the main water switch. The

April 18, 1942

Capas, Tarlac Filipino Concentration Camp Heard that two school-mates are dying. They are Fermin Fernando, star basketball forward, and Luis Pimentel, brilliant speaker,

April 19, 1942

April 20, 1942

Concentration Camp Capas, Tarlac Great day. Dr. Escoto of the Red Cross was able to enter our camp. He was called by the Camp Commander

April 20, 1942

April 21, 1942

F.C.C. Capas, Tarlac Found a good friend, Toots Rivera. He is in charge of one of the kitchens. He gave me two “camotes.” It was

April 21, 1942

April 22, 1942

Capas, Tarlac F.C. Camp Joined the grave-detail. We buried those that died this morning. Some of the graves yesterday were not dug deep enough. The

September 21, 1944

[Note: after the last previous entry, April 20, 1942, the diary resumes at this point.] U.S. planes bombed Manila this morning and afternoon. They came

September 22, 1944

Didn’t know we still had baloney these days until I read the Tribune. It was crying out loud about Filipinos being angry due to the

September 23, 1944

Manila’s agog. Everybody’s talking and whispering and laughing and dreaming about the raid. Everybody feels the Americans will be here before Christmas. Somebody opined “around

September 24, 1944

Its been a lonely day. No bombs. No siren. Nothing but wait and wait and wait from morning to afternoon to late this evening. We’ve

September 25, 1944

To write or not to write, that is the question… nope, this isn’t Shakespeare… just a terribly impatient mutt who’s praying for bombs, bombs, and

September 26, 1944

Am very tired, fagged out. Carrying furniture and bags the whole day. We’ve moved to a small bungalow in V. Mapa. The Japs have taken

September 27, 1944

I don’t know whether to laugh or to mourn but the puppets among us are still trying to show that we really have independence around

September 28, 1944

It’s been a very quiet day except for AA practice early this morning. The Japs are speeding up their defenses. They’re building fox-holes and dug-outs

September 30, 1944

Went to the Jai Alai. It will be open only on Sundays. Lost thirty pesos betting on Elizondo and Arana. I dislike the game and

October 1, 1944

These days, everything is haywire. Telephones don’t work. Newspapers arrive three to four days later. No gas-men nor refrigerator mechanics nor electrician when you need

October 2, 1944

When you meet a friend in the street today or anywhere for that matter, the first thing said instead of the usual “nice weather eh”

October 12, 1944

Haven’t written for more than a week because I’ve been sick. Got attacked by malaria again. Thought I had ice in my blood. Shivered like

October 13, 1944

Manila Tribune headlined U.S. raid on Taiwan. They claim that a hundred U.S. planes were shot down. I wonder how much damage was done. Question

October 14, 1944

Today’s the first anniversary of the Philippine Republic, heh, heh. Puppet Laurel declared: “The first-year of the Republic has been a success”. He forgot to

October 15, 1944

Hooray, there were here again… this morning. They came at about 10 o’clock, after Mass. Of course, you know who I mean by “they”. Japanese