By Prof. Martin Meadows

INTRODUCTION. This is the second of a two-part exploration of a heretofore generally (and perhaps understandably) neglected subject. Its focus is on the shortages of sanitary supplies for the WWII prisoners of the Nipponese Empire in Manila’s Santo Tomas Internment Camp (STIC) — more precisely, on how the camp’s roughly 4,000 inmates coped with the problems caused by those shortages. Both Parts I and II concentrate attention on bathroom tissue (a “polite” term for toilet paper); and in addition Part II, centered on the women’s side of the story and more extensive in scope, takes into account the sanitary-napkins aspect of the subject. As to its results, here is a concise judgment in the form of a broad overview: Sufficient information surfaced during the course of this survey to enable it to develop several major (and I think credible) conclusions — but of course it is subject to modification if justified by the discovery of additional information.
[Note: Part II on the whole is self-contained, though it does include various references to passages in Part I.] [Link to Part I]
[Note: I have followed herein the now acceptable usage of “Santo Tomas” rather than “Santo Tomás.”]
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