A quiet night, except for the Sissons’ “tapping ghost”, which tapped in a gentle persistent manner for a long time. Woke to find a golden sunrise through a blanket of fog, as cold as autumn. The German radio reports raids on
Went with the District Officer this afternoon to see
possible offices in Creffield Road
At supper tonight Mrs. Sisson said: “Well, there’s sure
to be a raid tonight”, and sure enough as I lay reading on my bed the
sirens sounded at a quarter to 12.
Looked out and saw marker searchlights come on, one at Raydon and one
towards Colchester .
Put my boots on and went down. Sissons were awake, so I called “I’m going to
have a look round outside. I’ll report
anything that happens.”
Went into the garden, heard ‘planes to the E, towards
Harwich. There was a cone of
searchlights there, and steady gunfire, shells bursting very high. Then a yellow flare was dropped, and hung
motionless. Next came the rumble of
bombs, and the searchlights showed that the ‘plane turned and made off out to
sea.
The Raydon searchlight winked on and off, throwing a
horrid greenish light across the gardens and houses. The church clock struck 12, and in the
silence that followed one could hear the whirr of the striking mechanism.
Next a fighter came along from the W, carrying red
navigation lights, and proceeded to circle around the Raydon light, each
circuit bringing him over Dedham Colchester , Hadleigh, Manningtree. How brave I felt! Then a fearful alarm – a violent rustling in
the corner of the garden! For a moment
thought that the boarhound from next door must have got in, but it was only the
cat.
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