Friday Sept 27th. Great blowing of trumpets, hooters, sackbuts and psalteries at 5.40 this morning! Alarm. Proceeded to dress leisurely, wash &c and paraded on the square with my fellow victims, clad in sweater and British Warm with a couple of biscuits in my pocket in case of delay. Roll called. Legions of armed guards marched in (about half a battalion) and surrounded us on all sides. Officers in blue, pink red yellow; mostly staff people. It transpired that a methodical search of our rooms and persons was to take place. The members of each room in turn were called in. Numbers of civilians, expert searchers, “smellers out” were employed. In brief, Block I went before Block II and we were the last room but one of Block II. Hence we were kept on the parade ground, and it was cold and drizzling with rain most of the time, from 6.15 to 2.15, eight hours in all!!!
