LIFE IN CAMP IN EGYPT

Dominion, Volume 33, Issue 187, 4 May 1940, Page 13

LIFE IN CAMP IN EGYPT

A Soldier’s Letters

SCENES AND CLIMATE DESCRIBED Life in camp with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in Egypt is described in the letters home of a soldier from Christchurch. Extracts from his letters, which have been combined to make a connected story, present a picture of conditions in Eg} pt as an average New Zealander sees them. "Our camp is quite good, though there is room for improvement yet, he writes. “The can teens c &ood. They arc run by the Navy, Army and Air Force Institute. Tilings are not cheap by any means. Cigarettes and tobacco are about the same price as at home* Taken all round, I do not suppose our money goes as far as in New Zealand. Type of Desert. “This is not the sort of desert I expected to see. My idea of a desert was sand as far as the eye could sec, but I have not' seen a decent patch of sand yet, and I swear I have tramped over a goodisli portion of our particular share of this desert. Tlie composition of this place is dust- and grit, with real hard rock or limestone underneath. “It is the tail end of the winter here, and in the morning it is just as cold as on a cold winter’s morning in New Zealand. I was surprised, as I thougbt.it would bo hot all the year round. Some days it is very hot about midday to 2.30 p.m., but lately there has been a wind stirring up tons of dust. The wind stays quite chilly up to about 11 a.m. Most of us wear our thick flannel shirts as well as our sweaters, so you can see it is really cold.

“They have wonderful oranges here, better than any I have ever tasted elsewhere. Tlie number for a piastre fluctuates a bit. Some days we manage to get as many as six for a piastre. Tomatoes are cheap also, but unfortunately on account, of all the precautions they take agajnst diseases you just about have to have a written order to buy. and if you do, you must wash the fruit in a preparation of disinfectant. This process entails so much messing about that it is best to forget that such delicacies exist. Precautions for Health.

“This country is simply teeming with diseases of every kind. Our system of keeping the place clear of disease is at times a bit of a nuisance. Everywhere you go, whether it is to the mess or the canteen, you have to wash your hands in disinfectant. Our hands have become rough with this constant washing in disinfectant.” The writer of the letter states that at the races a double totalizator is conducted. and gets “a wonderful run.” It is all win and place system, and the bets are from 10 piastres up. Favourites seem to do all fhe winning. One goes to a window to buy a ticket, and instead of a machine to stamp them they just take a ticket off tlie wall. If they happen to have sold out of a particular number, one cannot back that horse. How the Natives Work.

“We saw an interesting reptile of sorts 'when we were out the other day,” he states. "It was a huge lizard. When I say huge I mean about 2ft. long, with a huge head and body. It was lying in the sun when we came across it, and when it saw us it dived into a hole in the cliff. We found out that it was an edible variety of lizard, but I think I would rather stay hungry than eat it. “The other morning we had a sight of natives, who are working about the place, being driven to work with whips. There must have been about 300 of them, and at the back of them were these chaps with whips. Anyone who lagged behind received a taste of the whip, and they were not just playing with them, either. “At their work they run all the time. I was watching a gang of thorn carrying concrete for one of tlie buildings. They, carry it in wicker baskets on their shoulders. You can imagine that it is no light weight, yet they were running with it —not just now and then, but all the time.”