ON THE TRANSPORTS

Evening Post, Volume CXXIX, Issue 38, 14 February 1940, Page 8

ON THE TRANSPORTS

THE LIFE OF THE SOLDIER

ROUTINE AND PROVISIONS

CARE OF THE TEETH

A fairly good idea of life on board the troopships in which the First Echelon travelled to Egypt can be gained from a perusal of the military standing orders for the transports and from other records of the regulations drawn up to govern the activities of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force ! while at sea. One of the principal aims of these regulations has been to safeguard the health and fitness of the men by supplying them with good food and by putting them through regular physical exercises. At the same time military training has by no means been lost sight of and during the voyage all units spent a considerable portion of their daily spell on duty carrying out various types of training, listening to lectures on a wide variety of military subjects, and so on. The catering for the troops during the voyage was done by the ship owners, subject, of course, to the approval of the military authorities. The following menu picked at random from the list of menus for a week is an indication of the good food provided:--Breakfast: Porridge, grilled steak, boiled potatoes, bread, butter, jam, coffee, and tea. Dinner: Soup, roast beef, veal, cabbage, boiled and roasted potatoes, steamed jam roll and sauce. Tea: Cold lamb, chutney, salads, bread, butter, jam, and tea. rock cakes. Supper: Biscuits, cheese, tea and coffee. Ail food was prepared by ships' staffs of i expert cooks. Wet canteens from which beer was available for sale in limited quantities were operated on each ship and opened at specified hours. Dry canteens were run by the ship owners, all selling prices being fixed by the military authorities. Prices were generally considerably lower than ruling retail prices in New Zealand. DAILX ROUTINE. The daily routine makes provision for an extensive training programme for all units, involving from 33 to 36 hours of work per week. An allowance of six hours a week for physical, training of all units is made. The training programme for the infantry may be given as an indication of the extent of the military instruction provided for while at sea. It is as follows:— All Ranks.~-Physical training, 6 hours; guards and sentries, X hour; semaphore and morse (signals), 4 hours; small arms training, 4$ hours; knotting and lashing, \ hour; boat stations and fire drill, 1 hour; bayonet training, 3 hours; marching order parade and kit inspection, 1 hour; squad drill, 2 hours; lecture by medical officer. 1 hour. Lectures: Bivouac and night training, \ hour; vehicle maintenance, 1 hour; 3in mortar, X hour: 15cwt truck, i hour. There is also provision for a series, of lectures specially for light machine-gun sections and a genera] further provision of six hours weekly for lectures and discussions Regulations controlling the issue of liquors on the ships set out that in the officers' mess an issue of wines, spirits, and beer will be allowed to officers who desire it on pay ment and that an issue of bottled beer, limited to two Imperial pints per day per person, will be allowed to warrant ■ officers and sergeants who desire it on payment. ,A daily ration of one: Imperial pint of draught beer will be ! issued to men who desire to purchase it. A prohibition on gambling on board! is set forth in the regulations. GIFTS AND PROVISIONS. Very large quantities of gifts were placed on each ship by the National Patriotic Fund Board before they left "Tew Zealand, and provision for dealing with their distribution is contained in the regulations. Immediately after embarkation there was formed on eachship a gifts committee consisting of the officer commanding the troops oni board as chairman and one commissioned officer and a non-commissioned officer or man from each unit. The distribution of all gift goods for general use of troops on board was decided by those committees. A "gifts officer" was appointed on each ship to take charge of and distribute all gifts. The regulations are not without humour. For instance: "Officers commanding troops on all transports are directed to issue an order prior to vessels putting to sea that soldier* wearing artificial teeth must be careful to remove same before being seasick. A charge of £3 per denture will be made for replacing any lost through neglect of this order." The general stipulations about the standard of accommodation and rood state that officers are entitled to firstclass accommodation and food in all respects equal to that which would be accorded to first-class passengers on the vessel on which the troops are travelling. N.C.O.s of the rank of sergeant or upwards are entitled to second-class accommodation and food, or its equivalent. All other ranks will be accommodated in the quarters allotted by the embarkation authorities. The food shall be in accordance with that provided for third-class passengers. During the voyage regular inspections were made by the officer commanding the troops, the senior medical officer, and the quartermaster to ensure that the food was well cooked and well served. ,______«———.