THE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 731, 19 December 1914, Page 7

THE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE.

- LIFE ON A TRANSPORT. A TE KUITI TROOPER WRITES;

At this particular saasoon it will he. gratifying for tne friends of our gallant troopers now in Egpyt to learn something of the experiences of the troops on the voyage. A letter received from Trooper L. M. Bartrop describes in characteristic language a night at sea on a troopship. The writer mentiona other King Country memD6rs of the force the heartiest Christmas greetings from all of them to thote left behind. Those mentioned, who are evidently on th 9 same ship are Messrs Self Bros., K. Gould, E. Inder, T. Fryer, Warburton, and S. Reid, who are reported all well. Tne letter is dated November 13tb, H.MiN.Z. Troopship No 8, Star of India.

shall we Bleep? This becomes a most pertinent qussticn about sepan o'clock in the evening. There are many circumstances which have to be considered, and the first and foremost is the weather. Now, at all times, Nature is somwehat uncertain in this respect. But in thsßS latitudes she ia absolutely to be relied on to prove herself to the simple soldier man, a most ficklß jade. However clear the night and bright the moon and stars, one can almost guarantee a shower lasting from anything between five and fifty minutes. It is quite a warm rain, but has the not unusual quality of being wet, and the blanket under you, for there is seldom any actual covering, becomes to feel something like what Jonah must have experienced in the whale. Of course few, if any, retire to bunk at so early an hour, but spice being restricted, it becomes necessary to peg oat a claim early. To ensure a spot you must leave your bedgear always on the spot, but during the day a rolled-up mattress is too tempting to be resisted, and is sat on and even unrolled for someone whoss intentions are just to take a nap and straighten it up again. So it all ends in a pilgrimage round the ship seeking where to roost. There are many considerations which have an important bearing, viz. close to the hatch so that in the event of rain one is able to get under cover bef re getting soaked. Of course, if you are fortunate enough to get undei? the lee of a winch or horse box, and rig up a horse cover tentwise, then you can weather out at least half an hour's rain, but no shelter has been improvised to go beyond that. A loose hatch is an excellent thing to put the mattress on, fo? then the water that collects on the deck does not, with the roll or pitch of the ship, dampen your bed. The field oil sheet is brought into use, and laid out at the foot of the bed, and drawn up when required. Should rain fall, there is a general rush to get below, and the narrow stairway becomes jammed by a mass of singlet or pyjma-clad soldiers intent on getting down to the bunks, and those that are last are lucky inasmuch as they have secured the luxury of a fresh water Bhower-bath. If onß should be on horse picket, to be wakened during the night one fiives an address such as "Under the tarpaulin on No. 1 hatch"; "Behind No. 2 troops horse boxes"; or perhaps "on top of the Major's horses," or even "Under the starboard winch." For the guard a special place, and a particularly damp one in wet weather, too, is reserved on the running deck aft, and there the guard must spend the night so that if required they may be called at once. Of course, people will move about at night, and wh»n they do, are sure to either find the softest part, or at least some of the outlying parts of one's anatomy. Dame Nature ia not always unkind. One does meet her in her very happiest mood in a calm starlight night at sea. A soft, beautiful air; a qui6t lapping eea; the tinkling lights of the surrounding troopships, and one does feel "God's in His heaven; all's right with the world."