RATIONS
I LEARN TO HATE FOOD. MATHEMATICAL PROBLEMS
We arrived at Rouen at 7.30 the following morning. I had to report to
the R.T.O. by 9.30, and in the meantime 3,534 rations had to be cut up
and distributed on the station platform among 1,178 officers and men.
Have you ever had such a problem as that? If not, then avoid it, if it
ever comes your way.
The train was about twice the length of the platform, so on arrival it
was broken in half, and the rear half shunted on to another line.
The rations were contained in two trucks, attached to the rear half of
the train, so the contents had to be carried by hand across several
sets of rails, to the end of the platform.
I had a fatigue party of 60 men at work, and presently a huge quantity
of provisions began to pile up. There were chests of tea, cases of
biscuits, cases of jam, cases of bully beef, sugar, and bacon
sufficient to fill the warehouse of a wholesale provision merchant.
Three days' rations for 1,178 officers and men, in bulk; and 1,178
officers and men began to gather around the stack, in hungry
expectancy of breakfast.
Now to issue rations to a battalion straight from bulk is quite
difficult enough, but to issue rations from bulk to units of various
strengths, belonging to over fifty regiments is enough to drive any
one crazy.
Each man was entitled to two and one-fourth ounces of tea, one-fourth
ounce of mustard, two and one-fourth pounds of biscuits, three-fourths
pound of cheese, twelve ounces of bacon, one tin of bully beef, nine
ounces of jam.
Each unit had to be dealt with separately, so that each unit presented
a mathematical problem of the most perplexing kind. Each unit sent up
its fatigue party to draw rations, whilst I and several officers who
had volunteered to assist me made a bold attempt at distribution.
"Come along, first man, what's your regiment?"
"Manchester, sir; 59 men."
I looked through my volume of papers to check his figures.
"Quite right! Fifty-nine men."
Fifty-nine men meant fifty-nine times two and one-fourth ounces of
tea, one-fourth ounce of mustard, two and one-fourth pounds of
biscuits, three-fourths pound of cheese, twelve ounces of bacon, one
tin of bully beef, and nine ounces of jam. My brain whirls when I
think of those problems.
The next unit consisted of 9 men; the next of 1; then came a long list
of 2's, 5's, and 7's, and so on; and in each case the mathematical
problem had to be worked out; and when the figuring was finished, the
stuff had to be cut up.
Seventy-nine pounds of cheese for the Manchesters; does any one know
what seventy-nine pounds of cheese looks like? No one did; we had
never seen so much cheese before in our lives.
"Give him a whole cheese and chance it. And now tea; the Manchesters
want one hundred and thirty-two and three-fourths ounces of tea. Give
him about three handfuls and chance it."
The next party consisted of 2 men.
"Six ounces of jam for the 19 Canadians; how much is that?"
"Nearly half a pot."
"What are you going to put it in?"
"Got nothing."
"Can't have any, then?"
"Come on, next man."
When I saw the last of that stack of food it was 11.30. We were hungry
and tired, and we made our way to the nearest hotel, fervently hoping
that we might never see food in bulk again.