RATIONS
Just before dozing off, Mr. Lance-Corporal butted in.
In Tommy's eyes, a Lance-Corporal is one degree below a Private. In
the Corporal's eyes, he is one degree above a General.
He ordered me to go with him and help him draw the next day's rations,
also told me to take my waterproof.
Every evening, from each platoon or machine-gun section, a
Lance-Corporal and Private goes to the Quartermaster-Sergeant at the
Company Stores and draws rations for the following day.
The "Quarter," as the Quartermaster-Sergeant is called, receives daily
from the Orderly Room (Captain's Office) a slip showing the number of
men entitled to rations, so there is no chance of putting anything
over on him. Many arguments take place between the "Quarter" and the
platoon Non-Com, but the former always wins out. Tommy says the
"Quarter" got his job because he was a burglar in civil life.
Then I spread the waterproof sheet on the ground, while the
Quartermaster's Batman dumped the rations on it. The Corporal was
smoking a fag. I carried the rations back to the billet. The Corporal
was still smoking a fag. How I envied him. But when the issue
commenced my envy died, and I realized that the first requisite of a
non-commissioned officer on active service is diplomacy. There were
nineteen men in our section, and they soon formed a semi-circle around
us after the Corporal had called out, "Rations up."
The Quartermaster-Sergeant had given a slip to the Corporal on which
was written a list of the rations. Sitting on the floor, using a
wooden box as a table, the issue commenced. On the left of the
Corporal the rations were piled. They consisted of the following:
Six loaves of fresh bread, each loaf of a different size, perhaps one
out of the six being as flat as a pancake, the result of an Army
Service Corps man placing a box of bully beef on it during
transportation.
Three tins of jam, one apple, and the other two plum.
Seventeen Bermuda onions, all different sizes.
A piece of cheese in the shape of a wedge.
Two one-pound tins of butter.
A handful of raisins.
A tin of biscuits, or as Tommy calls them "Jaw-breakers."
A bottle of mustard pickles.
The "bully beef," spuds, condensed milk, fresh meat, bacon, and
"Maconochie Rations" (a can filled with meat, vegetables, and greasy
water), had been turned over to the Company Cook to make stew for next
day's dinner. He also received the tea, sugar, salt, pepper, and
flour.
Scratching his head, the Corporal studied the slip issued to him by
the Quarter. Then in a slow, mystified voice he read out, "No. I
Section, 19 men. Bread, loaves, six." He looked puzzled and
soliloquized in a musing voice:
"Six loaves, nineteen men. Let's see, that's three in a loaf for
fifteen men,--well to make it even, four of you'll have to muck in
on one loaf."
The four that got stuck made a howl, but to no avail. The bread was
dished out. Pretty soon from a far corner of the billet, three
indignant Tommies accosted the Corporal with,
"What do you call this, a loaf of bread? Looks more like a sniping
plate."
The Corporal answered:
"Well, don't blame me, I didn't bake it, somebody's got to get it, so
shut up until I dish out these blinkin' rations."
Then the Corporal started on the jam.
"Jam, three tins-apple one, plum two. Nineteen men, three tins. Six in
a tin, makes twelve men for two tins, seven in the remaining tin."
He passed around the jam, and there was another riot. Some didn't like
apple, while others who received plum were partial to apple. After
awhile differences were adjusted, and the issue went on.
"Bermuda onions, seventeen."
The Corporal avoided a row by saying that he did not want an onion,
and I said they make your breath smell, so guessed I would do without
one too. The Corporal looked his gratitude.
"Cheese, pounds two."
The Corporal borrowed a jackknife (corporals are always borrowing),
and sliced the cheese,--each slicing bringing forth a pert remark
from the on-lookers as to the Corporal's eyesight.
"Raisins, ounces, eight."
By this time the Corporal's nerves had gone West, and in despair, he
said that the raisins were to be turned over to the cook for "duff"
(plum pudding). This decision elicited a little "grousing," but quiet
was finally restored.
"Biscuits, tins, one."
With his borrowed jackknife, the Corporal opened the tin of biscuits,
and told everyone to help themselves,--nobody responded to this
invitation. Tommy is "fed up" with biscuits.
"Butter, tins, two."
"Nine in one, ten in the other."
Another rumpus.
"Pickles, mustard, bottles, one."
Nineteen names were put in a steel helmet, the last one out winning
the pickles. On the next issue there were only eighteen names, as the
winner is eliminated until every man in the section has won a bottle.
The raffle is closely watched, because Tommy is suspicious when it
comes to gambling with his rations.
When the issue is finished, the Corporal sits down and writes a letter
home, asking them if they cannot get some M.P. (Member of Parliament)
to have him transferred to the Royal Flying Corps where he won't have
to issue rations.
At the different French estaminets in the village, and at the
canteens, Tommy buys fresh eggs, milk, bread, and pastry. Occasionally
when he is flush, he invests in a tin of pears or apricots. His pay is
only a shilling a day, twenty-four cents, or a cent an hour. Just
imagine, a cent an hour for being under fire,--not much chance of
getting rich out there.
When he goes into the fire trench (front line), Tommy's menu takes a
tumble. He carries in his haversack what the government calls
emergency or iron rations. They are not supposed to be opened until
Tommy dies of starvation. They consist of one tin of bully beef, four
biscuits, a little tin which contains tea, sugar, and Oxo cubes
(concentrated beef tablets). These are only to be used when the enemy
establishes a curtain of shell fire on the communication trenches,
thus preventing the "carrying in" of rations, or when in an attack, a
body of troops has been cut off from its base of supplies.
The rations are brought up, at night, by the Company Transport. This
is a section of the company in charge of the Quartermaster-Sergeant
composed of men, mules, and limbers (two wheeled wagons), which
supplies Tommy's wants while in the front line. They are constantly
under shell fire. The rations are unloaded at the entrance to the
communication trenches and are "carried in" by men detailed for that
purpose. The Quartermaster-Sergeant never goes into the front-line
trench. He doesn't have to, and I have never heard of one volunteering
to do so.
The Company Sergeant-Major sorts the rations, and sends them in.
Tommy's trench rations consist of all the bully beef he can eat,
biscuits, cheese, tinned butter (sometimes seventeen men to a tin),
jam, or marmalade, and occasionally fresh bread (ten to a loaf). When
it is possible, he gets tea and stew.
When things are quiet, and Fritz is behaving like a gentleman, which
seldom happens, Tommy has the opportunity of making dessert. This is
"trench pudding." It is made from broken biscuits, condensed milk,
jam--a little water added, slightly flavored with mud--put into a
canteen and cooked over a little spirit stove known as "Tommy's
cooker."
(A firm in Blighty widely advertises these cookers as a necessity for
the men in the trenches. Gullible people buy them, ship them to the
Tommies, who, immediately upon receipt of same throw them over the
parapet. Sometimes a Tommy falls for the Ad., and uses the cooker in a
dugout to the disgust and discomfort of the other occupants.)
This mess is stirred up in a tin and allowed to simmer over the flames
from the cooker until Tommy decides that it has reached a sufficient
(glue-like) consistency. He takes his bayonet and by means of the
handle carries the mess up in the front trench to cool. After it has
cooled off he tries to eat it. Generally one or two Tommies in a
section have cast-iron stomachs and the tin is soon emptied. Once I
tasted trench pudding, but only once.
In addition to the regular ration issue Tommy uses another channel to
enlarge his menu.
In the English papers a "Lonely Soldier" column is run. This is for
the soldiers at the front who are supposed to be without friends or
relatives. They write to the papers and their names are published.
Girls and women in England answer them, and send out parcels of
foodstuffs, cigarettes, candy, etc. I have known a "lonely" soldier to
receive as many as five parcels and eleven letters in one week.