TERRITORIAL TRAINING

Grey River Argus, 25 August 1939, Page 4

TERRITORIAL TRAINING

A RECRUIT GOES TO CAMP. “No recruit will be considered efficient,” we were told “until he has attended a recruit camp.” So we, the latest joined members of His Majesty’s Territorial Forces, decided that to camp we would a marching go, whether our bosses were wiling or no. With a hey Anthony Rowley! As a matter of fact our bosses proved perfectly willing, even encouraging. With Danzig dancing on the political' horizon and a Japanese feeling in the air, they seemed positively to welcome our intention to take a week’s holiday in the open air to the ’ accompaniment of martial exercises. So, consigning our urgent occasions to the care of our rather envious colleagues, we packed our kit-bags and set off. We were all starting off on the same foot, all recruits, and as such licensed to make all the mistakes in the military calendar—once. “Jerry,” a hardened old soldier of three and thirty, wth seven years’ training behind him, had joined up as a recruit in a different unit, just because he thought he ought to, and as a recruit was determined to pull the leg of any sergeant in sight. We had joined for all sorts of reasons, but very few, I think, only or chiefly because of the “attractive conditions”; offered by our Government. Members of the best-paid and one of the bestfed territorial forces in the world, ! most of us would still have been there had we been offered the Englishman’s Is 2d, instead of the New Zealander’s 12s. Though we might, not have been there had the menu been anything like the Italian’s vegetables and pasta. The New Zealander is not a man who, in Kipling’s immortal words, owes his stomach anything.

The journey up was long, but not tedious. “Lofty” had brought his violin, and, with its accompaniment, many voices of varying quality were raised in cheerful song. At lhe station we fell in, in approximately military formation, and marched off ■to what for many of us was a first view of the camp. The night was dark but the messroom looked cheerful, and on arrival we were fed magnificently on saveloys and potatoes, washed down with jorums of hot tea and securely wedged with bread and butter. We quivered a little at the sight of tents, in midwinter but cheered up when we found inside them the unheard of luxury of stretcher beds, once reserved exclusively for offieerswd gentlemen. The issue of no fewer than six blankets confirmed our belief that we were the spoilt ! darlings of the army. Even our straw pal basses were ready filled for us. Ledmaking was a varied proceeding, and sleep difficult to woo as a numbei of the soldiery, having had an insufficiently tiring day. spent most ol the night in varied song. Most of us spent a somewhat wakeful night in unaccustomed conditions, and some •few having piled all their blankets °k'i ° P 2, f them > w ere unaccountably chiliy. The art of a camp bed lies in putting rather more underneath you than on top. It was not long before , most of us iearnt that the evelope bed I s the answer to the problem. Break- j fast was hot and substantial—good

oatmeal porridge, meat and the übiquitous and filling potato. Only the quartermaster knows how many tons of potatoes we consumed in our six days’ camp.

Thereafter we paraded for church. But we did not take the straight and narrow path to ft. We took a very roundabout one, at a good brisk pace, and entered the chapel warm and cheerful. The service was short and to the point and the sermon a model of what such sermons ought to be, stimulating and very practical.. We were talked to, not talked at. After service, another little walk, quite a little walk, and some physical' jerks. Quite a few of them. We were kept at it by a staff sergeant of amazing physique and incredible determination. We could not keep it up, we were not going to keep it up, but we did keep it up, till we were nearly dead, but very, very warm. Then back to camp, and dinner, hot on account of the weather, with our circulations in a better state than they had been for months.

Next day they separated us into squads, by territories and units. The | Mounted Rifles, for some reason the i infantry fail quite to appreciate, come I first on parade. There is a story about their being the senior unit. This, of course, makes the footsloggers watch their behaviour very carefully and critically. And when they stumble over their own fetlocks on parade, as sometimes happens, a small spot of jubilation may be observed among the ranks of Tuscany. Every unit was given its instructor, a sergeant or sergeant-major of the permanent staff. Not quite the traditional idea of the army n.c.0., these men. Spending their lives constantly dealing with the young and ignorant, they have something of the air of slightly disillusioned but on the whole rather kindly schoolmasters. One instructor, after a particularly bright effort on the part of his squad, offered to raffle them among the other sergeants, but could find no takers. Such interludes, more common than the mere civilian might suppose, do much to relieve the tedium of porting arms, presenting arms, and forming squad on various flanks.

Every day had its variety. We were never allowed to get stale, though each day saw us a little smarter and a little steadier. Our own instructor possessed of a dry sarcsatic wit, never barked' at us, but somehow we found ourselves doing what he wanted just as hard as we could. He would suggest “a little brasso as a good idea,” and quite a little brasso would be used that night. He would suggest, in the politest way in the world, that we should turn out to parade, when it suited us, of course, and even “Jerry” the old soldier, managed to make the effort. We had returned to our tents by Wednesday, and with boxing, wrestling and lectures of various sorts days and evenings soon sped by. Came the final march past and the small matter of the giving out* of certificates and pay. Then the last Saturday. We had to rise at the unearthly hour of 5.45, with a little assistance from our N.C.O’s., and with bayonet practice, firing practice and rifle exercises all packed away in our heads for future use, we handed in our blankets and departed for the train. On Monday we were back at work. “You do look well,” they said. “Never seen you looking so fit, my lad.” And we felt

fit. Every muscle working just so. circulation great, digestion wonderful. It was a grand holiday. “Adjutant, what is the next course I can take. I feel my country needs me again very soon. Say in about October.”