SALUTE BY CABBAGE

Southland Times, Issue 23989, 2 December 1939, Page 10

SALUTE BY CABBAGE

Vegetable Growing At The Firth Of Forth

THE little fishing villages along the shores of the Firth of Forth (now a popular German objective) were intended to hold only a few hundred local inhabitants. During the Great War they were filled to overflowing, with naval wives, ready to bear all discomforts cheerfully, and to take any risks, in order to catch a glimpse of their “Men in Blue. The silver fretwork of the great bridge, spanning the tossing waters ot the Firth, linked the rival shores, on which stretched the broad acres of the Dalmeny and Elgin Estates that had been placed at the disposal of the Fleet. The freedom of the beautiful grounds, with the walks through their parks, and the.use of the playing fields lor games and picnics proved an inestimable boon to the war-weary, writes Ivy Moore in The Sydney Morning Herald. The ships were always at snort notice, four hours being the. longest and one hour the shortest time allowed; at any moment after landing the recall might be hoisted, rendering it obligatory to remain always m sight of the vessels. The cottages round Charleston and Rosyth housed naval wives, who continued to rent, for enormous sums, tne two front rooms, while the owners often numbering over a dozen, and including dogs, cats, and fowls, lived a tribal existence in the back premises and kitchen! , . The provisioning of the Grana meet meant strict rationing for civilians. The bread by then was dark and unpleasantly full of husks, the weekly ration comprised only two ounces of butter, jib of sugar, the same quantity of treacle or jam (whose origin we suspected to be based on carrot or swede pulp), and |lb of meat, plus bone, fat, and so on. Fresh eggs and oranges, if obtainable, cost 8d each, and potatoes were so scarce that hats were actually being trimmed by imitation “spuds” fashioned of cotton wool! To obtain these comestibles we used to gather round the village store, kept by the two Miss' McAllisters, weatherbeaten spinster sisters, with a genial Scotch humour. In the dark recesses of their store most things were procurable, from a rat trap to a hot water bottle, and on the high mahogany counter, cats, cheese, socks, bacon, tennis shoes, soap and onions mingled cheerfully. Here the young officers would deploy a touch of blarney to wangle the purchase of a few dark and bitter war chocolates,/ filled with a gruesome kind of tough jelly, just to vary the food monotony. “Hidden Hand”

Occasionally, during the bleak winter days, a cheery party would brave the driving sleet, and boarding the small naval train, proceed to Dunfermline, with its fine old abbey, and ensconce itself cosily in the local cinema, where a hair raising serial, the “Hidden Hand” was running, with Pearl White as the heroine. This was a great amusement in those dreary days, for her exploits were so sensational as to put the war news in the shade. On one of these occasions a startling notice appeared upon the screen: “The officers and men of H.M.S. Satan are to return immediately! Amid bursts of laughter- and applause the Satanic ones arose and. fled, but it was some time before the joke against H.M.S. Phaeton was forgotton. At another time we all obeyed the recall, travelling back pellmell on a lorry, in frantic haste, only to find that the signal was cancelled, whereupon we all drove back over the four miles again, and were triumphantly re-admitted, free of charge! The chaplain told many humorous tales of his duties both as censor, for the ship’s concerts and for the mail.. “Dear Alice,” wrote one stoker to his wife, “herewith I send you a ten shilling note; but I don’t suppose it will ever reach you, as it has to pass the censor!” At the time of the arrival of the American Fleet in the Firth of Forth, the British admiral and his staff called on the visiting Commander-in-Chief. The usual courtesies were exchanged, and their host pressed the bell in his stateroom. As if by magic a gigantic negro steward appeared, and remarked to the Admiral: “Say, boss, did you buzz?”

Another joke concerns a certain medical officer who was not very popu-x lar on board. “’Im?” said one A.B. to another as they were painting ship. “Why I wouldn’t let ’im take a white ant out of me wooden leg!”

Bleak Days

DREDGERS had, by now, widened and deepened the channel, which had previously been used by destroyers and submarines alone. For months they had dredged continuously, giving out day and night a mournful, groaning dirge, like the voices of dead men calling from the sea depths. . During the bleak winter days, no more lugubrious sound could be imagined. It echoed across the barren, icy shores like the complaint of Dante; wandering, forlorn and frozen, through Gustave Dore’s conception of hell! But as soon as spring appeared and breathed on the land, the transformation was miraculous. Oaks, beeches, and larches put forth theii 1 tender green, bluebells appeared among the bracken, primroses starred the banks, and the cloudflecked sky took on a pale blue northern radiance. It was then that the gardening fever broke out in the fleet! Every ship had its own allotment, its piles of seed catalogues, and each vied with the other in the cultivation of vegetables. H.M.A.S. Melbourne appeared to be

leading, when the order came through to depart 1 to Scapa Flow. Leave the garden? Desolation! We were deputed to watch over it, and eventually despatch a rich harvest up north. So in due course my husband and I, assisted by a couple of A.B.’s, went, armed with sacks, to the scene of action, and gathered large quantities of peas, beans, carrots, leeks, and cabbages. We formed a picturesque procession as we headed for the pier, hot, muddy, but trimphant. First came by husband (in uniform) carrying a couple of overflow cabbages; next, myself, basket-laden and escorted by our Aberdeen terrier; the sailors, with loaded sacks, bringing up the rear. Suddenly, round the bend, without any warning, advancing towards us at a brisk pace, and immaculate in whites, came the late admiral, V. H. G. Bernard. Taken completely by surprise, my husband, unconsciously, his hands being full, raised a cabbage to the salute! The admiral smiled, took in the situation .in one keen glance, and wen! on his way chuckling. , The Grand Fleet

DURING the northern summer twilight persisted until 11 p.m., and it grew light again as early as 4 a.m. It was therefore in the dim early greyness one summer mom that I awoke to the most extraordinary jangle of sounds. Chains rattled, windlasses creaked, engines vibrated. I sprang up, half asleep, and gazed spellbound out of the window. Winding in and out of the swirling mists, through the dark waters, in a spectacle so uncanny as to seem almost like a fantastic dream, moved mammoth ships, huge shapes, striped and banded, camouflaged beyond belief, so that it was impossible to tell in which direction they were steering, or where they began or ended. Dreadnoughts, battleships, cruisers, aeroplane carriers, oil tankers, “hush” ships, destroyers, depot and mystery ships, many surmounted by enormous observation balloons. In the eerie light this vast pageant appeared unreal, like a vision conjured up by H. G. Wells or Jules Verne. I gazed awestricken and silent. The might of Britain, the Grand Fleet, lay at anchor before me, line after line of steel battlements, upon which the Empire relies, now as ever, to guard its coast, its trade routes, and its illimitable sea-ways. Towards the end of 1918 the strain of war, plus the food shortage and influenza epidemic, was. very severe; yet over the whole of ’Britain reigned a dogged determination to carry on. It would be difficult to commend too highly the very gallant spirit of our men, both at home and abroad, of whom many had served for several years, with hardships and little' or no leave. For the men of the Fleet there had been continual seagoing, in gales and bitter cold, dark night patrols in stormy seas, constant discipline, and long hours on duty, varied only by route marches for exercise from time to time. Yet they remained unflinchingly loyal and cheerful. It is obvious that there exists an unconquerable greatness in a nation that is able thus to sink all thought of self in the love of service and freedom. This same spirit has been manifest in the present war, wherein it is recorded that men have gone down singing to the last with their ships, a smile of pride upon their lips, and the deathless courage of British seamen in their valiant hearts; leaving to those who follow them the privilege of carrying on their great naval traditions.