THE LAST DOUBLE

What Knots, Volume 3, Issue 5, 31 December 1945, Page 7

THE LAST DOUBLE

It was Boxing Day. I awoke with thoughts of the forthcoming Race Meeting. Wat number to .f0110w?..., I decided to allow events to take their course and then perhaps coincidences might ..occur whereby, our- Syndicate - -of • three might profit. The time was' 6.35 a.m.<‘ancL in my usual agile style, I leaped out of-' bed and' made 1 the third" basin .in - three-long. .leaps ’'being the third person to arrive. My neighbour;. at the. next, basin, remarked .that he loathed ■ shaving- and. therefore shaved every -third .day. - Having completed- my ablutions I -sauntered through the vestibule and-noticed that . three-'more minutes would complete the hour. Humming my. favourite air '“’Three o’clock in the morning" I -proceeded up the stairs and on the .third step I-was..' .stopped for a match. I -produced- a box and ■ found' it contained, three. .. The -.owner'of'the cigarette was ■ carrying- a book ’’The Three Jus+ Men”. J continued to -.A. Deck: and opposite a .lifeboat’narked' P 3 I saw three oc- , ffiioi deck, chairs. I toon, a seat by..the'rails and was- suddenly joined by- ; a cnaruiixpg member, of Ward K. -..He conversed on various subject's and it startled me : to. learn-.that t .-her sister had given birth to triplets .at three a.m,- on the' thin? March 1933. .; I walked. slowly downstairs three at a'-time and at the bottom I noticed three electric light switches above the opening and a cabin-marked three , I.fled' to my cot in D Ward, and as I arrived the announcement-was made-that the patients’ mess was ready. I imagined for a dread moment that the announcer -would say it. three ' times, but I breathed again when he didn’t. When meals are served in D it is an old custom for orderlies to place four sets of everything on my tray, as. I have. my meals in Red Corner' with my three pals! But .on eventful morning, only -three sets of th-usual-were present. The time, now was, as I expect-', you ■ have .guessed 7,33 a*m. . For ■my breakfast ■ I had three" bowls'- of porridge three slices of bread and •.marmalade ■ and ’three cups of tea. Discussing luck and birthdays, I found that''the awful "three" came into its o .n once '’more/’' All three thought that number threewas-lucky I .for • them, and each was able to give three examples explaining their reasons for this. -• Small- wonder then that my selection for the Double events were 3—3 three times I met with success throughout, the afternoon following my hunch, and after Ho- 3 had -won the. third race I . checked--my : . loose cash and . found I had three single''shillings and threepence- ■in my trouser pocxeti •■•• ho 3 -managed to scrape home•• in the last rabe,’fand after collecting my cash and checking up discovered T". had J cleared £3.3.34 on the afternoon. And so almost ended the ’’three” obsession, except that all three of my mousey tickets, contained "All the threes”! It was ironic that in the last game the only number I required on all three-.-cards was 33 before ’’House” was called!/ .y ... .. - Ward D —’oOo Ho. 333333. ’ 33rd Foot Cp.l/Sgt Eatwe.’ /-'•>. •'Seeking. ;Qopy ; for ’’What Knots" we took a note-.book-arid pencil and : roamed around the. -ship ; on the morning of' Boxing tasked various- wellknown -.'Characters "What is the ■ thought. uppermost in your mind this morning?"/' - ' . : - ; We ingw it to -you -their own words. /■ .

The Editor: I am not interested in ’W’What Knots” this morning* •■m.-k-./ Str, Ker: Come, come, have some sodii bic. with me ... . ''' Down at the old R. '& D. ■ ?/.. ' -/ Cgpt, Maloney: I want to be alone. ■— ’ Sgt Cali ill: Please don’t take my Buncha away. - Dirty Corner (in chorus): ,'My eyes are din, I cannot see. ■ " Sgdn Ldr Richwhit.e: . ' It was never like this -in the Air Force. CaPt Taylor;:.- ’ "My.: Mother told me to keep away from fast- women and slow • ' 1 . ■ Jt-Am:/ ■' ... ’racehorses.? •' Mr Fraser, . 3rd.' Officer: (.Suffering from a cold, not a hangover): . Dhow then.-' Col. "Wallacef ' One ‘crowded hour of glorious life! Capt Prosser: ' I didn’t -ought'a. ett it. ''■R,;S.Mt Take me back to my boots' and my saddle! / -. One just One) of the V. A ’s: I’m on 'the water-waggon this. trip. ■: c': Mr-Randall Smith, Chief Engineer; So ’am I’, now. ■■ ■ -"■■■ - Take- my boots- off .when I die. -. ■ ' ■ Alien ~ , - What a glorious death! ' ..‘.'J, - 7 './'7 . ''h:-..- I '. .Griffiths, .Chief Steward: ver has so much been eaten by so few in ; so. •- < • little time. Capt Broom: I' saw rats, rats, big as bloomin' cats in the'' Quartermaster , w: ; '■ ■ •■='■■ . ■ Store. Mat r 6 A j s( speechless)> frothing to say. . . . . ... .. I *' d' ’-R-w h-kg-wg ■•■■■■•' - Two 'Hangovers - - • ■ * - v ' *'-*• eCO" — -- •• ■ .-■ gfre Editor, ; — .J-'/J r . J'/:. ; ';JJ.'.J ?■ -J', w ._ r *Manyt Huntes to the "Gailey Staff" for 'the',fine'...spread,' and theg'.work .they, nut into same. Theirs, was just a sample of the Kiwis' kindness towards 'ds after being P.O.Rs in Japan, Hew Zealand is a fine country I must say, and I hope to return some day. EX-P.O.W. - "J" WTRD -