For possibly the last time ever, I want to revive all those stupid rituals real pipe smokers took so much to heart and spoke of with such reverence. Now we rarely see, or even smell a pipe being smoked, I feel I must record, probably for the last time, the strange, ancient habits of the… Continue reading Royal Navy, ‘Baccy’
Month: November 2010
Naval Rum,Part 3 of 3
It All Started With A Fish Box One day, in calm weather, the Petty Officers Messman appeared on deck and sat down to scrape a fish box. No one took any notice, but as the day progressed so did the fish box. He shaped the sides, added supports to the bottom, made a hinged towing… Continue reading Naval Rum,Part 3 of 3
Naval Rum, Part 2 of 3
A Chiefs’ & Petty Officers Rum This Mess treated Rum like the Romans treated Jupiter and the tradition also was unique in my experience. Daily at eleven o’clock a deep-sided dish was placed on the Mess table containing fresh water. Three average sized tumblers were place, upended, in the water for the men to take… Continue reading Naval Rum, Part 2 of 3
Naval Rum, Part 1 of 3
The Tradition and Importance of The Tot To the RN Lower-deck that I knew, the withdrawal of the daily Rum Ration, The Tot, must have been like the death of a lover. How, in 1970, a do-gooder managed to engineer the withdrawal without murder is astounding, as you will realise if you read The Chief’s… Continue reading Naval Rum, Part 1 of 3
Royal Navy, A 6,000 volt shock
To put this occurrence in context I have to write some technical information. I have discovered that any mention of physics, people’s eyes start to glaze, so I will be brief and as simple as possible. Voltage is what gives electricity impetus to move along wires, across the ether, or, as in my case through… Continue reading Royal Navy, A 6,000 volt shock
Life on a small ship
In my time in the Navy, the people most respected as groups, were the Submariners and the Divers. Not totally because of the risk, but because the conditions of their training and work were the toughest. Subs were merely lethal weapons first and last, and the comfort of the men was well down the list… Continue reading Life on a small ship
The Change of the Watch
For four days the stunted little warship had writhed and hammered her way through the green bowels of the storm until the most hardened member found himself praying. In their selfish agony a few prayed for death, little caring its cause or how many would die in its accomplishment. Men of sterner stuff prayed for… Continue reading The Change of the Watch
That first day afloat
Travelling since early morning, provided with food vouchers, eating on the run was difficult. The trains were full, and one spent the journey uncomfortably seated on a suitcase, while guarding a small case and kit bag, with a hammock in the guard’s van, At big junctions there were barrows selling sandwiches and tea and there… Continue reading That first day afloat
Tha Conmam
I suspect my parents had always had made sure I was well fed. When working in Westminster lunch out was probably a useful supplement, but naval life was a different thing altogether. However, my hunger started immediately I joined, and as we were badly paid, ten shillings a fortnight to start with, I had to… Continue reading Tha Conmam
Leydene on the first occasion
>From the IOM we were sent to Petersfield, in Hampshire, to the Naval Signal School called Leydene. We were only to be in Leydene for about ten days and in that time we had to learn the workings of some ten transmitters and receivers together with all the ancillary equipment, so it is unsurprising that… Continue reading Leydene on the first occasion