大象传媒

On the 28h April 1943 1 joined the Royal Navy as an Ordinary Telegraphist/Wireless Mechanic. I got up at 7 o'clock after a good nights' sleep and ate a hearty breakfast. My mother cried when I said goodbye to her and I declined my father's offer to see me off at the railway station. At the last minute my sister came downstairs to say goodbye.

When I got to the station I met a lad whom I knew who was already in the Royal Marines and was going back after his first leave. He was walking out with a girl who lived near my family home. I learned later in life that they were engaged for six years and then split up as they did nothing but quarrel.

The train came in on time at 7.45arn in Waterfoot Station on the L.M.S. (London Midlands and Scottish) line, its full name being Waterfoot for Newchurch. When the railway was built Newchurch was on top of a hill half a mile away so the station was built in the valley bottom and called Waterfoot. It stands at the lower end of a gorge called the Glen where there is a geographical phenomenon of a railway, a road and a river running parallel to each other.

The Marine and I travelled to Manchester together but then went our separate ways. He had to travel south whereas my journey lay to the east. My destination was Skegness in Lincolnshire on the Wash Estuary where the Navy had a camp to receive recruits. Originally it was Billy Butlin's holiday camp which was requisitioned and converted into a Naval Establishment and named H.M.S. (His Majesty's Ship) Royal Arthur.

It was necessary to change from Victoria to Exchange Station at Manchester. I stood on the platform waiting for the train to arrive when I realised that the only people waiting were young men and middle-aged women. When the train came in late from Liverpool with young men leaning out of the windows, the middle-aged women turned into mothers tearfully saying goodbye to their sons, the young men.

The train was a troop train specially chartered to go all the way from Liverpool to Skegness which was exceptional as in those days trains never travelled directly across country.

Initially no one spoke to anybody else, everyone was wrapped up in their own thoughts. The train stopped at all main stations en route, more young men getting on board at every stop. After about two hours first one and then another handed cigarettes round the compartment. Next, conversations started up and interest was shown in each others prospective jobs. We got our sandwiches out and ate them when lunch time came.

The train arrived at Skegness at about 4pm and we were given some tea in the camp's mess hall. After the meal we were assembled on the large parade ground where some sort of trial followed. Two stokers in uniform were found guilty of a charge in front of all the camp's personnel, uniformed and those not yet in uniform. I cannot remember what their punishment was but at the time the incident seemed like a murder trial and sentence combined, their charge was "urinating on the quarter deck'.

The defendants had gone on shore leave for the first time, ie been allowed out in town. There they finished up on a pub crawl drinking beer before going back to camp. When they got back they were caught short by a call of nature and relieved themselves on the flagpole. Unfortunately for them they were caught in the act.

The flagpole is properly called the jack staff and it is where the white ensign, the navy flag, is hoisted up and struck down each morning and evening with bugles blowing, officers saluting and everybody else standing to attention. The area is known as the quarter deck over which one must double up ie run not walk; the area is sacrosanct.

The next day we were all sorted into potential trade groups and given an aptitude test although we had been graded earlier when recruited. I was impressed when they paid me 4s/- (20p) which should have been given to me when I had my medical two months earlier. It had been left on the recruiting officer's desk by mistake; this payment was to cover travelling expenses incurred at the medical examination. The results of the aptitude test confirmed my inclusion on the wireless mechanic's course.

H.M.S. Royal Arthur was a reception camp where recruits were processed for onward transit to training camps. However there was a course run for visual signalers there as they needed a large parade ground on which to train. Part of their course was learning how to signal manoeuvres to ships; they learned this by marching and counter marching by command from flags and for this they needed a lot of space. They were given better conditions for their long stay by having carpets in their chalets and being excused guard duty.

The passive defense stood guard and defended the camp; it was made up of stokers who were held back for six months before going on their training course. They wore distinctive brown boiler suits and carried rifles.

The next few weeks were spent being kitted out with uniform, having dental inspections, having vaccinations and having instructions on such things as tying naval rope knots, rifle drill, foot drill (square bashing) and aircraft recognition. They even had rowing boats moored in the swimming pools with holes drilled in the oars so that the boats would not move when rowed.

My pay was 3s/- per day plus Kit Upkeep Allowance of 6d per day totalling 24s/6d per week (One pound and 221/2p in today's currency). 1 allocated 7s/- per week (35p) to my mother to enable her to claim a pension in the event of my death on active service. This was ' normal practice during conscription in the war years; my mother reimbursed the amount accumulated to me after the war. Somehow a mistake was made and only I s/- per week was actually deducted and paid over to my mother. When I approached the Pay Office they advised me to have the matter corrected at my next establishment (ship). They had made their books up and did not want to anger the Paymaster Captain by altering them and writing to the Admiralty. He was looking for promotion so did not want his books altering, it would seem.

The Kit Upkeep Allowance was paid to keep one's kit up to date, if anything wore out one had to replace it at one's own expense. The replacement cost was reasonable and no clothing coupons were required. Of course one had to convince the duty officer that the item had worn out and that a replacement was necessary. This proved difficult in later service when the duty officer, a public school snob, wanted to know why a seaman needed three pairs of socks instead of two. The cost of a new uniform was 40s/- (Two pounds).

I had four teeth extracted with more to follow; also 1 was due for nine fillings. My teeth must have been in poor condition at eighteen years of age; of course in those days no-one went to the dentist unless they had tooth-ache.

Our local dentist was known as Jack the Ripper as he only took five minutes. His proper name was Jack Cropper and it took only five minutes from ringing his bell going in to shutting the door on the way out, minus one tooth. The cost was 2s/6d (12s/2p).

An abscess came in my gums and I finished up in sick bay for three days. The bay was full of older men having all their teeth extracted; they would get false teeth in their place. They were put into bed, wheeled into the dental surgery, operated on and wheeled back into sick bay. They just lay there all day long; they were got up after about three days, I think. What happened to them next 1 do not know as 1 was returned to duty myself

I had to visit the dentist every day for treatment. He sprayed my gums with medicinal Dettol and painted them with iodine and plugged up the holes with cotton wool soaked in some solution. My overcoat came in handy as an extra blanket during this period.

As 1 was excused P.T. and foot drill during my convalescence I was put on picket duty for the cross country run, having to hold a flag to show the way. My oilskin and gaiters kept me dry whereas those other pickets who left their gaiters off got their trouser bottoms wet through during the torrential downpour at 7 o'clock in the morning. We were given mugs of cocoa when we returned to camp. The cooks laid out a row of buckets full of cocoa and we dipped our mugs in one of the buckets. It was strong without any sugar or milk.

We had to tie our own hat ribbons and hat straps; also we had to mark our name and number on all our clothes. The queues for vaccinations seemed half a mile long and seemed to take all afternoon. About one in fifteen fainted as the vaccinators were approached.

Testing our personal life belts was traumatic for those who could not swim. They had to slip into a tank of water that seemed at least thirty feet deep and then let go of the side of the tank. A petty officer pushed them into the middle of the water with a large barge pole and there they had to float unaided for a short spell. You can imagine how terrified a non swimmer would become. 1 think the tank was also used to train submariners in escape procedures and to test their escape apparatus; only they went in at the bottom and came out of the top.

Sunday morning divisions (parade) were quite a show; the marine band played to the best of its ability. We were marched onto the parade ground and some sort of nondenominational church service was given. All the officers paraded, even the dentists were lined up in their best uniforms plus gaiters. There were a lot of them and they had pink braid between their gold braid rank rings to denote their branch; they looked very impressive out of their white surgical coats. The rest of Sunday was free.

My mother gave me back the letters 1 wrote home and 1 now extract information from them fifty years later.

Fire watching at Skegness was one night in four but 1 missed most of them being on the sick list due to my sore gums from having teeth out. Some of the lads were on duty three times a week; they did a few hours per night. Nothing ever happened but there were plenty of people awake throughout the night.

One afternoon we had a game of handball on the sports field. After tea once a week there was a sort of brains trust whereby the ships company were asked all sorts of questions. I fell behind with my rifle drill, being ill in sick bay after getting an abscess in my gums. One of the other lads was detailed to drill me all Monday afternoon. The rest of the class went off to play football on the sports field. The lad who was detailed to drill me enjoyed doing it. He was older and had been in the Home Guard and fancied himself as a drill instructor.

1 had some photographs taken and sent home and had studs put in my boots. Then it was off to next establishment for further training.

Note:

This is part of a 100 page manuscript and, as such , I am retaining the copyright to this material.

Kenneth Waterson.

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