大象传媒

The first chance of overnight leave, it was home to London for me. That sickening night still haunted me. Her mother asked my favourite girl the reason I did not look or seem very well. They did not find out till much later. We continued our routine work, meeting convoys, escorting convoys, all very vital but boring. It was all rather too near home. The destroyer and the life aboard her was great. It was a happy ship but I wanted to travel a bit further than the English Channel. The only solution that came to me was a medical one. Before entering the Royal Navy and when training at the Dulwich Hamlet Football Club, I had injured my right knee. It was diagnosed as cartilage trouble. Although it never troubled me all that, much it was worth a visit to the ship's doctor. The doctor had examined my leg and confirmed that it was cartilage trouble. He also told me that it would not cause me too much trouble. My reply was that it sometimes gave way and that being only 18 years of age I wanted to be able to play football again. He was very sympathetic and said he would see if something could be done about it. True to his word, he did do something about it. I cannot remember how long it was before he asked me to go along to the sick bay to see him. He told me that I was being transferred to the Naval Hospital Haslar for a cartilage operation. It was sad having to leave H.M.S. 鈥漇tevenstone鈥�, because it was happy ship and I had made many friends the short time that I served aboard her. Arriving at Haslar Hospital, no time was lost in admitting half a dozen more sailors and myself. After which we were taken to a pre operational ward, shown our beds and were all awaiting the next meal. We spent the waiting time getting acquainted. The surgeon who would perform my operation came along to see me. He examined my knee told me the name of the offending cartilage and put my mind at ease. A Royal Navy Lt. Commander and a very nice person. His name remained in my mind for many years but I cannot remember it now. The operation would be performed the following day. All was made ready the next day and the orderlies arrived to take me to the operating theatre. I was given an injection and told to start counting and must have been unconscious when they wheeled me into the operating theatre. I woke up in ward with a cage over leg under the sheet. The thing that I remember quite clearly though was the two young nursing sisters. One on each arm, they were trying to lift me up to arrange my pillows. The colour of the uniforms they wore told me that one was a navy sister the other was army. In my condition, they both looked very lovely. The cage was kept over my leg and at first, there was some pain. It seemed that after a short time it was decided to transfer me to The Battle Hospital, Reading. The civilian hospital in Reading must have kept a ward open to receive naval personnel. Mostly it was for postoperative rest and recuperation. Within a short space of time, I was allowed to be on my feet. Being just one nurse on duty at night, it was only natural that those that were allowed up should try and help her with her duties where possible. Helping with tea making, and making beds with her became a regular morning event, and I quickly become expert at it. We were allowed out in the afternoon for a few hours but had to wear 鈥� hospital blues鈥�. The bright blue shapeless coat and trousers together with a bright red tie on a white shirt. As there was a cinema a short distance from the hospital the ordeal of walking the streets dressed like a clown never lasted too long. It may be said that you were allowed in free wearing the 鈥渉ospital blues鈥�. The leave granted you in the afternoon was about four hours, enough time to see the films that were showing and to make your way back to the hospital in time. If you were with a friend it encouraged you to stray further into Reading and there was a park you could visit, sit on a bench and relax. It was on such an occasion that with me was a seaman who came from Newfoundland. He was a happy young fellow about a year older than myself. He was injured while aboard a Landing Craft on the beach at Anzio, during the invasion of Italy. We were sitting on a park bench, smoking a cigarette and coming towards us were two soldiers. They were American Rangers, elite troops of the American Army. Sitting there in our comical blues we noticed as they got nearer how very smart they looked. The tan jackets over smartly pressed trousers, the long highly polished jumping boots and the smart forage caps they wore on their heads. Both were six-foot or more and both had coloured ribbons over their left breast pockets. As they approached the bench we sat on you could see they noticed the hospital blues we were wearing. They stopped to speak to us knowing we were servicemen. We told them that we were in the Royal Navy. They offered us cigarettes and were very anxious to know how we had become hospitalised. We told them and they seemed to want to know how it was to be in action. They had seen no enemy action and were wondering how it would be and how they would behave. It was a sad occasion because I knew when D 鈥� Day finally came round which it did the following year these two young men would be among the first to land in France. When I think about that occasion, it makes me think about those two kind young men and if they survived the slaughter that went on. It was noticeable that you saw American soldiers wherever you went and you knew that the thousand upon thousands crowding into this tiny island were being prepared to invade France. My stay at Battle hospital was very enjoyable. The then physiotherapist to the Reading Football used to visit me. His treatment was to massage my knee with a small electrical machine that he held in his hand. I wish that I could remember his name. He was a kind quietly spoken man. Also another person that impressed me was the night nurse. She taught me the way hospital nurses made beds. Helping her, we could get round that ward in record time. She was a slight girl reminded me of one of my elder sisters. Never looked as though she could manage the duties she had to do, but she was very tough and very quiet. She was like most nurses, a little angel and we made sure that nobody upset her or took any liberties with her. I have never been back to visit Reading, but remember all the kind people that I came in contact with while wearing my hospital blues. Remember also that two of my sisters managed to pay me a surprise visit while there. Surprise because they were both doing war work making glider planes for the forthcoming invasion. It was lovely to see them. Being apart from your family, your loved ones were accepted and we had accepted that for the past four years. Being surprised by your sisters being able to travel to see you was great. When the time came and I was ready to leave Battle Hospital, Reading I was still not ready to return to my naval duties. The powers that be sent me to a small quiet little place just outside Portsmouth named Waterlooville. It was being used by the Royal Navy as a convalescent home. What a grand place it was. Maybe it was loaned to the Admiralty for the duration. With its acres of grassland and the vastness of the building, you imagine it was the estate of a duke or a lord. The short time I spent, there was sheer luxury. Resting, lazing around mostly playing cards, and the odd trip into Waterlooville to go to the cinema. The war seemed a very long way from us staying on this big estate. It was only when you left the grounds of the convalescent home to walk the odd mile or so into the town that it all changed. Parked along the hedges were army vehicles of every description. Tanks, troop carriers, lorries and jeeps, all covered with camouflaged netting and all with a white star painted on them for identification. The columns of all these army vehicles seemed endless and it made you think how big the task was going to be to invade France. My leg felt fully recovered now and upon seeing the doctor was told that I could return to active service. Memory fails me to say whether any leave was granted but my next naval establishment was to be the Royal Navy Barracks, Portsmouth. An establishment not to my liking. The famously renowned antiquated buildings steeped in history and frightening to enter. My stay in there consisted of trying to keep out of the way as much as possible. I can remember one duty that was given to me. It was to be part of a naval patrol one evening in Cosham, which was just outside Portsmouth. It was the stop before you entered Portsmouth and where some naval personnel dropped off the train. The object of the exercise was to stop the non-paying members defrauding the British Railways. Marching around Cosham wearing white gaiters bottom of you, trousers and a white armband never really appealed to me. And to try to catch fellow sailors and to have them punished for trying to get home for a few hours leave. They were doing wrong but on the money they were paid for helping their country I am sure British Railways could afford it. We never caught any fare dodgers when the train stopped at the level crossing in Cosham that night I am glad to say. We patrolled the streets and ended up going into a dance hall where we were given some refreshment. The evening passed off very tamely and so when the van arrived to take us back to the barracks I was glad it was over. Finding out my brother was in the barracks was a pleasant surprise for me having met him when at home previously when he had just returned from America. His cruiser after being hit by two torpedoes while engaging the enemy in the Mediterranean. They had to make for Philadelphia in the United States for repairs and refit it was on his return after spending some weeks there that we previously met at home. It must have been when I left the Convalescent Home. Having the rank of a Leading Stoker, he was in charge of a mess when I tracked him down. He was a quiet but a very kind person and after our meeting ended with him giving me gifts. A blue Burberry raincoat and also new black shoes which he could get through naval stores being an acting Petty Officer. It was nice meeting up with him again but that meeting was the last for another couple of years. I had to report to the duty office, where they told me that my next ship would be another destroyer. Together with others we would travel to Waterloo Station and from there cross London to Euston and catch a train to Newcastle upon Tyne. The name of the newly built destroyer we were to join was H.M.S.鈥� Whelp鈥�. Being new would mean before being officially accepted by the Admiralty the ship would have to go through certain trials at sea. We travelled to Waterloo Station and had to travel to Euston Station on the London Underground. It was so frustrating when arriving at Waterloo being so near to home and not being able to contact my family. You must remember that it was 1944 and the majority of the population never had home telephones. These were my teen years, all of them had been taken up with war, and the remainder of them would be also. Going to Newcastle upon Tyne was something new for me. Being born in London and never having travelled far from it, to travel home and abroad was what I hoped was in store for me. Arriving in Newcastle, our destination was the shipyard at Hebburn-on-Tyne. The new destroyer was there moored at the quayside. It was all rather hustle aboard and around her. The dockyard workers still working on her and all the untidy mess not associated with a ship of the Royal Navy. There was a skeleton crew aboard her and daily the remainder of the ship鈥檚 company were turning up. The captain had not turned up yet and we learned that in charge of the skeleton crew was a prince. The prince, having the grand title, 鈥淧rince Philip of Greece and Denmark鈥�. All this information was told us when we settled into our new home. We first saw him later coming along the jetty to board the ship, a tall slim fair-haired lieutenant who was second in command of H.M.S. Whelp. The captain when he arrived was Commander G. Norfolk. Our duties kept us busy from then on till such time when we went out to do our sea trials. Speed, Gunnery, Engines, Boilers, all had to be put to test before it was accepted by Royal Navy. Faults were found and they were corrected. Came the day when the dockyard workmen and the men in civilian suits had all left and the ship was ready for action. Time has not been kind to me in trying to remember too much about the Newcastle weeks we spent there. I cannot remember going 鈥淎shore鈥� there on more than one occasion. It seemed to me that it was damp, dark bleak kind of a place, but the war had made most of the country seem that way after four years or more. When the time came for us to leave Newcastle, it was north that we headed. Memory deserts me and I can only say that Scottish cities came into it. I remember seeing Edinburg, Glasgow, Greenock, and going further north to the Orkney Islands. Meeting up with the other ships of our new flotilla, H.M.S. Wager, Whirlwind, Wessex. A journey to the Land of the midnight sun to take supplies to an army garrison at Spitzbergen. The Arctic Circle was cold and unfriendly especially when we heard there was a German Surface Raider about. The chances of lasting too long in the water were very slim. We never ran into any trouble I am glad to say. The invasion of Europe was drawing near and the thousand upon thousands of American service men together with all the other allied forces the small island was very full. We were now at Scapa Flow with our flotilla. At anchor, here also were battleships and cruisers, which were to be used in the invasion. When the time came for the big ships to leave Scapa Flow, our flotilla had a duty to perform. It was to make sure there were no U-boats about and to depth 鈥� charge a clear and safe path for them. We did that but in the process of racing around one of our flotilla had an accident. It never got out of the way of one of its own quickly enough. It damaged its stern. It was while we were still at Scapa Flow that we heard over the radio that our troops had landed on the Normandy beaches. It was D 鈥� Day 6 June 1944. It was assumed then that we would not be needed and as they do rumours started as to where we destined to travel to. It was a long way from Europe and the rumours turned out to be correct. When we did leave S.F., it was to Greenock in Scotland that was our next port of call. It would appear that we were not doing too much but I assure you that we were kept very busy. Memory cannot fill in all that has happened since we left Newcastle. From Greenock it was to Portsmouth we went. The scene that awaited us at Portsmouth was to put it mildly chaotic. Having served on a destroyer there for a few months and got used to the busy wartime port. Very orderly naval and dockyard staff going about their wartime duties. The banging and the welding the general movement, as it should be. This was very different. This was the dockyard in a hurry. It was louder it was fuller and more crowded more khaki this time and more ships and landing craft, it seemed that you could not find a space anywhere. It all seemed very hectic after our trip up north. Greenock, Scapa Flow, Faeroe Islands even our trip to Norwegian Spitzbergen. It did not seem as though we were to play a big part in this European battle, and that proved to be correct. The past few months although not mentioning it the letters to a certain young lady had been getting past the friendly stage. I know that since leaving that first ship to have my leg operated on the time that I managed to get home the relationship had changed. The letters that passed between us now mentioned love. The leave before leaving Portsmouth to start a journey to where we did not know was sad. Two young people saying that they would wait for one and other. We walked and we talked and we felt sad. We left Portsmouth and proceeded to Gibraltar. On the way in company with other ships bombarded a town in the south of France to assist the Allied troops. Arrived in Gibraltar at midnight, oiled and left four hours later. Made our way to Algiers, stopped a few days. Had a run ashore, climbed the steps of the Casbar although it was posted as out of bounds to British servicemen. Never ventured too far in. The twisted alleys and shifty looking Arabs soon made us realise why they had said Out of Bounds. From Algiers went on to Malta and stopped again for a few days. Had a run ashore. Went to see a bullfight must have been across the border into Spain. Next stop was Alexandria and went ashore there also. From Alexandria, we went on to Port Suez. Only there for three hours just to oil. It was very exciting for me going through the Suez Canal the history of it all. Next stop Attu Islands where we oiled all night. Pushed on to Colombo / Ceylon and looked and enquired about my brother Harry and found that he had bee moved to India. Reached our destination Trincomalee on the eleventh of September 1944 the base of the East Indies Fleet, of which we were now part of. We had left Portsmouth at night about the 4th August. It was now the 11th September. I had received mail and had written regularly to family back home, also to a certain young lady who regularly wrote back. From the time that the ship put to sea from Newcastle till the time after we had passed through the Suez Canal, I had been a regular watch-keeper in the boiler room. I was now a Stoker 1st Class and was quite happy with what I was doing. It was brought to the notice of the Chief Petty Officer and he immediately put me on day work for a break. (The title of Stoker has now been altered I believe to Mechanical Engineer) in the present day Royal Navy. Being on day work was working from 8a.m till 4 p.m. and not having those strange four hour and two hour watches through the night and the day to keep the ship in motion. Our duties as part of the East Indies lasted about four months, and then we left to join the Pacific Fleet. While based at Trincomalee we were visited by Lord Louis Mountbatten and also inspected by Sir Bruce Fraser. Also remembering that King George 6th and Queen Elizabeth visited ships in our company when we were in Scotland. Perhaps they were giving their future son in law the once over. Getting back to Trincomalee and the time we spent as part of the East Indies Fleet we were kept pretty busy. Escorting the aircraft carriers while their planes bombed the oil wells on Sumatra was our main duty. On the look- out for Japanese submarines and also having the duty as main ship responsible for picking up crews of aircraft when unfortunate enough to have been shot down or when taking off or landing on the carriers. Another job I remember is going to help one of our submarines in the Indian Ocean. To put it simply, it had broken down and was just stationary in the water. It was a sitting duck for any enemy that came along. As you can imagine, they were very pleased to see us. There must have been a reason why we could not manoeuvre too close to them. I only know that a Seaman Petty Officer swam the distance between the two ships with a towing line. The outcome being that we towed the submarine through the Indian Ocean and to safety. It was said that the submariners had consumed more than the daily tot of rum before we arrived. Left East Indies base for Australia on January 16th i945. With us was the battle ship H.M.S. King George 5th, the aircraft carriers Indomitable, Illustrious, Indefatigable, Implacable, the cruisers Black Prince, Argonaut and two flotillas of destroyers. All under the command of Sir Bruce Fraser on the battleship King George 5th. We raided the oil wells on Sumatra the first week turned and met oilers. Oiled ship. Bad weather had held up first strike for a few days. Returned after oiling at sea to make second strike to finish off the oil installations. It appears that the Japanese expected us. Picked up crews of one fighter, two bombers. One officer in bomber being nearly dead before we got him inboard, his fellow crewmember unhurt. The officer died later that day, and was buried after dusk action stations. Through the years on Armistice, days it always makes me feel very sad when the memory of that officer returns. The men we could not save in the Channel when I served on H.M.S. Stevenstone. The thousands upon thousands that died and suffered and whose sacrifice is not fully appreciated. I forgot to mention that while stationed at Trincomalee we had an occasion to go to Bombay for some repairs. Going ashore there, I visited army camps to try and find my brother. The information that was told me was not very pleasing. He was now part of the 鈥淒agger Division鈥� of the 14th Army in Burma. Returning to our raids on the oil wells on Sumatra. After the sad and touching ceremony of the burial at sea, we learned that six of the Japanese bombers that attacked us had been shot down. After the operation, we turned to meet the oilers, to oil at sea and proceed to Freemantle, Australia.

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