大象传媒

After completing 6 weeks Training at Wallasey Sea School for the Merchant Navy [Mersyside]I spent 9 months coasting around British Isles on a small Dutch ship and then I joined "Esperance Bay" carrying American Troops New York-England and then I went on the Canadian Run, where the main part of this story happened.
At the time of this event i was an 18yr old Merchant Navy Seamen serving with "MV Empire McAndrew on Escort Duty on convoys across Atlantic from Liverpool-Canada, my ship was an aircraft carrier, both Merchant Navy and Royal Navy carrying grain - below and above on the flight deck, the Navy and 4 Fairy Swordfish[string bags]and as the runway was short, the aeroplanes had rocket boosters under the lower wings to aid take off and if you were on look-out, above the bridge you had to turn away to avoid the smoke etc.
On VE day we finished our duties on ship and headed for town to join in the victory celebrations. What happened next was unbelievable and still is today. It was such a long time ago so I will try and put it together as far as I can remember. The first surprise we had concerned the street cars[trams] they were being boarded by a mixture of people taking cash boxes on the ground and smashing them to break into to get the nickels out.
There were lots of people involved including Civilians, Seamen off ships in the port including the famous "Aquitania" and also the local navy personal known as The Barrington St Navy. At this time it was obvious that there were lots of drunken people and soon it became clear why Nova Scotia at the time was classed as a dry state similar to prohibition in USA and there was no such thing as pubs, instead they had liquor commissions, where people had to go to obtain their quota of drink which I think was 2 bottles of beer per day, 1 bottle of wine per month or 1 bottle spirit per month. I'm not sure how many depot's there were maybe 3 or 4 and it soon became clear that all of them had been invaded and people were just helping themselves and taking cases out into the street while the staff stood by helpless. I was outside one of them and a man came out with a case of Seagrams Rye Whisky and said "go on in and help yourself no-one will stop you" around about this time the police appeared and when they got out, presumably to sort things out, some of the crown turned the car over onto its roof. I think there were 3 or 4 of them, as Halifax despite being an important place during the war, was only a small town,and I think that they were the entire police force.
By now the crowd was in the main department store called "ETONS" and were helping themselves to all kinds of goods-shoes, clothes, hardware, even furniture. The next thing to happen I remember vividly.
All the international flags that were draped all around the front of the store was set alight somehow resulting in the fire engine arriving, people came running out carrying what they had acquired and then there was burnt flags and tons of water running all over the place.
The next think I recollect is the Mayor and some other people in a car appearing and through a megaphone he was telling people to go back to their homes, seamen to their ships and the sailors to their barracks.
Then there was a curfew implemented everyone had to be off the streets by a certain time, at this point more police had arrived, we made our way back to ship passing the park on the way where people were singing and dancing, beer cases strewn all around but they were well behaved.
In the newspaper the next day all kinds of events were reported but the one thing that stands out in my mind is that there was a Mink Coat or Ermine, i'm not quite sure which was found on the road in the gutter dirty and soaking wet valued at 3000 dollars quite a price for 60 years ago.
We sailed for the UK the next day and that was the last time i visited Nova Scotia but I was on the same ship in Montreal on VJ day and the celebrations there were uneventful people partying and having a good time and i've often wondered was it because it wasn't a dry state and they had loads of bars.
So what happened in HALIFAX to spoil a great day like that? It certainly was drink related to a certain extent, but being rationed could have had something to do with it, who knows?
if there are people around, English or Canadian who may have been there at the time and would like to talk about it, they would be very welcome.

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