大象传媒

Peoples War
I was seven when the war began and thirteen by the time it finished. There was a time when I felt that our generation had been cheated of our childhood, but when you think about it - every generation has to put up with whatever fate hands out. A hundred years ago many babies failed to survive their first year, and infectious diseases curtailed many more young lives.
I was playing with Vera King in her back garden the Sunday morning war was declared. That was unusual for I was never allowed out to play on Sundays, the grown ups must have been pre-occupied with the war news. Mrs. King came out and said I had better go home now as the war had started. I skipped up the backsies thinking this was good news as they had been talking about it for so long with gloomy faces, so I was quite upset to find Gran crying. Someone said it would be over by Christmas to which she replied "No it won't, I had three in the last lot and there will be two in this, and they'll have him (baby Ken) afore this lots finished" My young brother Ken was then nine months old and was one of the last to be called up for National Service so her words came true.

We had been back at school a week or so in September 1939 when the evacuees from London and the east coast towns arrived. I remember sitting three to a double desk. They talked funny and we teased them, children can be so cruel. 'The crowding gradually sorted out as many returned to London when the expected raids failed to come. Some were unwell, Tuberculosis was still around then and infectious diseases, head lice, scabies and many other childhood problems. One little girl had a bad speech defect for which no help was offered then, another had a deformed foot, it was much worse for them though having been torn away from their homes and dumped with strangers, unmarried ladies, widows, even widowers or single men, as long as they had room, the quality of the care available was not considered .
Our parents blamed them for the Scarlet Fever epidemic and the scourge of headlice which followed soon after their arrival, and their parents of course blamed our primitive 'country' ways, but these things happened every year as if governed by the seasons, but everyone was jumpy and unsettled and the war-time spirit had not yet arrived.
There was a period when nothing much happened, food rationing was enforced, and anything imported from abroad became short, then ceased altogether, gas masks were issued and lots of leaflets about what precautions to take in all sorts of situations which might arise. Thank goodness not many of them did, we were not invaded there were no gas attacks, but during the first few months of calm many of the children returned to London or the east coast towns they had come from. When the air-raids started there was a second wave of evacuees.
There was an air raid shelter on The Green at the back of the school and a small section of the wall was demolished to allow the infant children to use it. Then all the other pupils were assessed on the distance they lived from the school and whether they could run home in 5 minutes. This took much working out with Mr. Mann and his stop watch and whistle, we quite enjoyed this new game. Those who could not get home in time were found some accommodation near the school to run to, or with another pupil who lived nearer perhaps. It was not considered safe to keep us at the school in case it received a direct hit. .
We also had practice in case of immediate danger, to get down under the desks, or if there was time, run into the cloakroom area where there was less glass. Mr. Mann had a motor horn in his office which he sounded as a danger signal. The school did come under attack from machine gun fire one afternoon, we spent the whole time in the 'lobby' as the plane sprayed the area with machine gun fire.
Miss Maynard came from Bath, she lived with a family in Evelyn Street in Old Town during the week and travelled to school daily by 'bus. At week-ends she went back to Bath where she lived with a sister and possibly her mother in Shakespeare Avenue returning by train on Monday mornings and coming straight to school from the railway station.
The main bombing of Bath took place on April 25th and 26th 1942 as part of what became known as the Baedecker raids, taken from the famous Baedecker Guide Book to Britain, from where the most famous and interesting towns were chosen by the Luftwaffa to devastate.
Other places to suffer were Norwich, Canterbury, York and less obvious, Weston-Super-Mare and Sunderland.
As soon as darkness began to fall the drone of German planes could be heard passing overhead, the sirens sounded here in Swindon, but apart from the planes there was no activity. The Air raid wardens patrolling our streets reported 'somebodys catching it, looks like Bath way', the glow of fires could be seen in the sky and the distant gunfire could be heard.
Monday morning we made our way to school and assembled in the Hall, Mr. Mann asked us to pray for those who had suffered in the air-raids the night before, and for the safety of Miss Maynard as there was reason to believe her home town had been attacked.
We filed back to our classroom and Mr. Mann took charge in Miss Maynards absence, we were all rather subdued, normally with a stand-in teacher some of the boys would use the opportunity to 'play up'. All through the morning we worked quietly, playtime came and went and we began the afternoon lessons. Around 2 o clock the door opened, Miss Maynard stood there looking dishevelled and said "Sorry I'm late".
I think Mr. Mann sent us out into the playground while he took her over. It turned out that her home had been completely destroyed, she stood there with all her posessions, having come straight to school from the railway station.
When the nights were constantly being disturbed by air raid alerts we were allowed to start school later the following morning if the alert had been after midnight. I seem to remember much confusion of parents about when exactly the 'all clear' had sounded and children arrived at school in very irregular groups over the early part of the morning session and this was abandoned as soon as the raids eased off.

Apart from Air raid precautions for all the children at school the teachers became involved with rationing problems. I remember poor Mr. Mann having to weigh and measure us all to see if any of us qualified for extra clothing coupons. I was small for my age, but that day had a pair of hand knitted socks on which made my feet big enough to qualify. Mum was very amused and pleased to get 10 more coupons.
We had school milk, one third of a pint for a halfpenny, some from poor families had theirs free, then we were able to have two bottles a day, one in the afternoon too.
School meals began around 1941, to allow mums to work and to ensure children were nourished, not all children had them at 5d (2.5p) each they were of good value really but most children hated them. I don't know where they were cooked, certainly not on school premises, a lorry would arrive at the school gates and unload huge metal containers which were put into a large heated cabinet in the main hall to keep warm until dinner time.
We also had National Savings, taking a penny or so a week which bought stamps to stick on a card which could then be cashed or transferred to a Post Office Savings book. During the war when Savings Certificates were introduced they bought a 15/- savings certificate. There were National Savings Drives, Wings for Victory Week, War Weapons Week to encourage savings for the war effort. In school we competed to see which class could bring the most. All these payments were made on a Monday morning, so it was a busy time for teachers to call the register, collect the milk and dinner money, order the National Savings stamps etc.
With clothing being rationed and we children growing as fast as runner beans, the mums who could sew were much in demand letting down skirts, making boy's trousers from the best bits of dad's, no designer labels, we were all in the same boat so didn't mind too much.
Mrs. Witcomb in Hughes Street could work miracles with a discarded adults coat, unpicking it, cutting out any worn bits, turning it inside out and making a childs coat with a matching pixie hood for 4/6d (24p).
My mum was not very good with a sewing machine, but she could knit, everything from dad's socks and pullovers to vests for my brother and me. Wool came in skeins, and had to be held on outstretched hands while someone else wound it. We tried using an upturned chair or stool legs but it was one way to keep kids hands occupied for a while.
We could sometimes buy Abb wool, which was unrationed, it was grey or beige in colour, in huge balls and very oily, intended for knitting fishermans socks. Mum used unpicked coloured wool to relieve the drabness with bands of colour.
There were 'Make do and Mend' weeks when exhibitions were held to show how to re-feet knitted socks, knit patches for worn out jumper elbows and let dresses down hiding the worn hemline with coloured rick-rack braid.
Cookery recipes used the minimum of fat and very little meat.
We blended butter with the rather crude margarine available on ration adding a little milk and warming it in front of the fire, if left too long it separated and went oily, we children were given this task, I always felt quite pleased when the result was a basin of creamy spread.
Sliced bread had not yet arrived, all bread was in whole loaves and contained more bran than white bread, giving it a mottled appearance, it was called a 'National' loaf, quite acceptable, in fact very nice indeed sliced thickly and toasted on the end of a wire toasting fork over a glowing fire, unless it fell among the cinders and had to be rescued, cinders brushed off and any burnt bits scraped , we could not waste precious food.
There were many shortages, sweets were not rationed straight away, it was first come, first served as with many commodities that were in short supply, so when supplies came in queues formed.
Newspapers grew thinner, but were an essential part of keeping the public informed, along with the radio which we called the 'wireless' then.
Magazines and comics were not so essential and were published less frequently.
I had 'Sunny Stories', having progressed from 'Mickey Mouse'. Sunny Stories was by Enid Blyton and cost 2d, long before Noddy was born when 'The Famous Five' were 'The Adventurous Four'. It contained several short stories and a serial which reflected the war-time theme. The Adventurous Four, two boys and two girls,caught German spies and found submarine pens in caves around Scottish Lochs, we couldn't wait for the next issue.... it also had a competition, a puzzle to solve in one issue and a painting competition the next, I won many book prizes, some of which I still have.
The Dandy, Beano, Radio Fun and Film Fun were the most popular comics and were resold or swapped until they were in tatters, we read of Desperate Dan, Korky the Cat, Pansy Potter and Our Gang.

We listened to our favourite 'wireless' programmes as children today watch television and in the same way often found the childrens programmes a bit boring and preferred to listen to the grown up ones given half a chance.
Children's Hour was at 5 o clock (I think), with Uncle Mac and the Zoo Man talking about the animals in London Zoo. I remember running home from school to hear a serial called 'The Magic Bed Knob'.
At lunchtime from 12.30 to 1pm. every week-day there were programmes for war-workers called Workers Playtime and Works Wonders. An outside broadcast unit visited factory canteens in the lunch hour , Workers Playtime was introduced by BILL GATES, does anyone else remember that I wonder? this was about 15 years before the head of Microsoft was born. Well known entertainers did a turn, Winifred Attwell played the piano,
Ronnie Ronaald whistled and a comedian told a few war-time jokes. In Works Wonders the employees themselves entertained their workmates with turns for which the applause was probably to appreciate the finish.
The location was always kept secret 'Todays broadcast came from a factory in the south-west'.
Another programme broadcast to 'war workers' was 'Music while you Work' half hour of continuous music which continued for many years after the war.
We had Itma (It's That Man Again) with Tommy Handley, Monday Night at Eight, Music Hall, The Man in Black , Wilfred Pickles 'Have a Go' and on Sunday lunchtimes Family Favourites, requests of music for the Forces and their Families.

The most dramatic part of the days - weeks- months-years of the war were the news bulletins, children had to be shushed, and the adults listened in awed silence. On Sunday evenings at nine o clock the National Anthems of all the Allied Nations were played before the nine-o-clock news, and sometimes Mr. Churchill spoke, this was always a serious occasion, usually at a crucial point in the war. His stirring speeches are still often quoted today.

Jean Allen, March, 2004.

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