1947 Summer

...
THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOORNAL

The Editor will always be pleased to receive constructive criticism for the improvement of the
Journal, including suggestions of particular features
which could be included or omitted.
Subscribers are requested to notify at once any
change of address. The Editor cannot be responsible
for delivery of copies unless this is done.
All correspondence should be addressed to:
THE EDITOR,
THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL
DISTRICT PAY OFFICE,
LADYSMITH BARRACKS,
ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE, Lancs.
Tel.: Ashton 3051
EDITORIAL NOTES
EDITOR :
Lieut.-Colonel A. L. DUNNILL, O .B.E.
The Royal Army Pay Corps Journal is published

quarterly, viz., Spring (in March), Summer (in
June), Autumn (in September), and Winter (in
December).
Local Representatives have been appointed in
each Pay Office, to whom all Corps News and Notes
should be sent for transmission to the Editor. Other
articles intende:i for publication may be sent either
to the Local Representative or direct to the Editor.
All letters, articles, etc., should be clearly written
in ink or typed on one side of the paper only and
should be signed. If the signature is not intended for
publication, but as a guarantee of goo:i faith, a nom
de plume should be given.
The rates of subscription to The R.A.P.C. Journal

are as follows : For 12 Single
months Copies
4/Through Office Representative ..
1/5/1/3
If sent by post
Small advertisements in connection with articles
for sale, accommodation, etc., will be inserted at a
charge of 2d. per word.
For Scale of Charges for other advertisements
application should be made to the Editor.
Readers can materially assist us in our advertisements. Remember to deal with firms who advertise
in the Journal and always mention the Journal in any
correspondence with our advertisers.
Articles, photographs, etc. , should be forwarded

to the Editor to ensure receipt by the 20th of
February, May, August or November, if intended
for publication in the issue of the follo wing month.
All articles printed in this Journal are copyright,
and application for reproduction should be made to
the Editor.
INDEX
Page
Editorial
408
Officers' Club Notes
409
Old Comrades' Ass')ciation
411
Pay Services, S.E.A.C.
415
Jewish terrorists attack Syrian Orphanage, Jerusalem
421
Personalia
423
Corps News - Officers
424
Classification - A tragedy
425
R.A.P.e. in Netherlands East Indies
427
" I was posted to Jerusalem"
431
12 Command Pay Office, Allied Land Forces, Norway ..
432
The British Paymaster, First Canadian Army
433
Notes and News from Offices
436
407
The Royal Army Pay Corps Journal

Vol. V.
No. 40
Summer, 1947
EDITOBIAI..J NOTES
BIRTHDAY OF
H.R.H. PRINCESS ARTHUR
OF CONNAUGHT
On the occasio~ of her birthday on 17th May,
1947, the followmg telegram was dispatched
to her Royal Highness, Princess Arthur of
Connaught, R.R.C., ColoI).el-in-Chief, Royal
Army Pay Corps.
"The Colonel Commandant, The
Paymaster-in-Chief and All Ranks Royal
Army Pay Corps send Greetings to your
Royal Highness on the occasion of your
Birthday."
The following reply has been received by
the Colonel Commandant from Her Royal
Highness.
" Please accept and convey to All Ranks
Royal Army Pay Corps my grateful thanks
for Birthday Greetings."
District Pay Office,

Ladysmith Barracks,
Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancs.
JunF, 1947.
During the past quarter, it will be noted,
the address of the Editorial Office of the
Journal has been' changed and all subscribers
are requested to dispatch all correspondence,
subscriptions, ~tc., to the new address.
All members of the Corps will have received

with gratification the news that Major-General
R. G. Stanham has been granted an extension
of his term at the War Office as Paymaster-inChief.
The responsibility of the P.LC. in pl~nning
the Corps' share in the Post-War Army is
indeed heavy but we are happy to think that
our future remains for a little longer in his
capable hands.
During the past few weeks several thousands

of circulars have been sent out to personnel
of all ranks recently released from the Corps
and as a result we are glad to say a large number
of new subscribers have been enrolled.
TOBRUK 1941
An Officers' Dinner will be held at the
Connaught Rooms, London, on 12th September, 1947. All Officers and ex-Officers who
served in the Defence and Maintenance of
Tobruk between 10th April and 10th December, 1941, are eligible to attend.
Particulars from Major-General Lomax,
Flagstaff House, Colchester.
This issue contains news of a number of

re-unions of Old Comrades in various parts
of the country. The organisation of the several
branches of the O.C.A. has meant a lot of
preparation and hard work.
Thus it was
unavoidable that these meetings could not be
arranged earlier. Now that an active start has
been made we hope the good work will continue, and that all those who have served in
the Corps will be able to attend the periodic
functions and thus avoid losing contact with
their colleagues.
PHILATELY
A number of readers have written suggesting
that a Philatelic Society should be formed for
the benefit of Stamp Collectors in the Corps.
Whether such a club can be formed will
naturally depend on the number of collectors
interested in the hobby.
It will only be possible to operate an
Exchange Club but as personnel of the Corps
are stationed in all parts of the world such a
club should give ample opportunities for
disposing of duplicates and for acquiring
wanted items.
Will any collector who is interested in the
formation of this club kindly communicate
with the Editor as early as possible.
The Corps Journal also, we hope, serves as

a means of maintaining this contact. To avoid
missing any copies we would advise readers,
when they are notified that their subscription
has expired, to complete the pink form enclosed
in their copy and return it to the Editor without
delay. Only by doing so can they ensure
receiving their copy in the future. In these
days of rationing it is only possible to provide
for a very few copies that have not been ordered.
408
R.A.P.~.
Officers'
~Iub
J. C. Wood. General Stanham, playing the

former, lost by 6 holes and Brigadier Bednall,
playing the latter, won by 4 holes. Brigadier
Lightfoot lost his match by 16 holes and
Brigadier Forde lost his by 15 holes.
In the Inter Regt. Championship the
R.A.P.C. team was again beaten by the event4 al
winners, but put up a remarkably good effort.
In the first round they were drawn against a
strong R.A.S.C. team and won a very close
fight by 7 holes to 2 (Chaundy 2 down,
Beauchamp 4 up, Thompson 3 up, Page all
square). In the second round, the team rout-ed
their opponents, R.A.O.C. (Northern ~m
mand), by 27 holes to 0 (Chaundy 2 up,
Beauchamp 10 up, Thonipson 7 up, and Page
8 up). This brought the team to the semi-final,
against the Seaforth Highlanders, and it was
expected that whichever team won would win
the final. The Seaforths were led by Captain
Blair, who had won the Individual Army
Championship and was playing magnificent
golf. Chaundy had only partly recovered but
nevertheless he was given the task of playing
Blair and achieved a magnificent victory in
coming in 5 holes up. Beauchamp, however,
lost 2 holes to Cassels and Thompson 6 holes
to MacKinock whilst Page came in all square
in this match with McCrae. We, therefore, lost
by 8 holes to 5, an excellent effort on the part
of the team, haying regard to all the circumstances.
THE ARMY GOLF MEETING

The Army Golf Meeting was resumed in its
full peace-time manner and took place at
St. Andrews on 18th-19th and 21st-25th April.
The R.A.P.C. entered teams for the Army
Inter-Regimental Championship (limited to
regular officers up to and including rank of
Lieut.-Colonel) and for the Ordnance Cup
(Colonels and above and retired officers). Each
team is of four players, each playing 18 holes
match play. The following officers represented
the Corps and played in the individual competitions :-Major-General Stanham, Brigadier
Bednall, Lieut.-Colonel Milling, Lieut.Colonel Thompson, Lieut.-Colonel Beauchamp,
Major Chaundy and Captain Page.
General Stanham played in the Generals'
Cup but struck a bad patch (a most unusual
thing for him) and lost to General Thorpe,
who received five strokes, in the first round.
The Individual Competition was played on
Monday and Tuesday (21st and 22nd) in
conditions which some of the caddies described
as the worst they had known for a competition.
The only officer to receive a prize was Captain
Page, who playing from handicap 8, received
second prize for the two days' aggregate off
handicap. The winner of the Army Individual
Championshi p was Captain Blair of the
Seaforth Highlanders, who played remarkably
well in the difficult conditions.
In practice beforehand Major Chaundy had
been playing very well (handicap scratch) but
most unfortunately he contracted Mumps and
spent the week-end in bed, by the Monday,
however, he felt better and decided to play,
and the teams to represent the R.A.P.C. were:Ordnance Corps-Major-General Stanham,
Brigadier Bednall, Brigadier Lightfoot and
Brigadier Forde.
Inter Regt. Cup-Major Chaundy, Lieut.Colonel Beauchamp, Lieut.-Colonel Thompson and Captain Page.
It was a magnificent effort on the part of the
~orps to e~ter a team for the Ordnance Cup and
It was particularly gallant of Brigadier Lightfoot
and Brigadier Forde to make up the team when
neither had any opportunity for practice. We
were drawn against the strongest team, A.A.
Comm~nd, who proved eventually to be very
easy wI~ners .. They were led by two very good
golfers m Major-General Hornby and Brigadier
. *
R.A.P .C. GOLFING SOCIETY

The Summer Meeting is being held at West
Hill Golf Club, Brookwood, Surrey, on 3rd and
4th July.
CORPS HOCKEY
Prior to the 1939-45 war the Corps was
represented by a team in the Hockey world
with very creditable results, culminating in the
winning of the Eastern Command Hockey
Tournament and reaching the semi-finals of the
Army Hockey Tournament in 1938. Since then
the war has dispersed and aged all the old
hands and much spade work will be required
to revive the team and put it on the map again.
The fou ndation of .a sound Corps team can
only be laid on a solid strata of Pay Office teams
playing regular weekly games, from which
representatives for the Corps team can be
409

drawn as required. A preliminary examination
of the hockey potential of RA.P.C. units
stationed within one hour of London carried
out last autumn disclosed an almost complete
lack of interest and players. The factors contributing to this state of affairs are well known
but as RA.P.C. units move to and settle i~
their est~blished peace stations it is hoped that
O.C.s WIll take a personal interest and impart
the essential drive and encouragement to the
formation of a unit team to play local clubs and
units in their immediate neighbourhood.
In view of the concentration of RA.P.C.
units in and around Aldershot it has been
decided provisionally that Aldershot shall be
the home centre for Corps Hockey.
Further details will be published in due
course.
*
"
TENNIS
The annual tournament will be held at the
Officers' Club, Aldershot, on 10th July, 1947.
OFFICERS' DINNER CLUB

The first post-war Annual Dinner will take
place at the Mayfair Hotel, London, W., on
Friday, 4th July, at 7-30 p.m. for :', 8 p.m.
PAY
O~
Social Functions
During this coming season two social
gatherings have been arranged. The first will
take place on 10th July at the Officers' Club
Aldershot. On this day the Corps are playing
the second day of their cricket match versus
the RA.O.e. and in addition are holding the
annual tennis tournaments. It is hoped that
th~se two attr~ctions will result in a big reumon , of servmg and retired officers of the
Corps. Tea will be provided. The second will
take place in London on 9th September at
Lords ~ricket Ground, when the Corps will
be playmg a one-day match against The Cross
Arrows. Tea will also be provided on this
occasion.
CORPS CRICKET FIXTURES, 1947

v. A.E.e.,
7th and 8th July (Away), at
Aldershot Officers' Club.
v. RA.O.C., 9th and 10th July (Home), at
Aldershot Officers' Club.
v. R.A.S.C., 11th and 12th July (Away) at
Buller Bks., Aldershot.
GOOD
MORNING,
PRIVATE
YOUNG
F te!
GOOD
MORNING,
M AJ OR
BROWN
-CLOTHES
MAY
BE
410
WORN
ON
SATURDAYS
B.il.P.C. Old
Comrades~
Since the publication of addresses of Branch

Secretaries in the spring issue of the Journal
the following changes have taken place:NORTH EASTERN AREA
CAPTAIN O. THORNHILL, RA.P.C. (Retd.) ,
19 Heworth Hall Drive, Heworth, York.
SOUTH WESTERN AREA
MAJOR D. Y. CUBITT, R.A.P.e., Regimental
Pay Office, By-Pass Camp, Exeter, Devon.
BRANCH FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

The following reports of functions and
meetings have been received.
1. South Wales and Monmouthshire Branch
The first annual re-union dinner of the
South Wales and Monmouthshire Branch of the
Old Comrades' Association was held at the
Park Hotel, Cardiff, on Saturday, 26th April.
Captain B. Rowe, M.S.M., Pontypridd, presided, and the Guest of Honour was MajorGeneral Sir Guy Riley, K.B.E., C.B., Colonel
Commandant of the Corps.
The Toast of" The Corps" was proposed by
Captain J. T. Smith, Cardiff. He said he
wondered whether those present who were
pre-war civilians, realised before 1939 that
there was such a Corps as the Royal Army Pay
Corps, and if they did know that such a Corps
existed whether they had any conception of the
duties the Corps had to perform. Personally,
he confessed that he did not know much about
it.
As most of those present knew, the Royal
Army Pay Corps was quite a young Corps as
compared with other regiments. It would
celebrate its seventieth birthday next year and
it was not until after the 1914-18 war that it
was granted the title of " Royal." In the last
war the work of the Corps was increased
enormously. It was carried out in every theatre
of war and it was very varied in its character.
Not only did the Corps have to perform its pay
duties but its members had to assist in the
common attack against the enemy. Captain
Smith referred humorously to early training
with the Home Guard when they held the
heights at Shrewsbury with great tenacity. That
was only a start. During the war men of the Corps
had had to do quite a number of combatant
duties and to act as infantry and pioneers. They
served on the anti-aircraft batteries, tackled
Association
fire-fighting and the work of the ordinary

soldier.
For all the work they had done in all theatres
of war the Corps had earned great praise from
all Commanders in the Field, and from various
other high auth')rities.
Captain H. C. Allinson, RA.P.C., Shrewsbury, responded. He also gave reminiscences
of the early days at Shrewsbury and said he
greatly appreciated the privilege of being
present and seeing so many old friends. He
was particularly pleased to see General Riley
present. During the war the prestige of the
Corps had gone up very considerably and those
who were still serving would do their best to
carry on the good work.
Proposing "The Old Comrades' Association" Mr. A. L. Richards, Swansea, said that
it was really great to meet so many of the old
They had been indulging in
comrades.
reminiscences and it was amusing to recall some
of the tricks and dodges that they had been up
to during their service, not to get out of work
but to get it done quickly. As old comrades
they could look back upon many happy and
yet strenuous years. Mr. Richards suggested
that owing to the difficulties of travel a dinner
should be held at Swansea and the Monmouthshire members might like to hold one in
Newport. They must maintain their happy
association which brought back such pleasant
memones.
Major-General Sir Guy Riley responded. He
cordially thanked Captain Rowe and his
committee for all their hard work in organising
such a successful dinner and for their invitation to him to attend it. This was the first
of the branches to hold a dinner so naturally
he was very pleased to come to it.
In pre-war days the size of the Association
enabled them to 'hold the dinner in London,
generally on the evening of the eu p Final, but
even before the war their numbers were getting
too big and now with their increased membership they must decentralize and hold branch
dinners, but he hoped that they would go back
to the London dinner as well, in time. He
hoped they would all do their best to get new
members. One made friends during the war
and it was very pleasant to keep up those
friendships and to keep in touch with one
another through gatherings such as they had
enjoyed that night. He heartily agreed with
411

every remark which Captain Smith had made
when he proposed the health of the Corps,
which had done extremely well during the war.
Sir Guy entertained the company with
several amusing anecdotes of Corps happenings
and quoted the old saying of the Corps that its
members never went to a show because any day
in a Pay Office could be so much funnier than
any revue.
Captain Rowe proposed the Toast of
"Absent Friends."
He cordially thanked
Sir Guy for coming down from Surrey to
attend the Dinner and also Mr. Sheppard for
all that he had done to help in its organisation.
Captain Rowe agreed that the Branch covered
a large area and that it might be advisable for
the Swansea and West Wales members to hold
a dinner in that town. There were quite a
number of ex-members of the A .T.S. who had
served with the Corps for a long time and it
should be possible to organise very successful
dinner dances at Cardiff and at the Langland
Bay Hotel, Swansea, in the near future.
Excellent entertainment was provided by
Mr. Tom Jones, a well-known B.B.c. artiste.
2. East Midlands Area.

Report of preliminar.y 'meeting held oil
Thursday, 24th April, at Army Pay Office
RA/AA, Nottingham.
' L /Cpl. J. Hollis was appo~nted Acting
Chairman pending a full meetmg.
It was
proposed by the Chairman the position of
Entertainments' Officer be dropped and that
Officers be limited to three, i.e., Chairman,
Secretary and Treasurer. This was carried
pending confirmation at full meeting.
It was agreed to enlarge the committee to
seven members instead of the present four,
taking two members from the Nottingham area
and one more from the Leicester area.
It was _proposed that the social activities of
the area be suspended until a complete list of
members in the area has been compiled. This
was carried and will be brought up again at the
next meeting.
Advertisements have been
inserted in six newspapers in 'various counties
and results are awaited.
The date of the next meeting was fixed for
Thursday, 29th May, at 7 p,m. at Army Pay
Office, Nottingham.
30th April. Jim Hargie and his band provided

the music to just under 100 couples. There
were many spot dances and other competitions
and a very enjoyable evening was spent, Thi~
is the forerunner of other functions to be held
by this branch, the aim being to hold at least
one a month.
4. Home Counties and London Area.

The Home Counties Branch is now well
under way after tussling with 10,000 record
cards and members will be hearing from the
Secretary in the future.
Old 29th members (especially those who
browsed on the lawn of the Welsh Girls'
School on 2nd September, 1940) will be happy
to learn that Stan. Theobald, Wally Smith,
Terry Gaffney and Ken. Kennedy are all doing
their bit on the Branch Committee.
All members should, by now, have received
the Branch circular, but if they haven't yet
returned the form or otherwise contacted their
Area Secretary, they are asked to do so now.
If the drag-net did happen to miss anyone,
then the Branch Hon. Secretary will be pleased
to receive inquiries at 41 Oxford Drive,
Ruislip, Middlesex.
By the time these notes are read the initial
function will be over. Members should watch
these columns for future announcements.
S.S.M. Harry Leader is doing some excellent
work in finding employment for members, but
the applications are beginning to exceed the
supply. Would any members in the position
to offer employment, or who can su pply
contacts that may lead to jobs, kindly get in
touch with S.S.M. H. Leader, The W~r Office
(F9), Hotel Victoria, Northumberland Avenue,
London, W.C.2.
5. N. Wales and W. Midlands Branch.

The Branch Secretary sends cordial greetings
to members of this and all other Branches of
the O.C.A.
It had been hoped to hold a function at the
beginning of February but Dame Nature cast
her evil spells and made it impossible for travel.
Furthermore, caterers were not too eager to
accept orders for a large gathering on the
grounds that supplies-liquid and solid-were
very scarce at the time. It is hoped to hold such
a gathering in the not far distant future. The
Secretary would be glad to hear from members
who are interested in inter-district sporting
events, e.g., cricket.
*
*
*
3. West of Scotland Branch.
A grand re-union dance was held at the
Central Halls, Bath Street, Glasgow, on the
412
Would members who have not yet paid th~ir

subscriptions for 1947-48 please make a ~pecIal
effort to get them posted as soon as pOSSIble to
Mr... W. F. McNamara, Br.anch ?ecretary,
0 Regimental Paymaster, KIddermmster.
/
c
*
*
*
General.
If ex-serving members would be good
enough to
Secretary, it
functions.
address and
contact the~r particular Branch

may be pOSSIble to arrang~ further
They should quote theIr home
membership number.
*
*
*
R.A.P.C.-O.C.A. Lapel Badges.
It may not be generally known that an
excellent O.C.A. lapel badge is available,
price 1/3, and these may be obtaine~ from
Branch Secretaries, Office RepresentatIves or
the General Hon. Secretary, c/o R.A.P.C.
Training Centre, Marlborough Lines, Aldershot, Hants.
* . *
O.C.A. Civilian Appointment Bureau.

Will any ex-serving member who has the
opportunity of offering employment to . an
ex-serving member, or could put aI!y ex-servmg
member in touch with a prospectIve employer
please contact his Branch Secretary, or S.S.M.
H. Leader, R.A.P.C., The War Office (F9),
Hotel Victoria, Northumberland Avenue,
London, W.C.2 ?
*
*
1947-48 Subscriptions.
the A.T.S ~ Comrades' Association (Hendon

Branch).
The gathering was honoured by the presence
of Dame Helen Gwynne Vaughan, G.B.E.,
who took the Chair.
Colonel O. P. J. Rooney, O.B.E., was also
present, supported by Major A. L. .H. Wilson
(on leave from Middle East), Captam J. C. G.
Howes Lieut. F. Jaque, and many members
of the' Pay Office Staff (both ex-Milita:y,
ex-A.T.S. and civilians) who had served WIth
the 40 Battalion from 1939 onwards.
The excellent dinner arrangements followed
by a cabaret and dance were ably arranged by
the Branch Chairman and her daughter (Mrs.
Barnard, ex-C.S.M., and Joan, ex-Sergeant
A.T.S .).
I t was unanimously agreed that every
endeavour should be made to arrange a reunion ball for all who have served with
40 Battalion and interested personnel are asked
to write to' Mrs. 1. R. Barnard, 36 Shireall
Lane, London, N.W.4, or Captain J. C. G.
Howes, clo British Legion, 9 Upper Belgrave
Street London S.W.I. Further announcements' will be ~ade through the medium of
this Journal and the evening ~ress.
Happy did we meet, happy dId we part, and
happy meet again.
DROITWICH and KIDDERMINSTER
On Sunday, 8th June, a very enjoyable day

was spent by 34 R.A.P.C. Old Comrad~s and
ex-A.T.S. from the Droitwich and Kldderminster Pay Offices.
The party left Birmingham by private coach
at 10 a.m. for Ross-on-Wye, via Dudley,
Stourbridge, Worcester and Malvern. A halt
was made at the British Camp to enable thecoach engine to cool down after the steep pull
up from Worcester, whilst t~e party natura~ly
adjourned to the Camp Hotel m order to acqUIre
the true reunion spirit !
Mter a picnic lunch the afternoon was sp~nt
roaming round the glorious Herefords.hIre
countryside. A splendid high tea was prOVIded
at the Wye Hotel and at 6-30 p.m. the party
started for home, breaking the journey at the
British Camp.
.
.
It is proposed to hold a Reumon Dmne~
Dance at a central Birmingham hotel m
January 1948, when it is hoped to muster
about 100 Old Comrades, A.T.S. and friends.
It is requested that anyone interested will
Subscriptions for 1947 were ~ue on the

1st April, 1947, and any ex-.servmg member
who has not yet paid his subscription for 194.1
or arrears, is advised to forward same to hIS
Branch Secretary or the General Hon.
Secretary, accompanied by hi~ Membership
Card. If any member wishes to beco.me a
Life member he still has the opportumty of
doing so by paying the difference between the
amount of subscriptions paid since and including 1939 provided he submits his receipted
membership card to support payments of
annual subscriptions. Life membership cards
are obtainable from the General Hon. Secretary
direct.
40 BATTALION, R.A.P.C.
The first re-union of the members of " K "
Company A.T.S . (attached 40 Battalion,
R.A.P.C. (Marylebone and Whitchurch) was
held at the Criterion Restaurant, London, on
Saturday, 17th May last, under the auspices of
413
THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JUURNAL

communicate with Archie W. Abbott, 95
A~cester Road! Moseley, Birmingham 13, who
WIll gladly notIfy them of local O.C.A. activities.
A.W.A.
for the continuation of the association and

br~ught ~he gathering to its feet to shout out in
UnIson hIS toast of " Viva, C.R.O.C.C.H.S. I "
Tom Wightman followed with a sinc~re
apprecia~i?n of all efforts and proposed toasts
to the VISItors, to absent friends and to " The
merrier we shall be ! "
Numerous messages of goodwill and regret
from absentees were read by Mr. L. K. Rundle
~ho ca:-ried out with great dignity and abilit~
hIS dutIes as Toastmaster.
As .if the meI?ories recalled were not already
suffic.Ient to s~Ir the heart, dancing to Eddie
PurkIss and hIS band followed the dinner and
many Garrison Theatre highlights were
brought to mind by a floor show under the
title ~f "Crocky Pie," featuring such old
favountes as Jack Travers Eddie Purkiss and
"Hi and Mo-the Cads of the C.R.O.C.C.H.S.~'
It was with great reluctance that "Old
Crocks" finally departed after a rousing
" Auld Lang Syne "; it was with the knowledge, however, that this re-union was but the
first. of many. For one thing is certain-the
f~elmgs shared by all that night could never
The spirit was truly one of "Viva,
dIe.
C.R.O.C.C.H.S. ! "
"Old (;roeks'" Re-union
,J.
HE first Re-uni.o.n_Dinner and Dance of

the Central Registry of Central Clearing
House Staff was held on 26th April at
" Chez Auguste," Frith Street, London.
In spite of the widely separated. parts of the
country from which "Old Crocks" had to
come, no less than 160 officers, military, A.T.S.
and representatives of the civilian staff attended
this grand re-union. From the four corners of
the British Isles they came, each intent on
recapturing, if only for one brief moment
the wonderful C.C.H. comradeship of uld. '
Many a scene in Ilfracombe's " Centralised
Mess" was recalled. when the high-spirited
crowd sat down at theIr long tables for dinner .
any gloomily-held illusions of Army austeriti
were . ~appily dispelled, however, by the
appetIsmg appearance of roast chicken fruit
salad and ice-cream!
The true "C.C.H.
Spirit" was brought to the festivities by the
presence of the " C.C.H. Cocktail," especially
dedicated in the past to the C.C.H. by genial
Mr. Denner of Ilfracombe's " Vic."
The re-union was under the extremely
popular chairmanship of Mr. M. G. Fordham,
who followed his loyal toast with an admirable
speech, remar~i~g on the enthusiasm shown by
all andemphaslSlngthegreatness of the occasion.
He concluded by describing the untiring efforts
of the Hon. Secretary and proposed a toast to
him for making possible the 1947 re-union.
In his reply the Hon. Secretary, Mr. H. I.
Warren, thanked the Chairman for his kind
words of praise. He recalled the memorable
Farewell Dinner at Ilfracombe in November
1945, when the idea of the C.R.O.C.C.H.S.
was born, and said: "I'll wager that not many
then dared to think that in less than 18 months
we should be holding a re-union. Even now I
can hardly believe it's true! "
He went on to thank Lieut. A. H. Barnard
for his co-operation with the News-Letters
and .for his constant inspiration, and expressed
gratItude to the "on-the-spot" Committee
who assisted in organising the re-union.
A very able and humorous speech was then
delivered by Lieut. A. H. Barnard who expressed delight at seeing "all the old faces
present. He reiterated the unanimous desire
~. ' .
~~
PAY SERVICES, S.E.A.C.

Ill.
By Lieut.-Colonel H. W. W. POLLARD, O.B.E.
Spring to attention smartly!
Notes) should be deferred as long as possible

and preferably until Rangoon was recaptured.
(e) That all arrangements for the shipment
of currency of any kind by air be laid on by
S.P. (Cash) to cover supplies for the Force
Paymaster or where more convenient, direct to
Staff Paymasters, Area Cash Officers or Field
Cashiers.
The Plan for Cash Services in Burma proper
was to put:
(a) A Field Cashier at Tamu so soon as Army
moved forward of the Burma Frontier. Tamu
is just in Burma and was therefore an Army
responsibility of L. of C. Command boundary
was the frontier line.
(b) An Area Cash Office at Kalewa while the
build up took place there, this unit to hand over
to the Sub-Area Cashier and be available to
move to build up centres forward of Kalewa as
the advance made headway.
(c) A Staff Paymaster to Mandalay or such
place as might be selected for District/Area
H.Q. in the Northern half of Burma and one to
Rangoon for District/Area H.Q. in the South.
(d) Area Cash Offices to be attached to Corps
H.Q. to hold reserves of Cash for use of
Div. Cashiers and later to be stationed as
required at either Toungoo, Moulmein, Pauk
or such other centres as seemed best at the
time.
(e) Staff Paymasters to be equipped and
accommodated to act as currency depots as it
was not expected that any Burma Government
Treasuries would be functioning for some time
after any part of Burma had been cleared of the
enemy.
Cash Services had therefore to be
prepared to provide all the currency likely to
be needed.
This plan was adhered to practically without
change when the time came, as the layout as
visualised of North and South Districts and
Sub-Areas under Command with Field Cashiers
on their Establishments, was in the end duly
implemented. So soon as the Campaign was
completed it was the intention to form a Burma
Command H.Q. to which a Command Paymaster Establishment would be posted, responsible for the whole country. This duly came
about. Careful planning for the future in this
y the autumn of 1944 the war was going
414
Fourteenth Army
very well and the J ap was in retreat on

all fronts in Burma. Everyone's mind
began to turn to a war of movement, and plans
were laid for the move of H.Q. Army to Imphal
by the end of November, when an L. of C.
Command would form in our rear and the
H.Q.s could concentrate on fighting the enemy
and shed itself of the vast administration
problem of the L. of C. Area.
Plans were duly laid to hand over the Pay
organisation within the L. of C. Area and to
lay on a similar organisation in Burma as this
was recovered from the enemy. At the same
time plans had to be made to supply the Corps
while the battle was being fought. D.P.I.C.
also called for an appreciation of the problems
involved in handing back Pay Services to India
when the L. of C. command reverted to India.
So there was little relaxation for anyone.
A trip to H.Q. S.A.C.S.E.A. to see the
Brigadier was made by the Force Paymaster in
September to lay on the bodies and obtain
approval for plans for Pay Services in Burma.
A good time was had by all in Kandy with real
civilisation again, running water "a nd plugs that
pulled, to say nothing of apparently unlimited
supplies of sherry (Spanish) and port (Oporto)
and a reasonably cool climate. The problems in
the future, as visualised, wen~ going to be quite
different from those already experienced. H .Q.
Army was expected to at last assume its real
role of directing a battle of movement and the
L. of C. in Burma proper, as cleared of the
enemy, was to be handed over to L. of C.
Districts or Areas. It was, therefore, planned:
(a) To attach an Area Cash Office to each
Corps.
(b) To arrange for Staff Paymasters to be
mobilised and available. . to move in in rear of
Army to relieve the Force Paymaster of any
responsibility for the L. of C. as the Areas or
Sub-Areas were formed.
(c) That the Force Paymaster with attached
Staff Paymaster as heretofore should be the
central supply of currency in the absence of any
Treasuries or Banks whatsoever in Burma.
(d) That the introduction of British Military
Authority currency (overprinted Indian Rupee
415

way paid handsome dividends in the end as
all knew exactly what was required and could
take preliminary steps beforehand. The only
slight difficulty that was visualised was that
before Burma Command formed the part of
Burma not under Command of Army would be
under command of A.L.F.S.E.A. which would
make it difficult for the D.P.LC. to control his
Paymasters' activities owing to the distances
involved. The Force Paymaster was instructed
to keep a watchful eye over the District Staff
Paymasters which, of course, he did at the risk
of treading on the corns of H.Q.s not under
command of his own H.Q.s and much against
the wish of his own "A" Branch. However,
all worked out smoothly in the end.
All this was, of course, for the future; it is
now necessary to return to current affairs. At
the end of November 1944 L. of C. Command
formed at Comilla and took over command of
202 and 404 Areas with their boundaries
approximately on the Indo-Burma frontier.
N.C.A.C. and 15th Corps in the Kaladan passed
under direct Command of A.L.F.S.E.A. and
Fourteenth Army was from then on concerned
only with 4th and 33rd Corps debouching into
Burma via Tamu and Kalewa with Rangoon
and the destruction of the enemy as their
objective.
Army H.Q. moved to Imphal and took over
the Camp built by 4 Corps, for the" Siege."
The situation was lovely and the climate (at
2,500 feet odd) perfect, frost at night and
bright sunny days after the morning mist had
cleared. In addition there was the feeling of
Victory in the air and with the slog of the past
year behind us, it was a very happy and keen
H.Q. that sat down to Christmas dinner 1944.
At about this time a ceremony unique in
British Army history was laid on in Imphal
when H.E. the Viceroy knighted the Army
Commander and his three Corps Commanders
and invested them with their K.C.B. and
K.B.E.s respectively. In addition a number of
decorations were conferred on British, Ghurka,
Indian and Mrican officers and other ranks.
The five Guards of Honour drawn from British,
Ghurka, Indian and East African troops made
a fine sight parading in the bright sunshine
while the galaxy of V.LP.s caused the A.A. and
Fighter boys some concern. The Maharajah
of Manipur and his retinue in their bright robes
and pugrees added a touch of colour to the
prevailing green of the surrounding jungle and
battledress of the Parade and spectators.
These festivities did not interfere with a lot

of hard work on immediate problems and the
imminent move forward of Army to Indainngyi.
At this stage H.Q. 4 Corps was also at Imphal
but were getting ready to move to a spot at the
head of the Gangaw Valley preparatory to their
dash to Pauk where the Irrawaddy was crossed
and subsequent advance to Meiktila. H.Q.
33 Corps were at Tamu and moved almost at '
once to Kalewa. The Area Cash office to be
attached to 33 Corps was called forward
and joined his H.Q. at Kalewa. The Field
Cashier for Tamu was called forward and,
pending his arrival, a Cashier from Army carried
out his duties. At the same time the Area Cash
Office for 4 Corps was warned and joined his
H.Q. in January reporting to Force Paymaster
at Indainngyi en route. The Area Cash Office
for duty at Kalewa was also warned and arrived
later to fill in the gap that would have existed
when 33 Corps moved to Schwebo and Army
to Monywa. This office was in position by the
end of January.
The other important jobs done while in
Imphal were the publication of Orders regarding the handling of Booty, forbidding dealing
in Currency, laying down rates of pay for labour
in Burma. and arranging with C.A.S.(B.) for
the control of the price of rice. It was at this
stage that the decision to r~pudiate the Japanese
occupational currency was taken. This decision
has been much criticised from time to time
but the writer is convinced it was the correct
one. The country had been flooded with this
worthless paper by the enemy and the problems
that would have been created if any value had
been put on it were very great. The peasants
had only small amounts and could recover any
purchasing power lost by its repudiation by
doing a few days' work for the Army and the
large holders were collaborators anyway and
deserved no sympathy. Besides all this preliminary arrangements were made for the
movement and storage of British Military
Authority Currency (Indian Rupee notes overprinted) the issue of which it was expected
would be deferred until the country was cleared.
In actual fact we were finally instructed to
change over on 1st May, 1945, and before the
writer left Army for India its distribution to
Area Cash Offices, etc., was well advanced.
The issue finally went off without undue
difficulty. Immediately after Christmas the
move of Army to Indainngyi from Imphal took
place by air and road. The writer travelled by
416

Yeu. Unfortunately it rained again, very unexpectedly, and 24 hours were therefore spent
by the roadside at Kalewa just beyond the
crossing of the Chindwin by the famous Bailey
Bridge (365 yards long). An opportunity was
taken to visit the Area Cash Office there who
mercifully had some whisky and provided a
welcome wash. Next evening the road reopened
so the hill section between Kalewa, via
Schwegyn to Yeu and the Schwebo plain was
crossed at night. An exciting drive resulted
along the road of the retreat in 1942 as
evidenced by the rusting tanks and cars by the
roadside. Yeu was reached next morning and
the cash handed over to the Area Cash Office
who had sensibly waited 24 hours at the cross
roads for our arrival. So down a macadam road
at last to Monywa and our new camp near the
town. Here accommodation was again in tents
but each Branch of the Staff lived in its own
little camp.
A day or two after arrival the Force Paymaster was honoured by a visit from the P.LC.
General Stanham accompanied by D.P.LC.
H.Q. was still moving, messes had not been
organised and Pay was represented by Force
Paymaster and his S/Sgt. only. However, a
visit was paid to the Area Cash Office at
Schwebo and the rest of the personnel in their
two three tonners were met on the road. They
had had a hectic journey including the breakdown of the lorry carrying the cash! The
P.LC.'s departure caused quite a stir as he flew
out to Kalemyo with the intention of there
catching a plane to Calcutta. Unfortunately the
R.A.F. had neglected to say that routes had
changed and Kalemyo was closing down.
Imagine the Force Paymaster's feelings when
Major Burden turned up at about 3-30 p.m.
with the news having thumbed a flight back to
Monywa. All efforts were of no avail and the
General and the Brigadier were stranded for
24 hours while arrangements were made for
them to be picked up at Kalemyo by a special
plane. The signals that were sent about it
put most of H.Q.s into the picture and Force
Paymaster had to endure a lot of chaff. However the General wrote to say that they had
enjoyed being " stranded" and had taken the
opportunity to see a slice of Burma so all was
well.
All this time the war had been progressing
very well. The Irrawaddy was crossed north
of Mandalay by 19 Indian Division and to the
south west by 2 Division and 20 Indian Division
Jeep via Palel (the limit of the Jap advance),

The Saddle (scene of bitter fighting in the
previous spring), Tamu (where the best l?art of
two Jap divisions died of wounds, disease,
starvation and exhaustion after their defeat
before Imphal and Kohima). Tamu was still
heavily mined and the cookhouse fire was
blown up in the Transit Camp on our way
through. Luckily no one was hurt and the
evening meal was only slightly delayed. So to
Indainngyi via the fantastic road cut through
the jungle of the Kabaw valley (Kabaw is the
Naga word for " death "). This part of the
world is normally practically uninhabited and
the road was merely a clearing through the
jungle and all channgs (river beds) were crossed
by fords. Breakdowns and indifferent driving,
dust or alternatively mud, made it quite a
journey. At last the Camp prepared for H.Q.
was reached, situated in a clearing cut from the
elephant grass in the teak jungle.
Office
accommodation consisted of 180 lb. tents and
senior officers slept and worked in the same
tent, while junior officers slept in 30 lb. tents
pitched near their messes. The O.R.s lived in
tents near their mess tents. As soon as we
arrived it rained for 24 hours and all movement
was forbidden for 48 hours in order that the
" roads" might not be completely destroyed.
As soon as transport was allowed on the road
again a visit was paid to 33 Corps Area Cash
Office which was located at Kalewa at the time.
The journey was only about 30 miles but
conditions were such that a start at 8-30 a.m.
only allowed arrival at about 4 p.m. and the
return journey took five hours. However, the
cash was duly delivered and "A" Branch at
Corps contacted. The weather was pleasant
and some interesting trips were made by plane
to 33 Corps who moved at this time to Schwebo,
by Cashiers from Army (' elivering cash which
was drawn from the Staff Paymaster at Imphal
and flown in under escort of his Cashiers.
Army's next move was to Monywa near the
confluence of the Irrawaddy and Chindwin
Rivers. The move was made towards the end
of February and so again the opportunity was
taken to destroy all unnecessary files. The
office equipment was packed into a 15-cwt.
truck, the cash (25 lakhs of assorted notes and
coin) into a three tonner and tentage into
another, and off we went. The writer travelled
in the 15-cwt. truck with a S/Sgt. and driver
and 10 lakhs of rupees for delivery to the Area
Cash Office 33 Corps, who was to be met at
417

while 4 Corps was across farther south at
Cha~k and advancing to Meiktila. During this
figh~ng the 28 East African Brigade which, as
an mdependent Brigade, had a Field Cashier
attac~ed, was invo~ved in heavy fighting while
covenng the crossmg of the Irrawaddy. The
Field Cashier was badly wounded by a hand
grenade when Brigade H.Q. itself was attacked.
~n offi~er from Area Cash Office 4 Corps was
Immediately sent to take over his cash and look
after the Brigade pending its withdrawal which
took place shortly afterwards. The officer who
was wounded made an excellent recovery.
Towards the end of April the next move of
Army to Meiktila en route for Rangoon took
place and the Force Paymaster who was due
~or early release was withdrawn ready for the
Journey home. His relief arrived two davs before
"P
thereay" was d ue to move forward and
fore, on the day that the trucks were loaded
again ready to move up, a very sorrowful
IV.
officer emplaned for Calcutta.

The foregoing may give some idea of the
w?rk that was done by R.A.P.C. Units serving
with. Fourteenth Army and convey an impres.slOn of the conditions under which it was
carned out. All ranks regarded it as an honour
to be posted to units with the Army and all
gave of their best. Some were, of course, more
adaptable than others but the enthusiasm and
gen~r~lly ~ne bearing of all made it a pleasure
to VISit Ulllts and an honour to command them.
Any officer or man who served with an
R.A.P.C. unit in L. of C. Command or with
Fo.urteenth Army can look back with pride to
a Job well done with one of the finest and
hardest fighting Armies the Empire has ever
put in the field. Their comrades who were not .
lucky enough to be there can be assured that
the. hi~hest traditions of the Corps were fully
mamtamed.
The Final Stages
By Lieut.-Colonel R. C. THOMPSON, O.B.E.
N the 25th April, 1945, Lieut.-Colonel

Po~lard, the writer of the three preceding
articles, was taken out of the Fourteenth
Army for a thoroughly well-earned rest. As it
happened, in spite of the good intentions which
prompted this decision, it proved perhaps
somewhat ironical, for in a matter of days afte;
his relief h~d taken over, the Fourteenth Army
crashed their way down to Rangoon, thereby in
!ruth completing the total defeat of the Japanese
III Burma.
Pollard, although he missed the kill had a
magnificent run, and never once did he lose the
scent, so I hope his disappointment, which I
know was great, was countered by a conscience
well satisfied.
Be.fore carrying on the story, I should like,
at thiS stage, to explain how we were organised.
Shortly before the fall of Burma, Pay Services
S.E.A.C. and India were joined up under command of Chief. Paymaster S.E.A.C./ lndia, who
was located With Rear H.Q. S.A.C.S.E.A. in
New Delhi; under him a D.P.I.C. with H.Q.
A.L.F.S.E.A. at Barrackpore (near Calcutta) .
a D.P.I.C. India at Meerut; C.P. Ceylon a~
Colombo; C.P. Burma at Rangoon; Force
Paymaster (S.P.I) with H.Q. Fourteenth
Army; Force. :raymaster (S.P.I) 34 Corps
Poona and a Liaison Officer (S.P.I) with H.Q.
S.A.C.S.E.A. at Kandy, Ceylon.
On the setting up of this organisation, the

first major, in fact lightning operation, was the
transfer by air of all the soldiers' accounts,
from Meerut to the Regimental Paymasters at
home. It was foreseen that release would start
on the fall of Germany, and in consequence it
had been imperative to plan for the accounts
to get home in advance of those arriving for
demobilisation. I have chosen to ado pt the
term, " lightning operation," because it is no
exaggeration to say that it was carried out with
rema.:kable dexterity and rapidity; so much so,
that ItS successful completion was the cause of
some embarrassment to certain individuals in
India whose normal activities were seldom
subject to violent disturbances. However after
the initial storm had blown over, I am giad to
say that there were no heart burnings, and
everybody said" good show."
Having managed to get the accounts home
so successfully, it was naturally incumbent upon
us to ensure that by so doing, the notification
of balances would not be delayed. We, therefore laid on a special Air Mail bag service to
get all Acquittance Rolls, etc., from Burma,
Ceylon and India to Meerut-Meerut to
Delhi, and Delhi to the U.K. It worked like
clockwork, and what is more, we shot the
whole bag of tricks on to F9 to distribute out
to Regimental Paymasters, and they played
418
a weapon that the possible result of its use,

would be the total surrender of the Japanese.
However, we could not plan on presumptions,
so the forming up and training of personnel
selected for the operational Units continued,
and in the closest secret we flew Malayan
currency to Rangoon and prepared countless
boxes of Malayan currency to place on board
every ship taking part, to be accounted for on
special Imprest Accounts: I may say, this was
merely a precaution to ensure that all troops
landed in Malaya in possession of Malayan
currency, and no other.
As we all know so well, the Atom Bombs
were dropped, and Japan totally surrendered
on 15th August, 1945. Well, we did know it
was coming for certain a few days in advance,
we knew it was too late to stop the landing
operations on Malaya (known as Zipper), we
were also warned that parties were to be flown
into Siam, French Indo China and Dutch East
Indies to take over British and Allied Prisoners
of War, and a party of Commandos would set
off for Penang from Bombay. Undoubtedly a
salvo of fast balls, and certainly things did start
to work pretty fast. A number of telephone
calls whizzed from Delhi to Kandy, to Bombay,
Madras and Calcutta, but with first rate
co-operation on the part of Movements,
G.H.Q. India, those bodies not already in
position were moved with their equipment and
cash, either by air or train.
The first to go off post haste by air from
Delhi, was the advanced party for the Command
Pay Office, Malaya. Misfortune befell them
when they got caught amidst the melee at
Calcutta. However, the A.IC.P. and half his
staff got away in the nick of time, arriving in
Rangoon only a day before their convoy set
sail for Singapore. Not much time to organise
the show, but the deficiency in Staff was made
up by C.P. Burma, and planning allowed for a
good stock of Malayan, Indian and Sterling
currency to be available at Rangoon, so all was
well. About this time the currency for Hong
Kong arrived by air from U.K. at Karachi,
and owing to some mischance, instead of going
to its prearranged store in India, got into a
plane and fetched up in Colombo. However,
the irregularity turned out for the best, as I
will relate later on.
No sooner had we got off the party for
Singapore, when D.P.I.C. A.L.F.S.E.A. rang
up from Kandy to say that a Staff Paymaster
and Field Cashier were required to embark at
their part with spirit. Later on, as the operations progressed, so the Air Mail bag service
was extended, and we employed it for our
ordinary everyday mail to F9, to Ceylon, to
Burma, etc., which proved a tremendous saving
of time!
The story must now go on as the occupation
of Burma was only the first operational phase
successfully accomplished.
There still remained the occupation of Malaya, Siam, French
Indo China, Hong Kong, Borneo, Celebes and
the Dutch East Indies. While the Burma
campaign was on, we had been busy storing
thousands of Malayan Dollars in Bombay and
Madras, and a supply of Dutch Guilders in
Madras and Calcutta. -All frightfully secret of
course, so to cover up our ulterior motives, we
established a R.A.P.C. Information Bureau at
Bombay, Madras and Calcutta. The chaps
selected for this task, apart from - being
responsible for storing secret currency ready
for instant dispatch by sea or air, incidentally
functioned as Information Bureaux (!) and
played an invaluable part by acting as contact
men and general Pay Service Agents. Not only
could they tell anybody who chose to drop in,
what pay he should be getting and how to get
it, but they could always lay on transport and
accommodation for any visiting Paymaster, and
book onward passages by air, sea or landhighly useful people in fact.
The greatest combined operation ever was
now being planned, the occu pation of Malaya.
Just to make things a trifle difficult for us, the
operation Forces were mounted both in India
and Burma, using Bombay, Madras, Calcutta,
Rangoon and other subsidiary ports, and
although H.Q.s Fourteenth Army were withdrawn from Burma to Secunderabad, the actual
detailed planning for the operation was done
by a special Force H.Q.s based on Poona and
Bombay. Fortunately the high level planners
came and did their work in Delhi, so with the
aid of our Force Paymasters Fourteenth Army
and Operation Force, we were able to keep
fully aware of what was doing. Working in
close co-operation with D.P.I.C. H.Q. Allied
Land Forces, who was by now located in
Kandy, Ceylon, and who put in the bids for
Pay Establishments and currency loads re9uired, we laid on all the bodies and equipment
In Meerut, ready to move out to positions as
and when called for.
It is now August 1945, and we heard of a
secret weapon to be used against Japan, such
419

Bombay, to go to Penang with the Commando
Force. That wasn't too difficult, because it
only needed a matter of hours to bring the
staff and equipment required from Meerut to
Delhi by car and put them on the train for
Bombay, and the officer selected for Staff
Paymaster happened already to be in Bombay,
helping with the loading of Malayan currency.
They got abaard in time with their equipment
and cash, but no vehicles. The party was held
up en route at Trincomalee when the original
plan was cancelled, and they were switched to
take over Hong Kong. Time allowed the Staff
Paymaster to visit D.P.I.C. A.L.F.S.E.A. to
obtain detailed briefing, and to move the Hong
Kong currency from Colombo, obviously a
piece of superb planning (I).
Following in quick succession, Staff Paymasters and Cashiers were flown from Delhi via
Rangoon, for Bangkok and Saigon, and from
Delhi via Colombo for Batavia. The urgency
called for to get these Pay Offices was at
Priority 1 level, as they were required to go in
on " D Day" in every case. The immediate
task was to release British and Allied Prisoners
of War, all of whom, apart from food and
medical attention, would require pocket money
and cash to spend on arrival at clearing stations,
and later at bases in India. All our chaps got
to their respective destinations according to
plan, and they undou btedly accomplished a
grand job of work. We had some trouble in
Malaya and India, because the War Office made
rather severe restrictions on advances payable
to the released Prisoners of War, but then the
whole scheme for evacuation was laid on with
great rapidity and, naturally, everything could
not work exactly to plan. For instance, it was
the intention to evacuate all the fits direct to
U.K. by air or sea, and retain only the unfits in
hospital in India. In actual fact there were some
delays in Malaya and India, in the evacuation
of the fits, and in consequence, advances were
demanded, and paid, considerably in excess of
the originally authorised rates. However, in
addition to getting our Pay Staff to all collecting
centres with the cash, we succeeded in getting
them to all base stations in India where we
fortunately took on the job, organised it and
laid it on.
In the meantime the landing operation for
the occupation of Malaya went ahead as
arranged, but owing to the take out of the special
convoy required for Singapore and ships being
switched for evacuation of Prisoners of War,
there was some desperate loading and reloading

of .currency consignments, equipment and
vehIcles to be dealt with at Bombay and Madras.
Nevertheless,. the Force Paymaster, with the
greater proportIOn of his Pay staff, got in by
the 15th September, with ample currency
which arrived at Singapore and Kuala Lumpur:
pretty well to plan. Perhaps our greatest misfortune, other than the difficulties which arose
at Saigon (explained in a previous article)
arose ~t Batavia. The Staff Paymaster wen~
over dIrect from Colombo in a British cruiser
With. a good stock of Rupees, Sterling and th~.
speCIally produced Dutch Guilders.
On
arrival he was able to get rid of his Sterling
and Indian currency for use by released
Prisoners of War, but found that the Dutch
Guilders were not accepted by the local' inhabitants (the Indonesians). The Dutch civil
authori~ies were unabl.e to come to any agreement wIth. the Indones.Ians, and in consequence,
for a consIderable penod there was literally no
currency for issue to the occupying troops. To
quote the words of the Staff Paymaster himself
"I
' t even allord
iI
'
can
to get a hair cut."
Later on, when there were Pay Offices at
Madan and Padang in Sumatra in addition to
Batavia, the only solution was to issue the
Japanese occupational Guilders free gratis to
troops for local use. A most undesirable state
of affairs, but one that survived for a considera_?l~ time, in fact until the supply of J ap
GUIlders ran out.
Mter the general rush was over, we put in a
Force Paymaster to go with the British/ Indian
contingent for Japan, a cash office to cater for
the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and cash
offices to take over Borneo and the Celebesfrom
the Australians.
On paper, I suppose all these movements of
Pay Offices do not appear particularly exciting.
But perhaps if the reader will study a map of
South-East Asia and consider the effect of a
very sudden surrender of the enemy in so vast
an area of land and sea, he will realise the
astonishing and rapid re-shuffle of plans that
took place. On the whole, things went pretty
well throughout the campaign, which was no
doubt due to the fact that all Headquarter
Staffs without exception, kept the Pay Services
fully in the picture. It was possible, therefore,
to plan ahead, so in spite of the enormous
distances involved by movements, we always
succeeded in laying on the bodies with the
dewish Terrorists attack the

Syrian Orphanage in Jerusalem
The Jews approached the Western perimeter
wall under cover of darkness behind" A" Block
(for the information of those who know
Schneller well) just before dawn and proceeded
to blast through the twelve-foot wall. This
initial explosion rocked every building in the
vast Orphanage. Through the breach thus
made in the wall, the attackers, supported by
small arms fire from nearby vantage points,
entered the grounds and placed one sack
(approximate weight, 50 lb.) of gelignite with
a minute fuse in the passage way at the rear
of the building in which some 80 N.C.O.s and
men of the Corps were sleeping. During the
period of this assault a diversionary attack was
made on the Main Guard with small arms fire
and by grenades thrown on to the road.
The shattering explosion of the gelignite, the
blast of which threw many of the boys from
their beds was followed by the sickening sound
of falling masonry as a large part of the interior
of the building collapsed burying the occupants
HE 12th March, 1947, will long be

remembered as the blackest day in the
history of the 90 Battalion, Royal Army
Pay Corps, for it was in the early hours of that
day that personnel peacefully sleeping in their
quarters in the Syrian Orphanage were the
victims of a cowardly attack by Jewish
Terrorists. It will be of interest not only to
those who were the victims of this cowardly
outrage but to the many thousands of R.A.P.C.
personnel whose billet has at one time or
another been in the Syrian Orphanage during
the war years to place on record some details
of what took place during this dastardly attack.
The terrorists who had for some time been
carrying out an extensive programme of murder
and destruction throughout Palestine selected
the Camp at the Syrian Orphanage which
houses the 90 Battalion Royal Army Pay Corps
(and whose members work side by side with
Jews during office hours) as the object for a
" hit and run " attack.
'/
(Concluded on page 431)
These photographs show some of the damage caused in the attack.
420
421
---_.-

A. Bedding
*14062240 Pte.
*14842516 Pte.
J. A. Kilshaw
*1 4903885 Pte.
R. Smith
2615355 SjSgt. Durose
7675091 Sgt.
Shooler
14959226 Pte.
Ingleby
14861380 Pte.
Devey
14026977 Pte.
Moon
14650942 Pte.
Cheeseman
14047264 Pte.
Bassett
14825293 Sgt.
Watters
14945849 Pte.
Wardrope
14945845 L jCpl. Chadwick
7672161 Sgt.
Russell
14844041 L jCpl. Alder
14076188 Pte.
Barnes
7669242 SjSgt. Brigden
14072079 Pte.
Russell
soldiers who gave their lives for freedom and

set free the Jews from Concentration Camps in
Europe, and yet he now lies dead, murdered
by J e~s, leaving a widow and two children. A
more likeable fellow could not have been found
anywhere in the Camp. I don't think he would
ever have harmed anyone intentionally, yet he
paid the supreme sacrifice for something in
which he had neither part nor interest. To
Mrs. France and family we all extend our
sincere heartfelt sympathy in their great
bereavement.
The following were wounded by the explosions :*14768521 Cpl. J. R. Whitham
*14942753 Pte.
C. J. Crowther
F. Sydes
*14955099 Pte.
P. Manning
*14840531 Pte.
A. Parr
*14953417 Pte.
H. E. Buttivant
*14104787 Pte.
* Admitted to Hospital
Photo: C. J . Rawiillgs, Gidea Park.
"A" Block, Syrian Orphanage, Jerusalem.

This building was formerly the Blind Children's School.
beneath the dust and debris. Many were

injured and one man succumbed to his injuries
almost immediately.
It is perhaps some little consolation that only
one of the charges intended for the building
exploded. Two further sacks of the same
weight containing gelignite were afterwards
found abandoned at the back of the building,
neither detonated nor placed in position. It is
probable that the reason for these charges
being abandoned was the timely intervention
of Pte. Manning, later: one of the seriously
injured, who in accordance with his normal
practice had his Sten Gun at the" ready" by
his bed and who, after being awakened by the
first explosion rushed to the window and fired
at the Jews through the gap in the wall.
In the grey light of morning, almost before
the clouds of dust from the explosion had
settled, rescue squads were at work, many
forgetting their own personal injuries, in an
effort to release those of their comrades who
were trapped by the falling debris and attending
to those who were injured. The scene by this
time resembled a battle-field with its stream
of stretcher and walking casualties making for
the M.I. Room where after treatment the
seriously injured were rushed to hospital. Our
thanks go out to the Medical Officer, Captain
Donnelly, R.A.M.C., and his small staff who

worked heroically during this period.
It was a: strange feeling to be standing some
time later, looking at the ruins of "A" Block
while several soldiers searched among the
debris for a trace of their lost possessions and
others swathed in bandages and covered from
head to foot in dust and grime stood by.
It was all the more strange when one recalled
how peaceful the Jews in Palestine had become
at a time when the German hordes were at
El Alamein and the British Soldier was all that
stood between Palestine and slavery.
All the Unit personnel showed the utmost
courage and fortitude at this time and their
thoughts and questions were only of those of
their comrades whom they knew to be hurt
more than themselves. It speaks well for the
discipline and training of these British soldiers
of the R.A.P.C. who despite their feelings of
anger and disgust at the outrage did suffer the
Jewish Clerks to continue working beside them
in the office, not knowing to what extent some
of them might have been involved in the planning and perpetration of this dastardly outrage
against the soldiers who protect and pay them.
We all deeply regret the loss of Pte. Harold
Edward France who was killed in this cowardly
outrage. He was not unlike any of those
422
M. W. Mallett (late A.P.O., Manchester) has

joined an Engineering firm in Ashton-underLyne and is training to take charge of their
Advertising Department.
*
*
*
C. E. Hale would be interested to hear from
any who served with him in Radcliffe from
1943-1946. He has recently been elected an
Associate of the Chartered Institute of Secretaries.
His address IS 14 Lime Grove,
Prestwich, Manchester.
*
*
*
F. J. Astill, 2 Square Street, Leamington
Spa, Warwicks., would be pleased to hear from
ex-Cpl. E. Taylor of Barrow (late A.P.O.,
Manchester) and also from any other old
colleagues at Leicester, Manchester or Kidderminster.
returned to his Auctioneers' practice at Whitstable and would like to hear from R. Lewis
and any other late colleagues.
Ex-Captain V. T. Edmonds (Micrograms

Section, R.P.O., Jerusalem) who has become
a partner in the firm of Wrigley, Cregan, Todd
& Co., lO and 12 Copthall Avenue, London,
E.C.2, is desirous of renewing old contacts.
Early in 1946 he married Miss Hazel Linden
(ex-A.T.S., Knightsbridge) and is now the
father of a baby daughter, Gillian.
Major H. Walker, late Chief Cashier, Army

Pay Office, Manchester, was recently married
to Miss Dickie (ex-S jSgt., A.T.S., A.P.O.,
Manchester) and is living at Rhos-on-Sea.
*
*
*
Mr. A. E. J. Bidgood, late of A.P.O.,
Manchester (Group 9, Ashton-under-Lyne),
Meerut and S.E.A.C., is now employed at the
Registry of Seamen and Shipping, Llandaff.
The whereabouts of Pte. P. J. Trendell, who

transferred to the Corps from R.A.S.C. in
France in early 1940 are sought by J. L. West,
3 Trafalgar Road, Pendleton, Salford 6, Lancs.
On the evacuation of France both were
posted to Ilfracombe, Mr. West being subsequently posted to Leeds when he lost trace
of Trendell. Can anyone help ?
*
*
*
Charles E. Harris of 120 Clare . Road,
Tankerton, Kent (late of B.C.H.) has now
*.
Ex-Captain Geoff. Taylor, who served with

2 and 8 C.P.O. in North Africa and Italy is
now "mine host" at Ripon Lodge Hotel,
The Ridge, St. Helens, Hastings, and would
welcome late colleagues at this address.
423
~orps
News
Extracts from "The London Gazette"

The King has been pleased to grant unrestricted permission for the wearing of the
following decorations which have been conferred on the under-mentioned personnel in
recognition of distinguished services in the
cause of the Allies : DECORATIONS CONFERRED BY THE
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA
o ffieers
"
W . Wilson
S. R. Birleson
D. W. Fox
A . Willis
C. F. Valentine
E. C. Sarler
*E. O. Band
*E. A. Scoffham
J. C. Weston
S . A. MarshalI
R. E. Petty
V. Powell
B. C. Bell
Legion of Merit Degree of Legionnaire.

Captain (temporary) P. B. Ford.
Bronze Star Medal.
Brigadier (temporary) 1. P. Brickman, C.B.E.
The King has been graciously pleased, on the
occasion of the Celebration of His Majesty's
Birthday, to give orders for the following
appointments to the Most Excellent Order of
the British Empire : -
With
precedence next below :A. E. Ayres
C . McLaughlan
R. G. Barford
S. J. Craddock
J. F . Nichols
T. T . Sullivan
A. Poole
R. W. Pell
P. G. Snow
H. J. Townsend
C. F . CatIey
C. B. Huxford
W. E. Rackstraw
S. S. G. Pearce.
*With rank of Captain relinquishing appointment

of Asst. P aymaster.
Retirements.
Major and Paymaster C. Erlund, M.B.E.,
retires Sth April, 1947.
Lt.-Col. aild S.P.l B. L. Burgess, O.B.E.,
having exceeded the age limit for retirement, is
placed on ret. pay, 2nd June, 1947, and is
granted the hon. rank of Brig.
To be Officers (Mil. Div.)

Lieut.-Col. F. G. Norton, M.C., D.C.M.
To be Members (Mil Div.)
Major F. H. V. Purcell.
Major A. Wood.
MARRIAGE
GREEN-PARK.-On 31st May, 1947, at
Croxton, Norfolk, Christopher William Green,
of Chapel Farm, Croxton, near Thetford,
Norfolk, to Daphne Anne, elder daughter of
Colonel H. P . Park, R.A.P.C.
PROMOTIONS
To be Captain.
Lieut. and Paymaster(W jS Capt.) E. W. Brading-9th Feb. 1947.
(W jS Capt.) S. F. E. Leibe-lst Mar., 1947.
C. H. Share-Sth Mar., 1947.
A. Borthwick-Clarke-9th Mar., 1947.
(WjS Capt.) B. H. P. Hiscott-l0th Mar.,
1947.
(WjS Capt.) P. A. Stevens-25th Mar., 1947.
E. N. Pinkham-ll th April, 1947.
(WjS Capt.) K. W. Chaundy-24th April,
1947.
W. Hazlewood-12th May, 1947.
E. A. C. Keyworth-25th May, 1947.
L. J. Gee-29th May, 1947.
DEATHS
LYNN ALLEN.-On 27th May, 1947, at
Goldings, Leiston, Suffolk, after a long illness,
Lt.-Col. Alfred Lynn AlIen, late The Suffolk
Regt. and Army Pay Department.
BouRcHIER.-On 13th March, 1947, at
Wallisbourne, Warwickshire, Lt.-Col. Rodney
L. Bourchier, late R.A. and R.A.P.C., aged 72.
DOWNE.-On 2nd May, 1947, at Bournemouth, Lt.-Col. H. W. M. Downe, O.B.E.,
late North Staffs. Regt. and R.A.P.C., aged 77
OLDHAM.-On 13th April, 1947, at 3 Elm
Tree Road Mansions, N.W.S, Madeline, the
devoted wife of Colonel Percival L. Oldham,
and mother of Kathleen.
To be Major (Asst. Paymaster).

Capt. (Asst. Paymaster)B. H. Clark-9th May, 1947.
F. E. Gear, M .B.E.-15th April, 1947.
424
"
A TRAGEDY BY JAMES RUSSELL

A Sketch in One Act for Three Men
SCENE-Any disused barn or dilapidated building.
STAGE PROPERTIES--One machine, one table G.S. (PW),
Four tons of vouchers, assorted,
Liberal sprinkling of dust.
CHARACTERS-in order of Release Group:
LT.-COL. TRUMPET
An S.P.I.
MAJOR DOCKMOOR
An S.P.2.
SERGT. ARCOSTE
Machine S.L.
Short Service Commissions.

.T~e undermentioned from Emergency CommISSIOns to be Paymaster with rank of Lieut.1st Mar., 1947 :-
J. H. Rea
~Iassifieation
As the curtain rises, the S.P.s are discovered

drinking NAAFI tea with brave smiles.
Dockmoor. Well, how was the old place last
time you saw it, sir?
Trumpet.
Ah, dear old Sidi! Still as Barrani
as ever you know. Now when I was
O.C . . . .
Dockmoor. Quite, quite, sir! But shall we get
on?
Trumpet.
Just let me finish this tea-right,
where do we start?
Dockmoor. I think we had better have Arcoste
(Calling cffstagt)
in on this.
Sergeant Arcoste !
Enter Sergeant ARCOSTE.
Arcoste.
Yes, sir, was there something?
Dockmoor. Umm! Yes, Arcoste-how are
your operators?
Arcoste.
Doing nicely, thank you sir, although the last one is not healing
too well. . . .
Dockmoor. No, Arcoste! Your operators, not
your operations !
Arcoste.
Sorry, sir, I am a silly boy sometimes.
Dockmoor. Umm, yes! Now what was it we
wanted? Of course! Arcoste,
this is Colonel Trumpet who has
just returned from overseas and
knows nothing about our new
svstems.
Trumpet.
How do you do, sergeant.
Arcoste.
Nicely, thank you, sir, except
that . . . .
Dockmoor. You mentioned that before,' sergeant. Now I want you to explain
the machine system to Colonel
Trumpet.
Arcoste.
Very good, sir. Now pay attention-I'm sorry, gentlemen, I
forgot I was talking to officers. I
Trumpet.
Dockmoor.
Trumpet.
Arcoste.
Trumpet.
Arcoste.
Dockmoor.
Trumpet.
Dockmoor.
Trumpet .
Arcoste.
Trumpet.
Dockmoor.
Arcoste.
425
will therefore simplify my lecture.

This here is the machine, accounting, mark twain.
Mark Twain, Dockmoor ?
A mere slip of the tongue, sir.
Arcoste is also the education
sergeant.
Ah, that explains it. Please proceed
sergeant.
Very good, sir. First, this is the
carriage, which travels along the
channels, guide, connecting, patent
non-rusting.
That's clear enough, but what is
this gadget ?
That, sir? Well, that is the . . .
it sort of . . . can you remember
what they call this, Major Dockmoor, sir?
Why, of course? That is the
diapheral plunger which operates
through the prochronial camshaft
to activate the gears of the udometer . . . er, have you bred any
good rooks lately, sir?
Well, not since that one that got
into the A.T.S. Sergeants' Mess
at. . . .
Quite, sir, but remember Arcoste
has had a very sheltered life.
Perhaps you're right, Dockmoor.
How does this thing work ?
Let me demonstrate, sir. Suppose
we start with a credit of ten pounds.
Very good idea J Now where shall
we go?
.
We can't go anywhere, Sir. This is
purely hypothetical. .
Shall I carry on, sIr? Now we
start with a credit of ten pounds so
we press these keys, like this. Now

a debit of four pounds, so we press
these keys.
Trumpet.
But what is the answer?
Arcoste.
The machine tells you that, sir,
when we press this bar like-this !
There you are, sir, on that roll of
paper.
Fifteen pounds, eleven
shillings and fourpence.
Trumpet.
Amazing! But is that correct,
Dockmoor?
Dockmoor. Absolutely, sir. These machines
are infallible.
Trumpet.
Good show! May I try it?
A1'coste.
Tmmpet.
Certainly, sir, help youself.

Umm-credit ten pounds. Is that
right, sergeant?
Arcoste.
~ ery professional, if I may say so,
SIr.
Trumpf:t.
Of course you may! Now-debit
four pounds and presto! The
answer. But this is stupendous!
It shows a debit balance of six and
eightpence.
Dockmoor. That is one of the beauties of this
system, sir, never a dull moment.
At this point a bell rings off~tage and the three characters disappear
as a mad stampede of bodIes, assorted, hurtles across the stage.
CURTAIN
Any resemblance of.the .characters. in this sketch to persons living or in the
Servlce ls-well, Just one of thGse things !
PAY
PROBLEMS
DEATHS
AYERsT.-On 8th March, 1947, in Brockley,
S.E.4, William Henry Ayerst (No. 655), aged
73.
SMITH.-On 6th April, 1947, at -Heston,
Hounslow, Harry Smith (No. 982), aged 81.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS
3rd and 4th
July. 4th July.-
Summer Golfing Meeting,

West Hill, Brookwood, Surrey.
Officers'
Annual
Dinner,
Mayfair Hotel, London.
7th--12th July.- Cricket at Alcershot.
Annual Tennis Tournament,
10th July.Aldershot.
9th Sept.Cricket. v. Cross Arrows at
Lords.
BIRTH
ROBINSON.-On 26th February, 1947, at
King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, Bermuda, to S.Q.M.S. and Mrs. J. Robinson,
Command Pay Office, Bermuda, a son, Peter
Alan.
426
The R.A.P.C. in the Netherlands East Indies

By Lieut.-Colonel T. H. SWEENY, R.A.P.C.
HE Japanese in the N .E.1. realised in
November 1944 that the war was in all
probability lost, and, by February 1945,
they were certain of it. Their obvious game to
play was to get the local races to assist them or,
at all events, not to assist the Allies, so they
commenced to lay the foundations for creating
future trouble and, as far back as 1944, they
had made vague promises to the Indonesians
that they would be given autonomy after the
war within the Japanese Empire, and had
commenced to equip and train Indonesian
Forces. Some of these troops had Japanese
officers and were known as the "Hei-Ho
Units" whilst a smaller number-The
, Indonesian Defence Volunteers-were entirely
composed of Indonesians.
Immediately after the surrender the promise
of autonomy was made definite and a
" Republican Government" was set up with
Japanese help. At first the Indonesians held
the Japanese in such respect that they did not
molest them, but very soon the Japanese
C.-in-C. either realised that the Allies would
find things made too easy for them if he carried
out the promise, made when he surrendered,
that his armies would maintain law and order
until our arrival, or else he genuinely lost his
head. Whatever the cause he allowed his troops
in East and Central Java to become thoroughly
demoralised and permit the Indonesians to take
possession of most of their dumps of stores and
ammunition and to disarm the bulk of his
forces. For this action he is awaiting trial as a
War Criminal at Singapore.
A few hundred Japanese joined, or continued
to . lead, the Indonesians and the remainder,
beIng no longer in a position to resist, were
herded into concentration areas in the volcanic
ranges that form the backbone of Java, and
were given just enough food to encourage them
to stay put. They had a pretty rough time and
had to grow their own vegetables as best they
could in order to keep alive, whilst any who
strayed outside the areas had either to collaborate or were murdered.
While all this was happening the first of the
Allied troops-a Brigade of 23rd Indian
Division-landed in Batavia, and with them
came Major Hargreaves, R.A.P.C., and S/Sgt.
Fraser (24 Staff Paymaster) on H.M.S

" Cumberland " from Ceylon. Lieut. Crown
and Sgt. Bewley flew in from Singapore on the
28th September, 1945, Sgts. Fremont and
Flook arrived by L.C.T. on the 4th October
and the cash services commenced to function
on the 30th October.
Still earlier a number of members of Force
136 (the paratroops who were to have been
dropped behind the Japanese lines in Malaya)
were dropped by 'chute near the various
internment camps where the Japanese had kept
their Dutch, British and other prisoners, and
at least one military doctor accompanied them
by air drop at each centre. They found that the
Japanese had thrown open the gates in the wire
round the concentration camps and that the
140,000 half-starved internees had scattered
and the stronger ones were endeavouring to
return to their homes, but were being attacked
and massacred by roving bands of Indonesians.
As they were usually unarmed, and not physically strong enough to put up any resistance, we
ordered them to return again to their former
camps, where they were at least more concentrated and so easier to Guard.
The
"R.A.P.W.1. Control," organised chiefly by
Force 136, did grand work trying to feed them
and to save as many lives as possible from death
by starvation, or at the hands of marauding
Indonesians, who were frequently attacking the
Camps with arms taken from the Japanese.
As was to be expected under circumstances
which made it necessary for perhaps two British
officers and one Doctor to organise a town out
of nothing, millions of Japanese occupational
guilders were spent but not properly accounted
for and a good part of the troubles of the
R.A.P.C. later on arose from this cause.
Very similar conditions existed in Sumatra
where 40 Staff Paymaster Office (Major Mather,
Lieut. West, S/Sgt. Janes, Sgts. Cuppleditch,
Milne and Turner) arrived by sea with H.Q.
26 Division at Padang on the South Coast of
the Island on 10th October, 1945. Simultaneously 63 Area Cash Office (Captain Loveless,
Sec.-Lieut. Edwards, Sgts. Hicks and Hodgson)
arrived at Medan on the North Coast and set
up their office in the Java Bank. On 23rd January, 1946, when H.Q. 26 Indian Division
427

Sou~abaya we se~lt a few British Troops into
moved to Medan, 40 Staff Paymaster joined

63 Area Cash Office. The latter had sent Lieut.
Edwards and Sgt. Hodgson on detachment to
Palembang in December 1945 but, when
40 Staff Paymaster left Padang, Lieut. Edwards
was sent there instead with instructions to
cover Palembang by air.
H.Q. AFNEI set up their Headquarters in
Batavia early in October and Lieut.-Colonel
(Nipper) Rees, who had been Force Paymaster
lourteenth Anny in Burma, flew in with SjSgt.
Robertson in Mid-October to act as Force
Paymaster AFNEI.
At the end of October it was decided to send
5 Indian Division to Sourabaya, on the Eastern
end of Java and formerly the finest Port and
Town in Java, and some of their units soon
moved inland to occupy Malang, Magellang
and to protect RAPWI Camps elsewhere.
451 Sub. Area went in with them and we sent
120 Field Cash Office (Captain Davies and
Sgt. Upton) in by sea from Port Dickson on
27th October to lend the Division and Sub.
Area Cashiers a hand. We found the Ind?nesi~ns looting, burning and pillaging the
gIganhc dumps of Japanese and Dutch stores,
and murders were the order of the day. They
resisted 5 Indian Division landings strongly
and fierce fighting took place before we could
~ay even a part of the town was reasonably safe
III our hands. During this the street containing
120 Field Cash Office was strongly attacked by
Indonesians. Captain Davies commanded a
Company in the Defence of Brigade Headquarters and all his equipment, ledgers, account
books, etc., were used in lieu of sandbags for
protection and were destroyed. They were
down to their last ten rounds before other
troops arrived to raise the siege and Brigade
reported that the R.A.P.C. had done well in
this scrap. From January 1946 this F.C.O.
covered Semarang, which was later occupied
by 5 Parachute Brigade and flew in fortnightly
from Sourabaya.
The Red Devils threw their weight about so
effectively in Semarang that within a few days
the Indonesians had decided to be as good as
gold, but Sourabaya has all along been the
scene of the heaviest fighting and, even now,
hardly a day passes without some kind of a
clash. We have had over 1,000 casualties in that
town alone and the Indonesians about 15000
,
and what is now left is a dead and shattered
husk of what was once a beautiful city. From
the Island of Ball, but they did not stay long

and we only sent in one consignment of cash.
Meantime the whole of 23 Indian Division
had ~rriv7d in Batavia and Corps Troops were
pourIng Ill, so 41 A.C.O. (Captain Clarke
Li~ut. Locke, Sgts. Dransfield and Eckersall)
arrIved by sea from Singapore on the
2nd January, 1946, to lend a hand . H.Q.
23 Indian Division moved 120 miles inland to
Band~eng in. January and their Brigades
occupIed TandJeong and Buitenzorg as well in
order to protect some 60,000 RAPWI in camps
at these three towns. Bandoeng, which had
45,000 RAPWI, was shelled by mortars and
shot up generally, and was moreover, intended
by the Japanese to be the scene of their expected " last ditch" stand, so the area round
about contained many gigantic dumps of
supplies and ammunition that were being used
by the Indonesians against us. The road convoys to Bandoeng passed through Tandjoer,
90 miles from Batavia, and then had to take a
bad, narrow and winding road up the mountains
and over innumerable bridges.
The Indonesians at once commenced ambushing them
and blowing u p bridges in front and behind the
columns, sowing the road with anti-tank and
anti- personnel mines and ro ad blocks covered
by machine gun fire, and our casualties soon
became heavy. After one convoy had lost
105 officers and men and it proved necessary
to use two Brigades to rescue the remainder
after a week's fighting, it was decided to supply
Bandoeng, and bring out the RAPWI, chiefly
by air.
The next move by AFNEI was to deal with
the outer islands, which contained 140,000
Japanese, and the Celebes were occupied at the
end of January by 80 Brigade of 20 Indian
Division from .Saigon. We sent in 125 F.C.O.
(Captain Cairns and Sgt. Mitchener) with them
to Makassar, where they had the only comparatively quiet time of any troops in N.E.1.
and remained until we evacuated the Celebes
in July 1946 and handed them over to the
Dutch.
The picture of ever-moving R.A.P.C. units in
N.E.1. was completed when Lieut.-Colonel
(Tim) Sweeny arrived from FIC on 4th March
to take over as Force Paymaster from Lieut.Colonel Rees; who returned to U.K. on Python.
He first had to deal with the new currency
situation, of which more later, and then went

on tour round his extensive territories, where
one takes an air journey of 1,000 miles as readily
as a taxi in London. He then settled down to
discover what booty had already been taken
from the Japanese and where it was, and to
remove the remainder from them, in addition
to the daily currency problems which deserve
some paragraphs of explanation to themselves.
When our troo ps first arr~ved the currencies
circulating in N.E.1. were 350 millions of the
. pre-war Dutch Guilder (called the "Old
Dutch ") and the Japanese invasion Guilder of
which Dutch calculations estimated some
3,500 millions had been printed. Both were
considered of equal value and accepted as such
by Indonesians, Japanese, Europeans and
Asiatics alike and the majority of the inhabitants were richer than they had ever been
before.
As it was obviously undesirable to permit
enemy occupational currency to continue in
use, the Dutch had got a completely new
currency printed and we brought enough with
us to start with, although the bulk of it was
still in Australia. This currency was designed
in 1944 at a time when there was no indication
of the wholesale Indonesian uprising, and the
whole design was carried out in the Dutch
language and bore portraits of Queen
Wilhelmina, whilst the words "Dutch
Government" appeared in several places on
every note. It at once proved anathema to the
Indonesians, who refused to accept it, and cut
the throats of anyone who did, so the Dutch
asked us not to use it for the time being. VYe
were so thin on the ground against the formidable opposition, and there was so much risk of
getting innocent RAPWI murdered while still
in Indonesian hands, that the G.O.C.-in-C.
reluctantly consented and until 28th October
no cash whatever was issued. After that date
the troops were issued with the new Nica
currency but only permitted to use it in
canteens and in other places coming within the
military chain of amenities. Our fellows , of
course, said tllat they wanted to buy things in
the bazaars and the Dutch offered to make a
free weekly issue of Japanese Guilders with
effect from the 28th October to every officer
and man and not to charge for them. This was
accepted and the good times when everyone
could practically avoid dip ping into his own
pay continued until 28th February. We told
every Imprest Holder to account for" Banana
Money" payments on separate nominal rolls

and in a separate im prest account, and not to
make any entries about it on AB 64's or Officers'
Cheque Books. All ranks at once assumed that,
since they were not charged for them, the
Japanese Guilders could be considered valueless
and got what they wanted in the bazaars scot
free. A good time was had by all, especially in
the early days when one could buy a Nica
Guilder for about 6 Jap Guilders. A good
many merchants inside the areas we controlled
decided the Nica currency was worth having
and a few of them were murdered for doing so .
Outside our perimeters it was soon certain
death to be found with any.
We had all along tried to persuade the Dutch
to declare the Japanese Guilder illegal and get
it off the market, or else give it a value, at any
rate within our areas, and they eventually
agreed to a Proclamation being issued by the
G.O.C.-in-C. on 6th March which offered to
buy in Japanese Guilders at 3 per cent. of their
face value, and ordered the "old Dutch"
Guilders to be handed 'into banks for crediting
to blocked accounts. " Ex Gratia" payments in
Japanese Guilders were to cease, the Nica
Guilder was devalued from 2j7t to 1 j 10 ~ and
the intention was to try and obtain a single
currency in circulation instead of three.
The Republicans' immediate reaction was to
declare the Nica Guilder illegal and the
Japanese Guilder and the old Dutch Guilder
the only legal currency, with equal values, until
such time as they brought out a new currency
of their own. This would have made a fourth
currency circulating and even more chaotic
i::onditions, so we tried hard to prevent another
issue and, up to the time of writing, have been
successful.
The immediate reaction of our troops to the
devaluation of the Nica Guilder on 6th March
was to claim compensation on all holdings in
Regimental funds or in personal possession, and
the Dutch eventually agreed to pay compensation on these in addition to our balances on
Public 'Accounts; provided that the amounts
claimed on the former were" reasonahle," and
on the latter only covered the balance of money
drawn as Pay and Allowances between
7th February and 6th March. The Force
Paymaster was at once snowed under with
claims from many hundreds of Imprest Holders
and his" authority" had to be obtained as a
voucher supporting money paid out from
429
428

Imprest Funds as compensation, The ensuing
three weeks were hectic but at the "end of it
the first r,":s.h was over and innumerable
problems ansmg out of the proclamation had
been solved, so the Colonel then got down to
the Japanese in earnest, and brought Lieut.
W ~st, n.ow promoted Captain, from Medan to
asSiSt him.
W e c~uld not get at them in Central or East
Java or m parts of Sumatra, but we eventually
pers~ade.d a reluctant AFNEI to issue orders
puttmg l~tO effect the same "drill" as had
been devised to extract the maximum booty
out of t~e J.apanese in FIC, and we at last began
to get It m earnest from those surrendered
troops who were within our reach. The peak
day occurred when Major Goddard who had b
?ow replaced Major Hargreaves, flew proudl~
m from .Bandoeng at the head of seven Dakotas
lad~n With some 15 tons of currency and booty.
ThiS :vas added to our already useful pile in
Batavla and the lot was stored in the vaults of
the H.ong Kong .an.d Chartered Banks to await
chec~mg and ltstmg.
This represented a
forml~able task for our small numbers
espe<;lally. as each day brought in its full quot~
and. the Job lo?ked as if it would last until
Chnstmas, until the Colonel discovered that
some Jap.anese Bank Cashiers were being used
on mendmg the roads. He promptly collared
a dozen of them and results improved so rapidly
that the whole job was done by the 27th June
crates se~ed u.p and lists prepared and finall;
every gUIlder discovered had been handed over
to the Dutch against a receipt.
Th~ final results for N.E.I. might have been
five times as large had the job been done six

months earlier, but nevertheless the useful
to~a~ of about ei~hty-six million guilders plus a
mtlho.n or two m other currencies, some gold
~nd sIlver bars and a few diamonds were raked
m, not to. mention watches, cigarette cases and
other ~rtlcles of too much value to leave in
posseSSIOn of the Nips.
Once properly under way this job was left
to 24 Staff Paymaster and 41 A.C.O., while the
For~e Paymaster's Office concentrated on
findmg whether the enemy had accounted for
all the .money they had issued or had hidden
any of It. _ The Dutch financial authorities had
been working on this subject for six 'months
from their own books and records, and had
agr~ed that about 3,500 million Japanese
GUIlders had been issued. We tackled it from
another angle . altogether and investigated the

Ja~anese eqUIvalent of their Forces' cons~hdated monthly "General State."
We
dlscovere? where printing of currency had
been carned out, how much had been ordered
and the exact quantity of each denominatio~
of .nO.te that: had been printed and the date of
pnntmg. Within a month we had proved that
~here was over 8,000 million Japanese Guilders
m Java and Sumatra alone and the amount in
the ~uter IS.la?ds might possibly swell the total
~o L,OOO I?1I1lOns. We found difficulty at first
m accountmg for some 1,200 millions of it in
Java and a further 1,500 millions in Sumatra
and a fresh " Hunt for the Hidden Millions"
started. The trail ended quite quickly in Java
where we soon traced the 1,200 millions in full,
but Sumatra proved a tough nut to crack.
Proofs of large quantit~es of money being
removed from Banks Without entries into
ac~o:unts were obtained but, at the time of
wr~tmg, the hunt there is still on and the
wnter, who returns home on Python will
not be " in at the death."
,
The unexpectedly rapid evacuation of the
Japa~ese back to Japan has proved a formidable
handICap for on some occasions we had the

I~tendance " Officer or Banker we required but
hiS account books had gone, at other times we
had the accounts needed but not the man who
could answer the questions.
It. must never be forgotten, however, when

n~admg about .extraneous and more interesting
bits of work ltke these, that the main work of

the R.A.P.C. ~ith any occupational troops or in
fo~ard areas IS to keep the Cash Services going
effiCiently and the few R.A.P.C. and Indian
Cashiers who had to cover an area of 2000
miles by 1,000 continued to do so with ;heir
usual quiet efficiency. Whether by air-drop
or air-flight~ by sea or by road, whenever our
troops reqUIred money our Cashier was there
with it ; though on more than one occasion it
entailed having to get hold of a special aeroplane
ready to start within an hour for a 600-mile
journey. The R.A.P.C. of the N.E.I. throughout lived up to the proud boast of our CorI)s :
"You want some money?-Here it is."
To do so may sound easy, but only those who
ha.ve t? organise it or to carry it out know that
thiS simple statement covers a multitude of
difficulties where troops are scattered over
great areas.
430
THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL '
--------------------------------
I W AS POSTED TO JERUSALEM
By Major O. G. PLOWMAN, R.A.P.C.
WAS on the Cairo-Haifa train which was
mined and wrecked by Jews on the
morning of Tuesday, 22nd April, 1947. I
had entrained at Ismailia the previous evening,
was due at Lydda at "8-40 next morning, and
from Lydda was to continue the journey to
Jerusalem by road. The first five coaches of the
train had been reserved for military personnel,
the remainder b~ing available for public
passengers.
At 8-30 a.m. the train was travelling at
reduced speed along an embankment with
orange groves on either side. I was standing
in the vestibule between the third and fourth
coaches. Suddenly, there was a terrific explosion. The air became dense from smoke ;
there were sounds of shattering glass and of
woodwork being reduced to splinters and
debris was flying in all directions. The coach
in which I was travelling was blown off the rails
by the force of the explosion and was lurching
from side to side and bumping over the sleepers.
A moment later it was slithering down the
embankment coming to rest in the gravel at an
angle of forty-five degrees. Passengers were
thrown in all directions, and it was with the
greatest difficulty that I managed to remain on
my feet. My head seemed as if it would burst
and my jaw was aching. I realised what had
happened, and as soon as I could, started
clambering up the floor of the coach, which was
nearly perpendicular and crawled along the
corridor. Those of us able to do so helped
other officers to extricate themselves from the
baggage which had fallen from rasks. Spasmodic sniping was being directed at the train
but this did not last for long. When we had
sorted ourselves out we climbed down from
the train.
The scene along the track was an unforgettable sight. The last two compartments of
the third coach had received the full force of
the explosion and "had been blown to bits,
five soldiers being killed and a number injured,
some seriously; the fourth coach was nearly
on its side down the embankment; the fifth
car was undamaged, except that it had been
telescoped by the sixth car, in which more
casualties had occurred, including three killed.
For some distance the track had been torn up,
rails were buckled and twisted into odd shapes,
the water-tank at the end of the third car had

been blown through the roof and was lying
intact on the ground. Troops were moving the
bodies to the side of the track and covering
them with blankets, the injured were being
given first-aid treatment, passengers pinned in
the wreckage were being released with the aid
of crowbars, pick-axes and sleepers, and articles
of clothing strewn about were being collected
and placed in piles.
A relief train was sent for but this did not
arrive until two hours later. Military passengers,
with their baggage, were packed into the goods
van, and about noon-in the interval there
were -several distributions of oranges picked
from the hundreds of trees all around, so if the
shortage of this luscious fruit at home continues,
one reason may not be hard to find-we '
continued our journey to Lydda. There we
were met by the R.T.O. who sorted us out
according to our destinations, and arranged
convoys of road transport to take us to our
units.
I arrived at the Pay Office in the Syrian
Orphanage about 6 p.m. and was given a warm
welcome by the c.P., Colonel C. Holmes,
M.C., and other officers, which I very much
appreciated.
It was a very narrow escape for me, but,
except for a severe shaking, I am none the
worse for the experience.
(Concluded from page 420)
cash, where they were required.

Let me say that this concluding story of the
Pay Services S.E.A.C., is not written with a
view to pat any particular individual or
collection of individuals on the back, or to
claim a better show than any other campaign.
It is simply to record a job that was done by a
lot of men, who, in spite of some climatic
discomforts and some exasperating journeys,
worked as an undefeatable team throughout.
Finally, let me mention the " sloggers" who
stayed behind with the C.C.H. at Allahabad
and later at Meerut, those who, through no
fault of their own, missed all the fun but believe
me, whatever they may have felt about their
unenviable fate, they played a great part in
the team.
THE END
431
12 COMMAND PAY OFFICE
ALLIED LAND FORCES : NORWAY

L ~HO~GH ~his ?ffice is now no longer
m eXIstence It wdl be of interest to its
late members to place on record a few
facts regarding the duties of the office and the
conditions under which they worked.
The first members of the office staff arrived

in Norway ~n th~ 18th May, 1945, 10 days
after thecapltulatlOn. It was very interesting,
and somehow rather uncanny, to see the
Ge~"ffians, fully ~rmed, marching out of Oslo to
theIr concentratlOn camps in the country during
these first days. Luckily they went quietly500,000 "surrounded" by about 10,000 in
those early days! Their offices were taken over
by our troops as they left them-in a very
considerable mess, mostly, empty bottles
everywhere, together with office files discarded equipment, and even various arti~les of
feminine attire not usually found in offices !the property. no doubt of their Women's Corps
who were Wlt~ them. A large crowd gathered
to see ~e AIrborne Div.'s Pioneers cutting
down wIth hammer and chisel the big concrete
Eagle and Swastika over the main door of the
. H.Q. office. Curiously enough this crowd did
not cheer, as no doubt a Gallic crowd would
have cheered-but as each piece fell a deep
murmur as of reminiscent hatred was heard.
It was dangerous not to stop your car when
told .to by the Home Front-the" Milorg ,,_
~pecla~ly for the R.A.F., with their similarity
m umform to the Luftwaffe-there was no
doubt of t~e hatred of the Norwegians for their
lat~ o~cup~ers, and these young Norwegians had
a dlstmct Itch in their trigger fingers. To come
back to the arrival of the office-from the
18th May, 1945, on, the staff were brought out
as occaSlOn arose, by air or sea; and the
nl!cleus of the Command Pay Office, together
WIth most .of .the Field Cashiers, were getting
down to It m Norway (if one remembers
~orrectly) b,~fore .they were actually officially
~obbed !
WIthout them one hesitates to
thmk what" ALFNOR " would have doneyet, to get them out constituted practically a
major engagement.
Th~ Command Pay Office was set up in
Oslo Itself together with the Base Cashier.
1st Airborne Division had their own Cashier.
432
The remaining Cashiers were situated at

Tr?~so, Trondheim, Bergen, Stavanger and.
KnstIansand(S) . It had been the intention to
have a Cashier at Kirkeness, but as the Russians
took this place over, the necessity did not arise.
The Detachment consisted almost entirely of
:' old hands" of the Corps, with a correspondmg sense of responsibility. There was plenty
of work (much of it of a most unusual naturewhich will be mentioned later), good and ample
accommodation (shades of Regimental Pay
Offices in the United Kingdom I), first-class
office machinery and furniture-all taken over
as the Hun marched out. Food was at least
better than in the United Kingdom (though not
so ~ood as the at present very high standard in
IndIa-whence this is written), and the men's
billets passable. The weather for the greater
part of our stay was excellent (really hot midJune to mid-September) and the local po~ulace
~ere. almost overwhelming in both their hospItalIty and (at least speaking of the female of
~he sp~(.ies) .their looks. Taking all these points
m cOllJunctlon the office ran very well, with
office hours somewhat below, shall we say, those
of the average Home Regimental Pay Offices,
so that "recreational training" of various
kinds could be indulged in-which undoubtedly
kept everyone fit and thus increased output and
efficiency. Thi~ was made possible largely by
the above-mentlOned sense of responsibility of
the men, who not only got right down to it
during office hours but many of whom it was
quite a common thing to find cutting down their
lunch hour, or even arriving early in the
morning, so as to finish their work on time and
get down for a swim.
As regards the jobs done-Field Cashiers
of course were out at all hours and in all
conditions, as is the way for such pioneers of
the Corps all over the world. Field Cashier,
Tromso (well into the Arctic Circle-" Land
of the Midnight Sun ")- caused a little uneasiness when he, his driver and his Sergeant,.
having set out somewhere during a blizzard,
were missing for three days. Luckily, they had
some NAAFI Stores (Wet) with them and had
quite a good time. At H.Q., in addition to the
routine work of a Command Pay Office, Base,
were carried out such little jobs as :-
(1) The entire and. unaided drafting,- distributing and operatmg of a scheme for
changing "old notes for new" (protect~on
against inflation, etc.) for all ranks of all Alhed
Services.
(2) The collection, sorting, re-'p~cking, and
ultimate return to country of ongm or other
destination as instructed of all monies held by
the 500,000 odd Germans in Norway. As some
example of the sum involved, upwards of
150 million Norwegian Kroner were recovered
from the trouser pockets of the Wehrmacht :
whilst it took an outsize railway truck, packed to
the roof, to shift the currency of two other
countries. This particular effort gained us the
notoriety of headlines in the local press. All
of which may' sound easy, but most certainly is
not-especially when hindrance instead of
co-operation and help was too often forthcomtng.
Of the country itself one has recollections of
fjords, pine-forested mountains, blue skies and
sun, yachting and swimming in the short hot
?ummer (mid-June to mid-Septem~er), sho?ting and walking in the autumn (whIch contams
the only gloomy period of the year-low cloud
and fog from mid-October to end of November
-the snow starts early in December, when the
sun appears again): ski-ing-for those brave
enough-in winter, which has a very bearable
dry cold. Incidentally, it may not be known
that ski-ing in Norway is considered by those
who have had the chance of making the
comparison, to be infinitely better, pleasanter
and cheaper than in Switzerland ; certainly a
glimpse of the brilliant sun on snow-clad
fir-trees, with clear blue skies above, made one
think of fairyland.
By virtue of the nature of the mountainous
country, visits by or to Field Cashiers were

mainly carried out by air. It took one approximately five hours to get to Tromso, the
most northerly zone-passing low over the
upturned keel of th~ "Tirpitz" when c~rcling
to land in the flymg-boat. As a pomt of
interest it takes only slightly longer to Northolt
or Croydon. The roads are guaranteed to
break the springs of most cars and in many
places are very reminiscent of the Indian
"khud-side,"-but as the "Norskeys~' explain, these roads have had five .years WIthout
anything but maintenance repaIrs, and these
often sabotaged to hinder and annoy the Hun.
The country was occupied and oppressed,
but not much damaged, except in North
Norway, where it was laid bare by the Germans
fleeing before the Russians. A little damage by
the R.A.F. is to be seen in Oslo and a few other
places, but probably less than in any other
occupied country with the exception of Denmark-which still abounded with eggs and
butter and most other edibles. But the
Norwegians kept smiling in spite of being
occupied and never knowing when the Gestapo
would tap them on the shoulder and carry them
off-after which the next worse thing was
probably the lack of adequate food, although
they never actually starved. By now their fo()d
situation is infinitely better than that of the
United Kingdom.
Several members of the Command Pay
Office managed trips to Sweden-where ever~
thing is on a pre-war scale, but at. fantast.lc
prices. Here the colour of our umf~rm (m
which we had to travel, at least dunng the
earlier part of our tour) was naturally strange
to them.-but all was grist to their mill in the
shape of money. They must have done
extremely well out of the war.
THE BRITISH PAYMASTER,

FIRST CANADIAN ARMY
By Major E. B. BRADSHAW
Dieppe raid. Canadians. had, ?f cou~se, b.een
HE First Canadian Army was created to
landed in Hong Kong pnor to Its capltulatlOn,
form part of the British Army, and as-it
and the 1st Canadian Corps, which had been
was chiefly composed of war volunteers
transferred to the Italian Theatre, did not take
and the mobilised permanent militia which had
its rightful place with the First Canadian Army
augmented the very small peace-time standing
until such time as the second European Camarmy, most of the personnel were unseasoned
paign was well under way. To bring the First
in war experience, apart from the first Great
Canadian Army up to its war complement, and
War Veterans and those who had survived the
433

to stiffen it with war experienced troops, the
1st British Corps was therefore placed under
its command.
The presence of British troops in an army
paid at different rates of pay and under a
different pay code required that provision be
made for British Services to form part of the
Canadian Army Headquarters, and a British
Service Increment was, therefore, introduced.
The Pay Services were dealt with by the British
Paymaster.
Accordingly, the following joined the Rear
Headquarters, First Canadian Army, in early
April, 1944 :
Major J. c. L. Thomas.
Capt. E. B. Bradshaw.
S/Sgt. N. Mitchell.
Sgt. G. 1. Cannard.
Pte. J. Davies.
"
The British Paymaster set up at Horsham,
Sussex, adjacent to the P.M.C.T. (Paymaster,
Canadian Troops) who had requisitioned a
house for our use. No provision had been made
to implement a scale of War Accommodation
Stores for our unit, and until such time as the
stores could be obtained we were in the unique
position, as a British service in England, of
being dependent on a Canadian unit for the
loan of stationery, typewriters, duplicators and
transport.
Our chief task was to arrange for the British
units to be transferred from the Home System
of Accounting to that of the Overseas one, and
where units could not be serviced for cash by a
British Cashier, to link them with a Canadian
Field Cash Office.
This involved liaison with the P.M.C.T. and
with No. 9 C. P . O. (Base) as Unit Imprest
Accounts were rendered to the latter, as No. 2
B. C. H. was at that time situated with No. 9
C. P. O. and the cashiers of 1st British Corps
also rendered their accounts to No. 9 C. P. O. ;
the production of literature, the allocation of
Imprest numbers, and the issue of Cash
Requisition Forms and Officers' Advance of
Pay Books.
Lectures were arranged with units, and we
were thus travelling considerable distances
daily ; and as we were not (at first) in possession of an Order of Battle we were always
discovering new units. Units, all the time
were also joining the Canadian Army to bring
it up to its War Establishment.
In early May we moved up and went under
canvas in Ashtead Park, Surrey, thus taking our

place as an integral part of the Rear H.Q.
which had previously moved into that location.
We saw the Canadians at work and at play; we
lived with them and dined in their messes. We
found them very keen, intensely loyal, patriotic,
and good comrades.
On the 19th July (after many" stand-to's ")
we were in convoy, destined for Camp SA,
Orsett, Essex. Major Thomas had divided the
office into two parts, in case of casualties en '
route. The vehicle (a 3-tonner), in which Capt.
Bradshaw and staff travelled, broke down at
Ilford, and, after an effort, succeeded in reaching the camp an hour after the convoy had
arrived.
The two parts embarked at Tilbury in
separate Liberty Ships, and eventually arrived
off the Courselles beach, with0ut mishap, after
a short stay in the Thames Estuary. '
Our first camp in Normandy was at Les
Planches, Colombier sur Seule. Our tents
were erected and we were not long in sinking
our camp beds below ground level (digging in),
and covering them with corrugated iron
supported by sand-bags as a protection against
shrapnel from our A.A. guns, or possibly
enemy air action.
, We were ' soon contacting British units and
the Field and Area Cashiers in our area. Our
journeys took us over most of the ground where
the initial landings took place, and we also
visited on several occasions, Bayeux, Reviers,
Amblie, TaiIlerande, Douvres and Douvres de
la Deliverance. We became terribly" mine"
conscious and were always on the look out for
the Skull and Crossbones, indicating the
presence of a German minefield, or for the
boards on the sides of roads which showed that
verges had been cleared to a certain depth.
All the fields were full of war accoutrements
of every description and the dusty, narrow
country roads were crowded with traffic. At
times one took hours to do even a small journey
as convoys were travelling in all directions.
Our stay at Colombier lasted a month, and
'during that time we contacted Lieut.-Colonel
P. F. C. Bloxam (Staff Paymaster, 2nd Army),
Lieut.-Colonel H. G. B. Milling (Advance No.
9 C.P.O.) and Lieut.-Colonel K. 1. D . Stewart
(Advance D.P.I.C.).
It was during this time that the terrific air
bombardment of Caen took place, and the
lights in the sky and the reverberations of the
".
We paid visits to Rouen (staying with Major

Chapman) and Dieppe. We ourselve~ opened
up a Field Cash Office to meet the reqUl~ements
of units belonging to the L. of C. whIch had
become separated from their cashiers owing to
the speed of the advance, and took cash out to
British 1st Corps cashiers who were with the
troops besieging Le Havre.
.
It was interesting to see the defenSIve works
made by the Germans, especially around
Fecamps, to prevent an attack from the s.ea.
Gun emplacements pointed seawards, whIlst
thousands of poles were set up in the fields. to
stop landings by aircraft. These 'pol~s dommated the horizon in every dIrectIOn, and
stretched for miles. Some had pointed tops,
whilst others were interlaced with wires.
We left Herbelle on 27th September and
travelled via Lille and Tournai to Chateau
d'Oydonck near Deinze. By this time Major
Thomas had left for Brussels for transfer to
Bayeux on promotion to Lieut.-Col., as O. i/c
No. 16 C.P.O. (Base), and had been relieved by
Major R. H. Weston. On 28th September,
Capt. Bradshaw was replaced by Capt. V. R.
Hazell and also proceeded to Brussels, but to
join No. 9 c.P.O., so that the writer's experience with the Canadian Army was then
terminated.
The British Paymaster continued to function
and was later to be found at Tilburg and
Appledorn in Holland. Capt. HazeIl l~ft in
May, 1945 for No. 9 c.P.O., on promotIOn to
Staff Paymaster 2, and was in turn relieved by
.
Capt. Sadler.
As the British 1st Corps had left the CanadIan
Army on the penetration of our army into
Germany, the need of a British Payrr;taster
ceased to exist, and so on 21st July, 1945, It was
finally disbanded, after a period of fifteen
months. S/Sgt. Mitchell and the other staff
served faithfully and loyally until the end, when
they were transferred to 18 c.P.O. ,(Base) at
Rheine, Germany, prior to the creation o~ No.
20 C.P.O. (Base), which they eventually jomed.
Thus ended a very enjoyable and interesting
association.
bombs could be seen and heard for some

distance.
Our next move was to a small village called
Firfol which we reached on 28th August. Our
route lay through Hermanville,. Caen and
Troan. After passing Hermanvdle we saw
relics of many gliders, reminiscent of the
initial landings, which were like g!ant moths in
the fielc;ls. One was actually astnde an enemy
A.A. gun position, and one naturally wonder~d
what had happened to its crew and the aIrborne troops.
The destruction of Caen was most profound,
and amidst dust and stinks we crossed the river
Orne by a pontoon bridge, and took the Troan
road, passing evidence of the scen~s of recent
battle, to Firfol. Our camp was m an apple
orchard and cows roamed about at will, even
drinkin~ the soapy water out of our washbasins.
It was a peaceful spot, and we were able to
augment our rations with fresh milk, butter and
eggs. We stayed three days only; a pretty
gesture marked our departure-the young
daughter of the farmer's wife presented our
messing officer with a small bouquet of flowers.
Our next stay was at Le Bosc, just north of
Lisieux, and again we were in a farm, still
managing to get dairy produce ~d fre.sh
vegetables. By this time :ve were gettmg q~lte
adept at pitching and strikmg tents, and gettmg
used to digging in.
The roads all seemed to have their quotas of
burnt-out enemy vehicles, adding testimony of
the effectiveness of our air sweeps.
We were kept in touch with the progress of
the campaign by access to the Map room of t.he
H.Q. (which became known as the Admm.
H.Q.), and Major Thomas also attended the
morning conferences of the Col. A Q.
We stayed only five nights at Le Bosc, and at
04-00 hours (in the darkness) set off for
Smermesnil. We took the northern route and
crossed the river Somme, being feted by the
villagers of the villages we passed through, who
tried to throw apples into the trucks-often
with disastrous results, and to give us flowers.
On the 16th September we set out for the
beautiful countryside of the river Seine,
crossing by Pont Audeman, and reached
Herbelle, near St. Omer. By this time we had
given up digging in. We were join~d by the
Field Supervisor, P.M.C.T. (Major John
Collins) who stayed alongside the British Paymaster until he eventually became the P.M.C.T.
OUR CONTEMPORARIES
The Editor acknowledges with m an y thanks
receipt of the following Journals : The Covenanter.
The R .A.O.C. Gazette.
The Manchester Regiment Gazette.
The Accountant.
The Certified Accountants Journal.
435
434
THE ROYAL ARMY PAY
\..;'"1
-T' O~
) <.I
\~',
"
Command Pay Offices

EASTERN COMMAND
rfceived .at BoothaI? we were loathe to leave,especiaJ;y

a ter bemg supphed by Costing Section, who returned a few days earlier, with details of what to
eXl(ect ,;!pon ou.r return. However, everyone got down
to. It WIth a .wlll and after a few days of hard work
WIth scrubbmg brushes the office soon regained its
?ld a~pect, except for a tide mark about 3 ft 6 ins
m heIght. which is being very carefully prese;ved ~
order to I~press our many visitors.
.By the tIme these notes appear in print, cheerio
WIll have been said .to Sgt. A . Allan and Cpl. H.
Freeman of the Costmg Section, while the heartiest
of welcomes have already been extended to Ptes.
C . E: Stanyon and D. E. Hugo who have joined from
Nottmgham, A.T.S. and A.A. respectively.
Very l~ttle of general interest seems to have

occurred m the fortune of the office during the past
quartet> and the only change of staff we have to
report IS that. Pte. Gane (A.T.S.) has now proceeded
overseas, havmg volunteered for the" banana-boat"
some months ago. Her place, as typist, has been
taken by Pte. Bromley (RA.P:C) late of No 19
Detachment (P.O.S.R).
.
Th~ sl?orting activities of No. 2 Detachment are
very lImIted? as owing to lack of numbers we are
unable to raIse a team at anything bar" crib." We
are, however, able to .report that the CP., Brigadier
C. N. Bc::dnall, as thIS year's captain of the Corps
Golf SOCIety, accompanied the RA.P .C . inter-unit
team to St. Andrews and played himself in the
RA.P.C. !eam for the Ordnance Cup. He won his
match agamst the A .A . Command team but the side
lost to the eventual winners.
'
An active individual part in sport is also played
~y the A./CP., Lieut.-Colonel P. F. C. Bloxam, who
IS Treasurer to the Army Football Association.
S.S.M. Bullous and L /Cp!. Blackwell continued
to turn out for the Headquarters Hock~y team during
the past sea~on, and S.S.M. Bullous IS now keeping
tChc:: flag flymg by appearing in the Headquarters
ne ket XI.
All else that can be said is that, for a consideration,
we are prepared to name a "good thing" for the
St. Leger.
w..
NORTHERN COMMAND
I t is becoming the usual practice to record in the
ournal the departure of our A./CP. and the arrival
of a new ~me. This time we say good-bye and good
'uck to Lleu~.-Colonel A. E. Barlow who has left us
for the Re!pmental Pay Office, York, and in turn
welcome LIeut.-Colonel R C. Thompson, O.RE.
As the result of the thaw at the end of March
~ork experienced one. of the worst floods in its long
hIstory, .and we certamly had our share of it. The
staff arnved one morning only to find that the office
was completely isolated, but any hopes of a couple of
days off were quickly doomed by the arrival of a
flat-bottoI?ed boat and a couple of three-ton trucks,
and by us~g the trucks for the first part of the journey
and puntmg the remainder we finally reached our
work. ~ter two days, however, it was decided that
as the nver was due to rise considerably , we should
evacuate to Bootham, where the Regimental Pay
Office staff s9ueezed up and gave us the best of their
accommodatIOn. After the hospitable treatment we
SOUTHERN COMMAND
As usual these days we commence with our arrivals
and departures. Brigadier Williams has left us for
" ano th ~r p I ace " as they say in Parliament. Our
good WIshes go with him and we extend to his
436
the more sunny clime of Malta. Both take with them

our most sincere wishes for a happy and contented
life at their new homes. We will miss them. In their
places we welcome two new arrivals, members of the
Corps who knew Chester in pre-war days, Lieut.Colonel H . A. A. Howell, M.B.E. , of Scottish
Command, and S.S.M. Evans from Italy.
All who have passed this way will regret to hear of
the death of three of our old pre-war civilian staff,
Mr. 1. Wardle, who died in 1945, Mr. W. Jarvis,
and Mr. W . Parry (Jock) both in January ofthis year.
Of other pre-war civilians, Mr. E. R. Newton
(Smiling Ted) has retired on attaining the age of 65,
whilst Mr. G. F. York and Mr. C. N. Homersham
are still batting quite strongly. I am sure that all
who knew him will join in our congratulations to
Mr. York on his celebrating on IIth May, 1947, the
28th anniversay of his joining this office. Mr. Quinn
(Len) has transferred his affections to the Sappers,
and is now Chief Clerk, Engineers at Western
Command Headquarters.
I t may be of interest that Captain V. Ireland, of
the Reading and Shrewsbury Offices, and Captain
J. J. G. Greenwood, who spent many years at Army
Pay Office (Officers' Accounts), Manchester, are now
at Command Central Stats. Section and Claims Commission respectively.
For the purpose of sport and social activity, our
small community is affiliated to Command Headquarters, and consequently we have little of Corps
interest to report, other than that our affairs are
being very ably looked after by Captain R. L. Shaw,
RA.P.C. (Costing).
-
~uccessor, Brigadier Lightfoot, who is renewing

acquaintance with Salisbury, a warm welcome.
Captain Moore has also gone to find out the form at
F9. A few furtive tears were shed-parting is such
sweet sorrow. Captain Cowley joined us at Easter
and we hope that he enjoys his stay in Salisbury. In
this issue we must also take our leave of S /Sgt.
Bastable, now carving out a: niche for himself in
Civvy Street with the dogged persistence for which
he is justly famed. Our sincere good wishes are
extended for his continued success.
By the time these notes are in print another old
stager, Cpl. Lye, will have left us and all past and
present members of the office will wish him well in
his new venture.
S /Sgt. Stageman and Pte. Watts complete our list
of arrivals and departures and we hope they will find
life pleasant with us.
In spite of the weather we pressed on with the
Knock-out Soccer Competition, Reading taking the
shield after a very good final against Devizes. A
Cricket Knock-out Competition is now being formed
of which more in the next issue.
Meanwhile Salisbury is a pleasant spot in Spring
and if only the postmen and telephone operators
would stop worrying us we would be very happy.
WESTERN COMMAND
Since the publication of our last notes, Lieut.Colonel A. R. Hamilton and S.S.M. F. Camp have
left us, the former to Command Pay Office, Scottish
Command, _and Freddy_Camp to what is , we hope,
SCOTTISH COMMAND
Smce our last notes, we have to record with

regret the departure of Lieut.-Colonel H. A. A.
Howell, M.B.E., after his short tour in Scottish
C?mmand and in his place we have welcomed
LIeut.-Colonel A. R Hamilton.
S/Sgt. G. V.
Davenport and Sgt. J. Conroy have now been
released and carry our best wishes for the future. At
the moment Cpl. Cree is straining at the leash and
has taken a new interest in resettlement matters.
We offer our warmest congratulations to S.S.M.
H.
Rapple and Sgt. N. K. Brown on their recent
m~rnages. The fact that the f?rme~ ~e!gned in single
bhss for only three months smce Jommg this Command should be sufficient warning to any other
Sassenachs coming this way.
We are gla~ to be able to say that Mr. Inkster is
~ow convalescmg and can be expected back in harness
m the near future. Several other members of the
~taff have had short periods of absence through
Illness no doubt caused by the past severe winter
and so we earnestly hope that the present lovel;
weather may be beneficial to everyone.
yve o!fer our special congratulations to all who
~ssIsted m the Spring 1947 issue of the Journal which
IS generall y regarded here with unstinted admiration
and augers well for future editions.
In conclusion, our best wishes are extended to
memhers of the Corps, past and present, wherever
they may be.
District Pay Offices

Cricket.-With the cricket season once more- in
its primary stage, our main concern is whether or
not we are going to be favoured with good weather.
We have a full fixture list until the middle of September and the team, under L /Cpl. D . Jones, shows signs
()f providing a most interesting season's play.
Sergeants' Mess.-After a longnterval of social
inactivity, the Mess again " got cracking" in April
with a very successful dance at which we were pleased
to welcome an ex-CP. Southern-Brigadier OrmsbyJohnson. We were also encouraged by the presence
of Lieut.-Colonel J. R . Bume (District Paymaster)
and Mrs. Burne and a representative attendance of
officers and sergeantS from surrounding units.
Also during April the Drst of what we hope will
be a series of " Sergeants" Mess v. Officers" games
nights was held. Nobody seems to remember just
who won or what the scores were of the various
billiards, snooker and darts games but there was
certainly nothing fishy about Lieut.-Colonel
Haddock's win at "Pokey-Die." We should like to
know just what he had in the Black Bag.
A cordial welcome is extended to the new members
of the Mess; S.Q.M.S. Hart, Sgt. Dignan from
Singapore and Sgts. Pr-idham and Moore-just
promoted. To the latter two-our congratulations.
ALDERSHOT AND HANTS. DISTRICT (66 DET.)
I
".
b Since the last publication of our news review,
several changes have taken place here and the

expansion caused through the addition of a regimental office has necessitated the complete occupation
of the old building. Our newcomers are tasting the
real fruits of army discipline and have already learned
that Sergeant-Majors of the Parachute Regiment are
not amused when water is poured over them from
windows of rooms occupied by members of the
RA.P.C. We welcome Major P. Norris, Captains
Booth and Teasdale, Lieut. London and Messrs.
Goulding and Thornton-H.C.O .s to the fold.
Hockey.-The team has been considerably
strengthened by the addition of the arrivals from
Whitchurch. At the winding up of the season's play,
a fine account of the team was given when we won
the Aldershot and Hants. District Small Units
Knock-out Competition with a 2-0 victory over
44 O.S.D. RA.O.C. The goals were scored by
Cpl. Mason and S /Sgt. Ricketts.
Miniature Range.-Although the recent storm
has somewhat hampered the activities of the Rifle
Club, S /Sgt . Ricketts a.nd his "pirates " have
managed to uphold the good name of the Unit. A
number of newcomers were successful in gaining
S ..M.RC. "Marksman" badges whilst S /Sgt.
Rlcketts achieved second place in the Command
Championship of the Forces Day Competition.
Post'll matches with other offices would be welcome25, 50 or 100 yards aggregate and we would like to
see the recommencement of the Record and Pay
Office Rifle League.
LOWLAND DISTRICT (64 DETACHMENT)

This unit has not appeared in print in the last two
issues, and we send our greetings to brothers in the
Corps. Like other offices our numbers have been
dwindling, but we are glad to say that Lieut.-Colonel
Hands is still our District Paymaster, Captain Ede
437
______________T~H~E~R~OYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

has gone to other ?uties and no doubt a number of
offices have expenenced his tender b t
h'
robe' t t h '
u searc mg
P
m 0
e ~ystenes that shroud the activities of
every
'11 day
' work
h' m a Pay Office . S . S . M . H ump h reys
s1;1 retams IS smile and pursues the even tenor of
hiS way.
--- '.
The , " ~atfield ' club," which looks after the
recreatIOn sIde of the staff h as come to life w' th t
good eff~rts during the last half year and w~ ha;o
very enjoyable "outing" in Au~st round th:
T~ree L~?hs followed by a substantial high tea and
a show (Harry Gordon). We got one of the best
days ~f the summer and the success of the whole
operatIOn was due to the efforts of Lieut. Meharg and
S/Sgt. Laugh}an. A second" operation recreation"
was the Chnstmas dinner and dance a t ul
b'(
r y amI IOUS un d ert aki
. ng, as it was held in ' the unit
d
called f~r ~ considerable amount of improvi;a~~n
due to limited acc<?mmodation and rationing. The
offi~ers of the unIt waited at table according to
anCIent custo~, ~d again the success was due to the
energy and ~Irect~on of the same two organisers. We
hope the edItor -:vIII be able to find room for a phot _
graph taken durmg the evening by Pte. Lewis (Ma~)
and some of, ~)Ur readers may recognise a few faces
that are familiar.
The Badminton on Fridays draws an enthusiastic
crowd who ,~re not all !he young ones b y any means.
,On,e SectIOn here IS perhaps unique as far as
Dlstnct Offices are concerned " por h R I "
and the Education Officer is of the opini~n tha~ :~~:~s
to, teach Good Polish might be an advantage as he
th~s the language in general use there duri~g this
penod o~ stress and strain is neither Polish nor good
We still have a number of A.T.S . with us whos~
grace ~~d. refinement lighten our labours, and among
our CIVIlian Staff many readers will remember Mr
G. Pentney who retired from the army before th~
outbrea~. of war, only to find his services again in
request m an Army Pay Office.
By the time this goes into print we may have left
our present ,abode for regions unknown as yet,
perhaps Hamilton , perhaps Edinburgh.
C
'J
fro~p~a~
O' RMaSwQel~ M.C., ~as recently joined
Us
NORTH MIDLAND DISTRICT (62 DET.)

, Apolo~ies,. readers, for having'.", missed tt. e boat "
I~ contr~utmg news to the Spring edition . but to
t ose, w 0 have not, served in this office' let me
explam. Not only did we endure the nOrnlal dis~?:;forts Qf an abnormal Winter but when the thaw
. I take place the ground floor of the office was
mundate~ to a depth of 2 foot with the waters of the
~arby River Trent. For approximately eight weeks
t e whole of the sta~ had to be accommodated on the
~pper . floor, sardme fashion, thus temporaril
Impedmg the progress of our labour. We are no~
ba~'hat our old. posts and are breathing more freely.
, e Entertamment Committee have arranged an
outmg to Belle Vue, Manchester, early in June and
for ,those who d<? not possess umbrellas, there i~ the
optIOn of ~ttendmg the first Test Match against the
South Afncans at Trent Bridge on 10th J
An
I
f h
une.
ear y return 0 t e fine weather is eagerly sought to
ensure. both outings being a success.
~rtvals.-To the following who have joined us
dunng the p~st fivt; months, we extend a welcome
and trust their stay m Nottingham will be a pleasant
one: Sgts. Stewar~, Blake, Roberts, Turner and
Holmes, Cpl. Wnght, Ptes. Richards
Mead
AI~mson (A.T.S.), Goodwin (A.T.S.), Clark '(A.T.S.):
Wltham (A.T.S.) and Williamson (A.T.S.).
De~artures.-Our belated adieus are sent to the
fo,Ilowmg w~o. h~ve left us for surmier or other
clIme.s and CIVil lIfe: Lieut. E. A. Wilson, S /Sgt.
Norns, Sgt. Walker, Sgt. Grant (all overseas),
Sgt. Pears on (A.T.S ., demobbed), Mrs. Ramsay
(better known as Pte. Nichol), Ptes. Gillingham,
Ford, Grant, Moremon, Asher, Hawkins (A.T.S.),
George (A.T.S.,) AlIinson (A.T.S.), Clark (A.T.S.),
H yams (A.T.S.) and Beardow (A.T.S.): ~ ,
District Pay Office,

Glasgow:
New Year Dance
Photo:
M , L ewis, Ellbee Studios,
Glasgow,
team the results of each match were more favourable

than was expected.
Perhaps audacity pulled us
through!
Although we have not managed to arrange more
than one recent trip to Blackpool the Regimental Pay
Office very kindly invited members of this office to
two very successful trips (apart from the weather !)
to the Grand National and the Chester Cup.
Local gossip in the office has passed mainly from
" Where are we Going" to " When are we Going"
and if all rumours are correct, we should be in our
new home by the time the Journal is printed .
A G.O.C.'s Certificate of Merit has recently been
awarded to S /Sgt. H . Hardisty who receives our
heartiest congratulations.
Promotions, etc.-Our congratulations to the

under named who have achieved the rank as stated:
Sgt. Hall, Sgt. Rae (A.T.S.), CpJ. Wood (A.T.S.)
and L /CpJ. Braithwaite (A.T.S .).
For the information of those interested, the undermentioned" Old Timers" continue to serve at this
office: Lieut.-Colonel A. G . W. Broadhurst,
Captain L. Halle, S.S,M. J. L. James, Messrs. Ball,
Hunt, Counsell and Tylcoat, S.Q.M.S. V. James,
Sgt, J . Patters on and Cpl. T. Wright.
. : . .~ . . ,? Smith sends greetings to

IS old fnen,ds m R.P. Fmsbury Circus, and Ca tain
Mabey to hiS erstwhile colleagues of West Afri~a.
h'
'v
NORTHUMBRIAN DISTRICT (61 DET.)

After a long and hard winter it is a pleasure to
see the sun again and to enjoy once more cricket,
tennis and the numerous other outdoor recreations.
We have no cricket team, as our numbers are small,
but tennis and bowls have their followers.
Members of the Corps who knew the Command
Pay Office, York, in pre-war days will be interested
to learn of the retirement of Mr. W. S. Monaghan
in April.
Bill Monaghan has been with the Corps for
"donkey's years," the last 12 as a civilian. The
detachment presented him with an electric clock and
our best wishes for the future.
Sgt. Hodgkiss has gone to India and Sgt. Dodsworth is for the West Coast shortly. Miss Goldspink,
of our civilian staff, has resigned, to our regret.
S.Q.M.S. Morris has been cross-posted to Devizes,
and we wish him many happy week-ends in Somerset.
We welcome Miss Herring from W.D. Land
Agent, Malton; S.Q.M.S. Lander from Devizes ;
Ptes. Grant and Gillingham from D.P.O., North
Midland District, and Pte. Leech, A .T .S., and hope
their stay with us will be happy .
Pte. MacKenzie, one of our ever-popular A.T.S.,
was married on 4th April, and received her final
railway warrant to Glasgow a fortnight later. Congratulations Mollie, and to that lucky man, your
husband!
A section of the office went to Manchester on
Saturday, 3rd May, ostensibly to see Manchester
City v. Newcastle.
They returned to Leeds at
3-30 a.m.
NORTH-WEST DISTRICT (25 DETACHMENT)

Since our last notes appeared we have had many
changes in the personnel of this office.
.We have welcomed our new District Paymaster,
Lieut.-Colonel A. L. Dunnill, O.B.E., from Manchester (O .A.), Captain T. Aylin from Oldham '
Lieut. Rowbotham and S.S.M. Higson from West
Africa; Sgt. Little from Rome; Sgt. Manton from
Burma; Sgt. Mills from Nairobi and Ptes. Thomas
and Burrows from West Africa.
Our losses however have been as great as our gains
and we were sorry to lose Lieut.-Colonel J. Moulding
and S.S.M. H . Vincent who have been posted to
Exeter, Captain" Jimmie " James , Lieuts. Phillipson
and. Robinson who have been released and Ptes.
Smith, Thomas and Lowes who have either been
posted or demobbed.
We are pleased to know that Captain Maddocks
M:~., and Lieut. ~owbotham have received per~
miSSIOn to delay their release until General Demob.
Our sporting activities have ihcreased of late and
we .have managed to arrange two football matches
~gamst R.P. Preston at Fulwood Barracks. Considermg that we have only 22 men from whom to select a
439
SALISBURY PLAIN DISTRICT (22 DET.)

Hearty congratulations from Barnards Cross to the
Editor and his staff for the Spring issue of the Journal.
The publication lacks nothing apart from lack of
space due to paper restrictions, and the variety of
news, etc., make very pleasant reading.
Barnards Cross still flourishes as of old, but with
increased activity these days-three contingents
being involved, namely , District Pay Office, Regimental P ay Office and Central Clearing House.
For administration purposes, etc., the three offices
are combined and make up the nucleus of No. 22
Detachment.
w.tNo 22 Music Circle.-A most successful musical
evening was held in the Canteen on 17th April.
A programme of light classical records was
presented b y Ptes. Smith, Beckford and Piper, using
our own amplification, etc., purchased recently. The
programme included works by Rossini, Strauss,
Beethoven, Dvorak, Delibes, Tchaikovsky, Elgar and
others.
Ptes. Smith and Beckford gave a few remarks be;
fore playing each record-a fact w hich added interest
to the programme.
All arrangements were made by Lieut. A. H.
Barnard, and he is to be congratulated on a most
successful evening.
The next recital will be presented by our C.O. ,
Lieut.-Colonel H . R . Beauchamp, who possesses a
very excellent selection of records.
Entertainments.-Our last dance was held at the
New Dance Salon on 29th April, and proved to be
most successful. The War Office Inspection team
were with us, and accepted our invitation to come
along. Music was supplied by Benny Singer and his
orchestra anda very enjoyable evening terminated
a few minutes"before midnight.
Our entertainments'{officer, Lieut. A. H. Barnard,
and his able committee, are to be congratulated once
again on providing us with this pleasant relaxation.
' Table Tennis.-\Ve have recently completed an
inter-office Table Tennis Tournament (Singles), and
semi-finals and finals were played on 30th April.
The semi-finalists were Pte. Evans (A.T.S.) v. Pte.
Rhodes , and Pte. May v. Pte. Woodhouse. Finalists
were Pte. May and Pte. Rhodes, the winner being
Pte. May who won with three consecutive games
after a well fought contest.
Lieut.-Colonel Beauchamp presented the prizes
which consisted of a leather writing wallet (first prize)
and a Parker Duofold fountain pen (runner-up).
Arrangements are now practically completed for
a "Doubles Tournament," and this will probably

mark the end of our Table Tennis matches as we
are now concentrating on outdoor tennis.
Our team also entertained the Imperial Club
(~.A.A.~.1. Employees) in a friendly match on
IDtl: Apnl, and we are proud (and lucky!) to report
a wm by our team of 6 games to 3.
Tenrus.-As we have no Courts of our own
arrangements. have been made for court reservation~
on two evenmgs weekly in Victoria Park and the
respOI;Slt t~ date is most gratifying.
'
SWlmmmg.-Arrangements are being made at
the local baths for swimming facilities for our
Detachment. SjSgt. Fletcher is organising classes
for. learners and also encouraging those who are
~;Vlffi!11e~s to t~e advantage of the opportunity of
pohshmg their strokes."
C~icket.-Arran~ements are now well in hand for
~ falrl~ comprehensive Summer programme (includmg mid-week matches). A Detachment team has
been formed, and we have entered the Southern
C~)I1'~mand Knock-out Competition for Pay Offices
wlthm the Command.
.Amenities.-~he N.A.A.F.1. Club opened at
High. ~treet durmg ~h.e latter part of last year is
provldmg m~ny am~nItles for oar military personnel.
The layo ut IS spacIOUS, and the catering arrangements are excellent.
.We conclude our notes by extending our best
Wishes to all our colleagues in "and out" of the
Corps.
" Sahib."
~OUTH-WESTERN DISTRICT (23 DET.)
SJ.?-ce the notes of 23 Detachment appeared in the
last Issue of the Journal, we have said good-bye to,
amongst others, our genial and respected S.S.M

Jock Cameron.' wh.o left us in March to go to'
O.C.T.U. With him go the best wishes of all t
23 Detachmen~, at the same time we extend a hear~
welcome to hiS replacement S.S.M. Sam Pollard
posted here from Devizes.
Others to leave us include Sgt. "Guns" Cronin
Pte. Hughes and Pte. Dot Biddle AT S
t'
B.A.O.R., ~te. Downes and Pte. BObb'y ' G;ee~
A.T.S: , to Smgapore, Pte. Alford to Jam ica and Pte
Baldwm transferre~ to R.E.M.E . SjSgt. Jack Pascoe:
Sgt. Tom Hawkms, Sgt. Charlie Teale Sgt
McClelland and Pte. Fred Rains (ex 36 Co~pany)
have also left us for service in " Civvy Street." w.J
To fill the gap~ caused by a-ll these departures ;e
have welcomed mto our fold SjSgt. Charlie Hill
from M~erut, Sgt. John Foster from Bournemouth
Sgt. Bnll-Edwards from Nairobi, Sgt. "Mac ,:
Poulter fr?m Norway and a number of personnel
from Devlzes.
Having been lucky enough to get a bye in the
first round of the Southern Command R.A .P.C .
Football Cup Competition, Dame Fortune turned
~er" b~ck on us and we were drawn against Devizes
~. m the second round. We entertained the
VIsitors at Taunton and suffered a rather ignominious
defeat of no less than 23-0.
Little wonder that <;>ur goalkeeper, on this occasion
~jCpl. Stephe~son, IS r~mou~ed to have reported
Sick the fol~owmg mornIng With an aching back !
However, With the warmer weather coming along we
hope to, g~t a cricket team into the field and even if
we don t Improve upon our sporting record it will
not be from want of trying.
'
Regimental Pay Offices

~ELFAST (3 DETACHMENT)
Lieut. Eckersley has left for a warmer climate .

Sgt. Keene is at present under consideration for ~
move and as he was captain of our football team he
will be sa.d ly missed when he finally depa;ts ;
Sgts. Dowle and Kennedy have left for "Civvy
Street" and we wish them all the best; Pte." Ned "
Sayers-a':l old hand in N.I.D.-has arranged a
cross-postmg to Marylebone Road.
.Li~ut. J. C. Cochrane has joined u s from Lowland
Dlstnct, Glasgow, and is once again back in his old
haunts.
Promotions have not been numerous but our
congratulations to Lieut. Norrie on his promotion
to Captain ; L jCpl. Edwards and Pte. "Paddy"
Moore to Corporal ana Pte. Glen to Lance Corporal.
Football.-I am happy to state that in this sport,
at least, we have done very well, our record being:
played 8, won 6, drawn I, lost 1. Funnily enough
our only defeat was inflicted by the R.C.M.P., whom
we managed, to ~eat 4-2 in the first game of the
present team s eXistence. They defeated us 4-1 in
the r~turn game which was played after a long lie-off
occaSIOned by the weather. The final game is being
confi?ently looked forward to, however, and we hope
to wm the" rubber."
~otl:er Issue of our Corps Journal being due for
publicatIOn, I have once more been" commissioned"

to inform all and sundry who may be interested in
the personnel, news and views of this office that all
in N<?rther~ Ireland have come through th~ rigours
of Wmt~r m Barracks and are now looking forward
to an enjoyable S~mmer. At the time of writing, the
weather has certamly taken a decided turn for the
better and it would appear that the trials and tribulations of Winter are definitely behind us. It is now
over three months since the arrival of the Irish
Accounts from Edinburgh altered the N.I.D. Office
to Regimental status, and in that three months I
must record that work, work and more work has
been the outstanding feature . However, slowly but
surely such an " infinitesimal" feature of office life
w ill straighten itself out and the "mental" cases
i.e., Regular Soldiers, may then be able to rel~
somew hat.
. Personnel.~There have not been many changes
m per~onnel smce our last publication, but a few
small mtakes. of Other Ranks have gladdened the
hearts of SectIOn Leaders and we wish them a happy
stay in Ireland.
440

As the team was not formed until the Edinburgh
contingent arrived in February, it was not possible
to enter a league, but application has been made to
enter two Summer Knock-out Cup competitions and
a reply is at the moment eagerly awaited.
Finally, a Scotland v. England game was played
within the Unit and the result was 4-3 for England,
much to the discomfort of the Scottish contingent,
I am sad to record. In this game Sgt. "Bilsty"
Jewell received an accidental inj~ry to his le~ whi.ch
necessitated his removal to hospital. We Wish hlffi
a speedy recovery and return to duty.
Hockey.-We hesitate to mention this as only
one game has been played and that was lost by
8 goals to nil. However, next season may bring fresh
enthusiasm and the formation of a regular team .
Social Club.-Due to pressure of work, nothing of
note has taken place within the last few months, but
it is hoped that more will be heard from the committee before it is time for publication of the next
issue of the Journal.
Once again, may I on behalf of all members of
the Corps serving in Northern Ireland extend
congratulations to the Editor and his Staff for the
excellent way in which the Journal is being published, and implore our overseas members to keep
on writing of their experiences in Bermuda, South
Africa , etc. To read of such places cheers most of
us no end, and to steal a line from ITMA " It's
being so cheerful that keeps us going." "Haggis."
The Hockey team was also badly hit by Release,

but the few stalwarts remaining managed to secure
games in other local teams who were glad of their
assistance.
Cricket.-Some serious practice for the coming
season has been put in at Bournemouth and it is
hoped we shall continue to maintain the reputation,
of the old 28 Battalion teams at our new station, as it
is intended to go all out in this and other forms of
sport when we ~ettle down there, especially if we are
lucky enough to have our own playing field .
Sergeants' Mess.-Since Christmas we have lost
many of our active members-notably S.S .M. " Bill "
Farrell on posting to a warmer climate (lucky
fellow!), Sgts. Raggett, Courtenay, Hunt and
Freeman who have been transferred to the " Bowler
Hat" Brigade, S jSgt . Courtenay and Sgt. Taylor
who left us for Devizes, and SjSgts. North and Lowe
on posting to India and Egypt respectively. Before
W.O.II "Paddy" O'Leary left us on posting to
another home station we were able to congratulate
him on the birth of a son-we hope the boy will
grow up to be as genial a fellow and as good a sport
as his father.
Our Children's Christmas Party was a great success
from beginning to end . About 60 children were
entertained to a fine tea (in spite of rationing)
followed by a Punch and Judy Show which all
enjoyed.
There was a large and well-decorated
Christmas Tree with a present for every child, the
presents being distributed by a very able Father
Christmas in the person of our Caterer, Mr. H .
Leonard.
Following this, we had Carol singing.
Amongst the guests were Lieut.-Colonel and Mrs.
Bates, Major and Mrs. Brew er and Major and Mrs.
Whinney . At the end of the Party it was evident that
everyone had enjoyed it, and thanks are particularly
due to R.S.M. and Mrs. Reedman for all the time
and care they put into the preparations, to all the
many helpers who so eagerly came forward to assist
(Civilians, A.T.S. and Military), and to Mrs. Harris
(wife of L jCpl. H arris) for the three-tier Christmas
Cake she presented to the children.
Following the Christmas Party we had a
Christmas Dance for all the Staff and their friends.
Owing to a bad fog on the night of the Dance we
made a slow start, but eventually got going and had
some 400 people enjoying themselves. It was the
first unit dance for some time-and here again our
thanks are due to all those who worked so very hard
before and during the dance to make it a success.
Despite the thinning out of our members we have
great hopes that the Mess at our new station will
continue to uphold the Corps traditions in all
branches of sport and social activities.
BOURNEMOUTH (28 COMPANY)

This is the last occasion on which Bournemouth
will appear in the Journal-for b y the time this is
in print we shall have left the " Sunny South" for
the Midlands and hope to have settled down to
Camp and Community life in our new stationWolverley, Worcestershire.
In the early part of this year Major E . C. Brewer
left us for Droitwich and Major W. H. Douse was
posted to Malta. Major Douse was lucky to leave us
before the really cold weather came along and we
hope he is enjoying the warmer climate of the
Mediterranean. Major Drummond is no longer with
us, but amongst new arrivals are Major W. A. H.
Taylor and Major C . H. Meaden.
Sport-Football and Hockey.-Although "Release" depleted our playing strength and our forward
line changed weekly during the season, the Soccer
team kept going during the pa t season mainly due
to the untiring efforts of E wington and Riddington
who were at home in any position on the field. Two
successes worthy of mention (both home games) were
against Christchurch Football Club and Boscombe
Corinthians-in both cases the score being 4-2. The
best game of the season was undoubtedly the game
with Bournemouth Electric (top of the local league
table). Although the Corps lost 4-2, our efforts
against such a strong side were deserving of a better
fate. Our game with the Training Centre at Aldershot
in the first round of the Southern Command Knockout Competition was put off from time to time owing
to the bad weather, but the Ground Staff at Aldershot
eventually gave us a date, and we played off on
22nd March, two weeks after the second round
matches h ad been cleared off! Despite the gallant
efforts of Webb, our" keeper," we were beaten 6-3,
but the team and supporters had a good time and
appreciated the welcome and entertainn1ent given by
our opponents.
CANTERBURY (29 COMPANY)

As promised in our last short note, we now
attempt to give you some more detail of our sojourn
in the Fair Vale of Kent.
No words of mine could express the heartbreak
experienced by most ranks of this Company when
they were torn from their London homes and
plonked down in the frozen wastes of Kent. No
more would the dear landlady bring tea in the
morning, no more could our A.T.S. colleagues obtain
sympathy and comfort from the Metropolitan
Police, the Guards Brigade, etc. Despite all this,
however , the following notes should prove that we
are now settling down well in our new surroundings
441

and .with the coming of better weather everyone is
100ki!1g. forward .to a very happy summer.
Mlma~e Rifle Club.-Thanks to the kindly .
c?-OperatlOn of No. 3 P.T.C. who loaned us four
nfles a~d. ~he use of an indoor range, we cOIllIpenced
our activities. on the 18th March. Firing takes place
on two eve!1mgs per week, and our average attendance has nsen to 50. The standard of shooting
improves with each practice, and there are a number
of promising shots amongst our A.T.S. members
who are very keen.
We have now acquired an open range for our sole
use and have submitted the necessary indents for
fine weather to go with it.
~ inter-platoon match was held on 22nd April
which aroused great enthusiasm.
A match be~een t~e Officers' and Sergeants'
Mess ~ s resulted m a wm for the Officers an early
re.turn match is e~pected. Arrangements f~r matches
with other clubs m the district are in hand.
. Shoul~ any other Pay Office desire to compete
with us m a Postal Shoot we shall be delighted to
hear from them.
Fo.otball.-Owin~ to our arrival in Canterbury so
late I~ the season, It was only p'ossible to arrange
five fnendly matches, resulting in four wins and one
defeat. We are very optimistic regarding next season
as we have several really good players.
Before leaving football, mention should be made
of Ptes. Burford,. Coull and Booker who journeyed
from here to assist P.O.S.B. Knightsbridge in the
fulfilment of their Cup and League fixtures.
Cricket.-We have a full programme for the
season, with fixtures on most Saturdays and Sundays.
Our ground is excellent, but I regret to say that our
first two matches have resulted in defeat. However
we are building up our side and hope shortly to b~
able to fi.eld a side ~o rival our neighbours (K.C.C.C.).
Tennls.-Desplte a number of enthusiasts we are
at present handicapped by lack ~of courts. There are
o~ly three publi~ courts in Canterbury so that
difficulty of bookmg may be well imagined. At
present we are only playing once a week but the
RE. have promised a court in barracks in the very
near future.
Boxing.-On 28th April the Company represented
by LjCpl. Simmons, LjCpl. Morley and Ptes.
Simpson, Marsland, Moore, Belcher and Lee fought
No. 3 P.T.C. and Depot the Buffs. Although we lost
by'll points to'10 points, our boys Rut up a show of
which .we were justly proud. It ~as an evening's
splendid entertainment. Training is now well under
way for our next encounter.
"Social.-To date four Company dances have been
held in the Garrison Theatre and all were well
patronised. It is intended to continue them throughout the Summer months subje:t to their continued
popularity. '1 c
Officers' Mess.-The RE's septennial (?)
decorations coincided with our arrival and for weeks
a general post was necessitated to avoid the paint
brushes and plumbers' mates.
. When all was over, the Officers were justifiably
Irate at the collapse of some sq. yds. of ceiling on the
Mess table during dinner. Fortunately casualties
were slight to only two members.
An initial Guest Night was honoured by the
presence of the Paymaster in Chief, our C.P. and
members of the Inspectorate Staff.
442
Wh~lst o.ur numbers are at the present level, accommodat~o~ IS ba~ely enough which is understandable
when It IS realIsed that it is a pre (2) War's D
Mess.
epot
Sergeants' Mess.-The Warrant Officers and
Sergeants' :ty1es~ is really the best part of the
ac~~mmodatlOn m the :v~ole of the barracks, compn~mg large lounge, bIllIard and dining rooms a
qwet room together with kitchen and the- us~a'l
offices.
To dat~ our mess f~ctions have been confined to
race meetmgs and Tombola, and these have proved
to be very popular, and will no doubt be continued
as a regular feature.
T~enty-Nine. Club, of which details have been
prevlOusly pubbshed, comprising past and present
members of the Sergeants' Mess, are meeting in
Cant~rbury on 14-15th June. A dinner and social
even~g wIll commence thE proceedings on Saturday
evenmg, past ;nembers will be accommodated in
barracks that mght. On Sunday a cricket match has
been. ar.range? .between past and present members,
and It IS antIcIpaud that a good time will be had
by all.
DEVIZES R.E.M.E.) (51) BATTALION)
':Ve have n?w been here for four months and after
a difficult penod due to the very cold winter months

ha-ye settled in quite well. The ' Camp itself is reall;
qwte good .and now the better weather and the
hghter evenmgs have come many of us have been
~ble to. get ab~ut and see the countryside. Devizes,
Itself, IS a quamt Market Town with the traditional
Ma.rket Square ~nd is within easy reach of Bath,
SahsbuIJ and Bnstol. After our long sojourn in the
Industnal North, the quiet yet nevertheless beautiful
surro~ding countryside is an agreeable change.
Dunng the past three months there have been a
number of changes in the office and the following are
amongst tho~e who have joined us. Major W. K.
C?le, Captams H. L. Gough and J. K. Harris,
LIeuts. B. F. Penn, F. A. Paskins, D. H. Smith and
T. Townsend, S.S.M. D. J. Pountney, S.Q.M.S.
P. Gallagher and H. G. Morris. The following have
left us: S.S.M. S. Pollard, S.Q.M.S.s E. J. Taylor
and W. E. C. Lander, Captain E. B. Spiers, Lieuts.
E. G. Archi~ald, W. H. Gillis, Dillaway and Kenny,
and Sgt. Bnll-Edwards.
Quite a number of Military and A.T.S. have left
us on Release, notably, Sgts. Kersh, Turner, Spivey,
Collinson, Harris, Nutton and Pte. "Jock" Blair
who will be remembered by nearly everybody.
Amongst the A.T.S. we have said good-bye to are
S jSgt. Nowell, Sgt. Woods and Cpl. Greenwood.
We offer our congratulations to Captain Share on
his promotion to Substantive rank from 8th March,
1947, to Lieut. D. W. Fox on being granted a Short
Service Commission and to those who have recently
been promoted including Sgts. Bailey and Wood,
Cpl. Sergeant, L jCpls. Blackwell, Simpson and
Whelan.
The move to Devizes hasn't marred the work of
Cupid and ~the following marriages are reported:
Pte. Lynas to Pte. J. Wood (A.T.S.), Sgt. MacLean
to SjSgt. Nowell (A.T.S.), Pte. Gledhill to Sgt.
McSkimmings (A.T.S.), S jSgt."- Craven to Pte.
Naylor (A.T.S.), and Cpl. Goldman to Miss S. Ellis.
May they all have many happy long years together.

A few wives have now joined us including Mrs.
Browning and Mrs. Grant (who are pioneers in
converting Nissen and other huts into homes) and
Mrs. Griffin and the wives of S jSgts. Craven and
Sgt. MacLean are also here.
Sports.-The sporting ' activities have been slow
in starting due to having to provide our own facilities
and getting our allotted ground into fit condition.
The work on the ground is proceeding rapidly and
we hope to have, in the very near future, two soccer
grounds, a running track and a cricket pitch. The
work is hard but should be well justified.
A hockey pitch and two basket ball pitches have
already been made and are in use. It is hoped to
have tennis courts functioning shortly.
Two football teams, however, have been in action
and both were entered in the RA.P.C. Southern
Command League and reached the semi-finals, the
"A" Team going forward to the final only to be
beaten 3-0 by Reading Pay Office at Aldershot on
16th April.
The cricket team and hockey team are both
practising and we are looking forward to a season fu 11
of fixtures.
The Devizes Swimming Pool has recently been
opened and is very popular.
Cycling and Rambling Clubs ar~ being formed and
their progress will be reported later.
A Miniature Rifle Range is now ready and when
the targets ordered arrive the range should be in
keen demand.
Three Badminton Courts have been made and are
in full use.
evening. The evening continued with dancing until

midnight, a good time being had by all.
Officers' Mess.-The Officers' Mess is now in
full harness with approximately 50 members. We
have been honoured by visits from Brigadier F. C;
Williams, C.B.E., M.C., Brigadier L. J. Lightfoot,
C.B.E., our present c.P., Controller Turner, Chief
Commander Campbell and Chief Commander
Shearer of the A.T.S.
On 12th March the Mayor of Devizes and other
prominent citizens were entertained to an informal
Games Evening which was a great success.
A Snooker Competition has been started, most of
the first rounds being played, further progress will
be reported in our next notes.
The surrounds of the Mess are now looking very
shipshape due to the purchase of a lawn mower and
the energetic efforts of some of the members to make
a garden second to none.
W.O.s and Sergeants' Mess.-The Sergeants'
Mess managed to weather the Winter storms quite
well, thanks to the central heating, which only failed
us twice. The warmth was certainly appreciated
during that Arctic weather, and resulted in a few
impromptu stag parties, when 19 or 20 were gathered
together. We regret that S.S.M. Pollard, who did
so much to enliven the proceedings, was posted to
Taunton, and our best wishes follow him.
I t would take too much space to record the names
of all members who have arrived and departed during
the last quarter, as they have been so numerous. In
fact the membership is almost as fluid as that of a
Transit Camp, although a few of the Leeds members
are still left. We lost S.Q.M.S. Taylor to R.A.P.C.
Training Centre and S.Q.M.S. Lander to the peace
and quiet of District Pay Office, Leeds, and miss
their ardent support in all Mess activities. New
blood has arrived, however, with the Enemy P.O.W.
Accounts' Office from Whitchurch, and S.Q.M.S.
Gallagher and Co. of that office, S.S.M. Pountney,
S.Q.M.S. Morris and others posted to the RE.M.E.
and Central Moribund Accounts' Office are settling
down nicely.
-t
Apart from the Unit Agricultural Scheme, the
Mess have their own plot to look after, and have
spent a fair amount of capital on a chicken run, which
is now ready for the fowls which we hope will
supplement our rations. We have even started a
kitchen garden and hope to be feeding on homegrown salad in a few weeks' time.
Now that the fine weather is with us, Devizes
looks much better, and the Mess is deserted at
week-ends and Bank Holidays, for those who cannot
get home are exploring the countryside. We had our
first organised Mess trip to Cheddar by bus, and
thoroughly enjoyed investigating the Gorge, and
admiring nature's craftsmanship and beauty in the
caves.
Our social activities have been more or less confined to inviting the Officers' Mess to a Games
Evening, when the visitors were much more fortunate
in their selection of horses than our own members.
We were also delighted to extend our hospitality to
the War Office Inspection Team.
General.-The open spaces round the Camp are
being rapidly transformed from wilderness into
something worthwhi~e and a Unit Agricultural
Scheme under the energetic direction of Major J agot
is now in full swing, parts of the Camp have been
Entertainments.-Unit All-Ranks' Dances are

held every Wednesday. Attendances are fairly high,
approximately 200 being present and their popularity
is extending to Devizes and district, many local
inhabitants being regular attendants.
The local
Dance Orchestra, Silver Star Dance Band, is proving
a big attraction. Officer-in-Charge Entertainment
is Captain Bearpark, but thanks are extended to
Lieut. Barton, Lieut. Pearson, Sgt. Brill-Edwards,
Sgt. Roderick, Sgt. Cooper and Miss Jones for their
energetic co-operation.
Musical Evenings held every Friday were well
conducted by Sec.-Lieut. Dillaway but as he has been
recently posted the duties have been taken over by
Captain Bearpark.
The Unit Modelling Club which meets every
Thursday, is very enthusiastic and the aero-models
are really excellent. It is hoped to record their success
in local competitions in a later report. The membership has increased from 4 to 24 in less than three
months and it has been found necessary to find larger
accommodation for them. Members have reported
that one of their models flew a distance of two miles
recently.
The Dance Orchestra, under Lieut. Do'ing, has
started rehearsal and it is hoped that it will soon be
in full use for dances and musical evenings.
Dancing Classes have been very popular and we
now observe former non-dancers taking the floor at
Unit Dances and surprising their partners with their
steps.
A popular feature was the Grand National Sweepstake Draw. Thanks are extended to Lieut.-Colonel
and Mrs. H. O. Browning who officiated in the draw
and also to those who organised such a successfu
443

ploughed and harrowed and are now ready for
planting and it is expected that this scheme will
ensure provision of sufficient vegetables to see us
through next winter.
The A.T.S. have already shown us what can be
done at their Camp (Anzac Camp) and we are going
to show them what we can do.
Now that better weather conditions prevail we
will g ladly welcome any ex-members of the Battalion
who may be in or passing through the vicinity.
mandant of the A.T.S., on 10th April, 1947, when

she was met by the Regimental Paymaster, Colonel
R H. Sayers, O.B.E., M.C ., and Controller V. H. C.
Stirling, C.B.E., D.D.A.T.S. Sub. F. Templeton
(our only A.T.S. "Paymistress ") was presented to
Her Royal Highness, who also spoke to the A.T.S.
clerks.
In the near future we shall be saying good-bye
to our "oldest inhabitant," Major W. F. Oram,
M.B.E., who has decided to become a civilian after
so many years service that he can even remember a
time when Pay Offices were waiting for something
to do.
To mention office activities merely brings back
memories.
The weather has curtailed outdoor
activities and after the split of the office, RP.O.
Edinburgh will be but a "civilianised" shadow of
its former self, so that it appears doubtful whether
we shall be able to turn out teams for soccer, hockey,
etc.
During the past months, the strange cries of" Legs
Eleven" and" Kelly's Eye" have rung through the
canteen on Wednesday evenings, as the Tombola
continued to assist in the redistribution of wealth
(presided over by S.S.M.s Weatherall and Shooter).
Which reminds us-S.S.M . Shooter demonstrated the cordial relationship between the services
on 29th March by marrying Barbara McCreadie, an
ex-A.T.S. member of the office. At a very enjoyable
party, the couple were wished many " reeking lums "
whatever they may be !
A very successful sweepstake was run on the Grand
National, the prizes being blocks of Savings
Certificates.
" El Tawil."
DROITWICH (48 COMPANY)

At the time of writing these notes the Worcestershire countryside is beginning to look at its best and
with D.B.S.T. the staff are able to get out in the
evenings and enjoy it in its fullness.
Recent joinings are: Lieuts. Liegh and Dickson
fr?m Kidderminster, Lieut. Sinclair from Meerut,
Lieut. A. R Rencher from 19 Battalion, S.S.M.
Hitchcock from M.E.F., and S jSgt. Banyard from
19 Detachment.
Departures include: Lieut. Liegh returned to
Kidderminster and S jSgt. Bell and S jSgt. Dolphin
(A.T.S .) to release.
Major E. C. Etherington will sl10rtly be proceeding
on release leave pending retirement and all who have
known him will, I am sure, join 48 Company in
wishing him good-bye and good luck and hope that
he will enjoy a well-earned rest from the stress and
strain of Pay Office duties.
Captain J. J. P. A. Kelly is also leaving. He is the
sole survivor of the "Coast" Office formed at
Leicester on 21st June, 1941.
Trips to Stratford-on-Avon Memorial Theatre,
for the Shakespeare Festival, are again being organised (through the good offices of our A.T.S. Unit,
Severn Counties Group, A.T.S.), and are well
attended.
Two cricket teams have been formed and whilst
no regular fixture list has been arranged two games
per week are enjoyed. No spectacular performances
have been reported, so far.
EXETER (32 COMPANY)

By Pass Camp, so long static in the midst of moves
and changes, has now itself become the subject of
rumours of moves and disentegrations, but, so far,
we are still in Sunny Devon, which, for a wonder,
has recently been living up to its name. Since the
last issue of the Journal, Major J. Moulding has
joined us from D.P. Preston, and Lieut. R E. James
from RP. Nottingham. Captain J. P . Wright has
been posted to Nottingham, and Lieut. F. P. Sims to
Devizes. By the time this appears in print, we hope
to have welcomed some friends from" North of the
Border," who will be bringing the A.A.C. accounts
from Edinburgh.
Officers' Mess.-The mess, which started as a
" living in " mess last January, has now been made
as comfortable as Nissen Huts can be made, and,
with the advent of Summer, is a very pleasant place
in which to live.
We had an extremely successful Mess Dinner last
month, when all the officers living out came in to
join us for an evening.
Sergeants' Mess.-The high light of our recent
activities was a charabanc outing for members,
families and friends on Sunday, 27th April. We
were fortunate in picking a lovely day and saw some
beauty spots in this much advertised county at their
hest. The route lay through Moreton Hampstead
then up to Dartmoor past Postbridge to Two Bridges
for an excellent lucnh. The bar at the Two Bridges
Hotel contained an amazing collection of drinks
(now less) . Continuing we circled the grim prison
and got out of its vicinity as quickly as possible, and
EDINBURGH (31 BATTALION)

" ... and after having journeyed far along the
road, they came to the dividing of the ways,
where one track became like unto an " X " and
the other like unto a crook. And they halted and
deliberated amongst themselves, but a loud
voice spoke from afar off bidding them continue
their journey . So the shepherd took one party
and went along the right-hand road, whilst the
smith, gathering his men, went along the lefthand road. Those who were left at the divide
cried exceeding bitterly, for they had lost their
Class "A" grading in the move ... "
- A New Scottish Folk Story.
At last the voice of rumour has been silenced by
the receipt of movement orders-Air Corps Accounts
to Exeter and Catering Corps Accounts to Crookham! But no doubt the Editor of that popular
publication "Ay-see-eyes " will have scooped this
news before the Corps Journal goes to print.
Major R G . Smith, M.B.E., and S.S.M. Porter
will head the caravan to Crookham whilst Major
A. W. L. Shepherd and S.S.M. Weatherall will
control the exodus to Exeter.
The office was honoured by a visit from Her Royal
Highness, The Princess Royal, Controller Com-
444

charming" spot of trouble" in Freddy's young life.
The housekeeper and the parlour maid, very ably
portrayed by Pte. Mary York and L jCpl. Kelly
Kiel (A.T.S.) were grand character studies. Pte.
Cynthia Williams gave us a really fine Miss Ribblethorpe, and Pte. Bowen played a most amusing
P.C. Coghill. Some really good acting was put in
by Pte. Rutt as the bogus detective.
A word of special praise must go to C.S.M. Moore
(A.T.S.) who stepped into the part of Mrs. Marsden,
Freddy's prudish aunt, at two days' notice, and gave
an excellent performance. The stage management
was in the capable hands of Pte. Lawrence and the
play produced by Lieut. H. H. ~ones..
,
The next item on the Dramatic Society s agenda,
is the Agatha Christie thriller, " Ten Little Niggerboys," which will be presented at the e~d of June.
32 Dinner Club.-The second annual dinner of the
32 Dinner Club was held at the Rougemont Hotel,
Exeter, on Saturday, 10th May.
The Committee are to be congratulated on having
maintained contact with so many members of the
Exeter Company, and on the excellence of the
arrangements.
.
The dinner had been arranged to take place m
February, but, owing to lack of accommodation, th~s
was not possible. As the chairman remarked~ .thls
was a blessing when one remembers the conditIOns
prevailing at that time.
One hundred and seven members attended, and it
was good to note that all looked happy and fit. There
never was such a babel of "do you remembers,"
and it was with obvious joy that old friendships were
renewed under the best of circumstances. Telegrams
and letters of regret were read from a number of
members who were unable to attend this year, and the
toast of "absent friends" was drunk with all
sincerity.
. ,
The chairman took the Opportunity to Wish
Lieut.-Colonel E. W. Booth happiness and health in
his forthcoming retirement, to which the Colonel
returned thanks in a short but witty speech.
The next dinner is to be held in May of 1948 at
the same venue. All ranks who have at any time
served with the Exeter Company of the Corps, and
desire to attend future dinners are invited to notify
the Secretary, Mr. Harold J. Pascho, 17 Beverley
Gardens, Ensbury Park, Bournemouth.
D .H.S.
then on to Dartmeet where we passed a restful hour

or two. On again up and down hills as steep as
1 in 4t we passed over moors. and th~ough valleys
with banks of primroses and VIOlets, via Ashburton
and Buckfastleigh to Totnes, and then on to Torquay
for dinner. We returned via the coast road through
Shaldon and Teig .mouth with a couple of hours in
the latter to round off a really marvellous day.
Our other social activities have mainly comprised
dart matches, noted more for conviviality than for
competition.
Since the last issue, we have lost S.Q.M.S.
Rogerson, S jSgt. Holl and Sgts. ~eoman, ~rai~er
and Probert, all to civvy life. We said au reVOlr With
regret to S.S.M. Dick Fairclough, who departed for
overseas.
We have ' welcomed S.S.M. H. W. Vincent who
joined us fro:n Preston and also S.Q.M.S. George
Kenny, Sgts. Malpass and Lakey all from overseas.
S.Q.M.S . Ions has renewed his acquaintance with
the company after a long tour overseas.
Our congratulations to S .Q.M.S. " Bob" Tanner
and Sgt. Spry-Phare, who became proud fathers in
the same week, Peter Maurice Tanner arrived on
13th March and Martin Spry-Phare on 16th March.
"A" Co~pany, A.T.S.-It seems that in each of
our previous notes, we have had to report <:iepartures
of the A.T.S. Officers. This time we are glad to be
able to say that Junior Commander S. M . Pereira and
Sub. M. Simpson are still with us.
A dance was held at By Pass Camp on 2nd May,
and proved very popular. The band was produced as
a result of the combined effort of local RA.P.C.
talent, and that of 11 P.T.C., and they put up a
grand show.
Our very best wishes to Cpl. Young and L jCpl.
Humphries who have recently been married.
Sport.-After a not too successful season at soccer,
we have now started cricket, and are looking forward
to a very full fixture list. We are very sorry that
Mrs. Booth will not be in a position to supply the
team with the excellent teas which she so kindl y did
in the past.
Tennis is in full swing and there is also a demand
for squash. We have been very fortunate in securing
the use of a court free of charge.
The weather has not been too inviting for
swimming, but as soon as it improves, we hope to
get some " dips in the sea" organised.
Entertainments.-The early part of the year was
very quiet, due to the fuel shortage, and the coldness
of the camp theatre, shows being confined to the
weekly A.K.C. Film Show.
We were visited by a Royal Navy Dramatic
Society, who gave an excellent presentation of Frank
Vosper's play, "Love from a Stranger."
More
recently we were entertained by " Stars in Khaki,"
who pleased us with a grand variety show.
At long last, the Dramatic Society has "got
going," and on 12th and 13th May, presented a very
amusing farce, "The Stray Lady." To judge the
play by the audiences' reactions, it was a howling
Success. The players are to be congratulated on a
grand show. Pte. Johnnie Jones as Freddy, the
hapless helpless hero was very ably backed by his
m ,jor- ::lomo (Pte. Walton) and hindered by his uncle
(Pte. Thomas). Pte. Joy Garrish (A.T.S .) gave a
The
pleasing performance as Freddy's fiancee.
Stray Lady, Pte. Maureen Pike (A.T.S.), was a
FOOT'S CRAY (34 BATTALION)

With a large draft just having left for Whitchurch
and the usual monthly flow to " Civvy Street," goodbyes seem to be the order of the .day. Amon.gst the
departures to the beautiful rustic surroundlIl:g.s of
sunny Whitchurch was one of the oldest MI.l itary
inhabitants, W.O.II "Tiny" Hearne, who Will ~e
remembered b y ex Foot's Cray members for hiS
habit of walking round with his pen tightly clenche.d
between hi, teeth. It is said that he h as found thiS
a great consolation since the Budget.
We would like to wish a complete recovery to the
previous editor of these notes, W.O.I Bern~rd
Lavender, who has recently undergone an operatIOn
for Appendicitis.
.
The coming of the spring was heralde~ by India
Wing forsaking the drudgery of hand postmg f~r t.he
clatter of machinery. This change took the maJonty
of the military operators from West Bay and they can
445
TIjE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL
now be heard discussing the delights of travel by

troopship.
The home posting wings, not to be
outdone, changed to a new system during the recent
hot spell.
Fo.o.tball.-Despite transfers ar.d releases, the
office has kept the flag flying in the soccer world and
at the time these notes were written, were in a good
position in the league, being 2 points below the
leaders with three games to play.
Goals
P. W. D. L. F.
Agst. Pts.
A.M.C.
13
8
1
4
28
17
17
RA.P.C.
11
7
1
3
35
24
15
The league leaders were our opponents in the
Woolwich and District Alliance Cup which we had
reached by beating Greenwich 5-0 in the third round,
and Eltham 3-0 in the semi-final. The final was
played on a lovely spring day, but owing to recent
heavy rain and frost, the ground was a mass of small
ridges and ball control was extremely difficult. For
the first ten minutes both teams appeared to have a
bad dose of "Final" nerves and play was fairly
even until the Company went ahead with a fine goal
by Goodwin after half an hour's play. By this time
our defence seemed to have mastered the opposing
forwards, but a few minutes before the interval a
misunderstanding between the defence allowed the
A.M.C. through to equalise. The second half was
marked chiefly by the splendid play of the centre half,
Pte. White, who seemed to be everywhere and whose
first time clearances deserved a better fate. With
only 10 minutes to go and extra time looming up,
the outside left fastened on the ball,adroitly beat two
men and scored the winning goal. A photo of the
team is included in this issue.
Officers' Club.-The Officers' Club is still active
although , of course, the number of officers now using
it has fallen owing to demobilisation and transfers .
The Recreation Club and the United Services
Club, Sidcup, have been entertained to evenings of
Snooker and Darts, and teams have made return
visits to both clubs.
On the occasion of the release of Captain T. R G.
Cooke, who had been Officer-in-Charge Administration during the greater period of the war years,
a large number of officers gathered to wish him a
happy return to-civilian life' and spent a very pleasant
evening in the club.
The "Snooker table is rarely out of use during lunch
hours and in the evenings, and many hard games are
fought . At present a Snooker league is in progress,
the winner of which IS to play the winner of a
similar league run by Officer-in-Charge, R.A.
Records.
Members of the Club were sorry to lose their
Secretary , Major C. H. Meaden , during April, on
his being posted to Bournemouth. His place has been
taken by Major G . W. Mitchener, who would be
pleased to hear from any other nearby office, willing
to send a team to play us at Billiards or Snooker.
Sergeants' Mess.-The Mess these days, with
so many postings resembles the wide open spaces
one so often reads about, but even so, Friday evening
generally sees a good attendance for a Games night
and Sunday evening, of course, is still regarded as
families night.
With the arrival las~ quarter of W.O.I1 " Chalky"
White and the departures of W.O.sI! Cook, Brown
Hearne, S /Sgts. Crowley, Pinnell, Lamb , Sgts:
Major and Morton, the following pre-war Corps

members are left; W.O.sI Patman and Warner
W.~.sIl Breen, Under,,:,ood and White, S /Sgts.
ChInery, Faulkner, Harns, Palmer, Harty, AliweIl
and Hart.
. We ~re sorry to say that W .O.I " Jock" Watson
IS. leaVIng us for the Middle East and trust that he
wIll be able to take his wife along with him. Just
before w.e close. we. hope that W.~.II "Tiny"
Hearne IS bewIldenng the local Inhabitants of
Whitchurch with his mastery of Crib, that S /Sgt.
John Crowley is still keeping on his diet of " Bldck
and Tan" and that S/Sgt. Tommy Lamb and his
wife have settled down in Meerut. We shall all be
pleased to hear from them.
As we go to press we hear that the Records Staff
from Ibex House are joining us on the 30th June .
GLASGOW (35 COMPANY)
Except for a few minor departments, to all intents
and purposes, two Regimental Offices function in
Glasgow now. The Lowland Regiment's Accounts
are now on their own in Y orkhiIl Drill Hall and the
Highland Regiment's Accounts are in St. Andrew's
Halls. Some time later in the year, the Lowland
Office will move to Hamilton followed at a later date
by the Highland Office. Hamilton Barracks will be
divided into "North" and "South," one part
holding the Highland Office and the other the
Lowland, but, of course, two different establii;'hments. From Hamilton, at some time in the future,
the Highland Office may wend its way to a permanent
home in the Highland District.
Arrivals.-We
have
welcomed
S /Sgt D .
O'Doherty, Sgts. G. F. W. James and A. Hamilton,
Cpls. D. H. J. Miller and McLeod from overseas,
S .Q.M.S. Donlan from Manchester and S jSgt.
J . A. Alton from Preston. A draft from the RA.P.C.
Training Centre also arrived, Ptes. A. S. Paterson,
J. Hurley, D. Core and A. Hunter. We hope that
they, and all other.> who have joined on posting, have
a happy stay in Glasgow. In particular, we hope
Pte. Paterson will bring the Corps into the headlines
by winning the high jump at the Olympic Games.
(The Corps will now have a more than special interest
in the" high jump "!)
Departures.-Major T . S. Rennie, Lieuts. G. S.
PaImer, P. Woolley, S /Sgt. A . Fuller, Sgt. J .
Beresford, L /Cpl. R Watson, Ptes. D .' Gemmell,
E. Hughes, T. Clyde, P. McCourt and J . McKenzie
have gone overseas. Lieut. Thomson is now on
embarkation leave, Lieut. F. G. Sparks, Sgts. R. K.
Camp bell , S . C. Monteith, R Hutcheson, Cpl. G.
Ricketts, Cpl. R Richardson, CpI. L. Giles, L /Cpl.
E. Pointeer, Ptes. J. Terri, R . Steven, A. Thomson,
W. S. Hunter and A . Findlay have returned to
civilian life. To them and to all others who have left
us on posting, etc., we send our good wishes in their
new spheres.
By the time these notes are in print we shall have
regretfully said good-bye to our RP. , Lieut.-Colonel
W. D. N. Robotham, who retires on 23rd May, after
spending the hest part of a lifetime in the Corps.
A Dinner-I"' ce is being held in honour of his
retirement .d the next issue of the Journal will
contain fu : 11er notes on his departure, but meantime
best wishes for a long and happy retired life go to
him from all members of the office.
Photo : S cottish Daily Express.
Pte. A. S. Paterso.n (right) who. ho.pes to.

com.pete in the Olym.pic Gam.es, aCCOlYlpanied by Sgt. Girvan.
Badm.into.n.-An enjoyable and '-successful season

was brought to' a close just after Easter when it was
decided that tennis could be started. The only
match played was a convincing win for this office,
against the District P ay Office.
. .
.
It is hoped to re-start the club agam m the wmter.
Fo.o.tball.-Thursday, 8th May, will be a day of
bitter memories for the football team in St. Andrews
as this is their second defeat by the Yorkhill Office.
, The last time they were beaten 7-1 but this time it
was ll-O. No blame can be put on the goalie. It
was only the efforts of Pte. "Dug." Moffat which
saved it from becoming a cricket score. It was a
full-time job for the referee, Lieut. Mudie, to keep
track of the score. St. Andrews are looking forward
to a return game with Yorkhill and promise them a
real run for their money this time.
Pro.m.o.tio.ns, etc.-Congratulations to S.S.M.
E . Owen on attaining that rank on 1st February
(February must be his lucky month. His name
appeared in Army Orders in February with the
award of the L.S. and G.C. Medal and on the
24th he became the proud father of a daughter).
Sgt. H . Hunter also became the proud father of a
daughter, since our last notes, and as he also received
his promotion shortly before, it begins to look as
if these things go more or less hand in hand .
HOLLINWOOD (44 BATTALION)
See Whitchurch.
447
446
/
KIDDERMINSTER (37 BATTALION)

Rumour is once again rife that we are about to
" up-anchor " -a rumour that has been floating
around on and off for the last few years . However,
it remains to be seen.
Since last preparing notes for the Journal, we have
lost our stage-manager, S jSgt. Len Buckland, who
has proceeded to sunnier climes.
Civvy Street has claimed S jSgt. Harry Kni.g ht,
our office representative for the O.C.A., and m a
few days we shall be saying good-bye to S /Sgt. Ken
Goodhew, who is going to find out first-hand whet~er
ci vilian life is as black as it is painted. We WIsh
them the best of luck, anyway.
Fo.otball.-The footballers seem to have been
imbibing some sort of vital elixir since my last notes,
as they have not lost a match. They took on a very
formidable team from the Pioneers, who have been
going about the land slaughtering all the locals, and
drew with them 2-2. These Pioneer boys have had
some league scouts after one or two of their pl.ay~rs.
Revenge has been taken of our brothers at DrOltwI~h
in two matches b y margins of 5-1 and 5-0 and qUIte
recently we managed to defeat our Shrewsbury
friends by 6-3. The members of ~~e .team "wo.uld
like to thank Shrewsbury for the
WIzard
tIme
they gave them.
.
"
The piece de resistance was the" Stars and Stnpes
(Officers and N.C.O.s) v. "Young Hop.efuls"
(Privates). Nobody has yet been able to gIve the
correct result of this game owing to the absence of an
accountant on the field. Scores have been reported
as ranging from 17-1 to 22-1 in favour of. the
"Hopefuls," though in all fairn.es,s to the Semors,
Lieut. Pollock sustained a bad mJury at t~e commencement which prevented him from playmg, and
others of his team were observed limping the next
day.
.
(I
f
Outstanding players have been . Shevel.mg ate 0
Sheffield Wednesday), Baker (Kiddermmster H~r
riers), Oldacre (a West Bromwich colt) ~nd Harns.
Hewitt and Rogers must also b~ mentJ<;med , and
Williams with no previous experIence, WIll make a
good "g~alie "! L jCpl. Grinsell has proved a very
able secretary.
Table Tennis.-Unfortunately, the T.T. players
slumped at the end of the season and could only
finish third in the league, though Jack W.ebster (now
demobbed) was undefeated in all games. ~e. also
was very narrowly defeated in the local IndlyIdual
Championships and was chosen for the Kidderminster team . Major Stephens was the next most
successful with 65 games out of 80 and L jCpI.
McCarthy had 68 wins out of ~OO.
Sno.oker.-The sad tale contmued to the .endthe Sergeants' Mess team finished ~ithout a wm a~d
kept up their reputation, but. otherWIse h ad a splendid
social season, and the J umor team also supported
the league to the very end. (Wh~t matter thoughthe game's the thing, not the pomts.)
.
I am afraid that m y summer notes of sp?rt wIll be
non-exist ent as at present we have no CrIcket team
or much hope of one. Still, one never knowssomething may happen.
KINGSTON-ON-THAMES (40 BATTALION)
Much water has flowed under the bridge since our
last notes appeared in the Journal, having exchanged
our rural surroundings at Whit church for the more

suburban air of Kingston (this to the joy of many
at being placed on the lodging list again). Our
immediate environment however remains pleasant,
being situated in Richmond Park in part of the
hutted camp of 102 Military Convalescent Depot (but
no connection with the firm next door).
Whitchurch we have relinquished to R.E. Pay
Office and look forward to reading elsewhere in the
Journal their impressions of our former home.
Our departure from Whitchurch was celebrated
with a Grand Battalion Dance on 18th April. Its
huge success was due to the untiring efforts of Major
A . E. Chenery and his band of stalwarts, the occasion
being marred only by the fact that Major Chenery
himself was unable to be present and enjoy the fruits
of his labours, being dispatched to hospital the day
before. But we are glad to see him back again with
us now.
The Dramatic Society has suffered a great loss in
the posting to Bournemouth of Junior Commander
]. O. Davey . Mrs. Davey's unftagging enthusiasm
and hard work did so much to establish success,
and her great personality will be missed by all those
connected with the Society. The last production at
Whitchurch was on 23rd April w hen Frank Harvey's
" Saloon Bar," produced by Lieut. T. J. Lenton, was
well received. A large cast of new and untried members of the Battalion and A.T.S. are to be congratulated on putting up such an excellent first
performance. Thanks are also due to S /Sgt. ].
Wilson (now released) for his tireless efforts ;)11
through the Society's days at Whitchurch both as
actor and with "offstage" arrangements.
Our
considerably reduced numbers are not hampering the
future of the Dramatic Society , and the casting of a
new play is in hand.
The move from Whitchurch has interrupted the
football season , and sever;)l fixtures have had to be
abandoned. We were well placed in the Andover
League in third position, only a very few poipts
separating us from the leaders. In the Andover
Charity Cup we progressed as far as the semifinals only to be beaten 2-0 by Portals Athletics.
Thanks are due to Sgt. Jones, now at Devizes, who
as captain did so much to hold the team together.
The final of the Billiards tournament was played
;)ff in March and narrowly won by Pte. Smith (now
at Whitchurch) from Pte. Skinner (Clearing Wing).
Our e.0., Lieut.-Colonel Warr, M.B.E., was present
at the match and presented prizes to the winner and
runner-up.
By the time these notes appear we hope to have
settled down properly in our new home, although
our stay does not appear to be permanent. A recent
note in the London evening press stated that ~ome of
the competitors for the 1948 Olympic games would
be housed in Richmond Park-we hardly think
they mean us !
To all old members of 40 Battalion-released and
pogted-our g.reetings and continued best wishes.
KNIGHTSBRIDGE (41 BATTALION)
The last quarterly notes from Knightsbridge were
penned in contemplation of the recent move. to
London. This time they open on a note of speculatIOn
about departure! Who knows whether some day
Pay Offices may be accommodat ~d in caravans
capable of moving around the country. at will? In
any case the general opinion about bemg statIOned
448
in London appears to be that the many undoubted

advantages of life in the Metropolis are somewhat
nullified by the recent incorporation of lodging, etc.,
allowances in P.A.Y.E. assessments and an eventual
move to the Provinces will not be hailed with unmixed disapproval.
" In Spring a young man's heart . . . " and in
Summer the minds of Pay Office staffs turn to
thoughts of outings. An excellent start to the season's
outdoor activities was made on Sunday, 11th May,
when the" civilian side" organised a successful trip
to Brighton. Par~icipation was open to Civilian and
Military Staff alike and under the capable organisation of Mrs. Callus, Mr. Stevens and Mr. Phillips
and with the added attraction of glorious weather a
pleasant day was enjoyed by a party of about 120.
The Success of the enterprise caused early demands
for a repetition and arrangements are in hand for
another outing in late June or early July.
The coming attraction of the moment is the
intended visit to the Derby on 7th June. The idea,
fostered by the C.O., has" taken on " and a record
attendance of about 300 (including guests) is expected. The event gives promise of being something
in the nature of the first of a series of annual big
event outings and Lieut.-Colonel Brennan is to De
congratulated on his foresight in hitting upon an
attraction which enjoys such universal approval.
The Officers' Mess continues to survive the
temptation to dash off home and escape the traffic
rush and attendance is enhanced by the attraction of
snooker competitions. The first of the series was won
by Lieut. Page and Mr. Merle in a close defeat of
Major Blackett and Lieut. Ward le in the final. The
current competition finds Major High and Lieut.
Field firm favourites and speculation is rife as to
whether the latter's" nifty pots" are resultant upon
the use of a cue, a trophy from competition success
in Egypt.
Major Green returns to civil life in June aft~r
more than seven and a half years in the office and hIS
departure will remove yet another war-time landmark .
Fellow members of the Mess anticipate that" pushing the boat out" in the time-honoured way will
soften the blow of farewells.
Lack of suitable accommodation makes it impracticable to continue the Sergeants' ~ess as a
daily evening attraction but through the kmdness of
the affiliated A.T.S. Company the ballroom at the
A.T.S . quarters in Lennox Gardens has been pl~ced
at the disposal of members on two rec~nt oc~~slOns.
On both occasions the officers of the umt partICIpated
in a social evening and dance and the events were
voted successful and worthy of repetition. Plans f?r
a Mess Outing have been temporarily suspended m
view of the varied office attractions already open to
members during the next few months.
.
The many friends of Sgt. (Grace) Bro.oksbank .wIll
be interested to know of her forthcommg marriage
in June to Sgt. Wells, ex East Africa.
Fellow
members of the Mess wish both of them every
happiness in the years to c~n;e ~nd. are sorry that
they will be leaving us for CIvIl lIfe m the summer.
S.S.M. Nicholson has left us for overseas an~
rumour has it that he is basking in tropical suns a
Khartoum whilst S /Sgt. Adcock after many and
various expected locations has finally come to r~s~ o~
the Canal Zone. S.S.M. Peacock, one of the ongma

Offices on the receiving end will now have an all
star cast.
'd I b any
Conditions at Crookham are not yet I ~a y
but the squatters are at last on their way out.
~~~n~el1_known knack of the British s~ldier .of
makin himself comfortable whatever the dIfficultIes
will d~ubtless be in evidence once we s~ttle do~n.
Th fl ct on the men who have been m camp or
f e ee:ks is most marked. They no longer lo.ok
~k:';' :nervates of the pen" as Robert W . .Servlce
.
On the contrary, they have acqUIred .an
put It.
f ude health and that coat of tan whIch
ahPpearan
ce 0Of Srunbronze say is the sine qua non of the
t e ma k ers
., . " members of the office is under

" since mobIlIsatIOn
. h 11 f them happy
C
C M F and we WIS a 0
orders lor .' . . l
'
SS M. Elgood has
. theIr new ocatlons.
..
S M
da~s m
" Posby" in replacement of .S.. .
ar~'IVed
from
. hope his stay with us WIll be a
an d we
Nlcholson
happy .one. .
f the service" have caused us to
" EXlgen~f~u~ RA.P.C. staff to . M~rylebone Ro~d,
lose ma~y
d
n't permit mdlvldual mentIOn
and whIlst JP~~est ~:smade of the loss of Sgt. Riley
some recor
f the Company Dance Band. To all 0
as
a
member
Od
them we sen .our
. . regrets at their departure and
their CIVIlIan successors.
I
of Whitsun holiday, Derby Day and the
we come
Thoughts
. " do's" enables the notes to
various other
~~~~~an usually cheerful note and
a
close
on d RmA
"Cavan
. ,C. " sends its best .wishes
h to ot~er
offices' for similar happy days dunng t e commg
summer.
move has cramped the uni~'s

A farewel1 dance andhsoclal
usua
h
ver held in Porc ester
evening fO;8~:;c;:~~~~, o~~lon~1 R00!1ey, Lieut.Of Oliver and their ladies bemg presenlt.
k' d nd another unfortunate y
o one.
but
give the affair the t~ue party SpIn
bo s in the
enjoyed themselves Immenrl6'"
kong old
band, too, were at the Ctop to . t ~~mPe~rce and the
friends present were ap am
.
'bI" Eddie" Cantor.
f
IrrepreSSI e.
. s too despite difficulties 0
The postmgs w:nt~ve a iast dance before double
space all z:nan~ged e~ thoughts in other directions. It
summer tIme urn
. h w the work on a wing can
will always b~ a mhsterI 0
and be resumed as
continue du~mg tea terno~~ next morning, while
handson;e
~~d~
T7eoff~~ty actfvities.
~all
fea;~:~t~e:tt~~d:~e J~wn~
LEEDS (R.A.O.C.) (38 COMPANY)

The departure of the R.E.M.E. Pay: Office wa
ded in the Spring 1947 issue, and It may be ~
~e~~:est to members of that office to know t e
m
.
. 18a Hyde Terrace, Leeds, are now
premises
In
'
.
ied b the R.A.O.C. Pay Office.
occup
. y num ber of the staff are employed
h ' hm
A certam
House Armley, and it is hoped t at m t e
the office will be full y accommodated
?e~;~~~r futur~
at lJ;d=rT::;:~~CaPtain S. R. Birleston ~s at present
on e!barkation leave for overseas. LIeut .. Li ~.

Harman has been posted to Depot. Releasesdns/s~'
Lieut. R. Carncross, Lieut. C. Barker an
.
h
. d
T Harkness.
'A . ' Is -Lieut. C. Barker for a sort perlo ,
.
.
R . C . D . M a cpherson
Sgt. rnva
H. Morris
and . Lieut.
thi~ ~tC~:~Ye~:~~~J~
Fur
!h~~~7n~e~~agd:~e t~~~:n held in tJ:e same ro~m.

~hese
dances are gaily decorated aff~l~s, cd~~;~~

with bar and buffet, and our own musIcIans
t ate the wel1-known strict bal1room tempo.
d
s r
'n sand Goings.-We are happy to ~ecor
A. V. Phillips is back to duty
ju;t as urbane as he was in the days when e owne
th~O~~t~n
froCm . DkePto~This is out of the question at the

nc e .
. bl
moment as no ground is avatla e.
Entertainments.-A very successful Dance was
held in the Scah Ballroom o~ the 27th March, }9~~
when we were honoured With the presence 0
C P Brigadier N . Forde.
.
'Officers' Club.-The club continues to functIOn
but the number of members has been reduced, due
to releases, etc.
.
. t
Canteens.-By the ti~ne these notes are m .P~:!1 '
the canteens will have been taken over by a CIVI wn
catering firm.
.
Th
Annual Administrative I~spectlOn.- e annual administrative inspectl?n took p~a<?e / n
7th May, 1947, and was carned out b y nga ler
A. H. G. Rickett~ , D.S.O., O.B.E.
~gam .an~
an. appe~d~ W Chaundy has joined us after a

Captam
'. N' b ' KW is a brother of D.E.
spel1 of duty m alr~ 1.
. all' did so much diving
f ft
who was WIth us w en we
bombs D.E.
bl
t the approach 0
ymg
'.
d
un er ta es ~
b d for the snappiest
will be affectIOnately rem em et; t d by an officer
line in British Warms ever e ec e
below field rank! h h
left us is the pontifical
Among those w 0 ave
I
h
b en
C
. E B Gell whose release eave as e
spa:~:l~ryi~g ~o de~~de whether to return to the
P.L.A. or to raise chIckens.
t London
. C . A . Overbury has gone 0
C aptam
District Pay OfficHe. k'
S G Baldock and R J.
Lieuts. A. G.
opms, . . ,
Savy:rs~~~idb~~~;f~era~~~.
d~e
much space to hrecoWrd

. t1le A .T . S . and amongst th
t e
..,
departures m
C O d en in the last three mon s.
N F tba~l These notes will appear considerably
?f
write football IS std I m u
I at Crookham are
,
f
the
office our personne ,
d
I
sp Ittmg 0
b t t Marylebone week-en
having daily fo~tb~l1, '~io~ in the Wil1esden League
matches.o.nl\ FlI~~Jlo~f the league table-all things
foun? us m t e ml b de Next season in new surroundconSidered not to~ a
t give a good account of
ings
we
sh~uf
Id
le
a
b:ca~se
of opportunities to
ourselves, I on y
practise.
LONDON (R.A.S.C.) (33 BATTALION)

Much water has flowed everywhere but under
the bridges provided since our last nttes wer~
written. The vanguard, in the pers.ons
a ~enera
duties squad, India Wing and Cleanng
mg IS I?-0:W
in camp at Crookham. The rest of us expect to Jom
them there in the very near ffuthure.. T
staff has
The departure of most.o t ~ CIVI I~n ,
kept the RP. busy bestowmg hIS thanks an~ goo~
wishes to the individuals who have ~nderef tl::uc
invaluable servi~e during ~a.st yea?t' is ~~~ ~o k:~
of course were m key pOSItions.
g
h I
. not b
that they'wll1
e iost t 0 the Corps as a woe.
afte~Othe e~d
W.
t~e ~xter~t~~~:on'D~uet t~S t~:
hI
449

We are co.mpleting this season with ~ series of
matches ~gamst W.O. teams-all good sporting
events-wm or l~se-and we only regre t we shall
have no Opportunity of meeting them all again once
we leave fo~ our new base at Aldershot.
U qutstandmg players of the past season have been
n.l t players-Ptes. Holden, Gardner and Banbury
whdst from recent games Pte. Halliday looks good
for a regular place in the first team as goalkeeper
next season.
Rece~t reinforcements from Knightsbridge include
~te. , Pnce, who underst~dies Huddersfield Town
.C. s centre forward. This lad should put our own
team on the map next season.
Golf.-Captain K. W. Chaundy will be available
~ en~ance our golf prestige.
A scratch player
~ptam Chaundy entered for the Army Champion~
sh.lp at St. ~nes, .o~ly to be barred at the last
mmu.te by ~n IgnommlOus attack of Mumps.
. CrIcket .IS getting away to a late start, but will be
m full swmg when we are all together in camp
Already the su~ro~ding villages are clamouring fo;
fixtu:es. Practice IS proceeding both at Crookham
~nd m London, and matches have been arranged at
h p!aces. There will be Keen competition for
p aces. m the team when we all join forces. The
bat~allOn .dropped out of cricket last summer so the
revlv~l wIll be all the more welcome. We ho;e to do
well m the newly formed Corps League at Aldershot.
Purely Per.s onaI.-The departure of Major
~urrows . for Smgapore was announced in the last
Issue. .H ls ma~y friends will be sorry to know that he
met With a flYI?g accident en route, but full details
are not yet avaIlable. Best wishes from us all for a
speedy recovery.
~ ron:ance which began on the now defunct
WI?~ 2 m the .days ?f Captain Roebuck is due for
frUltlOn at Whltsuntlde when Miss Betty A hm
become~ the bride of Major Roy Bensley. s Bet~~
wa~ actmg as lA to Roy when he was a two-pip
aSSistant officer and was perhaps better known as a
s~ccer ~ta~. Subsequently, he went to India, gained
hiS maJonty and returned to "Civvy Street" last
year. Had the R.P. awarded Oscars for charm
beauty and popularity, Miss As.h man would hav~
won all three. Her recent transfer to Knightsbridge
cast all P. W.l? !nto gloom. Happy days to you both.
A. recent VISitor to the office, very proudly displaymg ~ very b.onny ten months' old baby, was Mrs.
Ross, wife of Lieut. Ross. This is another Finsbury
romance. Mrs. Ross was formerly serving with us in
the A.T.S. Her husband is back at his old work on
the Sto~k Exchange and finding bulls and bears more
conlSenlal company than the fauna of Clifton Street!
. There was an appeal by E. W. Rayson, in the last
Issue of the J.ournal, for news of Radcliffe, Finsbury
~nd Lag?s fnends. The writer had the pleasure of
mtroducmg Pte. Rayson to his first 3085. Three
years later we met on Manchester Station and found
we were b~th Finsbury bound. Ray, by this time,
had one pip ~nd O.C.T.U. written all over him.
To as~uage. hiS nostalgia, a photo of Radcliffians
taken I? India has been dispatched to him. He will
recognise one old colleague in Pte. Gardiner. Lieut.
Rays.on had established himself as a firm favourite
at Fmsbury before leaving for Lagos.
We are happy to report that Captain F. G.
J\:1ahony, who. has been seriously ill for the past
eight months, IS at last well on the road to recovery.
450
This is due to the excellent care and t t

has rec,eived at Camberley.
rea ment he
Pete s Patter.-Posting Wing Pete who h
be a co Iumn.lst
. wh
A
' 197 is ha
opes ilto
en . and
S. Group
released, wntes as follows: Quotepp Y
The trouble with a posting wing these days is that
no so:>ner have you weathered one storm tha
get another gale ~ arning.
n you
I got a nasty s~ock last month. You remember
~hat officer and hiS clerk coming round ' to take an
mventory ?f the barrack stores which masquerade as
office furniture? Well, the officer stopped in front
~f my desk, looked me straight in the eye, and said
One Basket."
..
..
O~e of the new intakes evidently thinks I'm either

a qUIz compere or a member of the Brains Trust.
He came up to. me to. know what Fide et Fiducia
meant. I told him! Fiddle or be Fiddled.
There's a rumour that this camp at Crookham is a
condemned camp. I shouldn't be surprised. Every
~amp I've been in is a condemned camp. The trouble
IS nobody ever carries out the death sentence.
..
. The ~oys tell me their chief recreation so far is

bIrdnestmg.
Sounds fair enough.
Nobody at
Aldershot ever complained of a shortage of redcaps.
Heard a couple of wing officers arguing the other
day as to whether the correct verb was" to permute"
or ': to permutate." The result was a draw as
r;;ollz,!s Gem denies the existence of either word. 1
Imagme the argument arose from a discussion of the
Vote Classification.
That's all for this time. Unquote.
P.W.P. should go far. He couldn't possibly go
far enough.
N~TTING!IAl\;l (A.~.) (39 .BATTALION)

Nottmg~am IS qUIte deSIrable after all. Following
upon the ngours of last winter, when ice and floods
c?vered half the coun~y, it is amazing suddenly to
~hscover that the office IS set down in idyllic surround~ngs of green fields, trees in full blossom, and cattle
m ~he p~sture. It is astounding what a breath of
sp~mg wIll do!
Summer in Nottingham will be
9U1t~ tolerable, in fact, although there must come the
I?ev~table move ' en bloc to the "unknown destlnatlOn. "
Th.is reminds me that, in the meantime, the
capt.ams, and even the kings, depart, one by one,
leav~ng us the poorer excepting in memories of them.
. S~nce the last notes appeared in the Journal, the
Regimental Paymaster, Lieut.-Colonel R. S. Ellicott,
has been transferred to Reading. He undertook the
!ransfer (" flit" would be a more appropriate word)
m what must be truly record time, even for the
R.A.~.C.
Everyone wishes him well in his new
appomtment.
Bound for the Middle East, Captain J. J. J. Muller,
the popular Technical Officer (A.A.), departed in
May, after long service in the A.A. office. In our
deep regret at losing him, we can now forgive him
for those lengthy and often involved " instructions"
that ema?ated from .his office by the ream. And no
lo?~er WIll .tht; Adm~. staff. be worried by the Captam s ever-mslstent mstructlOn to get hi~ initials in
the right order! S /Sgt. Fred Trunkfield will shortly

be leaving for overseas.
New arrivals include Captain L. Pateman, who
will be remembered by many who served in Knightsbridge, Cyren~ica and Cyprus; .Lieut. J. P. Wright,
from Exeter m exchange for Lieut. R. E. J ames ;
and Lieut. "Tom" Roberts, who, originally commissioned from this office, later ~erved in West
Africa.
Major C. Barnes, D.C.M., i ~ expected to rejoin us
after his convalescence, and his many friends in the
Corps WIll wish him a speedy restoration to good
health.
By the time this issue of the Journal is published,
we shall have said good-bye to a number of stalwarts
who go to pick up the broken threads of their
civilian lives. Among them, S.Q.M.S. J. Harman ;
S/Sgt. George Dawson, B.E.M.;
S.Q.M.S.
Johnson (D.A., Release and Admin.); Cpl. D. C. H.
Sturley, after 17 years' service; S /Sgt. Travers, who
lately arrived from India; Sgt. Talbot of Rc lease
Wing and "star" performer of the Skating Club;
Sgt. Mayne, ex-L.A.A. office; and Sgt. Dyas, the
giver-out of rarions.
Congratulations must be
extended to Sgt. Joan Pyatt upon her recent marriage
and her departure into Civvy Street as Mrs. Wright.
Good wishes go also to Sgt. Pat Philpott following
upon her demobilisation.
Recreational activities are once again under way,
now that the stay of the office in NottiPgham is
likely to be extended. The idea of an Ice Skating
Club found much support amongst military and
A.T.S. personnel, and w:ekly meetings at the Ice
Rink have become an established feature. It is hoped
to get really going in the way of forming a Cricket
Club, providing a suitable ground can be located.
Full advantage has been taken of the spaciousness of
the office canteen, and dances and soci~ Is are now
in the stage of organisation.
With the influx of young military personnel, it is
hoped that next season will see a good football team
in the field.
Sport.-Football has been almost completely

washed out for several weeks and there is little to be
said about the matches that have been played. Let
us turn our thoughts towards sunshine and cricket
tennis and other open-necked games, hoping we shali
soon be basking in compensating warmth after the
frozen experiences of the past few weeks.
Officers' Dinner.-About 20 officers foregathered for dinner at the Black Boy, with the
Commanding Officer in the chair. After an excellent
meal, music was mingled with reminiscence, songs
being rendered by Major Huxley and anecdotes of
varying temperatures and antiquity being related by
the more enterprising members of the Mess. A
special note of gratitude should be sounded for the
fact that the Turkey, generously provided by Major
Tatlow and consumed in the Mess at Christmas, was
of much more recent vintage than the majority of the
stories retailed at this most enjoyable session.
"The 42 Club."-Following the successful
productions of "While the Sun Shines" and
" Blithe Spirit" the Dramatic Society has gone ahead
with a lesser-known Play' by Falkland L. Cary and
A. A. Thomson, called" Burning Gold." This was
presented in the Y.M.C.A. Theatre, Nottingham, on
4th February, for three nigh cs .
Production was in the capable hands of Lieut.
Frank Bestwick who obviously possesses a flair for
selection in casting, and, what is even more important, is able to get the be~t out of his selected
team. In addition to all the hard work involved in
producing this somewhat controversial play, he
played the part of Phi lip Woodbury, a young man
with a complex mentality who finally finds his
destiny through war-blinded eyes. The services of
this accomplished young actor will be sorely missed
on his Release but he will carry with him the good
wishes of all the members and supporters of " The
42 Club."
In the cast we saw several new faces notably,
Subaltern Betty Proctor, Lieut. N. G. Salmon, Philip
Bradley and Lieut. G. J. M. Bryon. The fine
individual performances by these newcomers maintained the reputation of the Society and they
acquitted themselves admirably beside the "experienced " hands who formed the rest of the castMrs. Gladys May, Miss Jean Jamieson. Pte. Monica
Solly and Mrs. May Chaplin. As always, great work
was done by the stage staff-Miss Kathleen Stringer,
L /Cpl. W. M. R. Johnstone and Miss Margaret
Heggs were keystones of the production.
The success of this show, as in our previous
efforts, is owed in great measure to the people who
perform the spade-work. As a result of " Burning
Gold" we hope to hand over to St. Dunstan's a sum
in the region of Twenty Pounds.
" The 42 Club" is fortunate in having personnel
of both first-class acting ability and keen and enthusiastic loyalty. The high standard of production
is achieved and maintained only through the help
of those people whose main object, fi.r st and foremost,
is-" The Play."
NOTTINGHAM (A.T.S.) (42 COMPANY)

It is regretted that our contribution to the last issue
of the Journal was not received in time for
publication.
Arrivals.-We extend a hearty welcome to those
who have joined us, among whom are: Major H. S.
Huxley (Edinburgh) , Major G. A. Waltuck (2 C.S.1.
Northern Command), Lieut. H. R. Holme (Manchester), Lieut. A. T. de Coverly (Guildford), Lieut.
J. A. H. Terry (Depot), S.S.M. W. H. AlIen
(Glasgow), S /Sgt. W. H. Howarth (Depot), Sgt.
W. E. Varnam (102 Mil. Con. Depot), Sgt. B.
Harrison (Depot) , and Sgt. C. Dalton (Depot).
Departures.-We wish the best of luck to those
who have left us for other stations and civilian life,
among whom are: Major W. B. Tatlow (Released),
Captain R. Clarke-Halifax (Knightsbridge), Captain
A. L?ng (L.D.A.C.), Lieut. W. J. Smith (L.D.
LocatIOn Depot), Lieut. J. E. Cruickshank (Released), Lieut. E . H. H. Jones (Exeter), Lieut.
W. J. D. Platt (Released) , Lieut. F. Bestwick
(Released), Sub. Proctor, A.T.S. (Released), Captain
J. Crawford and Lieut. H. J. Townsend (Overseas),
S /Sgts. P;Jmer and . L. Limb (Released) , S.S.M. J.V.
Poulton, Sgts. R. Pugh and R. C. Connaughton
(Overseas).
PRESTON (43 COMPANY)

In my notes for the Winter edition of the Journal,
I mentioned that Madam Rumour had a large
following in this office of ours. Today, she still holds
a commanding position although our destination then
was wide and various, whereas today it centres around
451

Ashto.n-under.-Lyne. However, we have not heard
anything officIal regarding the move so we keep our
fingers crossed.
Life in. the office has carried on more or less the
same as m any other office, although I can forsee
th.at the departure of our Machine Operating A.T.S.
wIll ca~se a heartache to our Posting Group Officer.
.Durmg the past. quarter we have welcomed back
LIeut. T. H. DavIes from East Africa. Many will
recall that he was in the Preston Office at the outbreak
of th~ war and was promoted W.O.I therein. He
definitely assures me that he has ended his football
career-the spirit is willing but the flesh, oh dear !I .do hear though that one of his. sons has played for
hi~ school and won two medals thIS season. A veritable
chip off the old block.
Speaking offootball.reminds me that our Company
f?ot~all teams have finIshed their allotted programme.
~
team, never able to field the same team twice,
finIshed up at the bottom of the league, whilst "A"
team were runners-up. An exciting game was played
on 22.nd. M~y when " A" team met Home Guard in
an elimmatmg game for the league championship.
Home Guard needed one point and we wanted them
~oth. However, we were unlucky, the game ended
m a draw 3 each. I must relate, however, that for
mor~ than an hour we only had ten men. Jones was
can:led off ~he field and many others were badly
brUls~d. StIll as they say its all in the game.
Cncket enthusiasts are few and far between and
so fa~ no attempt has been made to raise a side. Table
tenrus holds sway at the moment under the leadership
of S/Sgt. McIlwraith. A new table has been purchased and many matches have been arranged with
local clubs.
. Our Uni.t d~nces are still a success. The last one
m the MajestIc on 17th May was up to the usual
standard. Judging by the number of heavy eyes and
sore h~ads on Saturday following, I should say a
good tIme was had by all.
~The call of Release has taken Lieut. Heyward,
Sgts. Jump and Curmingham, Cpls. Baxendale,
Lynn, Pratton, L /Cpl. Whiting and Pte. A. H.
Vaughan; to each and all we wish" Good Luck"
on returning to Civvy Street.
S /Sgt. Alton has been posted to Glasgow, Sgt.
Talb?t to S.E.A.C. and Sgt. Steward to Washington,
and m replacement we have Sgt. Edmondson and
L /Sgt. Spencer from overseas.
'
T? Cpls. KeD?-p, Ambler, Cheetham, Ulyatt,
Robmson and WIlson we offer congratulations in
their recent promotions.
It is with regret that I have to record the death of
Pte. Wiggett on 10th March, 1947. The funeral was
carried out under private arrangements and the Unit
provided the bearer party under S.S.M. Astley.
counci.l, the squatters have now been herded in

prescnbed area of the camp fenced with b b d t~ a
(thoug,h whether to ~eep the squatters ~~t eor'~lre
troops quarters or VIce versa is not clear) a d he
have. no~ exchanged the sybaritic delights ~f t~e
lodgIng lIst for the stern rigours of camp life 0 h e
Ranks, Corpo~al and below, took pQssession in e~rfr
February dunng the Great Freeze, followed Short?
afterwards by the Officers, and lastly by the W 0 y
and Sergeants.
Conditions
m the early days were
.s
.
.
somew h at gnm OWIng to burst pipes and fl d
though, fortunately we in camp were at least aOboo:~
the ~ooded areas, whereas some of those
h
remaIned on the l?dgmg list were m the thick o~ i~
However, all survIved and are now doing as well
could be expected.
as
The Officers' and Sergeants' Messes are in s t
d ent membership,
.
'
PI e
o f sma l lre~I
now flourishing
concerns, whIch happy stat~ they owe to Lieut. J. H.
Keep and S.Q.M.S. Chellmgsworth respectively
A :very successful Battalion Dance was held in ~he
Garnson .Theatre on 29th April, music for which
was prOVIded by ex-.Lieut. Frankie Drake and his
band, of whom mentIOn has been made m previous
notes. Or: 2nd l'1ay, the Sergeants' Mess held its
first f~c.tlOn, whIch was well attended by officers
and CIVIlIan ~embers of the office. Among the
guests. were LIeut.-Colonel W. Vero, Majors Howard,
Stenn~ng, Plunkett, McDermott and Redway.
ArrIvals and Departures.-We welcome Lieut.Colonel W. Vero and Major J. W. Howard from
West .Africa, Major F. McDermott from London
CaptaIn C. Bailey and Lieut. M. C. Jago fro~
B.A.O.R. and Sgt. L. W. Powell from India and are
happy to see Major F. E. Gear back at d~ty after
an ~bsence of some months on account of illness.
Major Howard is shortly leavmg us for Witley. We
are sorry to see him go, and among others to whom
we have wished a regretful good-bye are Colonel
O. P. J. Rooney to London (R.A.S.C.), Lieut.Colonel J. H. Clo:ves to London District, Major
Beauchamp to SalIsbury Plain District, Captains
Booth and Teasdale to Whitchurch, Captain M. P.
Vass to the Depot,. and Lieut. Hopkm (after a very
short stay) to "Devlzes. Also posted to Devizes is
S /Sgt. D. P. Bayley, known to all Old Meerutonians
as "Killer." S.Q.M.S. Steggles, first P.M.C. of the
newly-formed Sergeants' Mess, was just getting
things straightened out here when he was posted to
the R.A.P.C. Training Centre.
In the person of Major R. Scott, who left us in
March, and ~as now arrived in Singapore, the office
loses o?e of Its pillars for the last seven years. As
Techmcal Officer and later S.P.-in-Charge Clearmg Group, "Bobbie" Scott has borne a heavy
burden, and has cheered us through our darkest
hours. We hope that he finds the climate of his new
station more agreeable than that obtaming during his
last days here. He was one of Reading's thousands
of flood victims, but was able to assure us before he
left that the tide had finally receded from his front
parlour.
Releases during the period are too numerous to
mention individually, though we cannot omit S /Sgt.
Hopkins, our " No Trace" expert, and one of our
oldest old stagers. To all who have now left us we
extend our best wishes for success in civilian life.
Sport.-Thf! Battalion Football team has excelled
RADCLIFFE (44 BATTALION)

See Whitchurch.
READING (45 BATTALION)
We apologis~ to our regular readers (both of them)
~or ha:VIn~ omItted to send our notes for the Spring
Issue In tIme for publication, and it is our earnest
hope that the sales of the Journal have not suffered
thereby.
The last time we appeared m print mention was
made of our proposed move mto camp, which had
been postponed owing to the squatters having got
there first. As a result of negotiations with the local
452

"Whitehall." This was made possible by the move
of Records to Preston in February. Although we
were sorry to break a partnership which had existed
fo.r many years and to say good-bye to many good
fne.nds, the move gave the solution to a problem
which was becoming a subject of heated debate in
the local press.
After the .di~astrous weather and floods of the
recent past It IS hard to forecast coming events,
except lOdoor ones, and thus the efforts of Lieut
W. Stark in providing a series of musical appreciatio~
conce~ c.ommen.d themselves to all. In particular
no praIse IS suffiCIently high for Miss Enid Simori of
the Glyndebourne Opera Company who, despite ice,
s~ow and floods, travelled from London complete
wl.th harp on the back of her car, especially to entertam us In the ballroom of the Lion Hotel with a
superlative recita.l on. the solo harp.
After the
perfo~ance, MISS Slffion carefully and lucidly
explamed to a group of enthusiasts how to " double
the clutch" on the foot pedal of her instrument as
well as giving an interesting sketch of its history ~nd
technical development.
Cricket fixtures for the forthcoming season have
already been arranged and we look forward to lots of
fun and games. L~te in the season though it appears,
the efforts of LIeuts. Newbury and Pillar have
resurrected soccer within the detachment and further
evening games have been planned. Recent challenge
games with the District Pay Office have produced two
very good sporting games and we offer our opponent
and confreres three cheers for their victories-if
only we had one forward who could shoot. It is
hoped to fix up a badminton court after we move
into Monkmoor Camp.
~ollowing the example of other offices we append
a list of pre-war regulars serving with us: Lieut.Colonel H. G. B. Milling, O.B.E.,; Majors E. W.
Lines, M.B.E., P. G. Thompson, W. W. Scott,
J. J. Staples, M.M.; Captains E. BowD, W. R. S.
Carey; Lieut. W. J. Herbert; S.S.M. R. H.
Briggs; S.Q.M.S.s Lurm, Page, Horton and S /Sgt.
J. P. Hills.
. It may also be of mterest to any who have served
m the Shrewsbury Office at any time during the last
28 years to know that the following old stagers are
still with us: R. W. G. Plant, W. L. Pugh, E. C.
Thornburrow, A. Forrester, R. W. Williams and
F. A. Bell.
We would offer congratulations to Lieut. S. A.
Marshall (ex-B.E.F. and Ilfracombe) on his bemg
granted a Regular Short Service Corn..ffijssion.
Sergeants' Mess.-Activities have not been on
a large scale. The Snooker league fixtures have been
completed, and whilst not covering ourselves with
glory, we finished up in a respectable position midway
in the league .
A Snooker and Darts Contest against the Salop
Mental Hospital Sports Club was much enjoyed and
ended all square. We lost at Snooker, but won at
Darts.
At the end of March, Mess members and friends
paid a visit by bus to NeV\-1;own where ex-Captain
Manley is now" Mine Host" of the Bear Hotel. An
excellent dinner was provided, and the remainder
of the evening was devoted to vari9us games of skill.
S.S.M. Briggs and S.Q.M.S. Page acting as directors
of entertainments.
The team of 45 Bo. (Reading) which won the

Salisbury Plain Shield.
in the field this year in winning the Salisbury Plain
Shield, and then going on to complete a very fine
double by finishing at the head of the Reading
Wednesday League.
The summer programme, m addition to cricket,
will include hockey, tennis, athletics, swimming,
basket-ball, fencing, golf, badminton, rowing and
anything else the Sports Officer can think of.
We have recently lost two stalwarts in the sporting
lme in Lieut.-Colonel J. H. Clowes (Cricket) and
Cpl. "Jock" Brown (Football), the latter having
been released.
C.C.
SHREWSBURY (46 COMPANY)
It is hard to know exactly where to begin but the
momentous arrival of the twins seems to have overshadowed all the more recent happenings in the
rigours of the Shrewsbury Campaign. We offer our
heartiest congratulations to Lieut. and Mrs. A. E.
Newbury (ex-Singapore and India) on the event.
Further belated congratulations are also extended to
Captain and Mrs. W. Bown on their latest addition,
a d~ughter. Mothers could learn a lot if they cared
to listen to the fathers airing their knowledge in our
new Officers' Mess. Ex-Salopians will join us in
extending, our very best wishes to S/Sgt. J. P. Hills
and Margaret Rogers (ex-L/Cpl. A.T.S.) on their
recent marriage.
From these recruits we pass on to extend a cordial
welcome to Major P. G. Thompson on joining us
from C.M.F. /M.E.F. and also to Cpl. Toole on
rejoining the fold from Aldershot. To offset these
happy arrivals we have said a regretful farewell to
Major H. K. Osborne on his departure to Burma and
to Lieut. W. Wilson now at Camberley. Ex Middle
Easters will be interested to know that we have
recently heard from Lieut. R. W. Windsor now back
again in Palestine.
'
. We have also said good-bye to Mr. T. Varney after
~IS lengthy period of service with the Pay Office, both
m the Corps and as a civilian. He enlisted on
20th February, 1900, and terminated his military
service as a W.O. Class II m the Corps on 31st July,
1930. He joined the Civil Service on 1st August
1930, serving continuously at the Shrewsbury Pay
Office until his retirement on 31st January, 1947, at
the age of 66.
It will be of interest to ex-members of 46 Company
!o know that we have now relinquished all buildings
In the town and the whole office is accommodated at
453

Membership has decreased slightly and to those
who have departed we wish "all the best" and
extend a hearty welcome to S.Q.M.S. C. Lunn,
S jSgt. T . Rosser and Sgt. A. A. C. Jones who have
recently joined us.
to the raising of a formidable team for football

cricket, rugby and hockey . On Thursday 8th May'
1947, the Officers and Sergeants challenged "Th~
Rest " at soccer and the fact that after 1t hours of a
fast and strenuous game the result was a 1-1 draw
gives .some indication of the spirit prevailing, more
espeCially when one remembers that each side had
declared to win.
Entertainments.-Lieut. T. Bewick made a
really good start with a successful Camp Dance on
Wednesday, 7th May, i.e., four days after our arrival
which was not only good going but reflected th~
enthusiasm necessary to make a success of entertainments. With the formation of a dance band and a
dramatic society Lieut. Bewick should be well
gratified at the ultimate results. .
Departures.-Major E. O. Cooper, M.B.E. and
Captain F. G. Talbot-Butler, M.M., two stal~arts
who have been with us since 1940 have now departed
the former on " Sewlrom, Privleaye and Embleave"
prior to proceeding overseas and the latter on
" Release."
By the time these notes are printed many others
will have been released and their names are too
numerous to mention . They go out with the knowledge that they have played their part well for and
with this Battalion and to one and all we wish
God Speed, Good Luck and Happy Memories!
Lastly-HA Soldier's Farewell."
" Have you been in the Army long, Sir? "
Aye! thirty years or more!
And I've cussed and cried and sweated
But I faithfully served the Corps.
I've served O.C.s who were" He-men"
And their Second-in-command's as well
With a smattering here and there, Sir,
Of some who were spawned in Hell !
Of friends I have many a hundred
Of enemies? No! not one.
There were times when I badly blundered,
Though my best I've always done.
And now as I look to the morrow
The memories of bygone days
Eclipse any thoug~t~ of sorrow
In a hundred different ways.
Good-bye to machine" accounting"
Main Issues? Good Lord! what are they?
Good-bye to all pals, whether lads or gals
To the last-I have had my say!
P.T.60
WHITCHURCH (44 BATTALION)

Those of our readers who looked under Radcliffe
have found "see Whitchurch" and those others
who knew of our move from Radcliffe and looked for
these notes under "Hollinwood" found "See
Whitchurch " also. If any more moves take place
before the final move of the writer of these notes I
advise you to look under" Bedlam" and see me !
The Battalion moved from Hollinwood at
11-30 p .m. on Friday, 2nd May, 1947, and arrived
at Whitchurch at 9 a.m. on the following day. Were
we downhearted ?-don't ask silly questions but at
least we had the consolation of knowing that if the
many onerous tasks imposed by the move gave us no
time for leisure, the manner in which t he loading,
entrainment and unloading was carried out gave
pleasure to the railway authorities who were quite
unstinting in their praise.
The benefits derived by one and all from the pure
air of Whitchurch and its beautiful surroundings
makes some of us wonder how we managed to serve
" seven years' penal" at Radcliffe and still remain
sane.
This remark casts no reflection however upon the
people of Radcliffe or Hollinwood to whom the
Battalion as a whole pay the highest tribute for their
generous and sincere hospitality, but the climateGee! One C .P. thought of recommending us all for
Colonial Allowance whilst another suggested that
service should count as double for all purposes.
One lad die from Lancashire stood absorbed in the
surrounding beauty of the Whitchurch scenery and
looked so pensive that, on being asked what he
thought of it all remarked, "For Heaven's sake don't
write and tell Oldham about it else all those trees will
be chimneys by the morning."
Taking everything by and large, all the lads and
lassies are settling down to camp and hut life and
getting quite a kick out of it.
Sport.-Captain P. J. Thornton has assumed
duties as " Sports" Officer in addition to his many
other posts which make him the Battalion "Pooh
Bah," and arrangements are well in hand in regard
Miscellaneous Offices
[CENTRAL CLEARING HOUSE
Wylie. Due to the nature of his work, his acquaintances in the Corps are considerable, and I am sure
that wherever they may be, they would like to
associate themselves with our sentiments and good
wishes for "success and happiness in the days to
come." Adding a personal note-" Cheerio, Skip."
As I write, release books are being prepared for
Sgt. E. Long and Pte. C. Brown. We say" Good
luck" to them both, and trust Civvy Street will deal
lightly with them. Sgt. Long will need the good luck
in a special way, as one of his first jobs on release
will be to " take unto himself a wife ."
Pte. Evenden (from our small contingent of A.T.S.)
has also left us, and we also wish her the very best
of luck.
Despite rumours of " change of location," we are

still functioning at Barnards Cross, Salisbury, and
our earnest hope at the time of writing is that we
shall be permitted to "dwell near the beautiful
Cathedral" in this delightful part of Wiltshire until
at least the" harvest moon" appears.
As I am soliciting the Editor's kind co-operation
in the way of a request for insertion of a report on
the Crocchs re-union, I shall endeavour to be as
brief as possible in general remarks.
Releases.-We have recently (and reluctantly)
said "Cheerio" to one who has served in the
Clearing House for several years-Captain F. A.
454
THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS.-:.J~O_U_R_N_A_L_ _ _ _ _ __

Matrimony.-The many friends of our "qld
Maestro of Music "-Eddie Purkiss-wIll be mted to know that on Saturday, 10th May, he
ter~
t another" arrangement" (but not orchestral
mathesyeoccasion) with Barbara Hoad (also well known
on I
H ere 'h
. " c.om p Iet e
s opmg
at a L ondon church.
to us )ony"
. perhaps Wit
. h a " fl at " or
will
prevail
h arm
two
but no sharp d'Iscor. d s.
.,
C.R.O.C.C.H.S.-The First Re-~mon m the for~
of Dinner and Dance was held at. Chez Aug';lste,
Frith Street, London, on 26th ApnL To s~ate It w~s
rather
mildly-m
fact It
,,
'
success fu l is putting it.
to be a " smashmg success m every way.
ved
pro
'
The Hon. Secretary and C
ommlttee
are to b e congratulated for their exc~llent work, and deserve o~r
. ere gratitude for . a .Job very well done. A bnef
smc
report appears in thiS Issue.
. ..
Entertainments and Sports.-Our flctlvltles
regarding Entertainments and Spor~s are closely
linked with the Regimental and. D~stnct Office staff,
being situated in the same bUlldmg, and as I am
reporting on both subjects under No. ~ 2 Detachment
notes, further comment in these notes IS unnecessary.
I conclude these notes by our usual-but ~o less
smcere-congratulations to. the Edlt.or ~?d hiS staff
on the Spring issue, which, despite . fuel cnsls
difficulties," proved to be a very enjoyable and
interesting" bob's-worth."
Best wishes to the Journal, all its readers at home
and abroad, and to all our colleagues wherever they
may be.
" Sahib."
CENTRAL MORIBUND ACCOUNTS OFFICE
(107 DETACHMENT)
Spring is her~s? the calendar would .appea~ to
indicate-and With It has come th.at c~rtam. feelmg.
Yes, even here in the wi.lds of W Lts~lre thmgs are
beginning to come to hfe an~ smdmg faces are
taking the place of the long-pmched ones of the
hectic winter' spelL
.
.
As we emerge into the Spnng suns~ne and. lo<?k
around us, we find that during our peno~ of hfe In
the Arctic, our little family, as reporte~ m the I.ast
issue has grown considerably, and an mtroductlOn
to a few of our better .known members would appear
to be in order.
. '
Arrivals.-Amongst the early arrivals were Lieut.
A. D. Lindsay, D.C.M., e~ R.P. R.A.S.C., ~ j Sgt.
D. Bayley and Sgt. A. Davls from R .P . Readmgthe latter's stay with us was unfortuna!ely o! short
duration and within a few weeks of hiS arnval he
was on his way to C.M.F. and we now hear that he
is fnjoying life in Venice!
Shortly afterwards we had a welcome draft from
R.P. Bournemouth, including S jSgt. J. Crawford and
Sgt. J . Taylor, and towards the end of March .we were
suddenly flooded with .bodi.es from all slde.s, an
occasion only equalled m history by the rehef of
Lucknow ! and hopes ran high that life would be a
little easier in the future. Sad to relate, ~owev~r, the
local "climate" had its effect almost 1ll1medla~ely,
and applications for postings an? leave poured mto
Central. A soldier's lot in camp IS apparently a hard
one, especially after long spells In comfortable
civilian billets !
. .
Two very welcome arrivals abo';lt thiS time were
Mr. R. Rennie, ex C.E.O. R.P. Edmburgh, and Mr.
P. V. Heasman from R.P. Shrewsbury, who helped
to ease the officer situation considerably.
A huge shadow darkened the area in the early p~rt

of April to be followed in a couple of days by ItS
owner, Sgt. (Lofty) Kemshall, ex R.P: Nott~gh~m
(A.T.S.), a shy little lad of some 6 ft. 7 ms., welgh~g
a mere 17 -stone-quite a headache for the messmg
sergeant. Further arrivals ?uring . April were ~r.
H. Whitmore, Lieut. F. P. S1ll1S, Lleut. W. Hopkins
and Sgt. C . Dalton from Droitwich, .Exeter, Read~g
and Nottingham (A.T.S.) respectlv~ly.
SpeCial
mention must be made of our contmgent of five
A.T.S. who arrived early in May just as these notes
go to press. They are the first to join this office,
and include S jSgt. Brown, L jCpl. Dunne and Ptes.
Lavender, Alder and Strudwick, all from R.P.
Nottingham (A.T.S.).
.
Departures.-Captain C. G. Kmgston, o~e of
our original members, has left us on return to hiS old
office, R.P. Bournemouth, a~d we now hear that he
is happily engaged in prepanng new quarters for the
move of that office in the near future.
Sgt. D. QuantriII departed on release in March
and will be followed shortly by Sgts. J. J ohnson and
G. Allen, Cpl. D. Seviour and Ptes H. L. Dyer,
L. O. Jones, P. Bramidge and R.. ]. L<?uden. We
wish them the very best of luck m their efforts to
settle down in Civvy Street once again.
Promotions.-The quiCk expansion of the office
has given scope for many promotions . and congratulations are due t? L /Cpls .. R. W. Slmson and
A. L. Williams on their promotIOn to Corporal, and
to Ptes. M. J. Barnes, A. Cole8, F. Faulkner, F.
Howe, D. Marsh, E. Rees, M. Richards, J. Thorpe
on their appointment to Lance-Corporal and last but
not least, Mr. R . Lambert on his promotion to T.C.I.
Sport.-Due to inclement weather and the poor
condition of the one and only football field, sport
has to date bee.! pretty well at a standstill. However,
a hockey pitch has been set up on one of the large
squares and practice matches commenced. More
news on this subject later.
Sergeants' Mess.-~e have no'~ settled do:wn
comfortably in the combmed Me~s With 51 BattalIon
and are looking forward t~ makmg a ~reat success
of our social activities dunng the commg Summer
months. As S.S.M. A. Dickinson will no doubt . be
reporting the activities of the Mess in 51 BattalIon
notes I leave the matter in his competent hands.
M~delling Club.-Early in March t.h ree of ?ur
enthusiastic Aero Modellers form~d a Umt M~dellmg
Club which has now a membershIp of approximately
20, ~nd work is going ahead op eight petrol and
diesel engine power models. It IS hoped m the near
future for the Detachment to be ~eprese~ted ~t local
rallies which should be somethmg umque m the
sporting world of the Corps.
In view of the complete lack of quarters and
scarcity of accommodation it has been extremely
difficult for the married men of the Det~chment to
set up home in Devizes. However, Major H. W.
Durlacher, M.C., S.S.M. R. Peppe~ and S jSgt. J.
Crawford were lucky enough to achlev~ th~ almost
.
ble and have been Joined by their wives. It
1ll1POSSI ,
d
'11 b
is hoped that before long a~~omm? .atlOn WI
e
available for many more famIlIes to Jom us.
MANCHESTER (15 BATTALION)
It will have been noticed that A.P.O . Manchester
is no longer the home of. the Journal. .
.
Our Editor and erstwhile O.C. BattalIon, LIeut.Colonel A. L. Dunnill, has departed to take up the
-455

appointment of D.P. Preston. Our loss is Preston's
gain, and we wish him all success for the future.
The .advent of the fine weather (in spite of its
reputatlOn, Manchester is receiving more than its
fall' share) has enabled morning P.T. to be commenced. Our specially trained squad of instructors
under Captain R Soper, are finding, with unerring
accuracy, the tender spots.
Throughout the office, at the moment, much
activity is taking place. Our new Q.M., Lieut. E. R
Black, is being inundated with queries which have
one common factor, "Fayid." This is the new
home of Officers' Accounts, M .E.L.F., to which a
large number of our accounts are being transferred
in the near future.
Accompanying the accounts will be seven officers
and 56 men under Captain J. McShane. Our best
wishes go with them.
Cricket.-Owing to the lack of grounds, it has
not as yet been possible to start cricket. However,
efforts are still being made to obtain a pitch and it
might yet be possible to make a start.
Football.-The football season has now come to
an end, and we managed to finish fifth in the
Lancashire and Cheshire Amateur League.
The Inter-Group Competition has been run off
and some very good games were seen. Congratulations to Group 6 who won the final and cup.
We shall be losing four of the regular players of
the Battalion team and we wish them good luck
while abroad.
The attendance of spectators at the Group games
was very good, and it is hoped that a measure of this
support will be afforded to the Battalion team when
next season comes along.
Hockey.-Only three games have been played
since last going to print, all of which were matches
in the Western Command Inter-Unit Cup Competition. We emerged the victors in the first two
rounds but were beaten by the odd goal in the Third
Round. For this game against No. 1 I.T.C. we had
to travel North to Carlisle and were in consequence
without our mascot and the majority of our few, but
loyal band, of supporters. However, we gave a good
account of ourselves, considering the circumstances,
for it was a very close game.
The season has proved very successful, not only
from the results obtained, but more especially from
the spirit and keenness which prevailed amongst all
the players.
Before the commencement of the next season the
majority of the team will have departed elsewhere,
some back to their civilian occupations and others to
stations abroad, but where ever it may be, we wish
them the very best of luck, and trust that at some
future date we may meet again on the sports field.
A.T.S.-Since the last issue Sub. J. Hare has
joined this Company, and we all hope she will enjoy
her stay in Manchester.
Sub. E. Robinson is being released in June to be
married. She will be greatly missed and our very
best wishes for her future go with her.
The number of auxiliaries in the Company is
rap,i dly decreasing owing to releases, but 19 have been
accepted for extended service.
The N.F.S. have very kindly loaned their ground
for netball. A number of auxiliaries are very keen
and have started practice games. It is hoped to raise
a team to challenge other A.T.S. Companies in the
Group.
456
The tennis court at Ward Hall has been put in

ord~r ~d has been loane~ ~o A.T.S. ofthis Company.
It I.S. II?- exc~llent condltlOn and it is hoped that
auxIlIanes WIll spend some enjoyable times there
thiS Summer.
. Arrange~ents are being made for swimming and
rifle shootmg to commence in the near future.
Drill has started again ~nd. early each morning
A.T.S. can be seen paradmg In St. Joseph's Fire
Station, surrounded on three sides by RA.P.C.
personnel in the throes of P.T.
WAR OFFICE (F9)
Many personnel in far-flung RP.O.s will have
noticed that the biter has at last been bit! F9 have
had to move themselves ! . The first move was of the
Records Office to Marlborough Lines, Aldershot,
when we were sorry to see many old friends of the
war years depart to the comparative calm of the
countryside!
Subsequently the rest of the Directorate moved to
Hotel Victoria, Northumberland Avenue, which
boasts cold running water in nearly every room!
The only complaint so far, has been that the bells
marked "Chambermaid" only produce an aged
W.D. Messenger!
In the past few months we have rivalled Clapham
Junction itself, in the number of arrivals and departures we have seen. Amongst the former we have
been pleased to welcome Brigadier F. C. Williams,
C.B.E., M.C. Major" Tommy " Cork,M.B.E., who
has since left us for Edinburgh, Captain H. W. Gunn,
well-known at Leeds (RE.M.E.), Glasgow and
Edinburgh, and Sgt. R Abercrombie from Canterbury.
We have said good-bye to Major C. V. E. Rooker,
M.B.E., M.M., to Canterbury, S.S.M. G. B.
Hansford to Singapore, S jSgt. A. Mclntosh to
Edinburgh, Cpl. J. K. Donlan to P.R.C. (Witley),
Cpl. F. L. O. Randall to S.E.A.L.F., and Pte. J. K.
Moore, A ;T.S. to B.A.O.R We have 'also had more
than our share of releases recently and many will
join us in wishing Brigadier B. L. Burgess, O.B.E.,
the very best of luck on his retirement. Captain
N. J. Pett (the "forms" man), S jSgt. G. W.
Johnson, Sgt. R. M. Grjffith, and Cpls. S. A. Bowles,
N. T. Downing, J. L. Kitchen, W. V. Parsons and
N. Phillips will all be nearing the end of their Release
Leave by the time these notes appear.
Congratulations to Captain -J. J. Preston on his
addition to his Income Tax Reliefs-in other words,
a daughter, Carole Dianne, born on 27th April.
Our chief sporting event in the last quarter was
our return football match with the local Irish Guards
detachment. They were anxious to obtain their
revenge for a 6-3 beating last year and despite our
limited staff, we managed to raise a team after
herculean efforts by our captain, Sgt. R M. Griffiths.
The match at Herne Hill on 15th April was quite
an even game until half-time, when the score of 1-1
was very fair to both sides. The second half was
unfortunately a different tale, and fitness and practice,
on the Guards side, told to the tune of five goals to
one. Cpl. P. J. B. Clark was the scorer for F9.
It is
readers
Mr. A.
Born
service
with great regret that we have to inform

of the death on Saturday, 1st February, of
H. Robertson.
in November 1877, Mr. Roberston first saw
with the Volunteers from 1899 to 1901.
During the first World War he joined the Army ~ay

Corps, as it was then known, transferred to the ~fle
. ade but returned to the Corps after bemg
B ng
. d a C IVI
' '1'Ian
seriously
wounded. He was appoInte
Acting Paymaster in 1918 a!!d was transferred to the
War Office (Accounts 1) In t~e same year. 1\:1r.
Robertson continued to ~e.rye In the Paymaster-m.Chief's Directorate as a CIVIlIan from May 1920 untIl
his death.
He was affectionately regarded as the "continuity man" of F9, and all members of the Corps
who have served at the War Office will realise the
loss felt by his death after over 26 years' loyal service
to the Directorate.
The sympathy of all members of the staff IS
extended to Mrs. Robertson in her bereavement.
Commands Abroad
people's needs. We have our own recreation . room
with table tennis, darts, games and a pronuse of
billiards and snooker.
Outdoor sport presents
cricket, tennis, swimming, boating, fishing, riding
and of course in the Winter season, we shall have
our' fill of tho~e Winter sports such as ski-ing and
skating for which this part of the world is famous.
For competitive sport this sea~on we hop<: to field a
cricket team whose accomphshments WIll be reported in the next issue.
23 COMMAND PAY OFFICE, AUSTRIA

The fortune of war has again made itself felt as
with the signing of the Italian Peace Treaty in
February, the plan to start a COf!1II1and Pa):' Office
in Austria on the 1st April went Into operatlOn and
with mixed feelings we left No. 8 Base Command
Pay Office at the end of March to start another phase
in our army career.
.
There was a feeling of regret when the tIme came
to bid "au revoir" to Italy with its sunny skies ;
the blue waters' of the Mediterranean-within easy
reach of most places; the shops so well s.tocked that
it might have been the goal of the IsraelItes of days
gone by; and last, but by no means least, the
excellent weather conditions where Summer lasts
nearly two-thirds of the year and rain is the exception
which proves the rule. On the other hand, there was
a feeling of anticipation and expectancy at the thought
of a new country-most of u had only passed through
it on "privleave "-and the idea of starting a new
office from scratch. The war years have made most
people adaptable and now, after a few w~e~s, (~taly
has become a pleasant memory and Austna IS not
so bad after all."
The scenery is more of the English type t~an in
Italy and here, in the small town of Klagenfurt In .the
Carinthia district, we are surrounded by mountams,
some of which still have snow on them. Within a
few miles are some of the grand lakes for which
Austria is famous with their lakeside clubs which
promise much acti~ity in the way of tennis, swimming
and boating. The local shops are empty and there
is nothing to buy-a fact which is applauded by the
married men and bemoaned by their wives.
The office is small and has a congenial and happy
atmosphere. Lieut.-Colonel L. H. M. MacKenzie,
O.B.E., is the C.P., with Major V. Fynn as A.jC .~.
The other officers are Major K. L. H. MacKenzIe,
previously Staff Paymaster, B.T.A., Captain L: D.
Davies, Lieut. E. W. Day and Lieut. A. E. OestIn1e.
S.S.M. Woodthorpe is the Chief Clerk and there are
300.R.s.
.
There is no Mess news as we have no separate
messes. Major Fynn, Major MacKenzie and Lieut.
Oestime share other Officers' Messes, whilst S.S.M.
Woodthorpe and the sergeants are members of H.Q.
Sergeants' Mess which is an excellent one and whe~e
they enjoy every amenity. Lieut.-Colonel MacKenzIe
and Lieut. Day have their wives with th.em fr?m
U.K. and Captain Davies has brought hIS ItalIan
wife whom he recently married it?- Rome.. These
families are experiencing a very dIffer~n.t , h~e from
Italy as in place of hotels they are now hVIng In flats,
and their spare time is a continuous quest for more
articles of domestic comfort from stores.
There is everything here in the way of recreation.
There are clubs for all ranks which meet most
BERMUDA
Sorry we were too tardy with our article .for its
inclusion in the last issue. However, despIte the
uncertainty of the length of time the post takes to
reach U.K. we hope we shall be" on the map again "
in the summer issue.
Entertainment.-First of all I must tell you of
our Garrison Dramatic Society's first production,
" George and Margaret." The Garrison gymnasium
was transformed into a threatre, yes really transformed, and the play was a brilliant succ~ss. It
played to capacity houses of 350 on each of ~ts three
nights of showing, was excellently patroOlsed by
Bermuda's socialities and netted a goodly profit for
the Garrison Sports and Welfare Fund~. The Corp.s,
small as it is at this station, had the bIggest hand In
the outstanding success.
Captain John Murrell,
c.P., produced the play and deserves a big hand .for
his excellent producing and for his necessary attentlO?
to the many additional details which a producer IS
normally able to take for granted. Mrs. M':lrrell
took the feminine lead and gave an excellently polished
display of the character "Alice."
Sgt. Charlc::s
Vincent took the part of the prig" Claude " and ~s
characterisation was so realistic I personally felt like
" kicking him in the pants." Mrs. Boden acted the
part of " Gladys," the maid, admirably. S~. Boden,
the Command's star musician, led the mUSIcal enter,tainment between the acts. It is possible he will soo!!
be leading a newly formed Garrison Orchestra. HIS
Excellency the Governor of Bermuda has now
requested 'that a performance of ".~eorge a~d
Margaret" be given in aid of the Bntlsh EmpIre
Nurses War Memorial Fund. All have agreed to
take part and I'm sure the fund will benefit considerably, as the play has been such a success in these
islands.
Strength Increase.-A; 9t-Ib. boy.for S.Q.M.S.
Robinson. S.Q.M.S. RobInson walks Into the office
these mornings heavy eyed and it isn't because of
late nights at the Garrison Sergeants' Mess. Woe
to be a father !
Sport.-In the sporting line we continue to do
our bit. We combined with N.A.A.F.I. and Command
Headquarters in the S. and D. So~cer L~ague, as our
Unit is far too small to field a SIde of ItS own, and
457

finished in the middle of the league table. Captain
Murrell, S.Q.M.S. Robinson and O.RQ.M.S.
~oader (B.y.RC. Records), all regularly appeared
In the com~Ine~ team. Sgt. Boden has also appeared
and does his bit when called upon.
. We are treated to some good football from time to
time as the locals are no 'mean players. However
the best match to watch this season was that betwee~
the Glouc<:ster Regiment and H.M.S. " Sheffield"
(the flagship of the Squadron based here) in the
Governor's Cup. The sailors were beaten 2-1 but it
wasn:t for lack. of support as the Navy invaded the
Garnson field In large numbers. Armed with their
che,er-Ieaders it seemed as if Yale University were
takmg part,
General.-We are having perfect weather just
now, the, sor~ one dreams about when in U.K. The
count~slde IS a blaze of colour as the oleander is
now In bloom and the seas with their countless
shades of blue, are a~ lovely as ever. It is a pity one
has to work In thiS scene but something always
comes al<?ng to prevent us from taking the half day
we promised ourselves.
'
We in Bermuda are greatly heartened to see the
fine quality of English goods that are now reaching
these islands. Although these are not as numerous
as on: would wish, they are gradually increasing in
9uantlty ~nd are e~gerly sought after particularly by
the Amencan tounsts who are delighted to buy our
hom~-p~oduced woollens and china.
Apart from
c,e rtaIn Items, of food which are still rationed, practlca~ly anyth~ng car: be bought, but owing to the
ternfically high pnces the "British Tommy" is
severely limited by lack of money.
COMMAND PAY OFFICE FRANCE
,It is with regret that we have to'report that these
wIll be the last notes from the Pay Services across
the Channel, for with the run-down in France it is
probable that w: shall have returned to the U.K.
befor: the next Issue appears in print.
ThiS ~nnouncement will doubtless conjure up in
many mmds memories of the nights spent in the
Calais Transit Camp, and of the well-known boats
the " Biarritz," "Manxman" "Victoria" and
" Daffodil" which performed the shuttle service
from Calais to Dover and Folkestone.
It is only fitting that tribute should be paid to
those who have helped to carry on the work of the
Pay Services in France and in particular at Calais
during these momentous years . Before the port
closes down, it is estimated that over five and a half
million troops will have passed through on leave or
demob. Every RA.P.C.individual who was stationed
for any length of time in the B.A.O.R or C.M.F. will
have passed through the hands of the cashiers at
Calais or Dieppe. They will remember the endless
queues which passed through the Exchange Huts
usually ,starting at the unearthly hour of 2-30 a.m:
Th~y wIll reme,mber too, the wintry occasions when
their own physlc,al discomfort was exceeded only by
t~at of the Cashiers who were trying to count notes
With fingers numbed by the cold. And although the
volume of work has decreased since the days when
fiye t~ousand tro?l?~ a day passed through in each
directIOn, the faCIlIties of the Pay Services will be
availabl<: ur:til t~e last man has passed through.
And It IS With a great sense of pride in the
achievements of the Corps that we record the fact
that many letters of appreciation have been received

from ,h igh-ranking officers of all services who ha:
been Impressed by the efficiency and helpfulness of
the RA.P.C.
It is worth recording that when the five millionth
ma~ ,passed through Calais he was the surprised
reCIpIent, of a large cake to celebrate the occasion'
an occasIOn worthy of celebration!
'
~he RA.P.C. h~s always been prominent in th
SOCIal and recreatIOnal activities of the G ' e
Th G
'
arnson
e arnson foot?all teams contained at least on'
Corps, representat~ve, w~i!st the C.P.O. tean~
occupIe~ a very h,lgh pOSItIOn in the league, and
figured In the semI-final of the Garrison Cup.
, A ,very successful gymnasium which has been of
InestIr~able benefit to the permanent staff of the
TranSIt Camp ~as organised and run by an RA.P.C.
Office~, CaptaIn ]. N. Peters-Dickie.
Boxing
wrestlIng, phys,ical training and development for~
part of the mghtly programme which has been
greatly appreciated by all the troops.
It IS WIth the, Officers' Club, however, that the
nam~ of Captam Peters-Dickie is associated in
CalaiS. All officers who have visited the Club on
Wednesday a':ld Saturday evenings will have very
happy memones of the dances. Their popularity is
due to a very large ~e,gree to his untiring efforts.
Apart, from the organIsmg of the dances, he is also
the dI~ector of, music, and a member of the Mess
CommIttee ,whIch has a very popular president in
the C.P., Lle,ut.-Colonel R W. K. Randall, O.B.E.
The techmcal side of the Command Pay Office
~a~ benefited greatly from the experience and untI~Ing energy of another well-known Corps personalIty, CaptaIn L. ]. R Caveille. He has been with
the office from very early days, and has steered it
~hroug:h many technical problems and difficulties,
Includmg the never-to-be-forgotten devaluation
headaches.
OU.r final notes would not be complete without
mer:tlOn of the services rendered by our staff at
Pans and Toulon. With their willing assistance on
all Pay matters they have done much to enhance the
reputation of the Corps in the areas which they have
serviced so efficiently.
Before departing on demob. may your correspondent, as the only R.A.P.C. man who has
remained continuously in France since Augu's t 1944,
record how proud I have been to be a member of
The Pay Services, France.
W.L.J.
BRITISH ARMY OF THE RHINE
(H.Q., B.A.O.R.)
~rigadi<:r H. Golding left us in February after a
penod which though of comparatively short duration
(15 months only) was full of incident.
We wish him well as D.P.-in-C. M.E.L.F.
. In his place we have welcomed Brigadier W. J.
BIlde~beck who, at the time of writing, is catching
up With some arrears of leave in the U.K.
~st BRITISH CORPS DISTRICT, B.A.O.R.
Smce the publication of the last issue of the Corps
Journal we have had to say " Auf Wiedersehn " to
our Staff Paymaster at this H .Q., Lieut.-Colonel
R R L. Ingpen, who has been posted to M.E.L.F.,
and we wish him the very best of luck in his new
station.
His successor, Lieut.-Colonel J. M. A. Braddell,
arrived from C.M.F. in March and we extend to
458
him a very hearty welcome and hope he will enjoy

his stay in B.A.O.R
May we also say how pleased we are to know that
both moves have given them a step up to a rank
they have held many times before.
It was intended to give the names of people
serving in the Corps District but owing to a little
re-organisation going on at present it is perhaps
advisable to defel' this item of news until we once
again become s~' a ic.
C.W.L.
speed but it is certainly produced in mass. It requires

almost two hours to traverse the huge caverns and
most of the party were glad to see daylight again.
The return drive was made at record speed and
we arrived back in Brussels tired but happy and
absolutely satiated with a veritable feast of scenery.
" Utopia."
18 DISTRICT PAY OFFICE, B.A.O.R.
At last the tedious Winter has passed and the
beauties of the local countryside increase with each
passing day and thoughts turn to cricket and tennis
and the delights which many of us will enjoy in the
byways of this picturesque part of Germany.
The amenities of Detmold continue to improve
and with the coming of the 1st Royal Norfolk Regt.,
who join the 1st Royal Tank Regt. in the near future,
it is anticipated that activities of a sporting nature
will be considerably increased, as both battalions
have made reputations for themselves in that direction
in the B.A.O.R
Those of us who have not been able to take
advantage of Operation "Union" (families joining
husbands in B.A.O.R) are pleased to hear that a
telephone for calls to the United Kingdom is being
installed in the Garrison Theatre. These calls are
most popular throughout the zone and calls are
booked up to capacity three or four days before
required. A charge of 5s. for three minutes is made.
Two of our officers , Lieuts. Stump and Crawte,
have really got down to the business of providing us
with sound films and after much hard work have
produced projectors, complete with sound apparatus
put together by themselves and the results of their
labours apart from the appreciation of the detachment must have been an adequate reward. A cinema
has been arranged in a disused room in the office
building and advantage is taken to show on alternate
weeks, films issued by A.B.c.A. and the War Office,
in lieu of the A.B.C.A. discussions. Feature films
are also shown and such masterpieces as " Henry V,"
"Life and Death of Colonel Blimp" and "The
Captive Heart" have been shc.wn or are coming
shortly.
Lieut. D. A. Girvan who, for the past two years,
has been making a reputation as a footballer of
outstanding ability, was recently selected to play for
a representative B.A.O.R. team against the R.A.F.
Since then he has been selected as a member of the
7th Armoured Division team against 5th Infantry
Division.
Periodic allocation of cameras has been notified,
and we have been allotted three. Competition for
these, and the field glasses also allotted, is very keen,
both being of first-class make and reputation. Distribution is made by " draw" and payment is made
by the winners.
Officers'Mess. Arrivals.-Since the last notes
we have had pleasure in welcoming Mrs. S. C. Rogers
and family and Mrs . D. A. Girvan. Mrs. Rogers
quickly got into her stride and is already serving <?n
various committees dealing with Welfare matters III
the station. Mrs. Girvan, unfortunately struck a bad
patch and after being out here for only a short time,
she was admitted to hospital with a throat infection.
She remained there for some four weeks and is now
recovered and out and about again .
Captain Markey and Lieut. Stump have had spells
in hospital for minor operations, although Captain
Markey's didn't turn out to be quite so minor as we
9 DISTRICT PAY OFFICE

Perhaps the most significant happening of the past
quarter was the return to " peace time" office hours,
with two half-days a week off, excluding Sundays.
The change is particularly welcome in view of the
glorious weather which has been prevalent for the
past fortnight .
Our only arrival this quarter was S.S.M. J.
Thompson from R.P. Whitley and we hope the rest
of his stay here will be more free from trouble than
it has been since his arrival.
We are also pleased to welcome to Brussels, two
old friends in the persons of Major W. F. Elam and
S jSgt. V. J. Edwards, who are engaged in the task
of opening up the Railways Branch Pay Office here.
The first " O.R.s" families have at last arrived.
Mrs. Wylie, wife of Sgt. J. Wylie, arrived on 9th April,
and was followed by Mrs Thompson, wife of S.S.M.
J. Thompson, on 12th April. They just managed to
beat the ban which has now been imposed on further
arrivals . Our sympathies are with S jSgt. Ferrier and
Sgt. Gethings, who have been trying in vain for
months to get their families out.
Congratulations to Captain H. Clark and Lieut.
J.. ~. Rea on being granted Short Service CommiSSIOns.
The remainder of our personal notes must be
, taken up by departures, actual and pending. Sgts.
Tommy Metcalf and J . B. Scott left early in the
new year on release to be followed by Pte. (Chindit)
Heywood, Cpl. J. Ronald and Pte. A. (Welder)
Clark. Captain V. T. Holt, Lieut. C. S. Sainsbury,
Sgts. Tommy Martin and Benny Morris have
departed for the ' wilds of Germany, and L jCpl.
Morgan, despairing of ever being promoted, transferred to the RA.E.C. and attained three stripes all
in one day.
Among our impending departures are Sgt. J. A.
Harris, Bombardiers Gaydon and Murray, L jCpl.
Scatchard and Ptes. Gollop and Tedder.
The last five sever our last remaining link with
the RA. and we have to thank them for helping us
out so loyally over a difficult time.
Sgt. Harris is clamouring for deferment of his
impending release. In view of his vehement denUDciations of the Army over the past few months
we think we are justified in assuming that Spring is
in the air, and the Love Bug has bitten deep.
By the time the next notes are perused, 9 D.P.O.
will be but the barest wraith of its former self, if it
exists at all, and with this in view it was decided to
have an outing.
On Sunday, 27th April, a bus-load set off for a trip
down the Meuse Valley. We visited Namur and
Dinant and finished up with an exploratory tour of
the Grotto of Hans.
This place can only be described as Nature's
marble factory. Production is not geared to modern
459

had expected and necessitated a lengthy stay in
hospital. We are pleased to say they are both now
back to normal.
Departures.-We have said" au revoir" to the
following and hope they are enjoying their new
stations: Major "Wally" Elam to Brussels,
Lieut. H. Barley to Iserlohn, Lieut. Jock Heard to
Hamburg, and Lieut. Fowler to Osnabruck.
Before the next issue of the Corps Journal we shall
have said "good-bye" to Lieuts. W. B. Sturgess,
C. S. B. Sherlock and L. J. H. Bowler who will have
returned to civilian life. In advance we wish them
the best of luck-but the price of cigarettes!
The new Mess has now been completely taken over
,from the C.C. G. and we pride ourselves that it now
compares with any in the B.A.O.R-our visitors
also agree with us. Any reference to our Mess would
be incomplete without mention of Colonel W. J.
Humphrey, O.B.E., M.C. (Retd.), who is the Kreis
Resident Officer of the Kreis of Detmold. He has
lived with us since the Mess was taken over, and his
geniality and wealth of experiences gained over many
years of Army service, ensure that there is never a
dull moment when he is around.
On the 14th March we had the pleasure of a visit
to the office of our new D.P.I.C., Brigadier W. J.
Bilderbeck, O.B.E., who, we trust, will enjoy a
pleasant tour during his stay in B.A.O.R At the
same time we would like to express our good wishes
to our late D.P.I.C., Brigadier H. Golding, C.B.E.,
and to wish him a happy tour in his new station.
It is with regret that we have to record an unfortunate accident which happened to our Adjutant,
Captain W. J. Morris, who went out during the
night of 20-21st April to locate one of our vehicles
which had broken down on the autobahn. Having
located the vehicle he was walking over to it when,
in the darkness, he fell through a gap which divided
the two roads and fell some 140 feet on to the verge
of a stream below. He was taken to hospital ~where
he was found to be suffering from a fractured spine,
broken wrist and broken ribs in addition to shock.
We all hope that he will make a complete and speedy
recovery and be back with us again soon.
At the time of writing, Captain J. G. Rippin,
J. L. Markey, and Lieut. Sherlock are on privilege
leave in U.K. having a good time, we hope.
Sergeants' Mess.-Affairs in the Sergeants' Mess
are flourishing, especially since the advent of our
portion of the B.A.O.R. wives.
Our once allmasculine company of Rheine and Ludenscheid days
is now considerably enlivened by the ladies' presence,
notably at the now regular monthly demob. parties
which, despite drastic reductions in cigarette and
Steinhager rations and our rapidly decreasing membership, still provide an excuse to let our "hair
down."
Seventy per cent. of Mess members are " Operation Unionists" and to date all applications under
the scheme have been fulfilled. The following have
their families with them-S .S.M. Fowler, S.Q.M.S.
Hansen, S.Q.M.S. Alexander, S/Sgts. Williams.
Jessop, Haystead, Wright and Best, Sgts. Fountain,
Harrison and Clark (Re ~ ce) whilst S/Sgt. Norris and
Sgts. Chapman, Bates, Mossop and Campbell keep
the flag flying in their " Splendid isolation" as the
remaining dining members.
EntertainIllent.-Apart from demob. "do's,"
our social life recently has included whist drives, at
which the officers and outside friends have been
welcome participants, and a well-attended trip on

Easter Day to Hameln (Hamlyn to you-of Pied
Piper fame). With the arrival of the finer weather
following the snow and ice of the Winter months
trips are envisaged to Mohne See (whose place i~
history was assured by Guy Gibson, V.C.) and other
places of interest and beauty.
Sport.-Despite our small numbers', the Mess has
played its part in Unit soccer this Winter and yeoman
se~vi.ce to the team has been rendered by S /Sgts.
Wdhams, Jessop and Best, and Sgt. Clark. It is
hoped that we shall again be prominent in the cricket
team, which last season was almost the prerogative
of the Sergeants' Mess.
Arrivals.-We welcome S/Sgt. Alec Norris, who
has joined us from D.P. Nottingham, and trust that
his stay with us will be a happy one.
Departures.-Many valued friends and Mess
members have left us for the hazards of Civvy Street
since our last notes and to S /Sgts. Bertie Stout,
Doug. Lansdell and Sgts. " Kleine " Anthony, and
Maurice Shipley go our best wishes for happiness
and success in their new life. S /Sgts. Edwards and
Gunnell have left us for " fresh fields and pastures
new" on posting.
Men's Mess.-As the report for the Spring issue
was on its way to England, we were launched into
the throes of a severe Winter, but on reading the
papers and there noticing the reports on Winter
weather in England, we decided that as far as we
were concerned, we had better be thankful for small
mercies, and keep quiet regarding the climate.
A recent football match between the Officers and
Sergeants versus Men's Mess resulted in a win for
the former by 1-0. It was a very enjoyable match
and as the result indicates was closely contested.
In early February we were sorry to lose Cpl.-now
Mr. Sidney Lewis. Although he was not long in our
midst, he spread a smile around the Unit wherever
he went, and we wish him every success in Civvy
Street. Also we remember Charles Fletcher, now on
a postman's holiday, Philip Parsons, the idol of the
Southern Railway, Geoff Rae and Bill Randell.
On Easter Monday a party revisited our old
haunts in Ludenscheid.
So, as we close this quarter's article, we look forward to a bright and sunny Summer, and we send
our very best regards to all other Corps Establishments, wherever they:may be.
N.C.
22 COMMAND PAY OFFIc:.E, BURMA

If these notes should turn out" stinkers"
May be " Sol" has tapped our" thinkers,"
So our sins must be remitted ;
In advance we are acquitted.
Location.-We moved 15 miles or so from the
heart of Rangoon into Mingaladon Cantt. on
2nd May. Mingaladon has an air-strip and there are
two or three roads, so it is not altogether jungle.
But next monsoon will be even wetter and muddier
than the last.
Congratulations.-To Sgt. "Taffy" Wargent
on his marriage to Miss Peggy Thein and on joining
the regulars. To S.S.M. R Kerry and Sgt .. C.
Ashman on news of additions to their respective
families .
Condolences.-To the a/n "Taffy," whose
Python deferment application was too late. We hope
he will succeed in getting back this way soon.
460

Married Families.-The familie~ of a few !uc~y
Corps personnel have recently arnved.
Pnonty
. tructl'ons etc. augur well for them, and we hope
Ins
.
to give you" a report from " re l'la bl e quarters " m
our next issue.
.
.
staff.-Part of our December 1946 contnb~tlOn,
which gave details of some of our ~taff, was or~lltted,
so here are a few nam~s not preVIOusly mentIOned:
C.P., Lieut.-Colonel H. M. Campbell. (York,
1942-44), . ex-B.A.O .R ;
A./C.P., Major L.
McDonald (Manchest~r, 1940-46), taught pr?bationers at Aldershot m the later 30s; Captam
D. C. Marshall, Lieuts. L. E. W. Jeffery and P.
Arrowsmith ;
Chief Clerk,. S.S.M. R Kerry
(Woolwich, Foot's Cray, and Lelceste~ L.A.A., 193645)' S.Q.M.S. W. Slater (ex-Nottmgham).
We recently welcomed re-enlisted Sgt. Bob Pugh
(ex-Nottingham);
S /Sgts. Norman Russell and
Tommy Jones'
Sgts." Wally" Dodd (Eastern
Command), T~m Hebson and "Dai" (B.r inle)
Davies. We also thankfully greeted a host of pnvates
and will not single out anyone for mention.
" March Python" claimed a large number of our
staff, and to them we wish good fortune in the future.
Captain A. T. Grogan, our A.9.? departed on the
April boat. Lieut. G. A. L. WIIkmson, after ~ very
short stay, left for home by air on compaSSIOnate
reversion. We have been ternbly short of officers,
owing to sickness and unforeseen repatriation, et.c.,
but we are back to normal with the advent of Major
H. K. Osborne and Major W. Lees, and by temporary loans of Infantry Officers-all of whom are
cordially welcomed.
Military Training.-" S.E.A.C." doesn't stand
for" Soldiers Except All Clerks," nor does it stand
for" Sloth, Ennui, Apathy, Chaos," but for .something really solid like cl Steak, Eggs And Chlps"recently we turned out to a man for rifle, bay~net
and revolver training, and taking the heat mto
account, the way the boys "cha;ged" ,.was a
" credit" (Ouch! Where's Enoch-I 11 tell Im!)
Kiswasti?
We remember an E. E. Deeley ;
We think he is still in the Corps ;
His cartoons were very goo~reeley,
And the Old 'uns are shouting for more.
Football.-We now have a Detachment team, and
get at least one game per week. Victories and defeats
are about equal in number. Matches are played on
the Jap Camp Ground, where hundreds of Jap
spectators are most enthusiastic about " honor'lable
casualties to illustlious Blitons."
Water Festiva1.-This Carnival of the Burmese
New Year lasts four days and consists mainly of
patrolling the streets in parties, decked in Carnival
attire, singing, shouting and clanging cymbals and
" fighting" with water.
Vehicles camo~fiaged. as
peacocks and river boats are a particularly lffipreSSlve
feature. Merry-makers wait at " water points" and
drench everyone who passes within range. Last year
it was overdone-hoses were turned full on drivers
of military vehicles, and there were several fatal
casualties. This year we were forbidden to take part,
but we did not escape. Our gharri broke down r~ght
against a water point one morning, and the natlv~s
splashed us merrily and thoroughly. ~he first rat?
coincided with the first day of the festival, and thiS
the Burmese take to be a good omen. Thus we
come to the Epilogue, so Good Luck, Folks, and
Happy Landings.
CEYLON
The past few months have seen many. change~ in
the office and as they always make inter~stmg readmg,
here are the details. New arrivals are Major Burrows
(Finsbury Circus) who is back to the grindst~)fle after
his regrettable experience in the Negombo air crash;
S /Sgt. A. Fuller (Glasgow); Sgt. Lloyd (Manchester); Sgt. S. Jackson (Leeds R.E.M.E.); and
Ptes. D. Holmes and T. Roberts (Costing School,
Aldershot). The last two named arrived by air and
are with R.E. Costing. Major W. Lees returned from
L.I.A.P. to resume his journey to Singapore. Departures are Ma.ior Shand-Tully and family for
Nairobi; Lieuts . Arrowsmith (for Rangoon);
Campbell Dennis and Saunders; S /Sgt. H. O.
Bracey ; 'Sgt. R Turner and Pte: R Kent. Lieut.
D. Leslie has left us temporanly for a spot of
L.I.A.P. and Scotch Mist.
General.-The family of S /Sgt. Cross will be
here by the time these notes appear in print and the
families of S /Sgts. Coulson and Fuller and Sgt.
Lloyd should also be with us ere long. This has the
approval of the Sergeants' Mess as the ladies at the
Mess functions are few at present.
Entertainments.-In the Sergeants' Mess every
nerve is being strained to keep things cracking and
we have had one particularly successful dance. The
Junior ranks have had a couple of successful HouseyHousey nights and it is heard that their next. effo~
is a dance. A very popular week-end pastlme IS
surf-bathing and swimming at the ne~rby resort of
Mount Lavinia. Here the vendors of pmeapples and
bananas do a very good trade.
Sport.-Despite the fact that we have lost several
of our regular players we have managed with . the
assistance of a few players from a nearby Umt to
field a fairly strong football team and give our
opponents plenty to think about. The last .five games
yielded four victories and a draw. An mter-office
game between C.P. and RP. proved very enjoyable
if not exciting, C .P. claiming victory ~y 10 goals t~ I ,
thanks to a civilian named Dias. It IS truly amazmg
how these fellows can kick a ball with their bare feet.
Many interesting cricket games have been. ~l~yed
since our last report, the team being mos~ly clvlhans,
but recently S/Sgt. AlIen has been leading them to
victory. It is not now possible to muster a hockey
team (how we miss the A.T.S.) and o~ o~ly other
sport of note is yachting. The enthUSiastic oldest
member, Sgt. D. Jacobs, has been. j~ined by the
C.P., Lieut.-Colonel Whitty, and by Lieut. WIlIard,
and all three regularly compet,e in the R?yal Colombo
Yacht Club races, enlisting the services of other
members of the Detachment to crew for them.
Fishing from yachts is also gaining in popularity and
Lieut. Willard can spin a yarn or two about the ones
he did not bother to tow home behind his yacht.
Corps Comments.-We must inf?rm Gib~altar
that their Treasury Chest Cash Book IS not unlq~e.
The C.P. Ceylon has a Cash Book (F?rm H) whl~h
was opened by Captain R G. Stanham m August 19:.6
but is as yet only half completed. (See our Notes
for 1970 for' further developments.) It is further
interesting to note that the Treasury .Chest <;:ash
Book has, in accordance with Treasury mstructlOns,
had a minor alteration in script after 90 yea~s.
Bermuda are asked to note that we also. have a cl~lm
fQf 1914-18 War Gratuity, but our pnze effort 1S a
claim from a discharged soldier for three years' pay,
etc., being his entitlement for period between date
461

of his discharge and the date of his A. and S. Group's
Release. His grounds are breach of contract by
irregular dismissal and he claims Rs.14,800. Can
anyone better that ?
Awaiting challenges, we close with best wishes to
the Corps w herever it may be.
" Lanka."
GIBRALTAR
No sooner do we receive the Spring edition than
we start to write the notes for the Summer issue !
Our big events of the last few weeks have been the
arrival of our new Governor and Commander-inChief, Sir Kenneth Anderson, K.C.B., M.C ., and
the arrival in this Command of the 5th Fusiliers and
2nd Cameronians.
Shortly after his arrival the Governor paid an
informal visit to the Command Pay Office and the
Officers were intr~duced to His Excellency .
On St. George's Day the "Fighting' Fifth"
performed the ceremony of cc Trooping the Colours."
This ceremony has not been carried out in Gibraltar
for some time and proved of considerable interest.
The traditional ceremony o~ t he Rock is, of course,
the " Ceremony of the Keys" which dates back to
the Siege of Gibraltar, and as he title implies is the
ceremonial locking of the Gates to the Fortress.
The arrival of the 2nd C ameronians at once
gladdened the hearts of those strange speaking people
from over the Border, who were bewailing the loss
of the bagpipes following the departure of the
1st Battalion Liverpool Scottish, so now we have the
Sassenachs bewailing the continued use of these
strange instruments of torture!
New arrivals to the Rock are S /Sgt. R G . Smith
and Pte. D . R Clements (Manchester) and our
" Coster," Sgt. D. Bevan (Finsbury).
Lieut. W. H. Gillis (Devizes) also arrived here
preceded by his wife and children. A welcome return
to Mrs. Gillis who has spent m any years here.
Those who have departed homeward bound are
Lieut. D. C. Maxey (to Formation College prior to
Release) , Lieut. P. E. R Bailey (who left in a hurry,
reverted to home establishment for a course at the
RA.E.C. College pending transfer to the RA.E.C.),
S /Sgt. J. R W. Elliott-accompanied by Mrs. Elliott
and children-(on Python) , L /Cpl. D. L. Wright
and Pte. P. Leeming (for Release) . We wish them all
every success in their new spheres (I nearly said happy
release I).
In the sporting world our heroic football team
emulated feats of Samson and Atlas by carrying the
w hole of the league upon their shoulders. A fine
example of " never say die! "
We had two entries in the Individual Road Race,
Pte. Renel and Pte. Booth, who completed the
seven-mile course in 13th and 25th places respectively,
a really excellent and creditable performance, when
you consider the "Rock" was put in the way as
an obstacle!
Our Juniors maintain a high standard in six-a-side
Hockey, which sport although not officially encouraged here, provides some keen and well fought
matches.
Sgt. H . Best proved himself" Cock of the Rock"
in winning the W.O.s and Sergeants' Individual
Billiards Championship of Gibraltar.
Hasta la vista.
N.A.D .M.
462
Sergeants' Mess Notes.-Hello to our nons.mo~ing fraternity in U .K. What! You never did
lIke It, anyway? Well I hope you let me in on the
secret as I'll be there in the near future and these are
the last notes from Gibraltar from the present scribe.
The W.O.s and Sergeants' Mess Billiards League
has been completed and the Mess finished in the
fourth position of eight teams, having won 4 drawn 4
and lost 5 with one match un played which could not
affect the final positions. The highest break in the
league (40) was held by S .S .M. Clarke until the
eleventh of the 13 games played but we are pleased
to state that the break that beat it (41) was made by
Sgt. Best who holds a small souvenir to mark the
event. Sgt. Best also proved to be the best man in
the Individual Competition, winning the final of
300 up by 26 points. We were hoping for a RA.P.C.
final with two RA.P.C. members in the last four
but unfortunately S .S .M . Clarke and Sgt. Best were
drawn together in the semi-final.
For the benefit of old members of G ibraltar, the
Mess collection of Ship's Crests/Photos are still being
added to and the latest are those of H.M .S.
cc Triumph "
and H.M.S. cc Verulum."
The
presentations were baptised in true Mess style, and
RU.C. (ru~ under the counter).
We have recently lost one of our long serving
members-S/Sgt. Joe Elliott-who volunteered to
return to that land of cc No this " and cc No that."
We wish him, and Mrs. Elliott and the famil y, happy
settling in the U .K.
Welcomes have been extended to S /Sgt. Smith
and Sgt. Bevan (the Costing bloke) and we hope their
sojourn with us will be a happy one. S.Q.M.S.
Adams and S jSgt. Smith are developing housemaids'
knees recently. Reason being-allocation of Married
Quarters and getting- things ship-shape before the
wives arrive. Tell them, so"m ebody, however good
their intentions and efforts, the place for everything
will soon be changed.
And with that, Messmates, I'll say, for the last
time,
Adios.
cc Hopleaf."
HONG KONG
Since our last contribution to the Journal we have
had several additions to the staff: S /Sgt. Eric Bacon
from Canterbury, Sgt. Vic Wing from Foot's Cray,
and Sgt. Trevor Cobley from Exeter. All three
arrived on the 1st March. Later in the month
Mrs. Weaver, with her two children, arrived to join
her husband in this very beautiful colony, and was
closely followed by Ptes. Smith an9. Lodge who had
flown out from the U.K. on a high priority bearing a
banner with a strange device-CC Costing." S /Sgt.
Keates left on the 10th March on Python and is by
now enjoying a well earned leave in blighty.
The Garrison Sergeants' Mess moved from its
temporary quarters in Kennedy Road down to its
pre-war mess in Queen's Road, and an opening
night was held on Saturday , 3rd May, which turned
out to be a very successful evening. The Garrison
Mess might almost be called the RA.P.C. Mes s as
the P.M.C., Treasurer and the temporary caterer are
all RA.P.C. Every night there is one hundred per
cent. attendance of RA.P.C. Sergeants who keep
up the Corp!! tradition by being hardened beer
swillers.
Occasionally we have the opportunity of hiring
a launch and trips by sea are arranged to various bays
is little to add beyond saying that in considering"'its

lounge or smoke-room however, we are strongly
reminded of that doubtful definition of a village
Women's Institute-CC a place where sympathy is
given in exchange for details."
The cost of living in New Delhi is usually a matter
for comment with casual visitors. Part of the evil
is no doubt a legacy of the occupation period when
the dollar reigned supreme. Suffice it to say that it
costs the cc one-star private" at least 4s. 6d. to obtain
a meal at the cheapest of restaurants in New Delhi,
and that the rates of Local Overseas Allowance are
ad hoc (i .e., not based upon any cost of living index).
Of cinemas there are four, excluding the garrison
and native types. Prices are well in advance of U .K.
equivalents but here in New Delhi at least, reasonably new films are exhibited.
Over our work, fond as we are of cas ting clouts,
we have no wish to draw any veils. At G .H.Q. (I)
we perform roughly the same functions as F9 at
the War Office. In matters of detail there may be
differences, for example, we are at the constant mercy
of a telephone system which is apparently designed
to work only by accident. Also, we have had to
accustom ourselves to receiving final decisions
(weighty) written in extremely bad Anglo-Hindi
script.
A word to the heavy smokers, Players Medium and
similar brands are still selling at 2s. 9d. per tin of 50,
in this country. Unfortunately we are only permitted
eight Duty Free labels per year, thus we are unable
to help out our many friends, but we would point
out that so far as we are aware there is at present no
waiting list of volunteers for Service in this Command!
around the Island. On 4th -May we managed to fix

up one of these trips and went to Repulse Bay where
a good time was had by all. We are also the proud
possessor of a badminton court situated outside the
office and the staff spend much of their spare time
bashing the shuttleco<:k.
.
A further increase m staff IS expected when we
take over the Officers' Accounts from Meerut from
1st July and no dou~t we shall h~ve a rath.er hectic
time for a while untIl we get the Job organIsed
G.H.Q. (I), NEW DELID

The Winter 1946 edition of the Journal has just
reached us, and whilst our tired (acclimatised) ey~s
have become accustomed to anachronisms of thIS
nature we are not sure that the arrival of the Winter
edition, coincident with a shade temperature of
approximately 100 degrees (and still rising), was not
a cruel joke on somebody's part. The temperature
quoted, by the way, is in degrees. Fahrenh~it, not
Centigrade, though the apparent dIfference IS only
that between near-boiling and actual boiling point.
One local European owned newspaper recently
recorded a maximum shade temperature on the
previous day of 184 degrees Fahrenheit, but with
the knowledge of its absolute mania for misprints, we
accepted the statement with some reservation.
This is our first contribution to the Journal and the
omission inherent in that statement though it might
be fairly ascribed to the new pay code, which perforce
has to pass through the" filter" of G.H.Q. (I), had
perhaps better be regretted and left at that.
Natienalisation of G.H.Q. (I) is proceeding apace,
as in all branches of the Indian armed forces, and
with the exception of Colonel Charlton and Lieut.Colonel Davies, whose families have joined them
here, our officers find the "composite Mess" in
which they live inhabited by an increasing majority
of Indian officers. A recent incident of food poisoning
affecting some 30 per cent. of the Sher Shah Mess
also claimed Major Huxford as a victim. Within
26 hours however he was restored to the list of active
members, temporarily non-dining.
Personnel of H.Q. British Pay_Services comprises
Colonel G. H. Charlton, C.B-:-E., M.C. , Lieut.Colonel C. O. Davies, M.B.E. , Major C. B. Huxford,
Captain W . Morgan, Captain W. E. Sterrett, S /Sgt.
J . A. Lyall, Sgts. J. W. Offen, L. Powdrell, D. M.
Bloomfield, T. C. Carrington-Porter, M. Richings,
Cpls. N. Daniels, J. H. Kiddy, and R. A. Chater.
Opportunities for sport are extremely limited in
this Mecca of the pukha sahib, and in view also of
the smallness of the Detachment, we have nothing
to record under this head. Such facilities as do exist
are almost entirely under the control and on the
property of the many clubs, membership of whichoddly enough in the light of political trends-is
becoming more and more restricted to " Permanent
Members" for which dubious title and doubtful
privilege large lump-sums and standing subscriptions
are extorted.
The social life of New Delhi is, in the main,
centred on these clubs.
For the benefit of the
innocent again, we should perhaps explain that cc the
club" is an essential part of the Cantonment of every
(garrison) town in India, and occupies a unique place.
Its social standing is rated higher than that of the
Officers' Messes, and its cuisine is loyally represented
by members as the" best in the cantonment." There
INDIA COMMAND
Salaams from India.-Even here we have had
our spate of rumours regarding our departure from
Meerut, and places named have ranged from Bombay
to the Himalayas, but still there is no smoke without
fire, and I expect that before these notes are in print
we shall have said good-bye to those of our comrades
who are destined for Burma, Ceylon and Singapore
on the decentralisation of the Officers' Pay Accounts.
As for the remainder of us we shall have to do what
Asquith said-" Wait and See."
Although the papers published out here .d ? not
contain very much English news, the fuel cnSlS has
been fully reported and our sympathies go out to all
of you who suffered during the very cold. spell.
Personally, I think the coalman must have dehvered
the coal out here by mistake!
The Sergeants' Mess decided that it was about
time they were in the news, so they vacated. the
RA. Station Mess premises and moved back mto
their old quarters. In celebration of the event a
social evening was held on 12th April, 1947, the chief
items being horse racing (complete with bookies).and
a concert followed by a dance. The commIttee
responsible are to be congratulated on a very enjoyable evening.
At the time these notes are being written there is
no football in the 83 Battalion. This is most unusual,
but it has been decided not to enter a team in the
" Hot "Veather Tournament" this year. The first
three months of 1947 have witnessed several good
games at Meerut, notable matches being those
against the 1 Battalion, The Royal Scots Fusiliers
463

at;td G.H.Q. Signals. The return match with G.H.Q.
SI~als gave the members of the team an oppor~Ity of spending an tnjoyable week-end at Delhi.
Srnce ~~e end of December we have run three
competItIOns-the Bungalow League, Inter-Group
Knock-Out Competition and the Bungalow KnockOut C~mpetition.
In the Bungalow League the
Officers team proved successful much to the dismay
o~ the local bookies. Interest in the games was very
hIgh and most teams put up a creditable performance
several replays being necessary in the closing stage~
of the C:0!llpeti~ions . It is too early to forecast what
the posItIOn WIll be next season, but I think it can
safely be said that if the RA.P.C. are still in India
a football team will be found which will do credit
to the Corps. To those members of the team who
have left for the U.K. and have a future in the game
we. say "Good Luck" and may they prosper i~
theIr new venture.
A large number of old friends have left us for the
U.K. during the last few months on Python or
Release and we hope that they find "England's
Green and Pleasant Land" a better country than
letters and newspapers' reports lead us to believe it is.
To those members who have joined us from U.K.
and other stations in India we extend a very hearty
welcome and hope they enjoy their stay in Meerut.
Our ?ag of promotions during the last quarter has
been faIrly heavy so that it is not possible for me to
give a complete list, but to all who have donned a
crown or tapes we offer our heartiest congratulations.
the~mometer a~ 56. , Amusements are many and
variOus: TennIS, Cricket, Badminton, Football and

~ockey g? on almost all the year round; four
clI~e~as gIve us our choice of Bob Hope or Laurence
Ohvler and programmes change three or four tim
a w,eek. Th~ local bazaar is well stocked with eve~~r
varIe~ ~f artIcle that the mind or body could de3irereally: It s rat~er a shock to a new arrival to find silk
stockIngs beIng sold in large numbers and that
w~tches have become a drug on the market. The
p~Ices are the only snag! A suit made to measure
wIll cost you . 9 anywhere and worsted flannels
4 10s. The rupee, valued at Is. 6d., is only worth
about ~d. but then wc can obtain any kind of food
and drink that it is possible to obtain anywhere in
the w?rld-even champagne I-for a sufficiency of
the saId rupees.
~he inter.ests of . the De.tachment are many and
varied. ~aJor Gol~ghtley IS famous for his gramophone r~cltals of h~ghbrow music. Captain Drummond IS Officer-rn-Charge Tennis and Sports
for th,e Office, and, Hockey Umpire for the area.
CaptaIn Exton is the e~p.ert on changing foreign
currency (the fact that thIS rnvolves a periodic trip to
Bombay doesn't mean a thing-or does it).
Cpl.
Hughes and Pte. White are in charge of Tombola at
the local Lumley Canteen, but as neither of them has
yet acquired a motor car we must assume that the
c~stomers get full value. Sgt. Kean is well known by
hIS stage name of Billy Costello and broadcasts
frequently on the local rediffusion service. S.Q.M.S.
Evans has a hand in every possible kind of entertainm.e nt that the Sergeants' Mess run and they are all
hIghly successful: Sgt. Morris is one of the quiet
type whose only Interest seems to be on the Billiard
table where he is the tiger of the Sergeants' Mess at
Snooker.
His constant companion in "crime,"
Sgt. Smart, has temporarily left us for duty as Pay
Expert at Kalyan Transit Camp. The remaining
members of the Staff, Ptes. Birch and Fennell have
only been with us seven weeks and their' main
inte.re,sts seem to be getting their' knees brown and
aVOIdIng all possible pitfalls.
The monkey that
Fennell acqUIred on a Saturday, bit him on the
Sunday and was re-sold on the Monday. Sic transit
gloria.
Well, I appear to have covered all the ac ~ ivities
of this small Detachment and, until next time, would
send the usual good wishes to all offices, detachments,
and other outposts of the Corps, from the happy few
at Homeward Bound, Deolali.
" Bulldog."
DEOLALI
. I. t~ink I am right in saying this is the first time
In hVIng memory that notes for the R.A.P.C. Journal
have emanated from this delectable spot. Well, here
they are.
Here at The Homeward ' Bound Trooping Depot
we are a Detachment from Meerut, consisting at
present of Major J. K. Golightley (Staff Paymasterin-command), Captain R J. Drummond, Captain
J. A. Exton, S.Q.M.S. 1. L. Evans, Sgts. H. Morris,
L. W. Smart, W. J. Kean, Cpl. P., J. Hughes, Ptes.
G. F. White, D. Birch and G. P. Fennell. We run
what we believe to be a highly successful Pay Advice
Bureau looking after the needs of those whose Indian
days are spent; all the Officers and Other Ranks
yvith .o r without families, all the Nursing Sisters, the
Invahded and the time expired, everyone who is
forsaking sun-kissed Asia for the happy homeland .
It is a highly interesting job and we have every variety
of query to answer, including some we can't answer
(e.g., Where can I get Nylon Stockings??!!)
Another happy task is the making of advances of
Pay to all officer transients calling for a ready mixture
of tact, discretion, broadmindedness, plus a sense of
humour.
All older soldiers will remember Deolali as the
collecting centre for mental and T.B. cases-but now
those days are far distant and the hospitals have been
replaced by a huge, well-laid ou t, series of transit
camps. Families Wing Munro Camp (Officers and
Other Ranks with Families) Darna Camp (Officers
and .Other Ranks) Connaught Camp (Officers only),
Nasik Road Camp (Officers and Other Ranks).
. The Deolali climate is ideal from any' point of
VIew. At the present (i.e., in December) it is quite
comfortab.le to wear either thick or thin clothingalthough It does get a bit chilly at nights with the
JAMAICA (71 DETACHMENT)

The climate here is perpetual summer, but the
personnel of this office are now becoming, like the
home weather, changeable. We extend a warm
welcome to Sgt. Camp bell from Officers' Accounts,
Manchester, and say cheerio to Sgt. Thornton on
his return to the U.K. for Release. Ship movements
seem a very popular form of discussion these days,
as several more reliefs are due, to replace those who
are anxious 'to see the view of Jamaica from the stern
of a Blighty-bound ship.
A very enjoyable break from work and ,camp was
experienced by the Military and A.T.S., when on
Sunday, 16th March, a trip was made to Tower
Beach on the North coast. The drive through typical
tropical country of sugar cane, pineapple, orange,
464

banana, etc., terminated on a beautiful beach of
white sand, fringing a warm blue sea. The A.T.S.
came across "trumps" with a really fine lunch,
which was washed down with many bottles of local
mineral water. Games were enjoyed on the palmfringed beach, and it is said that several stalwarts
swam to Tower Island, approximately 500 yards
from the shore, but as the water in most places is
only 2 feet deep, it is wondered if they went on their
hands and knees.
The A.T.S. are ' devoting a lot of time (out of
office) and energy towards the selling of tickets in the
forthcoming ball, which will be held at Springfieldon-Sea. From knowl~dge of previous efforts, it
should be a happy evenIng for all.
By the time these notes are printed, the office will
have moved to Newcastle, 4,000 feet up in the
mountains, for its annual" change of air." We are,
as usual, keenly looking forward to the move, which
means nearly three months away from the heat of
Kingston.
Colonel Holmes recently added to his laurels as

reported in the Spring issue, by winning, without
fault, the Open Jumping Event on "Soldier" at
the Sarafand Gymkhana held on Easter Monday
7th April, 1947.
'
Football.-Owing to releases, postings, etc., the
excellent start made by the Battalion XI failed to be
maint~ine? and a very lean time was had recently
but thIS dId not dampen the enthusiasm of either the
players or the regular followers . Bad luck and " the
run of the ball" saw us put out of the Area Cup
being beaten by 470 Company RA.S.C ., the result
not reflecting the play.
The last match or two has shown a decided
improvement and it would seem as if the season
would finish as it started in a blaze of glory. S.S .M.
" J ohnny" King has upheld the favourable impression made with the Army selectors and has
appeared for the Palestine Command Army Team in
all matches with the exception of once when he was
on leave. It is difficult to pick out individuals in the
unit team which has done its best under difficult
conditions but Ptes. Mathers, Paice, Rickman and
S.S.M. Clark are worthy of mention.
It is interesting to note that RA.P.C. Referees
recently augmented by the arrival of Major Miller
from U .K., are in the majority in this area. They have
reaped the reward for good work in being chosen to
officiate in representative matches. Lieut. Tozer has
been carrying on the good work in the Command
both from the administrative side and the referee's
world, he has managed both the Army and United
Services Teams which have been undefeated during
the season.
Swimming and Water Polo.-During the
winter season Water Polo matches against the
Y.M.C.A. were played weekly and we also had a
series of Relay races. Although the Battalion team
was unlucky to lose every game by a very small
margin, a team has now been developed which should
stand a good chance in the District and Command
Championship3.
The Instructional Swimming trips to El Jura
recommenced on 29th March and the Battalion is
now trained for any amphibious operation.
Table Tennis.-At present we stand undefeated
in the world of the small celluloid sphere and have
issued a challenge to all teams in the district. Results
of matches to date are very gratifyingv. 13 RE. Field Survey Coy.
Won 4-1
v. Palestine Command Signals. .
Won 4-3
v . 13 R.E. Field Survey Coy.
Won 5-2
Athletics.-The Battalion Athletic team has
already recommenced its training and is steadily
building up for the coming season. We have the
majority of last year's team in addition to some new
talent from U.K. whose capabilities are not yet
known.
Entertainments.-We are now in the happy
position of having converted one of our huts in the
Camp into our own cinema. Film shows are given
three times a week and if at times some of our new
arrivals remember seeing the film and in much more
comfortable seats before leaving England, they are
nevertheless much appreciated by all. Live shows
are at the moment few and far between but we do
receive every show which comes into the Command.
In addition we have received many visits from the
various Military bands in the area.
JERUSALEM (90 BATTALION)

It is with deep regret that we record the death of
Pte. H. E. France who lost his life by Jewish Thug
Activity on 12th March. He was one of our finest
athletes and represented the Brigade in the threemile race at the Palestine Individual Championships.
Since the last issue of the Journal, the political
situation in Palestine has gradually deteriorated and
we have recently been experiencing innumerable
curfews and alarms which have played havoc with
the clerical staff in that many of the civilians have
been prevented from coming to the office. In addition
the Military Staff have been working at top ,pressure
as the Unit has had many operational commitments
in the way of guards and patrols. At the time of
writing we are again in the throes of another curfew
consequent upon the hanging of some of the terrorists
and we are awaiting developments. The outrageous
attack on this Camp in the early hours of 12th March
has been reported on elsewhere in this issue.
Some of our numbers whose families were happily
. s~ttled in Jerusalem had their married life suddenly
dIsturbed by the evacuation of British families from
Palestine under operation "Polly-:" The families of
Major Boggis, S.S.M. Clark and S/Sgt. Arnold were
whisked away in a matter of hours and we hear they
are now summering at El Ballah Camp in Egypt.
Other unfortunate ones were Lieut.-Colonel
~oel-Clarke and S.S.M. King whose families on
dIsembarkation never reached Palestine but were
immediately transferred to the families camp in
Egypt. We hope they will all soon be reunited.
~ith the advent of summer, preparations are
bem~ made for tennis and cricket.
Budding enthUSIasts are already getting into shape and some have
been seen on the tennis court at 06.30 hours. We are
looking forward to another successful season.
Horse Riding.-Riding is becoming increasingly
popular in Jerusalem despite the fact that some
" friendly" Jews disguised a strong dose of gelignite
as ~ kilo stone close to the jumps at AlIenby. The
Umted Services Riding Club caters for both the
expert and the tenderfoot provided of course they
are all armed in traditional style with six shooters.
Dress otherwise optional and often amusing .
:Among the Clubs most ardent supporters from
thIS Unit are to be found our Commanding Officer,
C?lonel Holmes, Major Miller, Captain Chapman and
LIeut. Thompson.
465

Gramophone recitals are a success and even if our
are "low" it is great fun on our "Bing"
n.l ghts, the ~ecital being reproduced through the
CInema amplifier. Perhaps we appreciate our own
shows much more than at ordinary times since so
often there is curfew and no one is allowed out of
Barracks and even when we are allowed out, most of
the places of entertainment in town are "Out of
Bounds."
Officers' Mess.-During the past few months
we have had to provide a home for many officers
who, for security reasons, have been compelled to
live within the cantonment and who have now
become attached to the Mess. Consequently we have
seen many changes and many new faces .
Our average total in Mess is 80.
Our new
P.lV!.C., Major Miller, has quickly settled to his new
dutl~s ~d has proved himself adept at obtaining
furmshIngs and those little things which make leisure
hours more enjoyable.
We frequently hear news of and receive visits from
Major Tudor who left us some time ago to take up
the appointment of S.P.-in-Charge Pay and Records
H.Q. T.J.F.F. at Zerka and we understand that he
and his family are enjoying life in Trans-Jordan.
The social life in the Mess has been confined to
the usual Mess games but we have had some interesting Table Tennis Tournaments. We have so
far however been unable to evolve a system of
handicapping which will prevent our star turn
Lieut. Lewis, from winning every tournament!
'
Sergeants' Mess.-Social activities in the Mess
have been of necessity somewhat curtailed, as will
have been realised by those at home who have been
fortunate in reading unbiased reports in English
newspapers on the present problems confronting the
(un) Holy Land.
During the latter days of February a small band
of enthusiasts succeeded in inveigling quite a
sprinkling of English girls to the Mess for a dance.
Due to the untiring efforts of S.Q.M.S. Mears,
S /Sgt. O'Donovan and Sgt. Hicks together with the
cook who put on quite a spread in the way of eats,
the dance was a huge success and it was anticipated
that we had established ourselves for regular weekly
functions of this kind. As reported elsewhere, our
hopes were soon dashed to the ground and following
the attack in the early hours of 12th March we in the
Syrian Orphanage have been completely is~lated and
inter-mess life is somewhat at a standstill.
To compensate for this lack of social activity, a
Games Tournament was organised during March
but due to generous handicapping it turned out to
b~ a benefit night for S.S.M. Haigh who proved
Without doubt how well he had mis-spent his youth.
The handicapping committee, led by S.S.M. Clark,
has openly vowed that this will not occur again.
Following the evacuation of the families of S.S.M.
King, S .S.M. Clark and S /Sgt. Arnold to Egypt, the
trend of the conversation in the Mess has been
" Married Families" or the "El Ballah" express.
The subject of cricket in anticipation of the coming
season is now to the forefront and the Yorkshire
contingent represented by S.S.M. Haigh and
S.Q.M.S. Nelson asserts that apart from that
stret<:h of English countryside bounded by the
Pennines, Trent and Tees, nobody plays cricket in
quite the same way, or drops so many catches.
In the early days of March we lost the services of
S.Q.M.S. Mears who was unfortunately admitted to
hospital. Rumour has it that he is now back in

England and we se~d him our best wishes for a
speedy. reco,:,ery. HIS vocal renderings serious and
otherwIse WIll long be remembered by those who
were fortunate to hear him. We have also said goodbye to S.S.M. Hirt who has left us for Khartoum.
yve frequently hear from him to the effect that he
IS enjoying life in the Sudan, but that he would
rather be back in Jerusalem. Why, we have no idea.
. To. date we have no new arrivals to report but it
IS b~heved and hoped that we shall shortly receive a
contIngent of three years and six months' men.
Arrivals.-During the last quarter we have been
pleased to welcome Lieut.-Colonel F. W. C. Thomas
who jo.ined us f~om Japan at the beginning of April.
He will deputise for our Commanding Officer,
Colonel <;. Holmes, M .C., during his absence on
L.I.A.P. In the near future. Other arrivals include
Majors C. R. Mockler, O. G. Plowman, P. M. Miller
and S. J. J. Flux. S /Sgts. Coulson, Fryatt, Uncle,
Lord and Wallace have returned from L.I.A.P.
Departures.-We have been sorry to lose the
services of Major C. Partridge on his posting to
" Pay" Branch, G.H.Q. in February. Major Boggis
has consequently stepped into the breach of A /C.P.
t~stes
MAL TA (72 DETACHMENT)

Perhaps the best way of starting our lineshooting" from the George Cross Island would be
to kick off by referring to the photograph which the
writer hopes will appear reasonably near these few
lines! Doubtless it will be well recognised by all
those friends of ours who have served in Malta as
" Montgomery House."
,
The Command Pay Office, Malta

" Montgomery House" has had a rather interesting history to date. From an inscription on the wall
in the courtyard we find :
This building (originally a Market House),
covering an area of 145 feet by 105 feet, was
converted into an Officers' Barracks by order
of the Master General and Board of OrdnanceEstimated Expense .. 1,300 9s. 10d.
Actual Cost ..
1,301 4s. 6d.
Commenced 1st January, 1826.
Completed 31st July, 1826."
Numerous Regimental badges of past Army
"tenants" going back to before the 1914-1918 war
occupy prominent places on the walls, and we take
understandable pride in announcing that Fide et
466

Fiducia is now among them, and is placed above the
life and an eventual Civil Service career on his

demobilisation.
We feel we must also extend our congratulations
to Major W. A. H. Taylor, Captain A. Poole, Lieuts.
F . A. Cozens and C. D. Jensen on obtaining Short
Service Regular Army Commissions this year.
It is amazing how at times life overseas has its
moments . Pte. Terry, we feel sure, is pleased that
he managed to accompany the Mediterranean Fleet
on its Spring Cruise this ' year. Many other Army
personnel were present, but Terry was the only lucky
RA.P.C. man. He was away some three to four
weeks enjoying the choicest spots of the Western
Mediterranean. Needless to say the other members
of Command Pay Office, Malta, were just plain
jealous!
The Other Ranks have 1 ecently rigged up a
Recreation Room in a very out of the way spo(in
the office. We see possibilities in this room for future
celebrations.
Our first party was to say "bon
voyage" to S.S.M. Bartlett and a fine farewell it
was-with plenty of first-class food, and "nonrationed" drinks, to help such an auspicious
occasion.
The Malta Command Camera Club continues to
function. The leading lights are still members of
72 Detachment. At one time it seemed half of
Command Headquarters, Malta, had "gone mad"
on photography-but, as is usual, that has died a
natural death. We are tolerant of those members of
this Detachment who still play about with chemicals
in the Dark Room when they might be getting
sunburned in the lovely Malta sunshine, but we must
admit that once in a while a fairly good picture of
the Detachment personnel is produced. Also, on
reflection, it is just as well that one has a hobby in
a small place such as is Malta.
Pte. S. G. Rump still pI ays football regularly.
Alas, we are not enough in number to have a team
of our own, but the name of the RA.P.C. is in the
Command Headquarters Football Team.
And so we come to the end of this narrative from
Malta. We are still a happy and contented team
under the leadership of Lieut.-Colonel F. G. Norton.
A .P.
C.P.s Office. We wonder, in passing, whether any

of the other famous Army badges were carved in
Maltese stone by a German Prisoner of War!
In very recent times this building was used by
Field Marshal Montgomery and his Staff prior to
the Sicily Campaign and by Command Headquarters,
Malta, as an Officers' Mess. Upon the dissolution
of that Mess it was immediately occupied by us.
We were lucky! There is no doubt that it could not
be improved upon as an office. This view mayor
may not be shared by that Great Man-the C.I.G.S.
-who, on his recent visit to Malta, was surprised
to notice his former G.H.Q., used as a Pay Office!
However, it is reliably believed this subject was
mentioned when he met our C.P., Lieut.-Colonel
F. G. Norton, last November.
Now for the usual Part II Order" entries:
Since last going to press we welcome to the fold
Major H. W. Douse (on 27th January), and S.S.M.
F. Camp, S /Sgt. Cullen and Pte. Coombe (on
1st March), and most important of all (that is, to
Major Douse and to Lieut. C. F. Smale) their
respective wives !
We have said good-bye to L /Cpl. R . K. Crees
who left us in January, to S.S.M. and Mrs. W. B.
Bartlett, to Major W. A. H. Taylor and to Mrs.
Cozens with little Peter, her son, who followpd
shortly after.
Major Taylor, is now in Bournemouth (lucky
man l) and we hope he is doing all right. S.S.M.
Bartlett-we don't know where you are yet, but trust
you find a station in Blighty to your satisfaction. To
Mrs. Cozens, we are pleased to hear of your safe
arrival in York, and we hope your husband, Lieut.
F. A. Cozens, soon rejoins you. At the time of writing
he is in hospital but we trust he is soon fit and well
again.
Before the" Departures" are concluded we really
must refer to Pte. "Paddy" Quinn of the Royal
Irish Fusiliers who although he did not want to leave
Malta, had eventually to go. Pte. Quinn-we hope
you read this-you are not in the RA.P.C. , but as
" odd job man" in Admin. of 72 Detachment, we
are already missing you.
Now for promotions! Gone are those happy (?)
war-time days when privates shot up to S /Sgts.
overnight (so to speak), therefore we have only one
" Casualty" to report. Pte." Curly" Cox-popular
among his colleagues, Officers and N.C.O .s alikehas now managed to attain the exalted rank of LanceCorporal. L/Cpl. Cox is never absent when a flashlight photograph at a party is required-he is the
flashlight and far more attention is paid to Cox on
such occasions than to the man with the camera !
Now for some happy events.
Mrs. Margaret
Brown, wife of S /Sgt. H. V. Brown, gave ~irth to a
baby girl, Linda Margaret, on 2nd Apnl at the
Military Families Hospital, Imtarfa. The Staff of
the hospital have been quite busy so far as the Corps
is concerned for the next week on 7th April Mrs.
Poole, wife of Captain A. Poole, became the mother
of Michael David.
Pte. Terry's wife has also had a baby girl in
England during April.
Another news flash-Lieut. C. F. Smale, while at
home (ostensibly for an intervi.ew wi.th the Civil
Service Commissioners regardmg hiS Post-War
Career), was married on 22nd February. He has ~ur
congratulations and best wishes for a happy marned
G.H.Q., M.E.L.F.
Since our last notes we have lost three most
valuable members of our staff including the Chief.
Major E. B. Godwin and Major E. J. Burnet left us
in March both having served almost a record length
of tin1e in M.E. Major Godwin retires on a wellearned pension after a period of service which can
only be beaten by few in the Corps . May he have
many happy years of peace and happiness in front
of him.
M ajor E. J. Burnet goes to F9 after his period of
leave-a station which he will like, having been
versed in the peculiar ways of the staff for 10 years
out here.
Before these notes go to press we shall also have
lost Major Doherty who will be on his homeward
way. We understand that he will soon .be ~ civilian
and will be pushing a pen about-thl~ tlffi~ as .a
Civil Servant. We wish him all good Wishes In thIS
new venture.
Our Chief, Brigadier R. W. Hackett-that G .O.M.
of our party left in May with Mrs. Hackett for
Python. We~shall:sadly miss them both ..We should
especially like to thank our.late D.P. for hiS cheerful-
467

ness . ~nd extreme patience towards us under all
co.ndltlOns. To them both we wish sincere good
wishes wherever they may go.
. We welcome Brigadier ~. Golding on his arrival
m the M.E. and hope he wIll enjoy his stay here.
Insofar as the Other Rank staff is concerned
have .lost S.S.M. Hitchcock (Python) and Cp~e
Dennmg and Thorndike (Release). In Replaceme~~
we welcom.e S.S.M. Fairclough (from Exeter) and
L/Cpl. Smith.
VIe are ~ow " dug in " at Fayid and the place is
rapidly takIn~ shape. The Families Village is now
compl~te, whilst. local traders are falling over each
other m attemptIng to put up their various emporia
and lighten our pockets. In the shopping line it
~,eems tha t all we shall lack will be the ubiquitous
Woolwor.hs."
.
Lidos,. ~o ! h envisaged and comple:ed are provided
for Fam.l iles, Officers, A.~.S., W.O.s and Sergeants,
and JunIOr Ranks. Spore IS catered for by a S cadium
for field and t:ack events, and a number of earth
~ootball an~ cncket fie~ds and tennis courts. There
IS a Yachtmg Club WI th approximately 40 vessels.
Other forms of spo~s are not yet fully developed.
Two grass fiel~s eXist for rugby and football, the
football field bemg a J?articularly good effort for this
part of the world. It IS there that all major events of
the football world take place, and there can be no
doubt but t~at anx Third Division English Club
would be. qUIte sa~lsfied with the gates obtained on
these major occasIOns. On the whole, despite the
nu.r:r:b.e rs of personnel who are compelled to use the
facIi.ltles which are of necessity somewhat limited,
FaYld can be taken as a model to be followed in other
parts of the world where the Army may be called
upon to serve.
" Khamsin Kim."
NAIROBI (87 COMPANY)

. Your corre~~ondent regrets that no notes appeared
m the last editIOn of the Journal due to his unavoidable absence in M.E.L.F.
. We. are happy to record in this issue the marriage
of ~Ie.ut. ~. D. O. Burrows, Officer-in-Charge
AdmInistratIOn, to Miss "Paddy" O'Brien-Butler
by the District Commissioner, Nairobi, on 26th April:
1947. Fortunately, the weather was fine due to a
break in the " Rains" (Yes! Old Nairobi-ites the
rains have actually arrived this year). ,
The wedding was followed by a reception in the
O~cers' Mess and a large gathering, both civil and
rmhtary, devoted themselves to disposing of Champagne and Wine Cup not to mention the more
plebeian "Beer," large quantities of which, we
understand, disappeared down sundry throats at an
alarming rate.
Full marks must go to Brigadier Bellman, M.C.,
who gave away the bride, for his proposal of a toast
to the relatives of the bride and groom and to all
absent friends.
Unfortunately, the bridegroom's
speech was rather short, due we believe to a shortage
of alcohol in his glass at the crucial moment.
The night before, the wedding was suitably
cel.ebr~ted at a " Stag" Party in the Mess given by
Bngadler Bellman who combined a send-off for the
bridegroom with a farewell party for Lieuts. Smith,
Austin, Prudence, Castle and Forrest, who are
leaving for U.K. in May on the" Orbita." The
detachment will miss them all as well as Groups 5052 who are sailing on the same boat. .
-468
We congratulate Brigadier

J. F. Bellman MC
an~
' t h':'
t Colonel K.
. H. MacFarlane
.
,MBE
. . ., on
elr
ac mg promotIOns on takIng over duties of C P

d
~.A., H.Q. East Africa and C.P., Nairobi ~e~ ~~
tlvely; unfortunately, somewhat shortlived as Pth~
~~~man~dSecretary M.E.L.F. takes on the Financial
vlser SI e on 1st May, and reversion then takes
pace.
I
A ~elcome is ex~ended to Major Shand-Tully and
to LIeuts. Valentme, Davies, Hodgson, Wool e r
Downey and Kaylor on arrival in East Africa. LieJt'
Hodgson has now left us for Mauritius and Lie t'
Woole~ has. assumed duty as Base Pavmaster ua~
Mogadlshu m Somaliland.
.
f OCr I sincere sympathy is extended to the relatives
o
p . ? Davies ?f this detachment who was
drowned m Lake N.alvash.a whilst spending a weekend there. He got I-'.1tO dIfficulties whilst swimming
from a boat and despIte the efforts of his companions
c~uld n?~ be .rescued. He was buried at Naivash~
WIth MIlItary Honours.
This traged~ .f?llowe~ within a fortnight of the
death of two CIvIlian ASIan clerks of this office who
were drowned at Ruiru.
Spor~.-:The continual reduction in personnel
mak~s It I~creasingly difficult to live up to our
p~ev~ous high standard.
Fortunately, enthusiasm
wlthm t~e Unit, du.e to a large extent to the efforts
o~ Captam S: C. Glbson, Sports Secretary, remains
high.. pesplte gloomy forebodings as each group
c.ontammg star players departs for Blighty, we contmue to turn out teams.
A Command Football League of 10 clubs has
commenced and to date, we are holding our own in
the top half of the league, but our chances of winning
are very small. Hope runs high, however that when
the CuP. Competition comes along we shail be able to
fi~ld a sI.de that, resurrecting our cup-fighting spirit,
WIll retam the trophy we won last year.
. Our hockey season !s now closed and although we
did not enter a tea~ m .competitive hockey, we still
managed to play fnendlIes each week and did quite
well.
.There was no Inter-Unit Cup Competition otherWise, we feel certain we would have retained the
Cup which we have already won on three consecutive occasions.
The rainy season is now with us and the mud
having. acquired the right consistency, terrific
enthUSiasm on the part of the junior ranks has led
to. the formation of the only Unit Rugby team in
thiS command.
Matches are played against civilian sides and a
combined military team.
No games have yet been won but this is scarcely
surprising in view of the fact that a number of our
team had not touched a rugby ball until two months
ago and in addition, our boys, a very young team,
are much too light in the pack. However what they
lack in weight and skill they more th~ make up
for in pluck and they have earned a name for
courageous displays. Cpl. Robertson, captain of the
team, is making quite a name locally and has already
taken part in representative games.
It is noticed that other detachments have given
brief details of conditions at other overseas stations
and we feel that a few words from us would be of
interest to those members of the Corps who are
fortunate enough to join us in the future.
The cost of living is fairly high here and private
accommodation is even more difficult to obtain than

in England. To offset this however, East Africa is
a land of plenty and a meal here represents practically
a week's ration at home. Native servants are fairly
cheap and are quite good after a bit of training and
they relieve us of practically all the harder chores that
make our outlook a little disgruntled.
Entertainment is rather scarce. We have three
civilian cinemas which show reasonibly up-to-date
films, but theatre-goers and music lovers are no
longer catered for since the War Welfare Theatre
closed down and the Italian P.O.W. Orchestra left
us for Italy and we have now to rely on occasional
amateur shows.
There are, however, plenty of opportunities to
indulge in any form of sport except swimming and
several excellent Sports and Golf Clubs exist which
welcome military members (usually at reduced fees).
There is virtually no public transport here but if
you are fortunate enough to hire a W.D. Transport
or own a car or are brave enough to hitch-hike there
is very pleasant country reminiscent of England to
visit about Nairobi on off-duty hours . or if your
inclination turns in another direction, you will find
one of the best game areas in the world on your
doorstep and a trip of four miles will enable you to
see all the many varieties of plains, game and lion
in their natural state.
Knight, Bonell and Epplestone, and Sgts. Cudmore,

Banks and Dowdall, all being very comfortably
settl.ed in Married Quarters, and others are patiently
awaltmg the arrival of their families.
Like all other offices we have suffered from the
calls of "demob." and "Python," nearly all our
senior N.C.O.s going at the same time. The new
arrivals have quickly settled down and are finding life
here very pleasant. Among the most recent arrivals
i~ S /Sgt. C. A . Fraser, who has returned for another
tour, his first being rudely interrupted by the Japs,
who took him P.O.W. We wish him better luck
this time.
SOUTH AFRICA
Since the last issue of the Journal, the highlight
in Durban has, of course, been the visit of the King
and Queen and the Princesses.
~ The Royal Family were certainly given a wonderful
recepti.on wherever they went in South Africa and I
think that Durban, reported to be the most English
town in the Union, more than held its own as far
as enthusiasm went. Several of our Staff were lucky
enough to receive invitations to one or more of the
official functions and at least one slept outside the
City Hall in an endeavour to ensure a place of vantage
to see the arrival of the King at 10 a.m. next day.
Unfortunately, by the time of arrival of the King our
enthusiast found himself about 12 rows back as
the latecomers crowded in front. However, he is
satisfied that his wait was worthwhile.
After the Royal Family left, the general atmosphere
of the town had to be experienced to be believed.
Never has such a general feeling of apathy and
disappointment been so clearly shown on all sides.
The Queen in particular captured all hearts.
However, a revival of festival spirit was staged on
arrival of H.M.S. "Vanguard" and everybody had
the opportunity of looking over this magnificent
ship. (Colonel Rooney, your son is an excellent guide
and has a great future as a Dragoman.)
H.M.S. "Vanguard" was in port for eight days
and many were the celebrations connected therewith.
It is of interest to note that Durban's" One and
Twenty Club" (formed to raise funds for local
charities and in honour of Princess Elizabeth's
21st Birthday) has for its Chairman, Mister Warwick
Boggis, son of our one and only Major "Tiny"
Boggis. This Club is going great guns and is attaining some degree of fame as it has been mentioned
frequently in U.K. newspapers.
It is with regret that we bade adieu to our O.C.,
Lieut.-Colonel E. D. Edinger, and his family. We
wish them a congenial station in U.K. and hope they
have taken some happy memories of their stay in
Durban.
Lieut. T. E. Linter and family have also left us,
and to them also we send our best wishes for the
future.
We shall miss them.
However, before they left we had a highly successful farewell dinner at the Butterworth Hotel-a very
pleasant evening which culminated in one of our
Staff Sergeants giving an energetic display of how to
board a tramcar without one's feet leaving the ground.
Still, the Gods smiled and he wasn't hurt.
Ptes. A. E. Watson and V. C. Alien are at present
in U.K. on L.I.A.P.
Sgt. E. Jones took the plunge on 15th April when
he became the lawfully wedded husband of Miss
SINGAPORE
Since the last notes from Singapore appeared in
the Journal there have been sweeping changes in the
staff, and of the original 11 C.P.O. very few remain.
To all who have returned to U.K. on Python or
Release we say" Cheerio, and Good Luck."
12th March was something of a " field day" for
the Unit as we then bid a cheerful farewell to our
leaking tents and moved into very good accommodation at Gillman Barracks.
We have been very active in the sporting field, and
at the moment are busy with cricket, and have
entered the Singapore District Cricket League. The
team has been reinforced by the recent arrivals,
notably Sgt. Kenny, who is making a name for
himself as a bowler.
A football team was entered in the Singapore
District League (11), but the league had to be suspended due to lack of suitable playing fields. Of the
13 games played six were won and one drawn.
Pte. Baynes (ex-York) is the only player who
appeared in every match, whilst L /Cpl. Barnby
(ex-Leicester), although playing in only six matches
before proceeding on leave to U.K., managed to
remain our top scorer with six goals.
During the last few games the team suffered by
the loss of many of the old stalwarts who departed
for U.K., but it is hoped that by the time the league
restarts, a team capable of improving on our previous
record will have been formed.
There is no lack of enthusiasm, and who knows,
the pitches under construction may have lines, and
grass only knee deep, so that we will get occasional
glimpses of Pte. Dakin (Exeter) operating on the
wing.
Singapore was declared a family station on 1st July
last year, and since then we have welcomed the
families of our c.P., Lieut.-Colonel 1. S. Hogge,
O.B.E., Major J. A. A. Smith, Captains Hume and
Tammadge, Lieuts. Chapple and Spicer, S.Q.M.S.s
J. W. Reed and F. Cheetham, S /Sgts. Edwards,
469

Margaret Flowers. We wish them both every happiness in their married life. As he managed to get a
late pass as early as 9th May for our dinner referred
to above, life cannot be so bad, and it augurs well for
future Mess Meetings in U .K. !
Our remaining officers have extended their services
until General Demobilisation and are still hoping
that one or more names may yet come out of the bag
for a Short Service Commission-at least one in this
Command would be a cause for jubilation (F9, please
note !)
W.P.
" Tot Siens."
recently been installed as Governor. Coming from

troubled Palestine he should find the place to his
liking, but he has many complex problems to face
due to the cosmopolitan nature of th ~ population.
The chief of these is the extremely high cost of
living.
I
A visit was recently made to the world-famous
pitch lake situated in the south of the Island. Although
so well known it is not such an interesting place to
visit. The combination of the sun's rays and the gitch
make it one of the hottest places possible. It is being
commercialised by the" locals" who certainly know
how to extract 1003e cash from the unsuspecting
visitor. One will show you the way from the main
road to the pitch lake, 'another will advise on where
to park the car to avoid it sinking in the pitchwhile yet another will produce a tool somewhat
similar to a single-pointed pick and demonstrate
how the pitch is removed.
All these require
" baaksheesh" and it rather spoils the trip. The
writer has vivid recollections of similar experiences
at the Pyramids when stationed in Egypt 23 years
ago. The remarkable feature about the lake is that
no matter how much pitch is removed, within a few
hours fresh material works itself in by natural pressure
from below. As an instance of this, the surface of
the lake (114 acres in extent) has only dropped a few
feet in the space of a considerable number of years
while the quantity of natural asphalt used locally
and exported all over the world, is in the region of
200,000 tons annually.
In conclusion may we of No. 79 Detachment
extend our fraternal greetings to our comrades at
home and abroad. The Journal is doing a grand job
of work and all concerned are to be congratulated.
TRINIDAD
Oace more it is tim~ to get busy on Corps Journal
notes for the Summer issue. The trend of events in
this area seems to indicate that U.K. arrivals in the
future will be few and far between.
S jSgt. H. Harrison, a popular member of the
Detachment, whom we were very sorry to lose, has
left for home. It is understood his future plans are
wrapped up with a civilian job on the Venezuelan
Oilfields, so it is hoped he will be able to give
Trinidad a look up on his way through to take up
the appointment. All good wishes for his future
success.
Sgt. " Jock" Hamilton has been reverted to Home
Establishment after a very brief stay on the Island.
Ah, well! these reductions in establishments must be
faced, Jock, so here's hoping yo u manage to get a
suitable posting not too far distant from "Auld
Reekie."
Sgt. Symonds (ex Foot's Cray and Singapore) has
arrived here for duty. Having already served some
years abroad, he is not experiencing any difficulty in
settling down but is eagerly awaiting the day when his
family will join him.
Pte. Plummer (ex-Manchester) has also .ecently
joined us and we hope his stay will be an enjoyable
one.
We take this opportunity of welcoming the families
of Lieut. F . Ramsden and Sgt. T. Traylen. They
are fortunate in arriving at the best time of the year
when there is an absence of rain and consequent
humidity. From February to April the climate of
Trinidad is all that can be desired , in a tropical
country-quite hot during the daytime, with a trade
wind blowing from the Atlantic to cool the atmosphere. In the evenings it is just perfect.
Congratulations are extended to Captain (Jimmy)
Band on being granted a short service commission
for seven years and to Cpl. Gladdish on his promotion to that rank.
Trinidad has certainly been in the news as regards
events of importance during the past few months.
The annual Carnival in February needs no introduction to those who have served here in the past.
Industrial disputes in the Oilfields have' been brought
into prominence by a certain "on-the-spot"
reporter. Visits by Richard Tauber, Joe Louis, the
American Professional Team headed by Fred Perry,
the British Amateur Tennis Team consisting of
many well-known players, a party of six Goldwyn
girls, a visit by a very large contingent of the U.S.
Fleet, and the British Guiana Inter-Colonial Cricket
Team have all added zest to the somewhat restricted
life out here for U.K. Troops. Sir John Shaw has
" Old Stager."
~
~
! IN!
470
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1947 Summer

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...

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOORNAL

Lieut.-Colonel A. L. DUNNILL, O .B.E.

The Royal Army Pay Corps Journal is published

The rates of subscription to The R.A.P.C. Journal

Articles, photographs, etc. , should be forwarded

Officers' Club Notes

Old Comrades' Ass')ciation

Pay Services, S.E.A.C.

Jewish terrorists attack Syrian Orphanage, Jerusalem

Corps News - Officers

R.A.P.e. in Netherlands East Indies

" I was posted to Jerusalem"

12 Command Pay Office, Allied Land Forces, Norway ..

The British Paymaster, First Canadian Army

Notes and News from Offices

The Royal Army Pay Corps Journal

District Pay Office,

All members of the Corps will have received

During the past few weeks several thousands

This issue contains news of a number of

The Corps Journal also, we hope, serves as

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

J. C. Wood. General Stanham, playing the

THE ARMY GOLF MEETING

R.A.P .C. GOLFING SOCIETY

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

OFFICERS' DINNER CLUB

CORPS CRICKET FIXTURES, 1947

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

Since the publication of addresses of Branch

BRANCH FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

fire-fighting and the work of the ordinary

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

2. East Midlands Area.

30th April. Jim Hargie and his band provided

4. Home Counties and London Area.

5. N. Wales and W. Midlands Branch.

Would members who have not yet paid th~ir

contact the~r particular Branch

O.C.A. Civilian Appointment Bureau.

the A.T.S ~ Comrades' Association (Hendon

DROITWICH and KIDDERMINSTER

On Sunday, 8th June, a very enjoyable day

Subscriptions for 1947 were ~ue on the

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JUURNAL

for the continuation of the association and

"Old (;roeks'" Re-union

HE first Re-uni.o.n_Dinner and Dance of

PAY SERVICES, S.E.A.C.

By Lieut.-Colonel H. W. W. POLLARD, O.B.E.

Spring to attention smartly!

Notes) should be deferred as long as possible

y the autumn of 1944 the war was going

very well and the J ap was in retreat on

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

These festivities did not interfere with a lot

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

Jeep via Palel (the limit of the Jap advance),

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

THE ROYAL ARMY PAY CORPS JOURNAL

officer emplaned for Calcutta.

The Final Stages