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Regimental no. 34848 Div Signallers, Hut 116, Army School, Trentham. 13.7.1940. Dear Mum, Well it's not as bad as George painted it even though it is hard going. I'm not broken in yet but feeling very fit as long as I don't do too much marching. My shins stiffen up after about fifteen minutes marching but that will wear off. Yesterday I had an anti tetanus injection which did not affect me in the least although some didn't feel too good. Today I had another injection for Typhoid which makes about 75% feel crook with the shivers and effects similar to flu but I was the only one out of about 20 who it didn't have any effect on. I am due for a third one next Friday. When I arrived I wasn't very keen on the tucker but after a day walking in hob nailed boots carrying a rifle I soon hoed in for returns. Yesterday I had to report to the M.O. (medical officer) as I was chafed between the legs through wearing the regulation under pants. They are first class material but have a square calico patch in the crutch which cut me to the devil, but suppose they will be ok when washed. All uniform and outfit is of first class material although it doesn't fit too well sometimes. I have met dozens of chaps here that I know and nearly all those in my section belong to the D.& T. I have been drafted to the 3rd Echelon and suppose I will be going on final leave with the rest whenever that takes place. Since I arrived eight other rookies have come in so we have been formed into an awkward squad until we can handle a rifle and march correctly. They are short of teligraphists otherwise we wouldn't have been called up till next month. Georges outfit has had quite a lot of false alarms about leaving and yesterday their unit was inspected by the Gov Genl but they have been granted week-end leave again this week so they don't know when they are going. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't wait and go with our crowd now. There were races here today but I couldn't go as my best pants were at the tailors being shortened. Well I have to get to work on my brass (The worst job in camp) on my web gear so will have to call a halt. Hope you are all well. Love Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE Div Sigs, Trentham. 10.12.40. Dear Mum, Well I'm still here although I am gradually getting converted to the idea that I may be leaving next week. Yesterday we drew our sea kit which amounted to a Drill Uniform and a pair of Tennis Shoes and a hold – all (a very poor one). The Drill Uniform was a terrible fit when I got it but I immediately put it in a bucket of water and let it soak for a couple of hours. I then got to work and cut three to four inches off the legs and turned the cuffs back an inch and now it is a good fit. This afternoon we went for a route march with a full pack up for the first time since coming here and managed to get home ok without any blisters but nevertheless I was very glad to get off my feet. I cracked the soles of my boots completely in half. My denims were wet through with persper-sweat but I felt quite good. We are to have a march through Wellington on Saturday and I'm not looking forward to it if it is going to be like the last one. It is certain to rain as it always does and to stand in front of Parliament Bldgs listening to speeches for a couple of hours doesn't appeal to me. Last Sunday afternoon about seventeen of us after Church Parade went up the river to Maoribank for a swim and put in a good afternoon. The cake was very good but it didn't last very long – it lasted exactly 5 minutes after I cut it. Whenever a cake arrives in the hut it lasts as long as the time it……… (The rest of the letter is missing) |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE Dear Mum, We have now been afloat for over a month and I have been very disappointed over only one thing so far and that is that the weather has been too calm. I have been hoping all the time for a good storm to see what sort of sailor I would make but nearly all the way so far I could have rowed a dinghy in perfect safety. We left our third port of call a few days ago after having spent only one day ashore although we were in the harbour for the best part of a week. It was my first experience with the natives of the east and it was a real education to say the least. The port is the same one that Geo Ott sent the cocktail list from but I didn't visit the same hotel. We had no sooner tied up at the buoys in the harbour (there are no big wharves there at all) when half a dozen or more native boats pulled in alongside our tub and started trying to sell their fruit and curios. A lot of the boys parted with their rupees on rubbish that could be bought ashore much cheaper. The day we went ashore we left the ship at about 8 am and returned at about 4.30 pm by which time I for one was very glad to get off my feet. Five of us caught hold of a native taxi driver and beat him down to a price of 50 cents a head to take us out to some place my cobbers wanted to go, but after travelling for about a quarter of a mile the beggar jumped up the price to two rupees each so we made him stop and out we got. We were immediately surrounded by blacks of all ages from 2 years to 82 years all with their hands out begging for money of any description. The nippers caught hold of my hands pants and coat and I had the devils own job to shake them off. We didn't take long to find out the native expression for telling them to scram which sounds like “polly ann”. Don't tell anyone that knows the east that expression because I don't know the exact meaning myself. We went down to the native quarter where the bazaars are and had a good look around. The roads were cluttered up with small wagons which were drawn by bulls. Also quite a lot of other livestock was wandering about. The odour was indescribable and if bottled could be sold as knock out drops. While I was waiting at the door of one of the shops for my cobbers a native woman offered me her baby for 1 rupee but I wasn't so keen. She was only one of three that offered me their nippers. While one was trying to do business with me another soldier came along and bargained with her and finally got the price down to 50 cents (9d.) and when she held the child out for him to take he told her to “polly ann” together with a few choice Pig Island expressions. A few of the boys got quite good bargains for the money they spent but the majority I think were stung. We were paid 14 rupees which is in our money 21/- so we had to bargain like the devil to make the money spin out at all. Fair sized pineapples could be bought for 5 for 1 rupee and coconuts were mostly 6 for 1 rupee while bananas were I rupee per bunch if you bargained enough. I think I got a bargain but I have yet to find out for sure. I spent 7 rupees on a wristlet watch which was originally marked 12 rupees and I got the strap thrown in. The shop I got it from was a European one and as we had been told that prices were set in these shops and bartering was not encouraged I am hoping it will turn out alright for at least a little while. At one of the eating houses there was a jazz band playing and the drummer boy was a crackerjack at the ripe age of 5 1/2 years. He played like a first class player although he was too small to sit on a chair. During the morning five of us went to have a look through a native temple and before we were allowed in we had to take our boots and socks off at the door and have our feet bathed in holy water. We were told to leave our boots and socks outside on the steps but the boys were very dickie until one native said he would stand guard. There was a large crowd of natives looking on and we didn't like the idea of walking around for the rest of the day barefoot. Very few of the natives wear boots of any description unless they belong to the upper classes. I hired a rickshaw and toured around like a spare lord at least three times but had to haggle like the devil to get the charge within reason and on one occasion I had to call a native policeman to assess the charge. I had a look through a native school and had a talk with the teacher who spoke excellent English. He explained that he had about fourteen hundred pupils but only a certain number came to school each day of the week as each creed that attended had a different day of worship. One thing I enjoyed as much as any other during the day was the tea we had served up at the various canteens. It was wonderful after the terrible stuff we get aboard ship. I had no regrets when we pulled out of the harbour to continue our journey which has now been nearly a week out. We had boxing aboard today and there were some excellent bouts. We are due to arrive at our final port shortly so I will have to close this letter in time to catch the censor. I am keeping very well other than for my vaccination sore on my arm which won't heal. I hope all are well including your dear self. Love from Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE A Coy, Divisional Signals, NZ.E.F. Middle East Force 23.2.41 Dear Brother, Well bozo I am now in the country of three “S” namely Sand, Syphilis, and Stinks. I had a pretty good trip over and had little to growl about although the tucker wasn't as good as it could have been. At our third port of call somewhere in the tropics I got my first sight of natives and also my first smell of the black cows. While slumming down the native area where the bazaars are I was offered three native children at a rupee a time. The mothers lift up the slimy shirt on the snipe to let you see what kind you are getting. I was offered two boys and one girl. A lot of the kids have learnt off a piece that they yell out whenever a soldier gets anywhere near them. “Fuck Hitler, fuck Mussolini, fuck the govt, N.Z. soldier very good”. And then stick their hand out for a coin. I had my first trip into Cairo yesterday week and had a good look around. The first place I went to was the Museum of Hygiene and it was well worth the time spent. After looking at the plaster casts of the various parts of the body showing in realistic colours all the various results of syphilis a man that goes to the Burker is certainly game. Four of us went to see the famous poking houses that are in bounds to the troops and I was very interested but don't think I will be going back. When you get inside you can have a look around to see which one you want to poke and no charge is made till you go into the particular molls room. The price ranges from ten ackers, 2/1d upwards. When I was in one house waiting for one of the party to ease himself one moll came and sat beside me and did her very best to pull my cock out but little Bluey was very shy. Out of about fifty molls I saw only two that I would have had on if I had any intention of ever planting the radish. You can see an exhibition poke for a few ackers in several places but I saw one through a crack in a door for nothing. I haven't seen the “Can Can” yet but the boys that have say it is not worth the money. The main theme appears to be the smoking of a cigarette in the quim. The Arabs are a filthy race generally and you can see then at any time of the day or night both pissing and shitting in the streets other than in the main part of Cairo. The stink is indescribable in all wog villages and all around Cairo. The country all along the edge of the Nile is under cultivation and they grow marvellous crops. They have very primitive tools and the way they irrigate the land would make you laugh but they certainly get results. They raise three crops a year off the same piece of land. They live in the worst looking houses (spare the word) it is possible to get. Most of them out of Cairo are built of bricks sun baked on sun baked mud huts of which about 90% have no roofs. As it rains there only about once in two or three years I don't suppose a roof is considered necessary. I got my first taste of a sandstorm only a few days after I arrived at the first camp I was stationed at. I was on night piquet and the sand was that bad my mate and I had to take shelter for quite a time as we couldn't see let alone breathe. Some days ago we went out on a scheme for a few days and I got my first experience of sleeping under the stars. You have to dig a shallow trench out and then arrange your blankets in the form of a sleeping bag and put the ground sheet over the top to stop your blankets from getting wet. There is a heavy dew here at night. I am in the wireless section that I have wanted all along to get into. Last night we had a Matamata reunion dinner in the National Hotel at Cairo and it was a great show. The part that rather cramped my style was that I was made chairman for the evening. Beer over here knocks me much quicker than at home as it does every other soldier. The climate causes the damage. After three bottles of Waitemata or Red Band I am walking on air. As I have to rise at 05.30 tomorrow morning I will have to G.B. (close down). Give my regards to Florie and the family. From your bald headed brother, Bluey. (This letter may take some time to reach you but ackers are nearly as scarce as a clean wog here so cant send it by air mail) |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE A Section, No1 Coy, Div Sigs, NZ.E.F, Middle East Force Dear Wynn, I wish I could post you a parcel of this basted heat to help warm you up. It sure wouldn't be missed from this syphilitic country. According to the daily news the heat in Heliopolis (a part of Cairo) was 116 in the shade, which was said to be a record for there but I am open to bets that it was hotter out there by several degrees. To show how hot it was I washed a handkerchief and held it in the sun and in exactly 35 seconds it was bone dry. The blasted flies are so cheeky they nip around your fly swat and settle on your arm, so they can get a free ride before your arm finishes its downward stroke. It was hot over in Greece but in a different way and I don't mean maybe. We started our tour of Greece when we arrived at Diniaus the port for Athens and after travelling right up to within sight of Salonika we rambled back and finally finished up on the lower end of the province of Corinth. The trip up was done in daylight and I saw most of what was to be seen whereas the most of the way back was done at night without any lights. We were camped at a village about two miles out of Katarini for several days and I saw Muriel's brother Roger and had a few wines with him. (Beer was unobtainable). The country is very much up on end but there are some wonderful valleys where every available foot of ground is under cultivation. The people don't live on their holdings like the cockies at home but all farms are worked on a sort of community basis and the people live in villages often miles from their land. They are apparently a trusting lot as they never put up fences. About ninety per cent of the farming is cropping and very little live stock other than small flocks of sheep were to be seen. The shepherds are still as old fashioned as in the story books and get around with their crooks and sleep out with their flock. The story about storks must have originated in Greece as in one town I saw two in a nest built on the top of a disused chimney. The idea for Autogiros or Helicopters must have been also in that country as they have a bird which flies along and then stops in mid air, just flapping its wings. After stopping in the one spot for a minute or so it moves on again. I made a hog of myself eating dried figs which were very plentiful but couldn't go their rotten wine or Koniak (that is the way they spelt it). Once I left Ganakura a place about four miles from Katarini I only slept in the same place more than once on three occasions – sometimes moving two or three times a day. I had my first close up of a hun plane at a village about twenty miles north of Larissa one evening about five pm and like the innocent fool that I was I stood out in an open paddock with a few other goats and fired away at it to my hearts content without doing any more damage than to make my rifle dirty. If I had only known then what I know now I would have been hiking for the tall timber pronto. The next evening I received my first taste of dive bombing with a vengeance and believe me it is definitely the worst experience a person could possibly go through without actually getting hit. At about 7.30 pm we were all ready to get going and had the trucks packed fairly close together when someone yelled “Aircraft”. I was stuck in the back of our own truck no. A 13 (Lucky no.) and had a bit of a job to get out and by the time I actually did hit the ground the jerry bastards had commenced to dive. The nearest slit trench which happened to be only about a foot deep was where I made for and promptly fell on my fat belly. Some of the others were more fortunate than I was and were able to get away from the trucks which were the targets. I looked up under my tin hat and saw the first plane headed directly toward me and when I thought he was going to crash he let go his little surprise package which was like a cylinder with flat ends. It toppled over and over straight towards me and when I though it was all over with me there was terrific explosion and I got showered with shit. It had exploded two feet off the edge my trench. Immediately after that I looked up again and saw another of the troupe headed my way and immediately after he dropped his sleeping draught. This time it was a fair dinkum one of a 1000 lb and although I could see that it would just miss me I didn't seem to get much satisfaction from my thought as I trembled like hell and thought about all my bad deeds. I got another shower of shit even though it exploded twelve yards away. I am not too proud to admit that I have never been so scared in my life. When the cows start to dive they start a squeal which is nearly as terrifying as the actual bomb. The next morning when we were caught in a tightly packed convoy on the top of a high pass the cows gave us another dose only this time they machine gunned us as well. Boy no mountain goat could ever beat me climbing when those mg bullets start flying and I'm not pulling your leg either. I could show Bob Semple a thing or two when it comes to handling a pick and shovel at digging slit trenches. Only a few hours after we passed over the Corinth Canal the bridge was blown up as the huns landed a tribe of parachute troops. A lot of our chaps were left on the other side of the canal but most of them got away from a different part of the coast. We got lost on several occasions owing in one or two cases to fifth columnists changing notice boards and arrows round to wrong roads. The bastards also ploughed arrows in their cornfields pointing to our own positions so the jerry planes knew where to drop their local hate. With things against us in more ways than one we caused the huns casualties at the rate of at least 10 to 1 so we must have given Adolf a slight toothache. “Lord Haw Haw” admitted that we were great fighters and that we should have been on his side. If anyone tells you the big stiffs from the country your God Mother comes from are tough just put your tongue in your cheek and have a good laugh to yourself. I won't say any more. I left the coast in a destroyer and was I glad to get a spot of sleep the first for about 70 hours. Altogether during the last week I got about 4 1/2 hours sleep so I didn't take much rocking. We all got a wonderful cup of cocoa on board at about 2 am. My hat will always be off to the navy, the one service that does things well. As it is getting late and reveille is at 5.15 am I had better stop this sob story and get some rest. I hope all the family are A1 but not all getting as fat as me. See that Lloyd comes away with a fountain pen and if possible a wristlet watch as both are essential items. If possible see that he gets a dust proof watch as no others are any good here. My only hope is that he never leaves at all. Don't tell Mum about me getting bombed it will only upset here. From your Cooks Tourist, Brother Bluey. Ps If they ever try to teach you Anti-Aircraft fire drill with rifles in the Home Guard, tell them to forget it. All this “Aircraft left” “Aircraft right” etc is a lot of hooey and the sooner you can fall into a drain or ditch the longer you will live. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE “A” Sec Div. Sigs, Divisional Cavalry, N.Z.E.F. Middle East Force, 5.10.41 Dear Mum, It is a fortnight since I dropped a line home but as we have been doing a spot of moving around I got out of my regular routine a bit. In the last letter to Ellen I posted ten photos of Jerusalem so do hope they arrive alright. While out in the desert last week a hundred or two miles from the nearest piece of grass I was very surprised to see a hare scurry away when we drove up to it. If he has to run a couple of hundred of miles every time he wants a feed I am afraid he would be too tough for me to eat. Another thing I saw was a desert rat which although it looks like a rat hops instead of runs and has a bushy knob at the tip of his tail. Twice lately I have had practice at night driving without lights and I don't recommend it for eye strain. One evening that we were out the Y.M.C.A. put on pictures here and it was just our luck to be away but I suppose we will have another show on when the moon gets up a bit later. Diversion at night time here is very poor as there is nothing to do and nowhere to go. If there is nothing to spend my money on I can at least save it for when I get another lot of leave which may not be very far away. Desert leave is being granted in a weeks time and is on the basis of seven days for each three months in the desert so when my turn comes I will be streaking out of here as fast as the hare was travelling. I have saved up a fiver since my last leave and could easily spend a week in Alexandria on that, especially as travel is free to there. So far life over here has been mostly a tourist trip with a few rough edges on it and I only hope it turns out to be the same for Lloyd. There have been four chaps drowned on the coast here lately and now we have to provide a beach patrol every afternoon for the period we are allowed to have our dip. I have had one turn and luckily didn't have to display my poor ability as a life saver. I would probably have had to get someone to save me if I had had to go out very far. Where we swim there is practically no danger at all as the undertow is very much nil but there is always the smart alec who wants to show how smart he is and gets himself into difficulties. I bought a couple of apples the other night at the canteen the first I had tasted for months. Fresh fruit is as scarce as the devil and potatoes and fresh vegetables are in poor supply but nevertheless we get plenty to eat. What wouldn't I give for a feed of lamb and mint sauce with green peas and roast potatoes, followed by some apple pie and cream. We often torture ourselves by talking of what we would like and then go along to mess and get a feed of bully beef stew with boiled rice to follow. News is very hard to scrape up here so you will have to excuse the scrappy letters from now on for a while. I hope all are keeping well including your dear self. From your loving son, Roto |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE “C” Sec Sigs, Divisional Cavalry, N.Z.E.F. Middle East Force, 6.4.42 Dear Mum, As you will see by my address I am now in a different section from the one I have been in ever since being posted to the Div. This is only a small section with a Sergeant in charge and as I am the senior of two lance jacks I am second in charge of the section, which when all added up means exactly nothing. The boys are a good crowd and three of them used to be in my old section, so I am not altogether a stranger with them. I have also met four other chaps here that I knew back home – two from Matamata and two from Managawai. Although I was not very keen on the change at first I am very pleased about it now. One day before I left to come to this section we had a fall of snow about three inches deep. The place looked lovely the next morning and we spent some time throwing the stuff round. The hills still have quite a lot of snow on them but it didn't last long on the lower levels. Some of the inhabitants here say this is the first season since 1918 that they have had snow on the flats and use that fact for guessing that the war will be over this year, but I can't say I share their optimism, although I would love to think they were right. We had a very interesting talk on Syria – the Arabs, and some of their customs about ten days ago. Remind me to tell you some of them when I come home. Coal is apparently non existent here as the only fuel I have seen so far is wood and charcoal. This is my first experience of charcoal which burns not unlike coke, with practically no smoke at all but plenty of heat. Before I left Div I attended the first French lesson in a class that was commenced for any who wished to go and am disappointed I can't carry on with them but I may get another chance later. Some days ago I put in a day on the end of a pick and shovel road making and was very pleased when knock off time came around. I don't think the work did me any harm as I have been on easy work for now for some time. I would have been on every other day since only I was put on a twentyfour hour watch on another job which although it is very easy interrupts sleep every night. Some days ago I received a parcel from Wynn which was very acceptable. A couple of days later I received another parcel which was quite a surprise as it came from a farmer in Matamata who to my knowledge has never spoken to me other than during the course of business in the Post Office. I suppose these will be among some of the last to arrive as I hear no more are coming. A lot more shipping space could be saved if they were to limit the number of newspapers sent here, as I have seen as many as twelve Auckland Weekly news papers of the same date arrive in the one sent of ten chaps. I received four Christmas numbers of the AK Weekly myself and this must have been the same with numbers of other chaps. It is all very nice getting these papers but a big saving of shipping space which might be used for sending some N.Z. butter would be much more appreciated. When you see Mary or Harold next please thank them for me for the papers they have sent me. I suppose Tira will be very happy to get George back even though he doesn't get discharged. He certainly had a lucky trip. Many happy returns on the twelfth my dear and all the best wishes in the world. I pray that this time next year we will all be home to make your birthday a real happy one. A couple of days ago I received a letter from Lloyd who appears to be quite happy and well. He wants to know when I was going on leave next as he would try and get his to coincide with mine, but as he is about six hundred miles or more from here we may not be able to see each other for some time. Give my love to the family and I hope they are all well. All my love my dear. From your loving son, Roto |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE “C” Sec Div Sigs, Divisional Cavalry, NZ.E.F. Middle East Force 17.7.42 Dear Mum, It is some time since I last wrote but we have been on the move now for quite some time and it has been hard to get mail away. As you will know long before this reaches you we are once more up in the desert having another spell of excitement after a quiet spell up in Syria. Since we arrived here the rot that has set in has been definitely stopped although things haven't been at all easy. There are plenty of places I would much rather be in than here at this time of the year but nevertheless the heat hasn't been as bad as I expected. The hottest day I have yet experienced was the day we passed round the edge of the Sea of Galilee, when the heat was 130° in the shade. We had a dip in the Sea of Galilee and although tepid it was very refreshing. I also had a swim in the Suez Canal the night we pulled up beside it. For the…….(9lines cut out of letter – The Censor??)……tank and was very happy a week ago when it was taken away and I once more got a truck. The heat in and radiated from the tank burnt my face and arms and I looked like nothing on earth for awhile but am not so bad again now. That was the first time in two years of the army that I had been sunburnt. One night when travelling in the tank we ran into the back of a bren carrier in a cloud of dust. I jumped out smartly not knowing what had happened and found that I had got a smack on the bridge of my nose and the back of my left hand. As nearly all trace of these have now disappeared they couldn't have been so bad as they felt at the time. Now that I have been in my third accident over this way it is time the hoodoo lifted. The day before I left Syria I got a bit of a start – I was sitting in the creek not far from the camp having my last wash when I thought I saw an eel go past me. The next second I discovered it was a black water snake rippling across the water to the other side. My wash finished there and then. Just before coming down to Egypt we were out in the desert in Syria on exercises and the various types of insects and reptiles I saw there were enough to keep one awake for the rest of my life. One morning a chap sleeping ten feet from me started to shake his blankets in the morning when out dropped six scorpions, a large black spider a fair sized tarantula spider and a fifteen inch snake. I didn't feel so good then so had a look in my own bed and found three scorpions. I wrote to Lloyd about two months ago but have had no replays yet so hope he is still ok. When we get out of this party I will be well overdue for leave so will do my best to find him. The last time he wrote he was about six hundred miles from me but he should be closer than that now. I am very glad he never came to the Div now although he still has to take an odd air raid. A few letters caught up with us some days ago all of which were about three months old so don't worry if you don't get a reply to something you ask about, as replies will apparently take anything up to six months to come back. How on earth did Miro happen to get in the army with two children. So far we haven't heard of any ballot other than for married men without children. For another thing how did he pass the medical exam with his bad heart. Is he in the force for overseas (when more are sent) or in the Home Guard. With all the dive bombing we are getting this is no place for a man with a bad heart. I only hope for his sake that they never send him out of N.Z. Well my dear if you don't get letters as often as you would like don't be too hard on me as it is not always possible to get them away. I hope all are fit and well at home including your dear self. Love from your desert rat, Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE “C” Sec Div. Sigs, Divisional Cavalry, N.Z.E.F. Middle East Force, 20.8.42 Dear Mum, I received one of your very welcome letters today together with several others but the big difference in the dates of posting suggest that there must be a lot more in the offing or else some have gone astray. Wynn should like the artillery all right. During the last campaign in Libya I was attached to Artillery headquarters and all the chaps I got to know seemed to like their job quite ok and didn't want to be transferred to anything else. I couldn't understand how Miro even got into the army with his bad heart and am afraid he would have been in a pretty bad way if he had had to stand up to some of the shocks that have come my way during the two previous scraps I have been in. I received your photo some time ago and acknowledged the receipt of it also a long time ago. It is a very good one my dear although I am afraid I can detect a few more grey hairs. I have just arrived back in the desert after a few days leave which I spent in Alexandria. It was wonderful to be able to get away from this plague of millions of flies and to be able to eat a meal in peace and also to have a fair dinkum bath. While away I had a bath, a swim and at least two showers every day and by that time nearly all my sun tan? had disappeared. The afternoon I arrived there I found out that Lloyd had been transferred to a camp alongside the sea some distance away and that he had only moved out the previous afternoon. I was very disappointed missing him by such a short time after not seeing him now for twelve months. Although I had been in Alex before this was my first opportunity of giving it a good look over and I must say it is a very pretty spot and miles ahead of Cairo in many ways especially in cleanliness. One morning my cobber and self went for a trip round the harbour in a felucca and saw some very interesting sights but as Alex is a naval base the harbour is a very taboo subject. One place that would appeal to you was the public gardens and parks which make a wonderful sight. The best of the Services Clubs was the United Services Club which is housed in a palatial private home which has been loaned to the army for the duration. It has a large number of rooms and is fitted out to cater for practically everything a soldier requires. A dance floor is set out among the trees and shrubs in the garden and dances are held several times a week. We went for a swim at the far famed Stanley Bay a place very much over-rated but where the high-brows strut round the many terraces showing off their bathing suits and their sun tan? One day we went to the races but as usual never broke the tote – nevertheless we had a very pleasant day. I started off very badly by backing a hairy goat which finished three furlongs behind the field – he wouldn't leave the post. I backed one winner and in the last race got beaten by a bee sting on the winners nose. The course was good but not a patch on our Ellerslie. On two mornings running I woke up with an eye closed up by bed bug bites so I bought a flit gun and soaked the mattress and pillows. No more troubled me there thank goodness but in three cafes where I sat on the wicker work chairs I was bitten badly on the legs. For the first time since you gave me my last dose I had some castor oil a few days ago. I can't say I like it any better than I used to. Give my love to all the family. All my love my dear and go easy on those grey hairs. Your loving son, Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE “C” Section, Div. Sigs, Divisional Cavalry, 2 N.Z.E.F., Middle East Force, 21.2.43 Dear Mum, “Come Sta” that is Italian for “how are you”. I have been learning a bit of Itie lately and know quite a number of useful phrases now but as unusual in learning other languages I don't know one swear word yet. A lot of their words are very similar to our own when written but have a different pronunciation. I haven't tried myself out on any Italians yet but the Arabs understand me ok. We have only one book to study from and it is not very comprehensive so unless we can get hold of another one in Tripoli we wont learn very much. I have been to Tripoli twice now on leave and quite like the place although it hasn't settled down yet. At the time of my first visit there were no more than about a dozen shops open and they had practically nothing to sell and what they did have was nothing but junk, but on my second visit a fortnight later there were several dozen places open. If I wait a little longer I might come across something worth getting to send home for a souvenir. There are some lovely buildings in the place and round the waterfront road it is as pretty as any place I have seen yet, with small statues of animals and birds and trees, dotted all round the place amongst lovely big palm trees. During peace time these statues have fountains playing over them and must look marvellous. From the top of the N.Z. Y.M.C.A. you get a wonderful view of the waterfront and harbour and if it is at all possible I am going to try and get a photograph taken from there. I am not keen on the colour of some of the buildings which are a kind of red while others are blue but I suppose I will get used to them after awhile. The town itself has not been very badly damaged but the shipping in the harbour and the dock area show plenty of evidence of the raids of the RAF. Since writing to Ellen last we have changed camp several times and are now parked in amongst a thick clump of trees and flowering broome with green grass all round us. I could spend the duration here quite easily but I don't suppose they will leave us idle very long especially as the news from Tunisia at present isn't too bright. They could quite easily leave us here for a spell now as for the past eight months we have done much more than our share, but of course that doesn't count when there is a war to be won. I have been to a couple of concerts lately, one put on by the 6th Brigade and the other one by the Div Cav and they were both very good shows. The Sigs officer in Cav was a professional showman before the war and his card tricks, chewing razor blades and swinging a lariat round the stage were certainly a treat to watch. The Kiwi Concert Party (the best in the Middle East) is playing at present in Tripoli to crowded houses. The crowd was so great the last time I was in there that hundreds were unable to get in, even after waiting in a que for three hours. We were nearly flooded out some days ago when we had a heavy downpour of rain and hail and one of the stop banks alongside the dug out gave way. The water raced down into the dug out and stopped under the foot of my bed covering my blankets with hail and silt. I had to get out smartly in my underpants and divert the flow before it got any worse. Last Sunday week I went and saw the final rugby match for the Freyberg Cup between Div Sigs and the Maori Btn and it was a very good match. We had a sweep on the what the score would be and I won it by guessing the correct score and thereby collected fifteen shillings. Money is of very little use here as there are very few thing to spend it on. Trading with the Senussi Arabs for eggs or vegetables they will only take tea, sugar, biscuits, bully or cigarettes. My credit is now over £40 so I will be able to cut up rough if I ever get to some place where I can spend it. I am to all intent and purposes now a tee-totaller as I have had only two bottles of beer during the past four months and there seems little prospect of getting the amount increased. There is plenty of plonk (wine) here, some of which is not very hard to drink but I have never liked the stuff and don't propose to try and cultivate a taste for it. I bought a bottle of local Cherry Brandy a couple of weeks ago for 10/- but after one mouthful I had had all I wanted. A few mornings ago I had a long yarn to an officer who has just returned here after a twelve month trip back home and he gave me a lot of interesting sidelights on N.Z. at present. You mentioned you had been down to Puru for a holiday – I wish I had been with you. I have been past the place with Roy Griffen several times when we went to Coromandel and to Wilson's Bay pinching oysters. It is very pretty round that coast with plenty of oysters and pipis. I met three chaps from Lloyds outfit in Tripoli and they said he was having a very quiet time. They had hitch-hiked well over a thousand miles to have a look at the place so unless Lloyd does the same thing I don't expect to see him again for some time. I hope you are all keeping well at home. Give my love to all the family. Your loving son, Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE “A” Sec Div. Sigs, Divisional Cavalry, 2 N.Z.E.F. Middle East Force, 25.6.43 Dear Mum, At last I have had my fortnights leave which I have been waiting for for eighteen months and other than for the fact that I have started to go bad I feel one hundred percent. Apparently owing to the change of tucker from hard (tinned) to fresh meat and vegetables I have commenced breaking out in desert sores but with the treatment I am getting they are healing nearly as quickly as they are breaking out. I suppose the constitution doesn't know what it is all about getting such a change after all those months of hard tack. I spent my leave in Alexandria which was about the coolest spot I could think about at this time of the year. Actually I stayed at a leave camp some miles out of town as I didn't draw Alex leave but my two mates were stopping there also so it wasn't so bad. The meals put on in camp were something to write home about being by far the best I have had since joining the army. According to the prices we were paying in town for meals (3/6d to 5/- a time) those in camp were worth 6/- to 7/-. We used to spend every morning on the beach at Sidi Bishr and go to town during the afternoons. The first time we went in we were advised to go to the Chief and Petty Officers Club, which is a branch of the Fleet Club and which is open to Sjt's and above. We more or less made this place our headquarters as we spent a part of nearly every evening there meeting quite a number of Tommy seamen and several N.Zers. one of the Kiwis we met came from Devonport so I got his address and told him I would look up his people if I was lucky enough to get home before him. One night when we were playing Housie, Fred Burgess won a house and the next ticket won a line, while for the booby prize my name came out of the bag making a total of £8 for the night. That paid our ex's for a couple of days. Looking for bargains in the shops is a heartbreaking job as prices have skyrocketed beyond all but the Yanks pockets. Good fountain pens cost between £3 and £7-10 while nylon silk stockings cost £5 and more a time. Of course you can get cheaper ones but several of the boys have been advised from home that stockings they paid up to £1 a pair fro were perished when they were received in N.Z. so unless I can get hold of a nurse or an A.T. to ok them I won't be buying any. We did a tour one afternoon to Pompeys Pillar and the ancient burial grounds, the catacombs which are the only two points of historical interest in Alex but cannot say I was very impressed. On the same tour was a visit to the zoo which is a very small one in comparison with the Cairo zoo. The gardens which surround the zoo were very pretty and well worth the time spent in going to see the place. By now I suppose Lloyd will have told you more about Alex than I ever can by writing about it. I hope he is well on the road to recovery by now. At present I am acting C.Q.M.S. No1. Company but the job peters out in a couple of days when the C.Q. returns from leave. When the leave is all over I will probably get transferred from “A” Section but to what job and where I don't know. Several of the Matamata boys among the late arrivals here want me to run another Matamata reunion so I have started the ball rolling with a notice in the N.Z.E.F. Times and through orders. We took a list of known chaps over here and got nearly seventy so we should get quite a good muster. Out of the crowd at the original reunion we had before going to Greece there are only two of us left here. Well my dear the bed bugs are eating me alive so I will have to get out of this chair and give someone else a chance to reduce. All my love to the family and your dear self. Your loving son, Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE 2 Coy, 2 Div Sigs, 2 N.Z.E.F. M.E.F. 8.9.43 Dear Mum, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all the family. I received a letter from you some days ago, the first I had received from anybody for the last month. I had received a few airgraphs but they don't contain much news. Writing paper is at a premium where I am at present as when I tried to get some just now I was limited to three sheets per letter. For the past few weeks since I took over my new job I have been quite busy getting to know all I have to but once I get set up it should be about the best job in Div Sigs. I am C.Q.M.S. 2 Coy and by the time I write next I should be a temporary Staff Sergeant. I am not very interested in the promotion but the extra pay will be very acceptable. They have been trying to toughen us up lately with a few route marches but there has been some compensation in that we have been able to go for a swim afterwards. The heat has been very bad and at the present time I am together with several others suffering with a prickly heat rash that is very itchy. It is useless putting on ointment or powder as it just washes off with the perspiration. We have just finished our third needle for Typhus inoculation and another one for Typhoid making fourteen needle jabs of various kinds I have had so far. Don't worry about getting yourself a pin cushion, you can use me when I come home. Excuse the shortness of this letter but I hope to write an interesting one before long. Give all my love to the family and your dear self. Your loving son, Roto PS I posted you a bag for Christmas some weeks ago so I hope it arrives ok. I hope you like it. R. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE Hq 2 Coy, 2 Div Sigs, 2NZ.E.F, M.E.F 13.9.43 Dear Mum, As you will see from my address I have once more had a transfer and I should stay put for a spell if I manage to hold down the job I am doing. When I wrote to Ellen about three weeks ago I was doing a fortnights course at the “School of Instruction” at which I fluked a pass. The day I finished the course I was transferred to “R” section as Section Sergeant which was quite a good job, but after a week there I was transferred to Hq 2 Company as understudy to the Company Quartermaster Sergeant (c.q.m.s.). If all goes according to “Hoyle” I should get the job shortly and then I should have the second best job in Div Sigs. However that is getting a bit ahead of myself. For the past ten days or more I have a first class carbuncle on the back of my neck and so far four cores have been taken out of it. It is a lot easier now and very itchy so I am hoping it is on the mend although so far it still feels as big as a house. A lot of the boys have boils and carbuncles and all I can think is causing them is the change of food since coming out of the desert. We have had several good shows on at the “El Djem” lately and as they are all free they get very well patronised. When Jack Benny, Larry Adler and co put on a show the crowd must have been something over seven thousand. Larry Adler on his harmonica was the hit of the show while Jack Benny was very good with his wise-cracking. Outside the showers some days ago I ran into Bill Purchase from Warkworth. I hadn't seen him for a good many years but he hasn't changed much at all. Before leaving he was a Captain but now is a trooper in Div Cav. It must hurt some of these chaps to come down such a long way in rank but in fairness to those who have had a long time over here and been through a lot of actions it is the only fair way. Another chap I met a short time ago was Reg Holford who used to be on the relief in Auckland with me 13 odd years ago and whom I hadn't met during all those years. I had an airgraph from Roy Griffin some days ago and at the time of writing was in England waiting to do his first operational flight over Germany. I hope he has better luck than most. Yesterday afternoon I went to Cairo to buy a few odds and ends and got a present for you. I hope you will like it but I am such a poor judge when buying presents that I never know whether the thing is fashionable, suitable or worth the money I pay for them. It will be posted in the morning and should arrive somewhere around Christmas. Prices are terrific here now. A small rubber sponge that cost me 4 ackers (about 10d) twelve months ago are now 12 ackers (2/6d) and a bottle of good fountain pen ink (4oz bottle) 8/6d. After a spell of fairly hot weather it has started to cool down ever so slightly and today we are enjoying out first good dust storm for months. Give my love to all the family when you see them next. My writing has gradually deteriorated to such a state that I find it very difficult to write more often than one letter a fortnight to anybody but I will try and wake myself up. All my love my dear. Roto. |
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NATIONAL PATRIOTIC FUND BOARD ON ACTIVE SERVICE 2 NZ Div Sigs, 2 N.Z.E.F. M.E.F. 5.12.43. Dear Mum, I received a very welcome letter of yours a few days ago the first for a long time. Everybody must have had the same thoughts as yourself, I think, as nobody wrote to me for a few months, in fact I didn't write many myself. Now that the ban has been lifted once again I can say that I am in Italy. We were told once before that we could mention that we were over here but the order was cancelled the next day. It certainly is a change from that perpetual sand and sunshine over here as we are experiencing quite a bit of the exact opposite with rain and mud. I can't tell you where I have been but what I have seen of the place so far has well and truly taken my fancy. It is by far the best of all the places I have visited since leaving home and so far has exceeded my expectations of what I thought the place was like. Although most of what I have seen stands up on end, practically all of the land is tilled, the steep slopes hoed by hand. The people appear to be very industrious there being very little land that hasn't been tilled. The climate, to me, is all that could be desired the mountain air making me everlastingly hungry. We have had a couple of frosts so far but I expect we shall get snow before long there being plenty of it in the distance. Splashing round in mud after so long in the desert is quite a novelty but I expect that won't take long in wearing off. The mud is of the greasy type the soil being very puggy and believe me it's an art to keep your balance with a couple of dixies in your hands getting round the cook house. It is lovely not having to worry about wasting a bit of water and being able to have a sponge down whenever you feel like one. I am afraid we have overcome any thoughts of modesty that we ever had, as with the Italian women walking along the roads the boys don't bother to try and hide when taking a bath. Some of the women are very easy on the eye but in the main are nothing to crow about. They have several things in common with the wogs of Egypt the most pronounced being the carrying of large bundles and articles on their heads. Their living conditions in many of the smaller villages are disgraceful there being little or no sewerage, with the results best left to the imagination. Very few appear to be starved and as the country appears to be able to grow almost anything in the way of foodstuffs there shouldn't be anyone suffering in that respect. Nevertheless the people are very poor and will trade almost anything for food or clothing. After all the balony we have been fed for many years about the wonderful roads built by the Romans I expected to see something out of the ordinary, but alas what a disappointment. Other than for a few of the main highways between the larger cities all the roads are very ordinary and in about sixty per cent of these there is only room for one way traffic. All the grapes are finished now but when we arrived there were plenty and we more than did them justice. Wine and vermouth is in fairly plentiful supply but I can't enthuse over it as I am not much of a wine drinker. Some of it is very nice but mostly it is of the poorer quality, more water than wine. There appear to be quite a number of apples about, a fruit I haven't had more than twice in the past three years. Another thing I have never seen growing before are chillies of which there are patches all over the place. They look quite pretty, being a bright red colour and about five inches long. There appears to be no natural bush although there are quite a large number of trees about. Unlike Greece where all the houses were built in little villages, houses are dotted all round the countryside here while most of the villages are perched on the top of the highest peaks they can find. Fences are things that don't seem to worry them much as there are very few in evidence. A few turkeys and pigs have taken the boys fancy and there are several turkeys getting over fed round the camp area waiting for Christmas. I am choosing my friends accordingly. Since writing last I have been made a Temporary Staff Sergeant as C.Q.M.S of no 2 Company, one of the best jobs going. Although the promotion is only temporary and may never become substantive I am getting the extra pay for it and that is what counts as far as I am concerned. Another good feature of the job is that I get a full nights rest most nights instead of having to take a watch on a wireless set. Before leaving Egypt I unearthed a jersey that Muriel knitted and sent to me nearly three years ago and which had been resting in my base kit. It has at last become useful although not altogether necessary, as we are provided with more than sufficient warm clothes. In fact we have so much in the way of clothing and equipment that it would be practically impossible to carry it all without the aid of a vehicle. Our food is good and there is plenty of it and taken by and large I haven't felt so well for a long time. I hope all at home are fit and well and enjoy a good Christmas. Love to all. Your loving son Roto |
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