Fireforce: One Man's War in The Rhodesian Light Infantry by Cocks Chris

Author:Cocks, Chris [Cocks, Chris]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: HISTORY / Africa / General
ISBN: 9781908916082
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
Published: 2012-09-30T20:00:00+00:00

Rations

In many armies, food is a highly contentious matter, but I am able to state unequivocally that our rations were generally of a high standard. In barracks particularly, the fresh food provided by the caterers was very good indeed.

Breakfast for instance, consisted of cereal or ponidge followed by bacon, sausages, eggs and toast. Tea and coffee were both available, though for some reason, always with a suspicious taint of copper. Lunch, the main meal of the day, usually started with soup, and was followed by a meat or fish dish and rounded off with a pudding. Suppers, which were not as substantial, consisted of a light meal of mince or pies. On special days, the cooks would outdo themselves and present us with a delicious feast. Christmas was of course one such occasion, and the whole affair was enhanced by the officers serving as waiters to the troops.

In the operational areas the cooking was done by battalion caterers as well as cooks from the Service Corps. These were regular soldiers, often seconded to a commando for many months at a time, and some trepidation was felt whenever a new cook arrived. We would taste the new fare warily, and justified complaints were welcomed by the officers. The poor cooks would then suffer the rage of the CSM or the CQ.

Not having barrack facilities in the bush areas, naturally the food was not as good. But it still was adequate and reasonably palatable.

When on patrol, we were issued with standard army ration packs or ‘rat packs’. There were several varieties of these packs, each containing a different selection of canned food. The favourites were the ‘C’ and ‘D’ packs, which contained amongst others items, tinned pilchards, and bully beef. Corned ham, frankfurters and fish were all popular. The ration in each pack was designed to feed one man for one day, but in reality could be stretched to last for two days if necessary. Every pack contained a packet of rice, peanuts, a tube of butter, a tube of jam, salt, sweets, glucose tablets, curry powder, chutney and a packet of ‘dog’ biscuits that were delicious if soaked in water overnight, then fried in butter.

Among the troops the most detested of all rat pack items was the can of beans and franks. The beans themselves were perfectly acceptable, but for some reason the manufacturers insisted on hiding in the middle of them, a highly objectionable hard-boiled egg. Almost inedible and grossly offensive, the egg was as tough as old leather and not nearly as tasty. The white had gone a mouldy blue, the yolk a purulent black… and it is a matter of record that one day a trooper drove one of these ‘eggs’ down an airstrip with a golf club and the ‘missile’ landed intact.

To add interest to what could be rather a bland meal, I supplemented my rations with onions and garlic (excellent as a mosquito and mopani fly repellent) plus Bovril or biltong. With these added extras and

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