AWM52 1/11/18/5 - Headquarters London Victory March Contingent, 1946, part 4, Summary of events and correspondence - Part 10

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No 2 platoon (ALF) defeating No 3 Platoon (AMF) 5-1

Stokers defeating Naval Contingent 1-0. These games

were a good pipe opener to the more serious business of

defeating or otherwise, the ship's company in a few days

time. Most of the contingent teams are now developing

a system, the effectiviness of which, remains to be seen.

Pictures

2030hrs. George Formby in "Gunner George" and newsreels,

shown on both torpedo space and quarter deck.

Female Washing

The Women's Services are not without their troubles

with respect to washing lines. Lines were erected on

D X Deck for the purpose.

Health

The health of the contingent has been extrememly good

this far. An average of 5 men attend the 1030hrs sick

parade daily, and the most common ailment is a species of

cold 3 Malaria relapses have occured.

Sunday 28 Apr At Sea

Weather

Fine day but slightly overcast. Hardly a ripple

on the sea. Ideally suited for contingents first formal

church parade on board.

1025hrs. Fell in by platoons in torpedo space. Dressed

in "Off the peg" SD, gaiters, boots and S.D. berets.

Navy and Aifroce in blues. Marched from torpedo space

to quarter deck where the lectern was erected for chuch

parade. The Naval parade known as "divisions" then took

place. Division or detachment commanders reported their

sub Units, spaced at intervals around the whole of the

upper deck, ready for inspection to the 1st Lieut, who

handed over to the Commander in the absence of the

Captain. The Commander then proceeded to inspect each

division in turn.

Divisions & Church Parade

At the conclusion of the inspection the bugle call

"close" was sounded and all division marched too and

formed upon the quarterdeck. The naval armed guard was

already in position on the starboard side aft. The ships

Band formed up in the shadow of the 8" guns facing aft.

On the order of the 1st Lieut, all ranks with the exception

of the Women's Services removed caps, and the service

commenced conducted by Rev. J.O. WERE Chaplain RAN.

Commander MORROW read the lesson and Chap. JAMES gave the 

address. At the conclusion of the service all ranks were 

dismissed.

For the ALF and RAAF members of the contingent the

service was something they will always remember. All were

impressed by the quite simple dignity of the ceremony held

as it was in the shadow of the guns, and embodying the very

tradition of the navy itself.

Those who were present will always be grateful to the Navy

for permitting them to share this experience.

At the conclusion of the church parade, all ranks stood

down for the day. Holy communion was celebrated in the w

room. 1200hrs. Course 270 Degrees Speed 15 Knots Distance

Position

travelled since 27 1200hrs - 375 miles Latitude 28 degrees

59 minutes S Longitude 88 degrees 26 minutes E Wind SW - 

Force 1-3 Visibility good Smooth sea. 1430hrs Programme

Music

of recorded music was presented over the ship's SRE system

by Lt. Comd FAULKNER 1600hrs Afternoon deck hockey games

Deck Hockey

resulted in Army 1 defeating Army 11 2-0 Army 111 defeated

Nondescrips 1-0. 1945hrs Concert held in torpedo space.

Concert

The deck was suitably decorated with falgs for the occa
 

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and the ships dance band installed in front of the microphone

The dance band is only the ships band converted, but put

on a very good show. Sailors, soldiers and [[nirkec?]]

crammed into every bit of available space. The concert

consisted mainly of sentimental poems, songs, community

singing, and sketches given by the ships company. Items

by [[cambers?]] of the contingent were conspicuously absent.

Nevertheless it was a great success.

Monday 29 Apr AT SEA

Weather

Fine clear day with low average swell and slight sea.

0845hrs. Officers conference in orderly room. Instruction

given for marking of bedding during day. Kit shortages to

be in to QM by 1800hrs. Brig MOTEAS instructions that

War Diary

a War Diary is to be kept by the [[?divtat?]]in addition to

the narrative being written by Lt. FORBES, promulgated.

Narrative to date, to be despatched from CAPE TOWN and

again from LONDON on arrival. Capt HIRD was detailed

to do the typing. 0900hrs. Parade and administration

Investiture Details

Lists of personnel entitled todecorations and who have

not yet been invested,compiled. This is in anticipation

of the investiture taking place in LONDON on arrival

Rifle Drill

0915hrs. Rifle drill by platoons. Again this was

interrupted by washing of decks. Even with the practically

completley calm sea, the movement of the ship is sufficien

to prevent the training being of any use from the point

of timing. It is mainly useful in detecting and righting

faults in individuals, of which there are many. 0815hrs

Lecturettes

Lecturettes by selected men on AUSTRALIA. Some show a

marked reluctance not only to give Lecturettes but also

to make any endeavour to make themselves ou fait with

AUSTRALIA at all. 1030 - 1100hrs P.T. and Recreational

training. 1100-1115hrs. Rifle cleaning and dismiss.

Marking of Bedding

To offset the loss of bedding and blankets previously

mentioned all bedding was marked with its owners embarkation

serial number. All ranks again impressed with the necessity

of observing right of way in passageways. The ships

company also had the same fact impressed on them.

Position

1200hrs. Course 268 degrees Speed 15 Knots. Wind -Force3

Sky ¼ to ¾ cloudy. Distance since 28 1200hrs - 360 miles

Latitude 30 degrees 00 minutes S Longitude 81 degrees

28 minutes E.

Deck Cricket

1500hrs - 1600hrs. P.T. and organised Games. 1600hrs No

deck hockey but deck cricket commenced for first time.

It is played in the deck hockey area with over all nets,

and solid stumps. Today was only an informal "hit", but

quite a number of contingent personnel showed themselves

to be keen on the game. It is understood that a competition

will be organised in the near future.

Quiz

A "quiz" competition is being organised on the ship.

64 teams are required from all sections of the ship.

Teams are to have 3 members, and questions will be asked

over the ships SRE system. To date, entries from O.R.

members of the contingent have been disappointing.

Frequent appeals have been made with very little result as

yet.

Dirithy Dox

1830hrs. Marked the first appearance of "Dirithy Dox"

on the ship's SRE system. Questions were answered in

Dorothy Dix Style, and the show proved to be most

entertaining and amusing. "Dirithy Dox" will be on

the air every Monday Wednesday and Saturday, and all ranks

are invited to let hersort out their troubles.

1830hrs. Clocks retarded 1 hour.

Pictures

1930hrs "Love on the Dole" and newsreels were presented

on the Cafeteria Mess Deck.

Part 13

Tuesday 30 Apr AT SEA

Weather

Fine clear day with good visibility but very little

swell. 0845hrs Officers conference in orderly room.

Nothing of any consequence was discussed. 0900hrs

Paludine

Parade and administration of Paludine. This is now

given to all ranks whether they have served in

malaricus areas or not. 0915-1015hrs. P.T. and

P.T.

organised games. This was slightly varied by the

introduction of inter platoon tug of war contests The

sport when practised on smooth decks in sandshoes

involves the application of new principles, and hadevery

one thinking. In addition some boxing gloves were produced

and used to good effect. The usual training

syllabus was carried through without incident.

Female Inspection of Gun Turrets

During the morning the female members of the

Contingent were taken on a tour of the engine rooms and

8" gun turrets. To judge from their oily appearance

on reappearance, they made the inspection very thoroughly

Position

1200hrs. Course 270 degrees Speed 15 Knots Wind NW

Force 2 Weather b7 Distance since 2912oohrs - 375 miles.

Longitude 30 degrees 01 minutes S Latitude 74 degrees

11 minutes E.

Deck Hockey

The afternoons deck hockey games resulted in

Army defeating Stokers 3-1, Stokers 2 drawing with Naval

Contingent 2-2, 2 platoon drawing with Army Officers

2-2. It is intended to play deck hockey and deck cricket

on alternate days.

News

The "Shropshire News" consisting of the latest wireless

news is now distributed daily by the ship.

War Artist

Lt MAINWARING War Artist has been given the use of

a room in the Captains Quarters for his work. His

intention is to paint portraits on the voyage, as the

weather allows. To date portraits of Gen EATEER, Capt

SHOWERS and L.t BARR [[AAWMC?]] are in the course of

production. In addition he will do at leastone full

size painting in oils of an aspect of shipboard life

which will enable him to include as much of the ship

as possible. These, combined with many water colour

sketches, should give an effective pictorial record of

the voyage.

War Photographer

Lt. COFFLEY War Photographer, has also been very

busy taking both still and moving pictures of every

aspect of the contingents daily life on board ship.

This includes flash light photographs taken at night

at concerts etc., He will despatch those taken to

date on arrival at CAPE TOWN for early release to the

AUSTRALIAN public.

Brig MOTEN continues to be confined to his bed with

Bronchitis.

Quarterdeck

The quarterdeck at 1600hrs presents a daily increasing

scene of activity. Given over to Officers and

Female members for sport; deck tennis, deck quoits,

medicine ball sports, skipping, fencing, and just

plain exercises are indulged in energetically. In

fact the will to become healthy has become a fetish

with some Officers. They are taking more exercise than

has been their custom for years. Perhaps it is due to

the sea air or just to a desire to be as fit as

possible for the forthcoming ordeal in LONDON.

Wednesday 1 May AT SEA

Rough Weather

Overcast early with occasional rain squalls, moderate

sea and average swell. Weather cleared up during the day

0845hrs. Daily Officer's conference. As a consequence

of the indifferent weather it was decided to put all

personnel on ships duties for the day. As on previous

occasions split up on various tasks through the ship

Most of them were working below the main deck on brass

polishing, scrubbing docks, and carting stores.

1200hrs Course 270degrees Speed 14 knots Visibility

bc 7 wind NE Force 4 Distance travelled since 30 1200hrs

339 miles Latitude 30 degrees 03minutes & Longitude

67 degrees 45 minutes S.

Toys

Women members commenced the manufacture of felt

animals. When these "protypes" are finished they will

serve as models for their manufacture on a large scale

by male members of the contingent and possibly the ship's

company. It is intended to distribute them amonst

children's organisation on arrival in ENGLAND.

Quiz Contest

1700hrs First round of the quiz contest held- owing to

bad weather it could not be held in Torpedo space as

originally intened and was held in cafeteria mess deck.

The two opposing teams were seated opposite each other

and each member answered two questions into the microphone

the programme being broadcast over the ships SRE at the

same time. Lt. Comd FAULKNER conducted the session.

Baby Buntings defeated [[?o Tcarem?]] 9-5 and See Dee Effs are

the only team that will remain in the competition. The

only contingent team to be represented were the Stripers

which consisted of 2 WAAF's and 1 AMAS. They put on a

very good show.

1930hrs Clocks retarded 1 hour.

Thursday 2 May AT SEA

Rough Weather

Fine clear day, with heavy sea and powerful wind.

Practically impossible to stand up on deck and [[SWR?]]

erected as a security measure. Although the sea was

heavy the ship was not rolling unduly owing to the

wind being head on. It was expected to work round to

the port quarter during the day when the roll would

have been acentuated, but it remains about 60 degrees

to our course all day.

Shine [[?]]

Owing to the rough weather all racks again put to

work on ship's duties in lieu of the normal training

programme. This is the second day in succession that

theyheavy seas have made this necessary.

Position

1200hrs Course 270 degrees Speed 14 Knots wind SW

Force 6 Visibility b7 Distance since 01 1200hrs -336

miles Latitude 29 degrees 54 minutes S Longitude

61 degrees 35 minutes E Very rough sea, short moderate

swell.

Deck Hockey

Deck hockey games arranged for the afternoon had to

be cancelled owing to rough weather. 1700hrs. 4 more

teams competed in the second session of the first round

of the quiz contest. None of them contained contingent

personnel.

Sea Sickness

Incidence of sea sickness is now practically.

It would appear that all personnel have not found

sea legs. This rather confounded the calculations

of the chip's catering staff who always count on a

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smaller attendance at meals in bad weather. On the

contrary contingent personnel appear to get hungrier

as the weather gets rougher.

Friday 3 May AT SEA

Weather

0045hrs. Altered course to 250 degrees to avoid beam

swell and excessive roll. Fine clear day, with heavy swell

Ships Duties

0845hrs Daily Officers conference held in Orderly room.

All ranks handed over to the ship for duties for the third

successive day. More and more personnel are being

allocated as offsiders to members of ships company and not

just casual work as hithertoo.

Action Stations

0900hrs. Ship practised action stations. This consisted of

closing all doors and hatches commensurate with Damage.

Control State 1. Testing all communications Checking

receivers between directors and guns, and all hands

closing up at their alloted action stations while loading

drills etc., are carried out. AMF and RAAF personnel kept

out of the way on the upper deck, and watched with interes

a proceedure of which they had often heard.

1010hrs. Action stations concluded and all contingent

personnel resumed ship's duites.

Position

1200hrs. Course 270 degrees (changed from 250 degrees

at 1000hrs.) Speed 15 Knots wind South Visibility

bc7 Barometer rising. Slight sea. Short average swell

Distance since 021200hrs - 360 miles. Longitude 30 degrees

22 minutes S Latitude 55 degrees 40 minutes E.

1600hrs Deck cricket played as usual.

Quiz

1700hrs. Third session of first round of quiz contest was

decided. The only contingent team competing was the

KORDIES who defeated the OIKS and TOIKS 9-2. This

team consisting of Majs WILLIAMS & GLUTH and LT BARFR,

created history by asking for a replay on the grounds that

their questions had been much easier than those given to

the OIKS and TOIKS. The request was granted, and these

teams will meet again later in the contest.

Dirithy Dox

1745hrs. Dirithy Dox came on the air with the third of

her ever popular sessions. Response to her request

to let her help people with their troubles, have resulted

in her being inundated with letters. There is much

speculation on the identity of Miss Dox.

Health

To date the general health of the contingent has been

excellent. The following was the incidence of disease

for period 19 Apr - 4 May.

U.R.T.I. 19

Skin 24 (infected cuts, 2 rashes, 2 post

innoculation arms)

Accidents 11 (Minor cuts, strains & sprains - nne

serious)

Diarrhoea 1 (0nly)

Sea Sickness 2 (Very mild)

Malaria 1 proven (BT 20/4/46) 1 clinical Malaria

(had not had paludine)                            

Pediculosis 2

Aggregate total attendances at RAP - 83

Daily Average - 5

[Form, see original scan]

SECRET

I.-STRENGHT RETURN On Embarkation and Disembarkation of Australian Victory

Contingent

(Serial No.*       ) on moving from [[Waterloosn?]] 1 July 1946 to

Portsmouth

Harbour

Station

Officers 21

Warrant Officers 20

S/Sgts., Sgts. & L/Sgts. 101

Rank and File 97

Total Other Ranks 208

Total All Ranks 229

Womens Services 18

[[JM. Foul?]] Major.

Camp Commandant, [[?]], Victory Camp

 

[Form, see original scan]

II.- WAR OUTFIT OF UNIT.

[Form, see original scan]

III.-NOMINAL ROLL (To include all ranks)

[Form, see original scan]

III.-NOMINAL ROLL - (contd.) Other ranks (Alphabetically by Squadron, Company, etc.)

COPY

B7375

File No PERS

INWARD CLEAR MESSAGE

FROM: HQ AIF MELBOURNE

TO : AAS LONDON

ML 1245 (?) 051140K June

UNCLASSIFIED. Ref IM 918 of 311630 and ML 1067 of 13 May, Concur

in courses proposed Lt Forbes

To G (for action)

[*21B*]

[[NX135171?]]

[[Wa.J.Forbes,?]]

[[S?]] of [[AA arty?]],

Manorbier

Tenby,

Pembs,

SWales

10 Jul 46

Dear Maj Fenton,

Reference your memos

7725 of 5 Jul 46 and 7831 of 8 Jul 46.

Enclosed is the requested

sworn statement.

You will see from this

that I was "alone" at the

time of the incident. There

was no steward present. He

locked up the bar & left the

mess some ten minutes

before Pte Silversides entered.

It will be noted that

my statement only covers the