Duchess of Cumberland; they should be in the Duchess of Clarence. “But the Clarence isn’t here,” said the E.S.O. “I daresay they were told to go to the Cumberland by someone.”
“By whom?”
“Not by me, old man,” said the E.S.O.
Cedric went on board and looked for the C.O. of the Highlanders and found him at length in his cabin asleep in his battledress.
“These are my orders,” said the Highland Colonel, taking a sheaf of typewritten sheets from the pocket on his thigh. They were already tattered and smeared by constant reference. “‘Duchess of Cumberland. Embark 2300 hrs. with full 1098 stores.’ That’s plain enough.”
“But our men come on board in an hour.”
“Can’t help you, I’m afraid. These are my orders.”
He was not going to discuss the matter with a subaltern. Cedric fetched his C.O. Colonel to Colonel, they talked the thing out and decided to clear the after troop-decks. Cedric was sent to wake the Highland duty officer. He found the duty Sergeant. Together they went aft to the troop-decks.
There were dim lights along the ceiling ? electric bulbs recently daubed with blue paint, not yet scratched clear by the troops. Equipment and kit-bags lay about the deck in heaps; there were Bren gun boxes and ammunition and the huge coffin-shaped chests of the antitank rifles.
“Oughtn’t that to be stored in the armoury?” asked Cedric.
“Not unless you want to get it pinched.”
Amid the heaps of stores half a battalion lay huddled in blankets. Very few of them, on this first night, had slung hammocks. These lay with the other gear, adding to the piles.
“We’ll never get them moved tonight.”
“We’ve got to try,” said Cedric.
Very slowly the inert mass was got into movement. They began collecting their own gear and swearing monotonously. Working parties began man-handling the stores. They had to go up the ladders onto the main deck, forward through the darkness and down the forward hatches.
Presently a voice from the top of the ladder said, “Is Lyne down there?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve been told to bring my company to this troop-deck.”
“They’ll have to wait.”
“They’re coming on board now.”
“Well for God’s sake stop them.”
“But isn’t this D deck?”
“Yes.”
“Then this is where we are to come to. Who the hell are all these men?”
Cedric went up the ladder and to the head of the gangway. A stream of heavily laden men of his regiment were toiling up. “Go back,” ordered Cedric.
“Who the hell’s that?” asked a voice from the darkness.
“Lyne. Take your men back to the quay. They can’t come on board yet.”
“Oh but they’ve got to. D’you realize half of them’ve had nothing to eat since midday?”
“There’s nothing to eat here till breakfast.”
“Oh, but, I say, what rot. The R.T.O. at Euston said he’d telegraph through and have a hot meal ready on arrival. Where’s the Colonel?”
The line of soldiers on the gangway turned about and began a slow descent. When the last of them was on the quay, invisible in the darkness, their officer came on board.
“You seem to have made a pretty good muck-up,” he said.
The deck was full of the other regiment carrying stores.
“There’s a man there smoking,” shouted a ship’s officer from above. “Put that cigarette out.”
Matches began to spurt up on the quay. “Put those cigarettes out, down there.”
“––-y well traveling all the ––-ing day. No ––-ing
supper. ––-ed about on the ––-ing quay. Now a ––-
won’t let me have a ––-ing smoke. I’m ––-ing––-ed
with being ––-ed about by these––-ers.”
A dark figure passed Cedric muttering desperately: “Nominal rolls in triplicate. Nominal rolls in triplicate. Why the devil can’t they tell us beforehand they want nominal rolls in triplicate?”
Another dark figure, whom Cedric recognized as the E.S.O
“I say, the men are supposed to strip down their equipment and pack it in green sea-bags before embarking.”
“Oh,” said Cedric.
