Charlie's War

ever seen one of these before? It was an exquisite Ross rifle. The original Ross Rifle was designed by one of the Rosses of Balnagowan, an estate and castle just south of Tain in Ross-shire, at the turn of the century. As a military weapon it was superseded by the rugged .303 Lee Enfield, because it had a number of weaknesses, including the fact that its bolt can take out the shooter’s eye if it is reassembled clumsily after cleaning. It has one saving grace that repays the care and love its sharpshooter devotees still lavish on it: in the hands of a skilled marksman it can consistently shoot the pips from a playing card at a quarter of a mile. It is a true sniper’s rifle.

During the last weeks of the war the Allied armies at the point seethed with rumours of supposed Werewolf Units – allegedly well-armed groups of stay-behind fanatical Nazis dedicated to what we would identify today as acts of terrorism. There were such units, but not many of them: neither were they well organized or equipped. They mounted a couple of operations, but in the large scheme of things didn’t amount to much. They were successful insomuch as the fear of them, and the steps taken to counter them, used far greater resources than their actual threat warranted, but in 1945 no one was prepared to take a chance with a Nazi. Charles Whiting’s book Werewolf is an accessible account of their activities, and contains as much information as the general reader will need: a footnote to history.

The story of the dying soldier sitting on his bed in the Fifties and believing that he saw the victims of the concentration camps beckoning to him from his dressing mirror is true. I know: I was there, a thirteen-year-old sitting alongside him.

Finally: A state-of-the-art plateful of Stovies, and a fine pint of beer, can still be had for less than a fiver at the Halfway House in Fleshmarket Close, a narrow street of steps, behind Waverley Station in the Old Town of Edinburgh. For those of you that want to do it yourself, a typical Stovie recipe comprises 6 large peeled and cubed potatoes, a cup of milk, a tablespoon of salted butter, a chopped onion and a 12-ounce tin of corned beef cut into small chunks – with additional salt and pepper to taste. Drop the milk and potatoes into a saucepan, boil and simmer until the potatoes are soft – maybe half an hour. While the potatoes are simmering sauté the onion in the butter, in a skillet over a medium heat, until pale and soft. When the potatoes are soft, mix in the sautéed onions and the corned beef. Give it another ten minutes to heat through, and season with salt and pepper. Some recipes include a small poke of finely ground oatmeal, if it needs stiffening, or a serving can be topped off with a dollop of soured cream, or crowdie. Bon appétit.

I had anticipated that Charlie Bassett would bow out of my life with this story. However, the Russians are coming, and now I know that Charlie will have to fly again.