Monday 1^st March 1943

Joe fixed for me to go on leave to Calcutta with Lumb and Purslow tomorrow I am pleased about that I will not be on my own, he also told me that John Ferguson, Bill Kennedy, Jock Neil, and C.S.M Elwell are already there. I certainly would not have thought about going to Calcutta if I had been working but I am fed up sitting around in this place. Jock said at least we will get some decent food for a change and a few drinks, and there are plenty of cinemas to visit in the evening.

Tuesday 2^nd March 1943

This morning I packed all the clothes I will need while on leave, the clothes washing facilities in this jungle camp are not very good, I know there lots of good dhobi whallah’s in Calcutta so I packed some dirty clothes to take and get them really clean. At 16.00 hrs Smudger Smith drove the three of us to the Manipur Road Station to catch the train at 17.00 hrs. During the long train journey in the evening and throughout the night I was feeling rather rough, uncomfortable restless and unable to sleep much maybe it was because I am still not feeling too well.

Wednesday 3^rd March 1943

At 07.00 hrs we reached the Pandoo river crossing, where the steam boat was already tied up waiting for the arrival of the train. There were a large number of passengers transferred from the train to the boat, soon as we were on board she set sail across the Brahmaputra river which is very wide at this point. Jock Lumie and I went straight to the dinning room to have our breakfast and a few cups of tea during the crossing. By the time we had finished the meal and three cups of tea the boat had tied up on the far side. We did not have long to wait for our train and were soon on our way again. This part of our journey took up most of the day we arrived at Purbatipur at 23.00hrs. This is the station where we change trains the train we had been travelling on was on the narrow gauge railway system the next part of the journey is on the broad gauge railway. By this time we boarded the train it was midnight we were all tired and in need of a good wash or a bath. 

Thursday 4^th March 1943

The train left Purbatipur at 00.15hrs tired and weary I kept dosing and waking during the night, It made me realise I was still far from being fit after my dose of malaria. We arrived in Calcutta at 00.90hrs in the morning tired hungry and certainly in need of a bath and a change of clothes. We loaded our kit into a taxi and Lumie told the Sikh driver to take us to the race-course jaldi. He certainly did hurry at top speed blowing the horn every few yards for people to get out of his way, I am sure he went round some corners on two wheels we reached the race-course in record time. Lumie said “when I told him to jaldi I did not mean him to break records” we gave the driver a good tip mainly for getting us there in one piece. After booking in, this is where we are staying during our leave, we had a shower changed our clothes, sent our dirty washing to the dhobi and then went for a good meal. The rest of the day we did very little but lounge about being too tired I did write a few letters home and did have a few drinks in the Magnolia bar and a early evening meal before going to bed. I have not seen Ferguson Kennedy or Neil today probably see them in the dinning room at breakfast in the morning. I did meet C.S.M Elwell when I went to find my bed his is next but two passed mine. The beds are in long rows on a balcony on the first floor my bed is on the front row it overlooks what looks like a dance floor.

Friday 5^th March to Monday 15^th March 1943

I spent a quiet leave in Calcutta visiting places of interest, Jock Lumie and I sampled the food in many different restaurants having a variety of various dishes. We found a place run by the Salvation Army in the Ballygunge district they served excellent meals at very reasonable prices. The food was much better than Ferpoes which is a posh place on Chowringhee. We went to see all the latest films at the many cinemas there are in Calcutta. Very often we called in at the Metro cinema even if we were not going to see the film, just to have a drink. The Metro is air-conditioned and to walk in from the hot humid atmosphere in Chowringhee is it really very pleasant when you meet the cool air. They have a very nice well stocked bar with every type of drink you could want all were ice-cooled, neither of us are keen on the beer we usually had lemonade occasionally Lumie and I had Gin with Lime and Jock had a Whisky. We went to many variety shows at the Tiger, Ferpoes, and other clubs. We all agreed Calcutta has changed since we first came here twelve months ago the Americans have spoiled all the places. They act like show off idiots and get up to the most stupid antics, one night we were watching a show at the Tiger there were Indian dancers performing in their own way. Maybe it was not to the Yanks liking, perhaps a bit slow for them but at least they could have had the decency to sit and watch or go out. Instead those sat at the front, they always liked to sit at the front, started blowing up French-letters and throwing them on the stage. They were very drunk and coming out with obscene remarks to the dancers and shouting above the music ‘get them off ‘ The dancers were not used to their disgusting behaviour, you could see they were embarrassed and quickly left the stage. A Indian, probably the stage manager came on asking for order, but the Yanks started throwing things at him, he soon beat a hasty retreat. Just then some Jocks, I think they were Black Watch, walked down from the bar at the back where they had been enjoying a quiet drink, I could not hear what was said when they reached the Americans but fists started flying, they certainly got stuck in soon the Yanks were going down like skittles. More Yanks joined in and started throwing bottles other British infantry men joined the Black Watch it was like a scene from a western movie. We were sat on a raised balcony well away from the main floor, sat on his own at the next table to us was another American soldier, he looked at us and said “I am with their outfit I am sorry to say, wherever they go they spoil it for everyone else, they are undisciplined uneducated in fact uncivilised yobs” He told us he was an American Indian, he had come to the Tiger for a drink and to watch the show on his own because the few friend he had in their unit were on duty, he had been enjoying watching the Indian dancing when the idiots started performing. He said “I thought to myself no not again” seemingly he had been there a few nights previous and the same thing had happened caused by the same Yanks, that was why he was sat on the balcony just in case it was to be a repeat and sure enough it had started. The noise and fighting was terrific by this time. Our American Indian friend looking towards the entrance said “I think it to time to leave now before the M.P’s arrive. British and American M.P’s will come and arrest everyone” He showed us a back way out of the building so that we would not meet the police on their way in. Before we left him Lumie asked him what would happen to the Yanks, he laughed, and said “if they cause trouble the M.P’s would use their battens on them. We asked if they would be charged in the morning? “He said yes, but the officer will probably smile when he finds out they have been in a fight and they are all bandaged, he will most likely put them on camp duties for the day” He said he was more sorry for our men, they will probably be disciplined more severely than those that caused the trouble. The three of us did not go to the Tiger again during our leave.   

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