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Article: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

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    My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    10 Comments by Dave Francis Published on 18th January 2019 12:19 PM
    I'll be 76 years old & decades of my travels on a Royal Navy Auxiliary ship & and is it was yesterday had an argument with a water-tight door during a typhoon in the South China Sea? Trying to fight my way across the heaving ship & carrying a supply of coffee to the waiting officers & the stupidity on my part of trying to pass through a water tight door, without another Steward according to regulations? Another Steward found me, after wrecking my jaw and leaving my teeth in a pool of blood. Ended up in the infirmary & a helicopter rushed me to Kowloon, Hong Kong to a military hospital there? This was before the 99 year agreement, ran out & the Chinese took over. After about 2 months in the hospital and being great attention by a bunch of beautiful Eurasian, American & British Nurses I ended up on a transport to England.

    Still was healing and after a bunch of wrangling, I was let go from the Navy with an honorable discharge. My memory is not as sharp as it used to be, but I think it was 1956. I recall this, because I volunteered to give blood to the American Red Cross for the badly injured of Vietnam?

    I love my old Mum & her life was hard for her after the war, because my real Dad had been killed in Belgium, fighting the Nazi's. But she had this genetic experience she learned from my Grandmother. She still lived in the Victorian era and I learned many lessons about life? As in school, I was taught to be polite say please & thank you, clean my room; turn of my reading light at 9.00 and give up my seat to the elderly on a double Decker bus? I had a couple of jobs after my jaw, which was in pieces healed, but the sea taunted me? I had friends in West London, a bunch of chaps who lived nearby & George knocked on the door and showed me this quarter page ad? My attention was immediately drawn to P & O (Peninsula Steam and Navigational Company seeking passenger Stewards?

    We arrived at Aldgate East tube Station & headed from there to the HQ offices of P & O; or was it the Board of Trade or THE MERCHANT NAVY ESTABLISHMENT POOL. There were 4 of us. Clive Bradly; George Cliff & me? Well I had plenty of experience of making officers beds, serving their tables and keeping their quarters in tip top shape. Well strange as it seems, only I got the offer of a job and ended up somewhere on a training ship, learning the etiquette of serving passengers? I was there for about a month, being trained by some old guy who seemed to be a permanent ornament on the ship. Although I had the value of my previous experience, this was much more refined understanding of laying a plate setup and demitasse cups for coffee?

    I have moderate 'Dimentia' and my memory plays tricks on me, so I cannot be sure what ship I left Southampton on. It was however a Royal Mail Ship and we were heading for Australia and other countries. Being a newbie, my section was rather large.

    It was 2 sittings of 14, breakfast, lunch and dinner and not forgetting children's meals and afternoon teas? It was a hard slog, but I got to know the cooks and chefs and my helpers on our first voyage, stopping off in on many different countries?

    Cannot remember if it was P&O Oriana, Orsova, Oronsay, but it was bloody hard work and passengers can be as difficult as hell? I do remember balancing the peoples food under chock covers and being nearly 6'-3" seeing me coming through revolving door, many passengers fell into silence. Don't ever remember dropping a trayful of cuisine in any laps or making a mess? Usually I had a helper who assisted me with this big load, into the restaurant. Of course below deck I always seemed to have an altercation with bulkheads during bad weather.

    One of my first escapades in the many journeys across the Ocean, was my jumping ship in Australia? Now I think it was the Orsova, but I am not absolutely positive? Wherever we were going, one of the stopovers was Melbourne? At one of my tables was a cynical, upstart and bad temperament officer, surrounded by a group of families and single ladies. so he would make a point of diminishing my good nature, which I had always had? Trouble began at the dinner table when this Radio Office began giving me a hard time about--of all things demitasse spoons? Somebody, while I was away from my table sneaked the small coffee spoons away?
    Well--when I served coffee to the officers at the table, Mr Smart-ass decided to play me. I was tired after a long day and I wanted my bunk? Getting the attention of the passengers, especially the well dressed ladies, he demanded a demitasse spoon? Afraid, I lost it & dumped the tray and empty tiny cups in his lap and walked out. I had already served coffee and so nothing was hot, just a few cups with little drops of coffee.

    I knew I was in trouble and searched out the Union Convener, but was unable to find him. That night we were ready to dock in Melboune and has it happened I had in different sailings met many nice Australians and even Americans? Cannot go into the story but this family of a mother, two girls and their grandfather, was on their way to a property of land, North of Cairns. It was a huge package of land, that took half a day to drive from one side to the other. It was a very dysfunctional family as on my times of duty, the wife explained to her ex husband had brought this land for half-a-Crown an acre. Said, if I ever wanted a job, to find my way up to the Atherton table lands and live with the family, then go back with them to Santa Cruz, California. Margaret, the Mum took a liking to me, because she would contact me on the ship to get things she wanted, as her Stateroom Steward was slow and it took him forever to bring things she needed. This was just one of the high end passengers and her grandfather was extremely wealthy as I would find out later. The house in Santa Cruz overlooked 'The Hook' a famous surfing place. The family had left the ship at Circular Quay and was taking their good time, by taking a train--North! Of course I missed the family and the old boy, who turned out to own stocks and shares in the Ford manufacturing company. It was several ships later that I ended up at their huge house and spread? Not the house where the family lived, but the ranch house, with stables and all, with a frontage of Arizona Fossil stone. A huge driveway and indoor swimming pool, but that part of my early life is later.
    So onward we go with my story. At this point I had not been to America, but at night talking to a bunch of Stewards who became my friends, the USA always come into the conversation? I had already been in trouble with the ship, or you can call it that? Too much exposure to the sun, ended my up in the ships hospital? Never realized at the time, how to much sun could cause problems? For that I got fined 2 days pay, when standing in front of the Staff Captain and other officers after going back to work?
    Felt the punishment for the squabble with the Radio Officer would be even worse, so I decided to evacuate the ship, if I could get past the Custom authorities. So I told my good friend co-worker and giving excuse that things wouldn't go well from me, my co-worker gave up and said he would help me. What I did was put several pairs of pants on; levi's and same with shirts, a coat and several pairs of shoes. The old ships didn't pay that much, so I gathered what cash I had and vanished from the ship? I got stopped by the Customs and immigration agents, but all they were interested in, if I was English and what were the pills I carried in my satchel? They didn't seem they were that interested, after I told them they were just vitamins, herbs and other supplements?

    So many years ago, but it was a time when the British flag meant something and there were no terrorists and seeing my black British passport was enough to let me pass? If I had known at the time I could have brought my suitcases with me, that contained 35 MM film and camera; more clothes and other things.
    The dock offices let me exit & I looked back, as they sat drinking tea and talking. So now I was on the way and out of the shipping terminal.

    Thanks my friends from this old Merchant Navy and all those who have sailed the seven seas. My past history is not over, as these are the early days on the great ships.

    Dave

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  3. #2
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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    Not too sure about your dates Dave, but in 1956 you would have been 13 which is young to be leaving the navy. A very interesting account of your time at sea though.

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    Sorry correction: IT was in 1965

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    I find it so easy to 2 slip up with dates and having gone to a funeral last week I was looking at someone there and I thought I do know you it's somebody I haven't seen for 20 years and sometimes I having trouble now particularly as we all get older and we all seem to change slightly in remembering whose name fits his face and I noticed that when you are speaking to somebody that you knew years ago they voice tends to be more recognisable but the fact they've gone fat in the face and the hair dropped out
    Rob Page R855150 - British & Commonwealth Shipping ( 1965 - 1973 ) Gulf Oil -( 1973 - 1975 ) Sealink ( 1975 - 1986 )

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    #4 Pleased to hear others with the same problem. Alright to forget those you don’t want to remember but embarrassing to forgot those you want to keep tabs on. By one big regret is forgetting the names of 3 Yugoslav ships I was on , not too far back. The sorry part of it is would have been so easy to find out if had asked the chief I mentioned yesterday in a post about a fire in the ER as he served in same company. He is dead now so can say his name in case anyone from the NE knew him, it was Olly Armstrong. A good shipmate and friend. Maybe appear a bit weird to some , but a very honest man. If it wasn’t for the old discharge book who knows how many shipsI would have forgotten at my last attempt to write down with the aid of Book was in the eighties . Seamen who have sailedwith must be well over a thousand , so remembering all their names , I don’t think so. You remember them I suppose who made an impression whether good or bad remains to the individual. Cheers JS

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    Hi John.
    I have one redeeming feature and that is remembering faces, when watching TV I can always recall who an actor is and what play he was previously in even if it was years ago, names no go. I once went up to a bloke in a club in Penrith and said to this bloke i sailed with you, it worked out it was about twenty years previously.
    Cheers Des

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    In my slightly more mobile data or a few years ago I attended a union Castle reunion in Southampton and went with a fellow x Union Castle British and Commonwealth Apprentice the organisation was done by a retired master called Reg Kelso the guy who was with me passed away last year and he was Chris Gant he had sailed on I think the Hector heron are they actually recognised each other despite the fact that this had been some 40 years before I didn't actually recognise anybody until I heard a booming voice of a guy from Wolverhampton who again has now passed away a man called Tony Hickman who I sailed with on a ship called the clan mactaggart , then on its final voyage his voice was distinctive and had a very strong West Midlands Wolverhampton accent I introduce myself to him and yes he confirmed he was Tony Hickman and yes he had been on the clan mactaggart and yes the chief engineer was stainless Stan Steele but I wasn't the apprentice The Apprentice was somebody entirely different that's when you realise that sometime memories do not stretch over 40 years
    Rob Page R855150 - British & Commonwealth Shipping ( 1965 - 1973 ) Gulf Oil -( 1973 - 1975 ) Sealink ( 1975 - 1986 )

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    Quote Originally Posted by robpage View Post
    I find it so easy to 2 slip up with dates and having gone to a funeral last week I was looking at someone there and I thought I do know you it's somebody I haven't seen for 20 years and sometimes I having trouble now particularly as we all get older and we all seem to change slightly in remembering whose name fits his face and I noticed that when you are speaking to somebody that you knew years ago they voice tends to be more recognisable but the fact they've gone fat in the face and the hair dropped out
    Could have been worse Rob, like my brother, went to a Funeral and as it was going on suddenly realized he was at the wrong one.
    But if you knew my brother...…………………….
    Happy daze John in Oz.

    Life is too short to blend in.

    John Strange R737787
    World Traveller

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    What an interesting article from Dave Francis! His slight (and possibly not very long lasting) falling out with the unfortunate Radio Officer raised a wry smile, but on my old ship might have generated a 'Double D.R.' and therefore fewer future voyages. Without meaning to be at all critical I might also mention that 'jumping ship' always resulted in a large amount of extra work and hassle for those left behind to clear up the mess. Part of the fun I guess. Anyway Dave, all the best and I look forward to reading your tales of further adventures.

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    Default Re: My time in Australia before I jumped ship.

    #9... part of that fun I suppose was as 3 or 2 mate being sent to the custom house to see if they had any deportees to replace those missing. If they had any they were only too willing to pass them on as DBSs. Apart from anything else was cheaper labour again. In another post somewhere one of the apprentices did it the hard way and jumped over the side going up inside the Barrier Reef, was an extremely good swimmer so must have known what he was doing as swam to the one isle outside Cairns with a lighted beacon on. Was later picked up by a fishing boat , and claimed he was towing some dhobey on a heaving Line astern which pulled him overboard.. Returned to UK and on his next trip to Oz disappeared with the ships saloon cutlery , probably to set up house with his girlfriend. If he is on this site today, I wish him all the best, apart from all the trouble he managed to heap up for other people , which am sure at the time he would not have worried about. Cheers JS.

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