Re: Scran at sea
I was a galley boy on Port Jackson and Port Townsville and La Cumbre, learnt to cook standard foods plus curries and such for deck and engine crew.* I then joined Union-Castle and signed an apprenticeship program, went to their training school then worked on all the kitchen stations on The Athlone Castle, Warwick Castle and Dunnottar*Castle in Union-Castle's passenger kitchens.
UCLA paid an extra pound*a month if you had a ship's cook's ticket.* I took the course and passed the Board of Trade*test for my ticket at age 19 and was*told I was the youngest to ever hold a ship's cook's certification.* I had no intention of being a ship's cook, I was happy in the passenger kitchen, French style food in the first class and regular*Brit food for the tourist bloods.
* *
Then the poop hit the proverbial fan on a trip on the Athlone Castle. The ship's cook had the audacity*to die*between Las Palmas and Cape town. Now I had to earn my extra pound a month.
I was scared to death. There were big hairy assed Deckies wearing knives on their hips and dangerous looking Greasers and me, 19 years old and didn't know where the bloody refers and dry goods crew's storeroom was and lunch in two hours.* Fortunately there was a kindly second cook and Baker and galleyboy that showed me the way.
I got through lunch and dinner, when a great big deckie came up to the galley half door and said, "Bloody good grub cookie, you taking over?" I think I said something like "No sir, just until Capetown, there flying out a new ship's cook."
Three days later I scurried back to the safety of the passenger kitchen.
Rodney Mills B.O.T certification No. 40151. 8th Aug. 1957 (Ship's cook ticket).
Rodney David Richard Mills
R602188 Gravesend