The Banker (Part 6) – Ladysmith
Still in civilian clothes, the rookies were formed into makeshift platoons. They were then marched out of the station and instructed to clamber onto the waiting army trucks for the trip to the Ladysmith military base. The men jostled for a place on the open load beds of the trucks. Findlay found his back against the steel drop-down side of a Ford 3-ton lorry. Other recruits stepped on his legs as he shuffled into a spot for the trip to the base. The trucks sagging to one side, this would clearly not be a comfortable ride. Once everyone was aboard, the Ford V8 petrol engines sputtered to life. Findlay’s transport gasped and coughed as the driver coaxed the overloaded lorry into motion. The driver ground the transmission into low gear and the noisy beast edged forward. The engine backfired, and the lorry lurched. From his awkward position between limbs and smelly torsos, Findlay noted that the driver deserved full marks for not missing a single pothole en route. It was a rite of passage ...
