The cook was pretty shaken when he heard what had happened. He wasnt so sure of himself any more. But I cooked for a hundred and fifty men.
Kropp elbowed him in the ribs. So for once well get enough to eat. Right, get on with it!
Suddenly a light dawned in Tjadens eyes. His pointed, mouselike face positively glowed, his eyes narrowed with cunning, his cheeks twitched and he moved in closer. Bloody hell[13], then you must have drawn bread rations for a hundred and fifty men as well, right?
The cook-sergeant nodded, confused and not thinking.
Tjaden grabbed him by the tunic. Sausage, too?
Another nod from Ginger.
Tjadens jaw was trembling. And tobacco?
Yes, the whole lot.
Tjaden looked round, beaming all over his face. Christ Almighty[14], now thats what I call a bit of luck! Then all that stuff has to be for us! Everyone gets hang on right, exactly double of everything!
When he heard that the ginger-headed cook-sergeant realized what was up, and told us that it wasnt on.
By now we were getting a bit restive, and pushed forward. Why isnt it on, carrot-top[15]? Katczinsky wanted to know. Eighty men cant have the rations for a hundred and fifty. Well soon show you, growled Muller.
I wouldnt mind about the meal, but I can only give out the other rations for eighty, insisted Ginger.
Katczinsky was getting annoyed. Is it time they pensioned you off, or what? You didnt draw provisions for eighty men, you drew them for В Company[16], and thats that. So now you can issue them. We are В Company.
We started to crowd him. He wasnt too popular it was thanks to him that in the trenches wed more than once got our food far too late, and cold into the bargain, just because he didnt dare bring his field kitchen close enough in when there was a little bit of shellfire; and that meant that our men had to make a far longer trip to fetch the food than those from other companies. On that score Bulcke, from A Company[17], was much better. Its true that he was as fat as a hamster in winter, but he used to carry the cooking-pots right to the front line himself if he had to.
We were just about in the right mood and there would certainly have been trouble if our company commander hadnt turned up. He asked what the argument was about, and for the moment all he said was, Yes, we had heavy losses yesterday
Then he looked into the cooking-pot. Those beans look good. Ginger nodded. Cooked in fat, with meat, too.
Our lieutenant looked at us. He knew what we were thinking. He knew a lot of other things as well, because he had come to the company as an NCO[18] and grown up with us. He took the lid off the pot again and had a sniff. Bring me a plateful as well. And give out all the rations. We can do with them.
Ginger made a face. Tjaden danced around him.
Its no skin off your nose![19] He acts as if the supplies depot[20] was his own personal property. So get on with it now, you old skinflint, and make sure you dont get it wrong
Go to hell, spat Ginger. He was beaten this was simply too much for him everything was turned upside down. And as if he wanted to show that he just didnt care any more, he gave out half a pound of ersatz honey per head, off his own bat[21].
It really is a good day today. There is even mail, nearly everyone has a couple of letters and newspapers. So we wander out to the field behind the barracks. Kropp has the round lid of a big margarine tub under his arm.
On the right-hand edge of the field they have built a huge latrine block, a good solid building with a roof. But that is only for new recruits, who havent yet learned to get the best they can out of everything. We want something a bit better. And scattered all around are small individual thunder-boxes with precisely the same function. They are square, clean, made of solid wood, closed in, and with a really comfortable seat. There are handles on the sides so that they can be carried about.
We pull three of them together in a circle and make ourselves comfortable. We shant be getting up again for the next couple of hours.
I can still remember how embarrassed we were at the beginning, when we were recruits in the barracks and had to use the communal latrines. There are no doors, so that twenty men had to sit side by side as if they were on a train. That way they could all be seen at a glance soldiers, of course, have to be under supervision at all times.
Since then weve learnt more than just how to cope with a bit of embarrassment. As time went by, our habits changed quite a bit.
Out here in the open air the whole business is a real pleasure. I cant understand why it was that we always used to skirt round these things so nervously after all, it is just as natural as eating or drinking. And perhaps it wouldnt need to be mentioned at all if it didnt play such a significant part in our lives, and if it hadnt been new to us the other men had long since got used to it.
A soldier is on much closer terms with his stomach and digestive system[22] than anyone else is. Three-quarters of his vocabulary comes from this area and, whether he wants to express extreme delight or extreme indignation, he will use one of these pungent phrases to underline it. It is impossible to make a point as clearly and as sufficiently in any other way. Our families and our teachers will be pretty surprised when we get home, but out here its simply the language that everyone uses.