The first time I went from England to Johannesburg, Pretoria, was from Chatham Barracks. Mary was about 9 months old...we had to go out there hurriedly, something was on there. It's a very nice place...a lovely country.

Proper houses, the people who were out there first were the Dutch people. They were quite nice people too, someone you could speak to. Breakfast in the morning, have your bath. Then you go out and do your shopping. If you want anything from the canteen, they'll send it up, you go down the canteen and order it. Then the day's your own 'til lunch time. All I do is to cook the dinner, and dish it up because I won't let the boys touch it. They clean the vegetables and that's all I want, after that I won't have them in the kitchen. All the married women there...they had an easier life, they made the blacks do it - they were Welsh, they were artful. My mother used to write to me and say, be careful of what you eat and look at all you food that is prepared

for you. I do the cooking but nothing else in the house.

The Dutch and what blacks there were in quarters had to pay for what they wanted before they got it - there was no trust. They army had nothing like that - we used to make our order out and phone it through to London - clothing and everything we wanted. To dress a little kiddy, say a twelve month old, it cost you to buy from the Dutch in the drapers shops about £7 - not worth it - it's hideous, a lot of money. 'No fear,' I says, 'I'll send to London.'

As regards working - I didn't. All the housework and shopping was done, I used to go out and do the shopping and they'd send it up from the canteen, one of the soldiers would bring it up.

They'd got their verandas all round the house, and they'd got their beds...swing cots, you know. People...they have a bath...no one could see them not even the people in the house, they'd get out of their bath, get into their swing in the hammock until they're dry and then get up and dress.