By Land and By Air 
     
    
   
   
    
     window where I was being treated for an ear infection, 
     
     when to my surprise this plane (the Ruhr Express) landed 
     
     in a field and went on fire. The crew jumped out and raced 
     
     for the next field. The fire group were trying to save the 
     
     crew from the burning wreck, but they were safely out and 
     
     were watching the fire. Later on, I was in the Officer’s mess 
     
     and I heard the Group Captain tell the Captain of the Ruhr 
     
     Express that he owed the Canadian Government 200,000 
     
     dollars. Was the Captain ever mad, as he thought that he 
     
     should have received some praise for saving his crew. 
     
    

    
     I got seasick on the Wood Islands ferry on my trip 
     
     overseas, although I was not sick on the Mauritania on the 
     
     way to England on the rough October seas. One night I 
     
     went to bed in very cold weather, to awake in sweltering 
     
     heat next morning, as a collection of submarines were 
     
     reported to be in its forward direction, and the ship 
     
     changed direction to south. The ship depended on speed 
     
     alone, as she sailed without convoy. There were six double 
     
     bunk beds with 13 officers in the room. Each night one had 
     
     to sleep on a mattress placed in the bathtub and it was my 
     
     first lesson of having a commission. The sergeants who 
     
     had been in my class had to sleep in hammocks between 
     
     decks and they had to work, while I was able to enjoy 
     
     sleeping in the upper bunk. I was eating in a luxurious 
     
     mess, but they were not fed in the good mess hall. We were 
     
     addressed in Halifax as ”Gentlemen and other ranks.” 
     
     When we arrived in England, we got on the train for 
     
     Bournemouth, which is the Florida of England. There are 
     
     palm trees, and no snow — the Gulf Stream started there 
     
     in England. The first day on the train we were given large 
     
     mugs of tea. I never saw any of the large mugs again. 
     
    

    
     On arrival at Bournemouth, about twelve of us 
     
     were in a room. There was a sign on the wall of the room 
     
     we were in “The King slept here.” The food was not as 
     
    
   
   
    
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