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THE CORONATION CONTINGENT.
CAMP LIFE AT ALEXANDRA PALACE
(Sydney "Daily Telegraph.")
LONDON. June 20.
The Commonwealth Contingent duly ar-
rived in London by the Rome, after a
passage which seems to have been mark-
ed by few incidents worth recording.
Right glad, at any rate, were the men to
find themselves on shore once again, after
their six weeks' voyage.
They were landed in the morning, and
straightway entrained for Alexandra
Palace, where, on a sheltered slope over-
looking the Alexandra Park racecourse,
and commanding a splendid view right
across the eastern suburbs to the "great
smoke," spacious tents, holding six camp
beds apiece, had been erected against
their arrival. The camp could not have
been placed in a prettier spot, nor a bet-
tor locality selected.
Situate on sharply sloping ground near
the hill crest, it is surrounued by trees
on all sides, save the south-eastern, where
nothing intervenes to biock what is pro-
bably one of the best views to be come
at near London, save for here and there
an ugly shaft rising high above the trees,
now in their full June-tide beauty.
It is, indeed, an ideal spot for a camp
in summer weather. But of late it has
been anything but a case of "summer suns
are glowing."
The prevailing atmospheric conditions
for weeks past had been moist, and beast-
ly cold to boot. Even the well-drained
grassy slopes of Alexandra Park churned
up into mud of a peculiarly gluey charac-
ter on small provocation, and by the time
the Australians arrived at the camp the
tramping of Canadian and New Zealand
feet, of "Tommies," "Joeys," and other
visitors, had reduced the main pathway
through the canvas town to a quagmire,
necessitating the construction of a "cor-
duroy" road, and the small walks be-
tween the lines were in a state provoca-
tive of profanity in those who set store
on clean footgear.
Of course, as one man puts it, "Our
'tucker' isn't quite up to Hotel Cecil form,
but it's very good of its kind, and if
you don't get as much as you want, it's
your own fault." The men take their
meals in a canteen in the Palace, and are
waited on by privates of the Royal Ma-
rine Light Infantry, alias "Joeys," who
are also maid-servants in generic to the
white troops located at Alexandra Palace,
cleaning the tents, making the beds, and
generally doing the work that falls to
"Mary Jane" in an establishment where
one servant only is kept.
The "Joeys" have no doubt been chosen
for this maid-cuni-waiter work because
their ship-board training has taught them
that neatness and cleanliness are the first
essentials to serving the King with credit.
The transmogrification of the soldier-sai-
lor to a kitchenmaid-cum-waiter may not
add to the dignity of "Joeys" profession,
and some of them want to know why they
should be called upon to do menial tasks
for "a pack of bally colonials." But
as a matter of fact, the majority don't
seem to mind in the least doing "Mary
Jane's" work for the Australians and
New Zealanders, though, strange to say,
they have "a down" on the Canadians.
The men who sport the maple loaf, it
seems, have offended "Joeys" suscepti-
bilities by treating him as a servant, and
by a want of recognition of his services
in the canteen direction.
Some 50 "Joeys" havo to do all tho woik
of the colonial camp and canteen, and
they are kept pretty busy all day long,
you may guess. So hard, indeed, did
they find it after the New Zealanders and
Australians arrived that on Wednesday
afternoon they were conspiring to "strike"
at tea-time.
A hint of their intention was given to
the Australians and New Zealanders then
in camp, and a suggestion made io ihe
men from "down under" that they should
either go to tea as early as possible, or
else make arrangements to have their
meals elsewhere. Tho malcontents didn't
want to inconvenience the Antipodeans,
but the Canadians could take their
chance.
One innocent-looking youngster from
the wilds of Hoxton put the state of the
poll to me thus:-"Wo wouldn't mind the
work if they was all like the Noo Zealand-
ers and Ostrilians-no, not if there was
twice the number. If they see you're
pushed a bit, they'll do a bit for their-
selves, but them Canadians-well, they
orders us about like Dooks, and, by Moses,
if we 'ad four pair of hands apiece we'd
want 'em a 1 to be able to keep pace with
them. An' they're mean with it. Your
fellows (meaning the Antipodeans) don't
baulk at the price of a pint if you do any-
thing for 'on."
The Australians do not find life in
camp monotonous, for the very good rea-
son that they spend very little time with-
in their lines. They may have a parade
of sorts in the 'morning, but save the
two or three left on duty to see that no
one runs away with the tents, they are
free to do pretty much as they like till
the small hours of the morning apparent-
ly. Their passes nominally are avail-
able only till midnight, but as the mili-
tary police have been instructed to re-
gard the Antipodeans as being beyond
their authority, except under special cir-
cumstances, and there is no visible sentry
at the camp gate after about 10 p.m., the
men sometimes find themselves still far
from home when the witching hour ar-
rives.
There are a good many coloured troops
harboured in the Palace, including a fine
selection of open-conntenanced West Afri-
can niggers. The lines of the coloured
troops are well away from those of the
Antipodeans, and there seems no disposi-
tion on the part of the Australians to
fraternise with "blackamoors" of any
shade.
The West Africans! however, are by no
means all forlorn, for the perambulator
pushers of the Park's suburban environ-
ment seem to find these sable warriors a
source of much amusement, and you more
often see the darkies taking their walks
abroad escorted by two examples of do-
mestic femininity than alone.
Certainly there is no colour prejudice
evident just at present among the petti-
coated element of that part of our popu-
lation which some people refer to as "the
lower orders." A temporary lover from
over the seas seems to have for them an
irresistible attraction, no matter the
colour. Personally. I should prefer to
see them select the victims of their
caresses from men of their own race, but
doubtless the "nigger" has advantages
over his white brother in arms. His kiss
must b3 truly comprehensive, for in-
stance, and his smile really soul-satisfy-
ing.
One "young lady," who with others was
teasing a group of Haussas at the Palace
on Wednesday was rewarded for her te-
merity by a resounding salute. She
squealed and wriggled herself free, re-
marking to a friend a moment later,
"Lor. Liza, I thought 'arf me face wuz
gorn! It's like being smacked on the
chops wiv a warm flannll."
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