Todd war diary, 3 August 1914-29 February 1916 / Arthur Todd - Page 73
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[Page 73]
In the French Navy they have an unconventional method of securing fresh provisions unconventional at any rate as far as my notions are concerned.
One cannot conceive of a British post captain or a first lieutenant who took a pride in his decks and in the appearance of his ship, putting to sea such a herd of bullocks tied up inboard but our Allies regularly steamed out looking like a North Coast tramp. The Officers explained that they had no "friging" like us referring to refrigeration which a thoughtful Admiralty had had installed. This "friging" was a boon not less to our chummy ships than to us and often at a rendezvous at sea we passed our fresh meat to our less fortunate friends serving in other ships which were not so blessed. The man o'war in some respects is a queer abode and up till a few years ago at any rate the utilities were strictly observed.
For instance except in the most modern ships there are no baths installed for either Officers or men and one took ones daily - or otherwise - bath in a species of tin dish which is attached to the roof of the cabin. Even in the Sydney there were one or two dear old daddies who still preferred this to bathe as per regulation and looked with scorn upon the new fangled fittings of the new Navy. Even the stokers had their own baths with hot water laid on.
Refrigerators too were unconventional and the Melbourne and ourselves were the only ships on