In the interests of preserving our history and
with the kind permission of the author, one of my Corporals, who wishes to
remain nameless (for fear the 'authorities' might
wish to have words with him even after all these years) I am reproducing a
story which first appeared in the Pipiwharauroa newspaper, November 2008,
under the by-line 'More action packed yarns from out of Vietnam'.
This story is really about my Section. We were
sent back to Nui Dat to guard our base camp. It entailed night time duties of
sentry duty on the perimeter wire and the occasional listening patrol beyond
the perimeter. Daytime duties were light and rest was the order of each day.
The Coy 2IC, a distinguished ex-NZSAS officer,
ordered a clean-up of the lines, especially the gun-pits. Someone important was
going to inspect. It has been noted over a period of time that rats had become
a nuisance in the bunker due to food scraps left by errant guards. Mysteriously the rats seemed now to have
disappeared.
Cleaning up and the reason for the sudden
disappearance of the rats became evident. Our gun-pit had been constructed with
a recess to the rear of it, possibly as an ammunition storage bay. The recess
needed attention. It too accumulated discarded rubbish. To our amazement (and
consternation) we discovered a sleeping python of vast proportions. It was over
three metres long and weighed in at a good twenty-three kilograms. His stomach
was bloated to the size of three rugby balls. An autopsy revealed a hundred or
so rats in different stages of decomposition – hence his need to sleep off the
digestion process.
The air-field below our camp at Nui Dat at its
northern end (nearest to us) was the storage area of at least two acres on
canned Australian beer of every description stacked three pallets high.
Soldiers seemed to suffer from acute thirst because we observed a slight
reduction in this storage area at times. It always seemed to be replaced.
Perhaps there was some form of accounting procedure for the stock as it came
and went but it was not evident. The only evidence of protection for this
treasure trove out in the open was a night guard of four men in a hut. A
'casual' visit by one of my section to the hut established vital information.
At 2000 hours on TV in the hut was a round-up of what was happening in the war.
This lasted for about 30 minutes. It was then that the guard took a break.
Planning swung into action. One of the major
advantages in our favour was darkness. Calculation of timings and individual
loads transported estimated that each man could manage thirty cartons in the 30
minutes. Further, to offset or delay discovery of the missing beer, it was
prudent to remove the beer from the pallets in the centre of the pool. Rubber
soled boots had to be 'stockinged'. Lastly, the pallet straps had to be
replaced. Storage in our lines was no problem. Three old bunkers were
re-commissioned as bars.
The same sort of situation was available at the
Horseshoe as well. The truck driver was also easily tempted with a share of the
booty so transportation was no difficulty either. My sections TOD
at base camp coincidentally ended the day following the raid on the air-field storage area. We
had to return to the Horseshoe.
The Coy 2IC, mentioned earlier had a nose like a bloodhound. Trouble in the form of
something out-of-place or untoward never went by him. Suspicion creased his
brow when he first noticed the rather over-large tarpaulin covered load in the
supply truck. His suspicions increased further when the supply truck stopped of
at my patrol's bunkers first, a flurry of activity followed and then the
tarpaulin covered load arrived at his HQ a lot smaller in size. He was a man who exercised discretion with wisdom. Many months later with a
twinkle in his eye, he mentioned over a beer how he had failed to apprehend the
culprits, but knew who they were.
Footnote: As did the Company Commander, who with
the Wisdom of Solomon, told the MPs to bugger off when they turned up at the
Horseshoe 'sniffing'. But I do remember him telling me that if any of my
platoon were ever caught drinking on duty I was for the high-jump. They never
were.
Sunray 5/2
Footnote …. Victor 3 Company served
in Vietnam from May 1968 through to
May 1969. It was part of 4RAR/NZ
(ANZAC) Battalion. 19 members of the
battalion, including four New Zealanders were killed in action while 27,
including 8 New Zealanders, were decorated for gallantry.