Rhodesian Services Association Incorporated March 2008 Newsletter

PO Box 13003, Tauranga 3141, New Zealand.Web: http://www.rhodesianservices.org/

E-mail hbomford@clear.net.nzPhone +64 7 576 9500 Cell +64 21 045 8069 Fax +64 7 576 9501

Please Note that all previous newsletters are available at http://www.rhodesianservices.org/Newsletters.htm

Greetings

As another month rolls to a close it means it is time to complete the next newsletter and get it off to John Lomas for correction and polish. It takes many hours to compile each newsletter and I normally start the next one from the minute the current one is sent out. The first things I enter are the names from the returned mail from defunct addresses.

I look back at the first newsletter I did in January 2003, at which time I aimed to do four per year. I did three in 2003, two in 2004, one in 2005. Then, from June 2006 to date, I have done one every month of the year. At times it is a struggle to get my thoughts together to think up something that will interest the readers. It's also a challenge finding the time needed to do justice to what is now a well recognised publication amongst the other Rhodesian periodicals out there - ORAFS (Old Rhodesian Air Force Sods), Rhodesians World Wide, the RLI Association and the Lion & Tusk (newsletter of the Rhodesian Army Association), together with the SAS and Selous Scout associations who have their own 'in house' newsletters. This Rhodesian Services Association Inc. newsletter now goes out to over 700 addresses.

To keep it interesting and to add different perspectives I would welcome articles from you people out there. Please consider writing a piece or sending me something of interest that falls within the general scope of what I have been dishing up for the last five years. However, I do not want to get a shower of articles on the misery befalling present day Zimbabwe, for instance. This is covered far better by other sources which most of you are tuned into anyway. Contact me with your thoughts please.

The February 2008 newsletter contained reference to the LRDG and I received a number of responses from people who used Google Earth to home in on the coordinates given for the abandoned truck. It made for some interesting suggestions for the salvage of the vehicle. Sadly this is beyond all our current resources and means.

ObituariesFrom ORAFS regarding Terry ConwaySad news received from Karen Quatermass which reads: "Just heard that Terry Conway passed away this morning, February 7, 2008, in St. Anne's Hospital, Harare. He had just returned from Botswana with friends of mine and he had a stomach ache that was so bad they took him to hospital this morning and he died shortly afterwards. Thought I should tell you as I know he gets the ORAFS newsletter and was in the Air Force years ago."

Comment by ORAFs "ORAFs records its deepest sympathy to Judy and family. Messages can be sent to Judy on conway@zol.co.zw No further details of Terry are known. He has been a member of ORAFs for a considerable period of time. ORAFS would welcome any information on Terry as well as a photograph email orafs11@gmail.com "

Off the radarThe following people’s email addresses have changed. If you know their new address, please tell me or get them to contact me. Thank youNick van der Walt – New ZealandCara Pike – New ZealandDon Munroe - Australia

Regimental Numbers Explained

I am grateful to Craig Fourie for giving me this information on the Army and Air Force. The BSAP information, which is incomplete, came from Wayne Kennerely, to whom I am also grateful.

This article may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is important to spread knowledge and to ensure that the record of what happened in our country is generally available.

The Rhodesian regimental numbering system has always been a bit of a mystery to me, partially because when my eyes encounter numbers my brain shuts off, probably a throw back to my dislike of the subject of Maths as administered in the 'great halls' of Guinea Fowl School and a subsequent record number of failures at that subject at O Level. I have produced this article in fear and trepidation of being torn to bits by some fussy person who finds a slight error in my work!

I therefore make it clear that I have done my best from the material supplied and that this article is compiled in good faith from that material. Any errors are probably mine. If anyone does have any queries or corrections I would direct you to Craig Fourie (email Craig.Fourie@swedishmatch.co.za ) as this is really his domain. I have produced this article in order to assist the general lay person who may be somewhat curious as to how the regimental numbering system worked.

Number Designated Range Comment78---- Regular Army officer 780001 – 781400 Zimbabwe continued use of this range in sequence

79---- Regular Army officer RWS 790001 Zimbabwe continued use of this range in sequence

72---- Regular Army White OR & NCO 720001 – 729999 72 added on to old 4 digit number after computerization ie: 3456 became 723456

73---- Regular Army White OR & NCO 730001 – 730500 Zimbabwe continued use of this range in sequence

77---- Regular Army RWS OR & NCO 770001 Zimbabwe continued use of this range in sequence

6----- Regular Army African OR & NCO 640001 – 649999 6 replaced old R after computerization ie: R44567 became 644567

65---- Regular Army African OR & NCO 650001 – 659999

66---- Regular Army African OR & NCO 660001 – 666699

R Regular Army African OR & NCO As above the R was replaced by a 6 after computerization ie: R44567 - 644567

XR Ex Regular Army OR & NCO On retirement ie: 723456 became XR3456

R RhAF Territorial White OR & NCO R precedes certain Territorial numbers ie: R66352

V Territorial Army Officer V0001 – V0500

PR National Service number prefix PR001 – PR99999 Letter designation unknown, dropped away after service numbers 100000

52---- National Service African OR & NCO 520001 Conscripted Africans after 1977 through Depot Rhodesia Regiment

R----T Rhodesian Defence Regiment RDR Territorial Army prefix, designation unknown

4--- RhAF Officer 4000 – 4550 Zimbabwe continued use of this range. 80 added after computerisation 4123 - 804123

6--- RhAF White OR & NCO 6000 – 6900 80 added after computerisation ie: 6123 became 806123

5---- RhAF African OR & NCO 50000 – 59000 8 added after computerisation ie: 50123 became 850123

BSAP Regular White Male BSAP 0001 – 10599

BSAP Regular White Male BSAP 110600 - ? New computer system forced the use of a 6 digit number

WP--- BSAP Regular White Female 195* onwards

BSAP Regular African Male 0001 - 28178

BSAP Regular African Female

BSAP Reserve White Various letter suffixes

BSAP Reserve African

BSAP Auxiliary Constable African 2----- Believed to start at 200001

BSAP Special Reserve White

SRWAP 0001 177 World War II

BSAP White Cadet

BSAP Black Cadet

AL--- BSAP African Labourer Presumed starts at 1

TA--- BSAP African Attendant

KeyBSAP – British South Africa PoliceOR – Other RankNCO – Non Commissioned OfficerRDR – Rhodesia Defence RegimentRhAF – Rhodesian Air ForceRWS – Rhodesian Women’s ServiceSRWAP – Southern Rhodesia Women’s Auxiliary Police

Notes by Fourie and Kennerely Some final range numbers are approximate Older WW2 Veterans would have shorter numbers ie R320 for RAR Some rolls confuse the issue by use of both first letter and digit ie R44123 recorded as R644123 in error BSAP Regular White and African Personnel used consecutive numbering ranges from Member number 1 There are certainly other ranges and oddities not recorded here

Rat PacksAnd now for something a bit lighter. This article has been on the cards for some time. As food is a subject close to my heart I have been doing a lot of research over my life. The reader should not take some comments in this article too seriously as there may be some artistic license applied. I have received input from Vic Mackenzie and Craig Fourie and I am also grateful to 'Rangi' (real name withheld to protect his reputation) who supplied the New Zealand issue 'rats' for 'testing'.

This article, out of necessity, contains a lot of photos. I have had to make them as large as possible so that they can be viewed and read, but at the same time keep the overall memory volume of this newsletter down in respect of the people who do not have broadband. I apologise to the readers who have poor eyesight and find the writing too small. I suggest that you open the pictures in a new file and enlarge them or else get someone with 20/20 vision to help out.

In Rhodesia we called them Rat Packs (mostly preceded by a few expletives). This was short for Ration Packs. The modern terminology in America is MRE - Meals Ready to Eat, and in New Zealand ORP - Operational Ration Rack. These designations (sounds fine to me), of course, provide fodder for the comics. I dare say these comics would be better placed trying a Rhodesian rat pack and keeping quiet about the cordon bleu cuisine that is to be found, in my experience, in the New Zealand and American packs. So, for ease of understanding in this article, I will simply use 'rats' to signify the 24 hour ration pack issued to the troops in the field, away from the luxury of an

army kitchen and attendant cook. While on the subject of nomenclature and slang, in this article 'graze' is what food was called in Rhodesia and 'grazing irons' were knives, forks etc. In the bush, most people only carried a spoon and I recall using home made chop sticks for a while as well.

While we reckoned our graze was pretty unappetising, we should spare a thought for our forebears. I remember my Dad telling me that much of his bully beef issued in Burma in WWII had it's origins amongst Kenya's zebra herds. Dad always loved his bully, so what was served up in WWII did not put him off. We should also spare a thought for the blokes in the trenches in WWI.

I should record here that in Rhodesia after I completed National Service and I was being called up on the 'six weeks in and six weeks out' roster for territorials, I always ensured that I befriended the company cook. I was a junior NCO(very junior), but I certainly had it over my brother in the food department. My brother was a Captain in 4RR and had a different way of dealing with cooks. We were never called up together (I understand that there was some policy in this regard), but we did share the same cook from time to time. Jacko was one of the 4RR cooks. Whereas my brother hated him and tried to ignore him, I used to make sure that Jacko's ego was well cared for, his honour defended (if he was within hearing range) and his beer supply adequately catered for. Thus I would be able to come in from the bush at any time of the day or night and I could rely on Jacko for a graze, as well as the odd bit of personal service when steak was in the offing. The other bloke to get onsides with was the Quartermaster. This is the way that Acting Corporal Bomford ensured there was plenty of good graze and plenty of ammo, indeed enough ammo to take home the odd item and ensure that should the gooks pick on my folks or our farm house they would get a good revving in return. Our CSM (who also doubled as our CQ) was Malcolm Forbes, BCR, and if anyone has comms with him I would be keen to know his address. Ditto with Jacko- I probably owe him a beer for using his name in this article and if he is out there he is welcome to contact me.

As I remember, we had three types of packs for European consumption and three for the African soldiers. There were probably ones for vegetarians and Asians as well, I cannot recall. The main difference between the Euro and African packs was that the Euro had powdered potato and rice included, whereas the African ones had mealie meal. Like everyone, I used to do a bit of swapping around and get some mealie meal as the potato was terrible. So terrible, in fact, that the unwary used to mistake it for milk powder. There were no markings on a lot of the stuff in the packs and if a label came off a can it was a real lottery as to what you were opening. It could be orange segments or spaghetti!

When you were issued with rats in camp prior to deployment there was a frenzy of activity, with cardboard and cans spread out all over the place. I always wondered why the people in charge didn't let us choose what we wanted from a bulk store. They would have saved a lot of wastage.

Some of the items that come to mind were the notorious cans of spaghetti (I think) and hard boiled egg. The eggs were green and, if thrown out of the back of a moving truck, would bounce along the road keeping pace with the truck. Those eggs had a half life equal to uranium and I am certain there must be a whole lot on the side of the road between Wankie and Vic Falls to this day, probably glowing in the dark and ready to explode in a sulphurous mushroom cloud one day.

Then there were the tubes of cheese which were all rotten, which was a great shame. The beans and franks were great if you chucked the franks away. I actually caught a tiger fish on a hand line using a frank and a piece of silver paper from a cigarette box. I had no trace and it stands as the only tiger I ever caught.

My meals were usually made up from a variation on the theme of chopped ham, rice, mealie meal, beans without the franks, and dog biscuits. This was augmented with a bottle of 'secret herbs and spices' (mainly curry and soup powder mixed together) to add a bit of flavour to things. Having a fresh raw onion was also a bonus. The chicken and cream sauce was not too bad, but I found the bits of gristle and veins in the bully beef a bit of a turn off. While not supplied other than in Christmas WVS parcels, we have to thank God for biltong.

I recall one cartoon or photo of a bloke sitting on a long drop with a caption along the lines of "Contemplation……..Concentration……..Constipation………rat packs" I have done my best to find that piece over a period of years, but this cartoon below will have to suffice. It is by Mike Blackman from his book "How Many Days". I have no means of seeking his permission so if anyone knows him, please convey my compliments and email address. (Authors Note: since completing this article, my wife, Diana, reminded me that that was not a cartoon, rather a pencil sketch by Peter Badcock in his book Shadows of War. Please can someone direct me to Peter's email address as I have this book and would like to use some of his material with his permission.)

The photo below was supplied by Craig Fourie and shows an African pack spread out on a poncho. I would say that it is a very early model as I do not recall "African Pack" being written on the box. Usually there was a single letter - G, H and K are letters that come to mind for the African packs and A, B, C for the European ones. I stand to be corrected. The basic things like tea, coffee, sugar, matches, vitamin tablets, jungle juice, etc., was standard across all the different European and African packs. They used to vary the proteins and carbohydrates.

Below is European rat pack laid out on an army issue towel and is as I remember them. This photo was supplied by Vic Mackenzie. The dog biscuits were supplied separate to the boxed rat, as I recall. You will note the toilet paper top right. The Kiwi rats do not have this, instead they have moisturised towelettes in a packet - whether this

is for cleaning your face or your a*se I am not sure. The Kiwis do not get salt tablets either, as you will see when you read on.

I collected a few can labels, see below, which will remind you of some of the delicacies we were privy to. Why I kept labels from pilchard cans I cannot imagine because I absolutely hated the things. And those Vienna sausages, imagine the nutritional value of them!!

Now I will move onto the modern rat pack. This below is the information sheet in every Kiwi rat pack

In keeping with the modern way, the Kiwis even get a menu and you can see the listed contents of their packs.

Having sampled a few Kiwi packs I can honestly say that if I had had them in Rhodesia I would have put on weight when I went on call up. The graze is delicious. I cannot recall what our rats weighed, and you never carried everything that was in a box anyway, but these Kiwi rats weigh a total of 1.6kg. There are no cans, as you can see in the photo below. You will note the piece of pot scourer. I used to also carry a piece but it was not for cleaning my mess tin, rather for removing carbon from the gas ports of my weapon. The Kiwi matches are great - waterproof in a little container. My only criticism of the Kiwi rat is that there is no rice or mealie meal. They have noodles for their carbohydrates. The rice in our packs was one thing that was excellent, very easy to prepare (as long as you had water) and that is the difference with the Kiwi pack - you do not need much water to prepare a graze.

On the left below is an unopened Kiwi rat pack, the rest is the contents of another spread out. Note the two colours that they come in, desert brown and jungle green.

Quite a number of our readers have either been or are currently serving in Afghanistan and Iraq, so they will be familiar with the American rat pack.

I have sampled one and the thing that stuck in my mind was that it had a small bottle of Tabasco in it. What a luxury compared with the Rhodesian's small pouch of curry powder. Vic MacKenzie works as a volunteer fireman in the USA. They get issued American rats when on standby and he reports that he skoffs them up with relish. He sent me this picture below which is a collage showing some of the items laid out on his obviously Rhodesian origin

table cloth. You will see that the Yanks have a cunning system which actually heats the graze, so eliminating the need for a gas cooker. I wonder what their tea bags do when put in water?!

I would welcome feedback and would be happy to publish any comments in future newsletters.

The Rhodesia Regiment – From Pioneer Column to Independence 1890 - 1980From Alex Binda:"Dear All, Thanks very much for your responses to the title suggestion appeal. The interest expressed was very gratifying. This is what we more or less ended up with: Just about every suggestion contained the words 'Rhodesia' or 'Rhodesian' and 'Regiment', i.e. 'Rhodesia's Regiment', 'Rhodesia's Territorials' 'The Forgotten Regiment' 'Steadfast Loyalty - Rhodesia Regiment', etc. A few, e.g. Tony Ballinger , Noel Robey, etc. voted for a simple "The Rhodesia Regiment" with no subtitle, averring that these three words encompassed the whole. There were many other fine suggestions, my own personal favourites being Hugh Bomford's succinct "By the Right", Digger Essex-Clark's "The Lion,Tusk and Crown" and David Heppenstall's "Ninety Glorious Years".

In the final analysis, (and after a brief consultation with Hugh) I have opted for a combination of Chuck Melson's fine and succinct "Rhodesia's Regiment - From Pioneer Column to Independence 1890 - 1980"

So this is the final choice:Main Title:"THE RHODESIA REGIMENT"Subtitle:"FROM PIONEER COLUMN TO INDEPENDENCE 1890-1980"

I hope you are all happy with this final choice and thanks again very much for all the suggestions.

Alex"

Alex is currently working on Chapter 6, covering the period from 1953 to the early 1960's. We have had a lot of photos come in recently, notably from John Edmond covering his time with 3 Battalion, Royal Rhodesia Regiment, when deployed on the border of Northern Rhodesia and the Congo.

Please do not leave it up to "someone else" to record this important piece of history. You all have a story or two to tell. Most of you would have passed through Llewellin at some stage and been part of the Rhodesia Regiment (or Royal Rhodesia Regiment), in which case your input is welcome and indeed vital.

We are getting articles that, while not directly about the regiment, are closely associated with it. For example, Mrs Sylvia Logie was Vice President of the Rhodesian Women's Volunteer Service and she has submitted a piece about the WVS's roll with the various canteens around the country. All this sort of thing is well received and will enhance what is set to be an excellent book. Books from a TF aspect are scarce and the only one that comes to mind as I write this is A Walk Against the Stream by Tony Ballinger. This is a unique book. The publication date is set for 2010, but there is no time to lose. As I keep telling you - this project is like eating an elephant, one person cannot do it alone, but if we all take a bite we will get there. I have set myself up at the trunk end - the latecomers will have to start at the other end - get in quick folks!

Museum NewsWe are progressing with the two new displays at the Classic Flyer’s Museum.Ian Smith Tribute:We desperately need photographs of Ian Smith in uniform in WWII or any related material that may be out there.

Simon Clark Display – A tribute to New ZealandersWe need Kiwis who served Rhodesia to come forward to help with material for this display. I also need someone who can take a photograph of the grave of a New Zealander who died and was buried near Marandellas (Marondera now) in 1900 to contact me. There may also be one in Umtali. If anyone can help, please contact me urgently.

Cataloguing and referencing of all the photos in the collection on the Association laptop is progressing. We are also collecting interesting items off the likes of You Tube which we will be able to show at the RV.

We have recently received donations of two collections of militaria, one in New Zealand and the other from England. The addition of these will probably start to make the Lion's Den look inadequate, so please, please someone win Lotto and help us out!!

Association NewsWith the increase in popularity of the newsletter, the paid up memberships are also on the increase. We are nearing the 100 mark and so we are offering a little competitive incentive to commemorate the anticipated century. The 100th person to pay up their $5 subscription we will receive a commemorative Lion & Tusk cap with a little extra embroidered on it to signify their number for 2007/08.

What do you do to register? Write to me at hbomford@clear.net.nz and arrange to send your subscription by cash, cheque, direct deposit or PayPal. The fee covers membership until the 1st October 2008 when renewals are due. This is a good moment to remind you all that those attending the RV will automatically have the fee added to the RV price, the rest will have to remember to renew or respond when I send out reminders. At the RV we will also have a draw for a member's number. The member drawn will get a cap and shirt. This is, of course, open to all financial members irrespective of where you reside.

Our Association's subscriptions have been deliberately kept low for a number of reasons. We do not see this as our main source of income, and we do not issue membership cards, etc. If we did do these things then the fee would have to be far higher.

The more financial members we have, the bigger the overall benefit of this small fee to our Association.

ANZAC DAY 25th April 2008Mark it down on your calendar. The main emphasis is at Hobsonville in Auckland for us and details will be in the next newsletter but aim to be there from 9am. We will endeavour support and promote groups of people in other centres if they contact us.

The BookshelfI again remind you that all the books and audio visual disks that I stock and sell are listed at http://www.rhodesianservices.org/Books.htm These sales are my own hobby and income from sales are directed to me and not the Rhodesian Services Association. However, the Association does benefit indirectly from these sales.

Launch of The Saints DVD. Available in NTSC and PAL format. Price is NZ$35 plus postage. Order from hbomford@clear.net.nz

30° South Publishers proudly launched their RLI regimental history, The Saints - The Rhodesian Light Infantry, last year at the Guards Museum, Wellington Barracks, London. The response was overwhelming and very encouraging with more than 400 guests attending from all over the world. Brigadier John Essex-Clark, OC A Company, who saw the RLI through its infancy and is a veteran of the Vietnam war, welcomed the guests. Other speeches were made by Kerrin Cocks, Director of 30° South Publishers, and Alex Binda, author of this fine work, and the guest of honour, the Marquess of Salisbury.

The launch featured a half hour beating the retreat by the band of the Scots Guards in tribute to the soldiers of the RLI. The last commanding officer of the regiment, Colonel Charlie Aust, took the final salute, the first time he has been formally saluted in 28 years, the last time being at the RLI's final parade in Harare.

I should have new stock arriving near the end of April of the second edition of The Saints – The Rhodesian Light Infantry as well as two new titles:

Kenya Cowboy - A police officer's account of the Mau Mau Emergency by Peter Hewitt

Originally published in 1999, Kenya Cowboy has been updated and re-released with a new analytical postscript.Price expected to be around NZ$30.00

Out of Action by Chris Cocks

Originally published as Survival Course in 1999, now long out of print, Out of Action is a reworked and updated edition, the sequel to the best-selling Fireforce - One man's war in the Rhodesian Light InfantryPrice to be confirmed but expected to be around NZ$36.00

I am taking bookings these books and remind you to visit http://www.rhodesianservices.org/Books.htm to see what else is on offer.

John Edmond Troopie SongsI received a copy of the John Edmond Troopie Songs DVD and I can tell you that it is most enjoyable and I highly recommend that you pay John’s site a visit to see what else is on offer remembering also that John is the only legitimate distributor of the late Wrex Tarr’s works:-Roan Antelope Music www.johnedmond.co.za or email John and the crew at jredmond@mweb.co.za or phone +27 (0)14 735 0774

Go on line and see what is on offer – you will be amazed at the selection and the service is as good as it gets. Roan’s special CD offer this month is “Aviasongs”, songs about flying! This John Edmond CD features wonderful standards like, “Come fly with me”, “Leaving on a Jet plane”, “Snoopy and the Red Baron”, “Angels on my wingtips” and the classic “Green leader” and many more, a total of 16 songs. Prices S.A.R. R70.00 UK. Pounds 15.00 USA $32.00 AUS $42.00 NZ $45.00

Blood, Sweat and Lions by David LemonDavid writes:“My new book Blood Sweat and Lions is now on the market here. It tells the story of a walk I did from Kariba to Binga around the lake shore at the end of 2006. The book is an excellent read (not only me that says so!!) and has been very well produced. It is available on Amazon and various distributors here, but if anyone over there wants a signed copy, they need to send a cheque/postal order for £13.00 (covers postage) to Albida Books, France Lynch. Gloucestershire GL6 8LJ. UK. David’s email Lemonfolk@aol.com

Adventure, pain, fear and moments of pure magic: these are the ingredients of David Lemon's latest story about Africa. Overweight, unfit and by his own admission, far too old, he set out to walk 1200 kilometres through the Zambezi Valley, ignoring dire warnings about the dangers of such a venture.

David is a generous supporter of the Rhodesian Services Association, please show your support for him. When ordering his book please tell him you saw it in this newsletter

CQ Store visit http://www.rhodesianservices.org/The%20Shop.htm to see what is in store for you

We have had another month of amazing turnover of stock. Well done and thank you for supporting us. While we endeavour to keep our prices down, one of the reasons that we do this is to make a profit. This profit, some of it very small, all helps to keep the Association's projects running.

To ensure that you are well catered for, please get orders in as soon as possible if you require delivery before ANZAC Day.

ITEMS EXCLUDING POSTAGE PRICE in NZ$4RR Hackles New Stock Arrived! $17.50Berets $50‘Gun control’ t-shirts $20Lion & Tusk Baseball Caps $23Lion & Tusk Beanies $20Lion & Tusk Dog Tags ‘silver’ or ‘gold’ $30Lion & Tusk Polo shirts - black or green $36.50

Lion & Tusk T-shirts - black or green $30Lion & Tusk Women’s shirts $30Number plate surrounds $12Regimental Badges – RLI, Intaf, RAR, RDR, BSAP, Grey’s Scouts, RRR, RR, Service Corps, Staff Corps, RWS, DRR and more

Priced from $20 – inquire for details

Rhodesian Army Recruitment poster copy “Be a man amongst men” $15Rhodesian General Service Medal full size medal copy with ribbon $100Rhodesian General Service Medal full size medal copy (solid silver) with ribbon New Product $125Rhodesian General Service Medal full size ribbon $10/lengthRhodesian General Service Medal miniature medal with ribbon $35Rhodesian General Service Medal miniature ribbon $10/lengthRhodesian Light Infantry tie $35Unofficial Rhodesian Combat Infantry Badge $23Various medal ribbons – please inquire POAVarious small embroidered badges (RLI, BSAP & Nyasaland Police) $5Zimbabwe Independence Medal full size copy with ribbon $50Zimbabwe Independence Medal full size ribbon $10/lengthZimbabwe Independence Medal miniature medal with ribbon $35Zimbabwe Independence Medal miniature ribbon $10/length‘Zippo’ type lighter $25

Watch this space for new items coming on stream in the future

The Global Forked Stick

Calling all SignallersIf anyone from the Rhodesian Corps of Signals wishes to preserve and make record of that unit’s history please contact Mark Scott on email MarkS84609@aol.com

Until next time - go well CheersHugh

This newsletter is compiled by Hugh Bomford, Secretary of the Rhodesian Services Association.   It contains many personal views and comments which may not always be the views of the Association or Committee. If for any reason you would like to be removed from the mailing list, please send an email to hbomford@clear.net.nz with the word ‘remove’ in the subject line or body.