***
By then he had written his report on how he had managed to be successful on Operation Janus. All his jungle knowledge was based on how he and his friend Ah Fat had tracked each other in the jungles near Sepang when they were schoolboys on holiday. His skills were enhanced by learning jungle warfare at the Indian Military Academy in Dehra Dun prior going to war in Burma where he was made the Recce Platoon commander and outshone any previous commander in what he did and what he taught his men. Now in Malaya it didn’t matter whether the operation was patrolling, ambushing, surrounding an enemy camp or, simply, making an overnight base camp: success depended on movement being as invisible as possible to any enemy. It never occurred to him to say that for success in the jungle a ‘change of mental gear’ was needed as it was, by then, second nature to him.
One point he had made was ‘for the hunter a misplaced footprint merely meant a lost contact; for the hunted death or capture’. He wondered whether to add ‘I know because I have been both’ but decided against it lest he be accused of being flamboyant or merely showing off by exaggerating what he had done in Burma during the war. At the end he added ‘and don’t forget, the best way to escape from an elephant is to run downhill.’
Somewhere in the report was a note that a proper patrol was, virtually, a moving ambush. Not in the report but stressed to his company on briefings was ‘to look where you’re going’, that time when a platoon had been moving up to a river towards the enemy on the other side of the water, who were in greater strength than they were but who had not spotted them. Their old camp on the Gurkhas’ side of the river was now empty and the platoon commander was unsure whether he could cross the river and attack the present enemy camp without taking casualties. Moving into position one man, not looking where he was going, fell up to his knees into a guerrilla latrine. He smelt so badly the other soldiers moved away from him, non-tactically. He went forward to the river to clean up and his companions thought he was going to charge the enemy by himself. They dashed after him, did not see him washing himself behind a rock, crossed the river and routed the guerrillas, killing some of them before the others escaped.
But where was the man who had fallen into the latrine? No one could see him and he was feared missing – captured or killed? Going back across the river they were relieved to see him still getting clean.
‘Look where you’re going. Next time it might be up to the knees, having fallen in head first, so you won’t be so lucky.’
He also included the incident that gave him the most satisfaction: that was when he wanted to overhear a conversation in the guerrilla camp when there was no method of getting near enough without being seen. He had cut an arum leaf where it came out of the mud and, putting it in front of him as a shield, squirmed to the top of a bank, within earshot. He overheard all that was being said, thereby letting him achieve success in preventing the renegade officer from escaping. He was startled when two guerrillas came over to where the leaf was for a piss. They actually aimed at the leaf which gave a humming noise back. Neither realised that the leaf was out of place: no arum leaf was ever found at the top of a bank in the dry.
It was while he was writing his report that he realised why the CO had given him that strange look when he was told to stand up: he had met his wife arranging some flowers in the Mess and had addressed her by her Christian name as was the custom. She had turned angrily upon him and hissed ‘don’t you call me by my enemy’s name’ and turned back on him, mumbling to herself.
Jason had crept away, realising he had used the name of the Second-in-Command’s wife.
***
At the CO’s office he found out why he had been sent for. ‘Your plans are changed. I have just had a personal phone call from the Director of Operations himself, apologising for the short notice but I have to send one rifle company to Kota Bharu for operations under 1 Malay Brigade and I’ve chosen you. Do you know where it is?’
‘Yes, sir, I do but I have never been there.’ He remembered being slightly shocked when told that there was a ‘Beach of Passionate Love’ in the area.
‘You will go to Gemas where the East Coast line leaves the main north-south line in Brigade transport and from there by rail on the Blowpipe Express. Movements Branch will organise your return similarly. You will be based in Kota Bharu until the 23rd of this month. You will not be extended as you will need to send men on the leave party that is about a month away. Normally, of course, it is earlier than now as we try to get our men to enjoy Dashera at home but, for some unknown reason, it’s later this year. And I might as well tell you now, more as a reward for doing so well on Janus as for any other reason, I am detailing you as OC Troops on board as it is our battalion’s turn to provide someone for the job.’
Jason grinned. ‘Thank you, sir. I’ll like that. Both ways? There and back?’
The Colonel nodded. ‘I hear that the East Coast line is dangerous. Just in case take one of the medical corporals with you, with a pack, complete with morphine and stitching needle and thread. Can’t be too careful.’
‘If it’ll be as bad as that, thank you sir. Can you tell me my aim, sir, in Kota Bharu?’
‘Your aim is to pick up any guerrilla movement is what the Director of Operations said. Nothing has been heard about them for a long time and some inquisitive patrolling might find something. The population is chiefly Malay: I gather there are few, if any, Chinese or Indians around there but you’ll be briefed in such details when you get there. Maps and any transport requirements will be issued from the local HQ. The “why?” Because the Malay Regiment battalion that should have gone there has been forced to spend another month’s training to let their new recruits reach the required standard. One of the things I do want you to do is search for any Gurkhas who fought in that disastrous Malayan campaign in 1942. There are rumours that some tried to escape the Japanese by going to Kelantan. Apparently after the war they stayed on there, not having been able to return to Nepal. If you can find any that would be great. Ask them if they want to return to Nepal or not. They could well have married local girls and raised a family by now so maybe they won’t want to move. I also want you to phone the OC in the Gurkha school in Singapore. He’s a friend of mine. He was a prisoner of the Japanese and may be able to give you some background details. Tell him I was too busy to talk to him but give him my salaams. Any more?’
‘Two points, sir. What time am I to move out and who will I liaise with if anything untoward occurs on the journey up, an ambush on the railway line for instance?’
‘Yes, you won’t be able to catch today’s train so I’ve told Brigade to pick you up at noon. You’ll bivouac for the night at Gemas and catch tomorrow’s train. This is the answer to your second query’ and he handed over a piece of paper on which the wave length to be used was written. ‘You will be call sign 5 and Roger Nan Tare is the local HQ up in Kota Bharu. Sorry, I should have given you that earlier.’
Jason saluted and went back to give out his new orders.
***
Jason asked the battalion exchange to ring the Gurkha School in Singapore. ‘I’ll ring you back,’ said the operator. When he was put through he asked if he was speaking to the OC.
‘He is not here,’ came the answer in fluent English. ‘May I know who you are, sir?’
‘I am Captain Rance of 1/12 GR, calling from Seremban. And you?’
‘I’m Sergeant Padamsing Rai. I joined 1/12 GR after being recruited in 1948 but you won’t remember me, but I remember you. Can I pass a message for you, sir? The OC won’t be in for a while.’
‘Sergeant, I am taking my company to Kota Bharu and my CO, Lieutenant Colonel Williams, wanted to ask your OC if he could say anything about any Gurkhas who might have settled there during or after the retreat down Malaya in 1942 rather than be taken as prisoners of war as was your OC. In any case my CO wishes to give him his salaams. Do that please. That is all I have you. Have you anything for me?’
‘Do you know when you’ll be back, sir?’
‘Sergeant Padamsing, in three weeks or so. The autumn leave party will be leaving a week later and men have to be got ready first.’
‘Thank you, sir, that is more than all.’ It was only later that Jason recalled the unusual answer.
As he put the phone down, the office runner shyly asked him who it was he was talking to at the school.
‘That’s a strange question. It was Sergeant Padamsing Rai. Why do you ask?’
‘Saheb, I am asking because Sergeant Padamsing Rai was an instructor on the education course you sent me on and he was one of two ustads who tried to convert us to being a Communist and not to come back after our next leave.’
Jason looked astonished. ‘Really? Have you told anyone else?’
The runner looked uncomfortable, ‘No Saheb. I haven’t. He also wanted to play with me but I wouldn’t let him’ and the soldier, to whom nothing like that had ever happened before, looked embarrassed. ‘I told him I was not a woman. Saheb, may I say something else, please?’
‘Of course you may. Out with it.’
‘The gora sergeant instructor in the school is also like that.’ The soldier turned his head to one side and shed tears.
Most unusual. That’s the first time I’ve heard of such Jason thought angrily. I’ll fix it when I get back.
‘Why have you not mentioned it to anyone, say the Gurkha Major saheb?’
‘We were told that if we did it would be serious for us and our family when we went on our next leave.’
‘Don’t worry, keta, I’ll look into it when I get back.’
