Hard To Stomach

Sydney Fuller, an early recruit into Kitcheners Army, noted in his diary of the ration situation on Sunday February 7th, 1915 for the 8th Battalion, then billeted at Colchester; 
"The same amounts of bread and other things were 'drawn' and the same amount of rations issued to the Companies, that at such times about half the men were on weekend leave. The result was that much of Saturday's bread, etc. was untouched...I have myself taken as many as seven quite untouched loaves and dumped them in the offal bins, being the only alternative to the bread going mouldy in the food cupboard."
In a time when wastage was frowned upon and when Fuller himself was still not fully equipped, this waste was hard to stomach. However no food was to leave the Barracks and the men were forbidden to take excess foodstuffs from the Garrison into town to sell. The only food to leave the Garrison, was the crusts of the loafs which were chucked out of the kitchen windows, through the railings into the street. Sydney noted that the poor kids from the town waited eagerly each day for the scraps to be thrown away.

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