The Army and the Universities

A Student in Arms. By Donald Hankey. 1917

My first room I shared with three others. The walls were of whitewashed brick. The floor was bare. The beds folded up against the wall, under print curtains of an uncompromising pattern. The furniture consisted of a deal table, four Windsor chairs, a shelf with four basins, and a locker divided into four compartments and painted khaki. One could do nothing with such a room. It crushed individuality of taste most effectually. Finally, one learnt not to show physical fear or nervousness. The plank bridge across the roof of the “gym.” ensured an appearance of courage, while the “snookers’ concert, ” where one had to sing a song in front of a hall full of yelling seniors, was the cure for a display of nerves.