A point worthy of note in connection with the arrangements for the
supply of food is that in the French Army the principal meal of the
day falls at the end of the day's work, both in barracks and in camp.
In the British service the principal meal is taken at midday, with the
result that, so far as official meals are concerned, the soldier gets
nothing but a light tea between the dinner of one day and the breakfast
of the next, and he has to buy his own supper to compensate for this.
In the French Army men are provided with coffee before turning out for
the first parade in the morning; at ten o'clock soup is served; at two
o'clock or thereabouts, according to the nature of work on which men
are engaged, another light meal is provided, and then with the end of
the day comes a two or three course meal which corresponds in quantity
and nutrient value--though not in the manner of its cooking--to the
midday dinner of the British soldier. By this means the French soldier
is relieved of the necessity of buying any supper, and his official
rations of food are, in the majority of cases, amply sufficient for his
needs without his having recourse to his own pocket.
Although, as has been stated, the mess books are controlled by
corporals, this by no means forms the total of the supervision entailed
on French military cooking and provisions. The senior officers of the
regiment are especially charged with the supervision of these details
of internal economy; the officer of the week is a frequent visitor
of the cook-houses of his regiment, and surprise visits are made to
the dining-tables of the men in order to make sure that no cause for
complaint exists with regard to the quantity or quality of provisions
supplied. The adjudants also are concerned in the efficiency of the
cooks, and the provision of proper meals for the non-commissioned
officers, while, since these latter have a share in paying for the
goods supplied, they have also a voice in matters of choice and
cookery. On the whole, bearing in mind the quality of French cookery
and the fact that that cookery is as much in evidence in the French
Army as out of it, it may be said that the French soldier fares rather
better than the man serving in the British Army in this all-important
matter of food and its preparation.
In other matters of internal economy, officers manifest an unceasing
interest in the well-being and comfort of their men. The canteens of
the French Army are under the direct supervision of senior officers,
and thus such supplies as men may purchase individually in the way
of food, drink, or cleaning materials, are always up to the required
standard of quality. The matter of laundrywork is also in the care
of officers of the various regiments, and altogether the comfort
and well-being of the men are matters for which officers are held
responsible to a greater extent than in the British service, where,
with regards to some things, departments rather than men are made
responsible.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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