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No. 34 - 3rd December 1942

HONDURASIAN LUMBERMEN IN SCOTLAND

This report on conditions under which men from British Honduras are living in Scotland, is based on the experiences of Ministry of Information film projectionists and on the personal observations of one of the Ministry's Scottish Intelligence Officers.

For over two years Hondurasian lumbermen have been working at timber camps in outlying parts of Scotland, mainly at Duns, Kirkpatrick Fleming, and East Linton. The M.O.I's first contact with these men arose through an anonymous letter signed “British Hondurasians”, which struggled bravely with the complexities of the English syntax to express a general grievance against living conditions.

This letter was forwarded to the Ministry of Supply's Edinburgh Office, and our Intelligence Officer was later told that on investigation the alleged grievances were found to be largely unjustified. Our Officer suggested, however, that by providing films and speakers the M.O.I. might help to break the monotony of life for the Hondurasians. This idea was agreed to, and as an experiment films and speakers are now being sent to the camps.

The following account by our Intelligence Officer of a personal visit to the camps gives a picture of conditions which, particularly in view of the attention being paid to American negroes in this country, will be of interest.

Camp conditions : According to our standards of camp life, conditions are bad. The roadways, after rain, are like quagmires, and duck boards have only recently been laid down. A few weeks ago an M.O.I. film van had to be pulled into one of the camps by tractor as it was impossible to drive in. There is no electric light - although it would appear that this could easily be installed from nearby villages - and inside the huts there is chaos, dirt and confusion. Though there is a building called “the canteen”, this supplies only cigarettes and aerated waters. The men have apparently asked frequently for hot drinks, but at Duns they were told last time that “Kirkpatrick Fleming is bigger and must be looked after first. We hope that hot drinks will be served there after the winter . Your turn will come after that”. There is a piano, a dart board, some boxing gloves, and a supply of books, but little use seems to be made of any of these.

Many complaints are made about the food, and that sampled by the Intelligence Officer was said to be ill-cooked, unappetising and “difficult to analyse”.

Attitude to work : The men are largely engaged on piece work and the results, according to the Manager at Kirkpatrick Fleming, are “300 per cent better” than when the work is done on time rates. If, however, the Manager decides that weather conditions prevent work (e.g. during periods of heavy snowfall) a time rate is given. One of the worst problems is absenteeism. “They want to lie off for the most trivial reasons” the Manager said. “Back home, if they have a cut finger or a headache, they don't stay off. They are exploiting the new situation here”. The men particularly dislike the cold weather, and use this as an excuse for staying off work.

Discipline : This is a most difficult question as the men appear greatly to resent attempts to keep them in order. The authority of camp Managers seem to be very limited, and the Managers themselves would like their powers to be better defined and extended. The men recognise the Manager's right of authority only during working hours, and at Kirkpatrick Fleming he has twice been assaulted when trying to promote order and decency. At East Linton the Manager is a very strict disciplinarian, and though the men dislike this and have complained, the camp appears to be run on very good lines, and there are few complaints from the public.

Relations with the public : At the beginning of their stay the Hondurasians[Text Missing] appeared to be great favourites with the public, and at Brora, for instance, where a camp has just been established the local people seem so far to like v[Text Missing] them very well. But though this was at first true of Duns and Kirkpatrick Fleming, subsequent happenings appear to have modified local feeling. The men themselves often ask people: What do you think of the coloured boys?” and are delighted when told that they are very well liked. The local barber in Kirkpatrick Fleming said that the Hondurasians seemed annoyed because he kept special implements for them; but as he explained, “their hair is so hard to cut, and they are so hard to shave” that he had to keep special articles for them. The men enjoy mixing with white people in pubs, at meetings, and at dances, and in Duns some are even attending evening classes.

Entertainment : The Hondurasians love entertainment, and would, if possible, “go to the pictures every night in the week - they walk or cycle miles” to do so. Local people say “the men are dancing mad”. Many have their own musical instruments, and in Kirkpatrick Fleming they have a dance band which undertakes paid engagements. The sound of a guitar or trumpet, accompanied by the rhythmic beating of feet, is almost constantly heard in the camps. The men love bright clothes. They usually wear a navy blue uniform for working, but on their off-hours they appear in brilliant yellow waistcoats and bright blue pullovers with flashing rings and tie pins.

The drink problem : The men become very excitable under the influence of drink, and are themselves aware of this; one intelligent Hondurasian in Duns said, “We were well liked until we started drinking.” So many disturbances have occurred here that certain hotels and pubs now refuse to admit them. They are “mad on soft drinks,” which, they say, are a substitute for the fruit juices they were accustomed to at home, and shopkeepers say that as soon as their quota of lemonade comes in “the Hondurasians snap it up”. There are many rumours about wild scenes in pubs when the Hondurasians have had a few drinks, and reports have appeared in the local press of Police Court cases following disturbances. It would seem, however, that the Hondurasians are not always to blame for these scenes, and apparently our own troops “egg them on occasionally” with remarks such as, “Let's see your knife”.

The sex problem : This is probably the most serious one. The Hondurasians attitude to sex is much more simple and direct than ours, and their conversation and behaviour show that they have few inhibitions. Everywhere stories are told of prostitutes from Newcastle, South Shields and Berwick arriving regularly, and especially on pay nights. There are also rumours of local girls becoming pregnant, and many stories are told of village women, some with husbands in the Forces, harbouring Hondurasians in their homes. Four married women in Duns are said to have been “thrown out by their husbands” because of their liking for the coloured men, and are now said to be living in the camps. Some women are undoubtedly doing so, and in Duns and Kirkpatrick Fleming the situation seems to be almost out of hand. Our Intelligence Officer was present when the Manager warned a girl of about fourteen out of the camp. It was useless, he said, to speak to the girl's mother, since she “welcomes the Hondurasians into her own home”. This problem has excited a great deal of public interest and steps have been taken in some cases to protect the welfare of young children whose mothers are associating with Hondurasians. The powers of the police under Defence Regulations are also being urgently considered.

The Hondurasians attitude to our women is, of course, influenced by experience in their own country. At the same time, the more intelligent of them are surprised at the readiness of our women to associate with them. Among the young men themselves [Text Missing]a common[Text Missing] complaint is that British girls “only love you for one minute”. They seem delighted, therefore, when friendship is offered as well as commercial “love”.

In view of what was seen in these camps the Intelligence Officer has put forward the following suggestions:-

(1) Greater attention to camp conditions seems necessary[Text Missing]. Electric light, better food and canteen facilities, more opportunities for indulging the men's love of music and dancing, and a supply of illustrated papers and picture books should be provided. The men have shown an interest in dramatic[Text Missing] work but their poor powers of concentration might be a bar to this.

(2) A resident Welfare Officer, preferably a Hondurasian who understands conditions “back home”, and also conditions here, would go a long way towards improving the camps.

(3) The men seem passionately devoted to the cinema. M.O.I. film shows are invariably received with almost pathetic gratitude. Remarks such as, “This makes me feel better” - “I am more anxious now to help Britain” were, according to the projectionists, often made after these shows.

(4) Many of the men expressed their interest in, and enjoyment of, the religious services arranged locally; they particularly liked the hymn singing, arrangements for which might perhaps be developed.

(5) Possibly their love of display, dressing up, and uniforms could be used as an inducement for their joining the Home Guard. Some are already members but their attendance seems to be dropping, possibly because of the colder weather. If short, simple talks were given on the necessity and value of Home Guard training, and if patriotic reasons were given for joining, the response might be greater and the men's interest more lasting.

(6) The sex problem is much more difficult to deal with. In the opinion of the camp Manager at Kirkpatrick Fleming, powers should be obtained to keep women out of the camps, especially at night. This question is being looked into.

(7) The men complain that many “official people have been round” and have promised reforms which never happen. For example, one camp doctor asked in March for linoleum to cover the floor of the Sick Bay. So far as he knows, this was agreed to, but the order for the linoleum was put forward only last week. A speeding up in simple matters of this sort seems to be called for.