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SCRUBS (SOMERSET)
1954 (Special assignment)
Because the reason
for my return to Somerset was primarily to do
with the dismantling of the factory, and possibly
because of the condition of the Carlabeck bungalow,
I was accommodated in the one time Scrubs PDs
house. This was a fairly new two-storey house
situated on the edge of the plantation, on the
main road in the Nuwara Eliya town. In January,
the town, and this house, were very cold, the
town being at an elevation of about 8000 ft. The
position of PD Scrubs/ CTP Office Manager had
been scrapped, Scrubs incorporated into Somerset,
and the CTP, or General Manager's, Office put
in charge of the long time Head Clerk.
In addition to the work involving
the Scrubs factory I was given responsibility
for my two previous divisions of Carlabeck and
Easdale as well as Scrubs.
Due to the elevation of
Scrubs its tea was slow growing, the leaves small,
the bushes dense with branches, and forming a
dense cover over the ground. Fields were pruned
once every six years. Apart from these factors,
and the cold at that time of the year, it was
no different to Glenlyon, Carlabeck or Cymru.
Around the month of January early morning temperatures
could drop to just below freezing, and walking
through wet tea in such temperatures was not pleasant.
A few years later some 400 acres at this elevation
were lost to frost, and plantations as low as
about 4500 ft. experienced frost but not sufficiently
severe to cause much damage. Bushes usually recovered
from severe damage after a few months. When frost
was expected workers were organized to spray the
bushes with water sufficiently early in the morning
to have the job completed before the sun warmed
the bushes as it was this warming that caused
the frozen cells to rupture.
The three months
passed uneventfully but before I was due to leave
I got a letter from the GM telling me that I had
got a bad report from the Somerset PD and reprimanding
me. I was completely shocked as there had been
absolutely no indication of a bad report, and
was hell bent on writing to the GM to ascertain
the reasons for an adverse report and to defend
myself. However, my Glenlyon PD prevailed upon
me to lie low and just reply to the GM regretting
the report, and stating that this sort of thing
would not happen again. As it happened there was
no aftermath and, some time later, the Glenlyon
PD told me that he had met the Somerset PD at
the club and the latter had said to him, no doubt
during a discussion, referring to me, "That
man will never forgive me." This was, of
course, a load of rubbish because, from my point
of view, there was nothing to forgive. When we
met, we always met as friends. To this day however,
I have not been able to put my finger on the reason
for his adverse report. Over the years I was interested
to work this out and the only possibility I have
ever been able to think of, and one without foundation
whatsoever, was that the fact that his wife used
to swim at Carlabeck and change in the rooms at
the back of the bungalow, and that that, for some
obscure reason, had affected his judgement.
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