Response to Adele Shelton Smith's article in the Australian's Women's Weekly 1941

Adele Shelton Smith was the first accredited female correspondent from Australia to be sent to Malaya, and filed reports for the Australian Women's Weekly designed to reassure wives and mothers that their boys were in fine shape with high morale. In the event, some criticised her writing (and Bill Brindle's photographs - particularly one of a smiling taxi dancer wearing a Digger's hat) for making it look as if the boys were having far too good a time. Shelton Smith was deeply upset by this interpretation of her journalism. (http://nla.gov.au/nla.party-634568). However her regular section, Letters From Our Boys, gained enormous popularity throughout the war.

Following the reports in the Australian Women's Weekly several of the troops obviously received letters from home suggesting they were on holiday. Naturally this did not go down well at all and the  2/20th Battalion's Weekly Bulletin (issue 2, 21 June 1941) contained a cartoon series with the words "If I could get my hands on the woman journalist who said soldiering in Malaya was a round of dinners and dances, I'd wring her !!*! neck WOULDN'T IT?

OUR PICNIC

The Sixth are getting battered; the Seventh copping hell.

The Ninth are on no picnic, they’re getting theirs as well.

While in the distant jungle, many thousand miles away,

The Eighth are on a “rest cure”, all we do is play.

Because there are no shells here, no bullets flying thick,

We have the name of “Glamour Boys” and that will always stick.

Every time we take a step the sweat falls from our brow,

And if they only knew it, we have B.O. – and how

Ploughing through the jungle with mud up round our waist

With every step a mouthful, it has a putrid taste

Fighting ‘mozzies’ by the score and cobras by the ton

It’s no use denying, we’re having lots of FUN.

If you don’t believe me when I say it’s bloody hot,

I’ll now state a Native custom to show just what is what.

Every man is buried with his overcoat as well

Just because he’ll need it in case he goes to Hell.

Give the Japs malaria, it isn’t worth a zac.

They won’t keep it very long before they give it back.

Although we need the rubber and find uses for the tin

If we stay here any longer, we’ll soon be mighty thin.

Take us to the Middle East, where it’s cold at night

So we can join the others and help to win the fight.

If they grant us this favour Miss Adele Smith may say,

“Those Eighth Division ‘Glamour Boys’ are on no holiday”.