Smudge's Story

This book is an account of poverty in the East End of London at the beginning of the twentieth century and of life in the Royal Navy as a stoker, before, during and after the First World War.From the poverty of London's East End to the Royal Navy, "Smudge's Story" tells of the early life of Fred Smith. In his own words, Fred recounts his life as a stoker and his part in the struggle against First World War U-boats in his tiny ship tossed by huge Atlantic waves, and of the terrified faces of those he rescued from icy seas. Fred describes his fears, his joys and his growing love for his sweetheart back home. He also tells of his involvement with the Sinn Fein riots in Ireland, of the freezing Baltic, the sweltering Mediterranean and of the civil war, which followed the Russian revolution. Fred and his shipmates encounter snipers, wild dogs and desperate women. They witness thousands of refugees trying to flee the advancing Red Army by boarding their ship, which is helplessly locked in the ice of Odessa's harbour. How does a ship's stoker, an ordinary man, cope in such epic times of death and suffering? Unread for many years, this story is now brought to life. Edited and published by his family, it presents a unique and fascinating account of the worst of times in our country's history.