"There's nothing in life like leading a company in action"

Guy returned a day early to see that everything was well with his company's arrangements. Walking through the almost empty camp at dusk, he met the Brigadier. 'Crouchback,' he said, peering. 'Not a captain yet?'

'No, sir."

'But you've got your company.' They walked together some way.

'You've got the best command there is,' said the Brigadier. "There's nothing in life like leading a company in action. Next best thing is doing a job on your own. Everything else is just bumf and telephones.' Under the trees, in the failing light, he was barely visible. 'It's not much of a show we're' going to. I'm not supposed to tell you where, so I shall. Place called Dakar. I'd never heard of it till they started sending me 'Most Secret' intelligence reports, mostly about ground-nuts. A French town in West Africa. Probably all boulevards and brothels if I know the French colonies. We're in support. Worse really - we're in support of the supporting brigade. They're putting the Marines in before us, blast them. Anyway it's all froggy business. They think they'll get in without opposition. But it'll help training. Sorry I told you. They'd court-martial me if they found out. I'm getting too old for courts martial.'

He turned away abruptly and disappeared into the woodland.

- Evelyn Waugh, Men at Arms, London, 1952, p.274-5.

See also:
Blog: The dhobi technique, 12 October 2020
Blog: Putting El Alamein into perspective, 15 April 2020
Blog: Meet the gang 'cos the boys are here, 15 December 2014
Blog: If all else fails, we can Pee-at them, 15 July 2012