Ronald Callander came to Tanganyika to join the Police in 1956, having
served in the Australian Army during the Korean War. Although he only
served one tour, he quickly adjusted to the life and work of a colonial police
officer. His service began in the humid streets of the capital Dar es Salaam,
where initially he was allocated mundane tasks of checking case-files and
learning the multiple facets of the law as applied to police work, both on the
streets and in court.
After passing out from the Police Training School in Moshi, he spent much of
his remaining time in the Lake Province, having joined the Motorized
Company in Mwanza; over the next couple of years his travels ranged
widely, from Bukoba in the west to the Serengeti in the east.
His story is taken from his official pocket diaries, and this gives an immediacy
and freshness to the narrative. By no means is it a dry and repetitive
account of his daily work; on the contrary, he recounts many incidents in
great detail without losing sight of the wider issues, and with a gift for spare
but descriptive verbal pictures. As an Antipodean he does not suffer stuffy
and superior fools gladly, and brings an engaging cynicism to his
descriptions of his working relationships with some of the crusty older
officers. That said, his appreciation of the work ethic and constructive and
advisory approach of the really good and professional senior officer comes
through clearly.
After Training School, where at time he might have justifiably been described
as a larrikin, he comes into his own when he gets his platoon in the
Motorized Company; and this is when his burgeoning understanding of the
African askari and his talent for communicating and commanding come into
their own. Whether dealing with murder, rape or riot, poaching, strikes or
witchcraft, he gives a thoroughly readable account of that short period of
uncertainty and volatility in the lead-up to independence in the early Sixties. He is especially good when talking about his dependence on his platoon
sergeant, and his growing affection, often tinged with exasperation, for his
askaris.
Denis Healey once wrote:
"Such men were the last of Britain's pro-consuls, a remarkable breed,
who brought a degree of order and justice to millions of people who
had known much less, but who ultimately wanted much more. They do
not deserve less respect because the tides of history have washed
away so much of their achievements."
With this excellent book, which will spark many nostalgic memories among
those who knew Tanganyika, Ronald Callander may justly number himself in
that "remarkable breed".
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