Smokey Takes Command by Zen Karp (excerpt from H.L.I. and WWII )

Smokey Takes Command

On 15 January 1944, Major Griffiths was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and took over command of the HLI of C. An army-wide medical examination revealed that Shantz was physically unfit for duty. The somewhat overweight man had to return to Canada due to a heart condition.
Frank MacCallum Griffiths was not from Galt, he was living in Niagara Falls before the war. He had been attached to the battalion only recently, and so not one of the original militia officers. He had come from Royal Canadian Regiment, was a graduate of the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario, and in civilian life, a lawyer by trade.
The HLI was a completely strange outfit to Major Griffiths when he came to them as their 2iC in July of 1943, with the exception of one man. Geordie Edwards he had met in Galt a long time before because his mother was originally from Galt and knew the Edwards family. Geordie was now Major Edwards, and once Griffiths was appointed CO, Geordie Edwards would become the new battalion 2iC.
It hadn't taken Griffiths long to make a name for himself once he had arrived at the HLI of C. His nickname became "Smokey" Griffiths and through the continuous training and living in England he had earned himself a reputation as a solid leader.
With Griffiths, promotion had to be earned with good performance. When he promoted new officers like Joe King to captain from lieutenant, it created friction with some of the old Galt officer crew, but officers like Captain Jock Anderson appreciated his style of leadership.
"Now look," he said to his assembled officers not long after his promotion,
"...this is a happy family, but it has its weaknesses. From now on there is going to be no more promotion by seniority. It will be by merit."
And with that, the battalion leadership went through a slight shuffling; for the last time, before the Invasion.
They might have had their weaknesses, but over the years in Britain, the battalion was not only very well trained, but they also were an extremely tight knit organization. Ever sensitive to each others strengths and weaknesses, they depended on each other to get the job done; and this was the reality for the officers commanding right down to every rifle section.
The command elements were these men:
Lieutenant Colonel Frank "Smokey" Griffiths was the commanding officer of the Highland Light Infantry of Canada. Second in Command (2iC) was Major Geordie Edwards of Galt. The battalion Adjutant was Captain Gord Sim of Kitchener.
The Company commanders were: "A" or "Able" Company led by Major "Dirty" David Durward of Preston. Captain Vince Stark had "B" or "Baker" Company.
Vince's best friend was Major Ray Hodgins, who had "C" or "Charlie" Company. Major Harry Anderson had "D" or "Dog" Company.
Combat Support Company was led by Captain Doug Kennedy of Kitchener, who was now separated from his younger brother Pete, who had been sent to work at 9th Brigade headquarters.
Headquarters Company was run by Major F Sparks, the Intelligence Officer (Int O) was Lieutenant Charlie Campbell of Galt, Captain "Genial" Jock Anderson was the padre.
The Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) was Sergeant Major Ted Rhodes of Galt. The next ranking NCO under him was always the Quartermaster, George Rutherford, a veteran of the Great War. He had to remain low key because Field Marshall Montgomery's policy was to not allow the old vets into the war; (a policy which most could not understand or appreciate.)
Life for the men in Great Britain continued to be a mixture of experiences. Training wise, it could sometimes be exhilarating and challenging, but more often tedious as the years went by. Life outside of training was what everyone thrived on (apart from letters from home, of course). Popping into the local pubs (sometimes quite a walking distance away), socializing with the local ladies (sometimes quite a walking distance away), and to a degree, being a tourist.
But there was definitely an air of frustration amongst men at times. Many soldiers were to going absent without leave for various reasons; often for the extended company of women. Back at the barracks, drinking was a form of tension relief which sometimes got them escorted away for a vacation in the digger.
Private Jack Tufford of Kincardine didn't report the two chaps from Cape Crocker who stole a keg of beer the company commander had bought as a prize for the platoon with the cleanest quarters. That night they made a mess of their quarters, spilling beer and possibly the contents of their stomachs, but cleaned it up for inspection. The next day, the company commander, sans keg, stood before his company and said, "I told you I'd give a keg of beer to the platoon with the best quarters, but someone stole it; however, a promise is a promise." He got another keg, and handed it over to the same platoon who stole the previous one. They had outdone themselves hiding the evidence.