Joseph Lee
A Soliloquy at Stand-to in the Trenches
Before I saw the trenches
I was a strict T.T.,
The pledge I’d took,
The water brook
Was strong enough for me,
But now I take my tot o’ rum—
(I wish to Gawd that Sarg. would come)—
Each morning about three.
It’s easy for the blokes at ‘ome
To talk of honest water,
And tell us when we take our tot—
(A thimble would hold all the lot)—
We really shouldn’t oughter;
But if they’d got to stand in mud
And water to the knee,
I guess they’d take their tot o’ rum—
(I wish to Gawd that Sarg. would come)—
The very same as me.
You’ve been ten days in the front line,
Strafed soundly by the Hun,
You’re short o’ grub, you’re short o’ sleep,
The water’s standing three foot deep,
You’re feeling nearly done;
“Stand-to!” You shiver with the cold
You’ve no vitalit-ie—
It’s then you bless the tot o’ rum—
(I wish to Gawd that Sarg. would come,
It’s almost half-past three!)
It’s like a warm hand round your heart,
It’s like a brazier’s glow;
It trickles through your trembling lips,
It thrills you to your finger-tips,
And thaws your frozen toe.
“A little for the stomach’s sake”—
That’s good enough for me,
To fortify my fainting frame—
I’ll give you gospel for the same,
See Tim. v.23.
When we return from this ‘ere war
To mothers and to wives,
No rum we’ll need,
And then we’ll lead
Sober and godly lives.
But while we’re fighting in the mud,
I begs to hope that we
Will get our little tot o’ rum—
(My feet is froze, my hands is numb,
Thank Gawd! I see the Sargeant come!)—
Each morning just at three!
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Analysis (AI Assisted)
This poem offers a gritty, humor-laced reflection on the brutal realities of life in the trenches during World War I, particularly focusing on the soldiers’ dependence on rum to cope with the conditions they face. Through a soliloquy that blends personal struggle with dark humor, the speaker captures the emotional and physical toll of trench warfare while also touching on the moral dilemma of the alcohol consumption that was a daily part of soldier life.
The speaker starts by contrasting his pre-war idealism—symbolized by his adherence to the Total Abstinence pledge—with the harsh realities he now faces. He recalls the time when “water brook / Was strong enough for me,” suggesting that before the war, he lived a life of purity and self-discipline, likely in line with the moral expectations of his community. However, once thrust into the hellish conditions of the trenches, that moral resolve quickly begins to erode. The recurring refrain, “I wish to Gawd that Sarg. would come,” serves as a grounding reminder of the speaker’s desperation. The repetition of this line conveys a sense of monotony and helplessness—he is trapped in a cycle of waiting, exhaustion, and the need for a brief escape, symbolized by the “tot o’ rum.”
The poem then moves into the difficulty of life in the trenches, where “stray soundly by the Hun” and “water’s standing three foot deep,” paint a picture of unrelenting hardship. Here, the speaker shifts from the individual to a collective experience, arguing that those at home who criticize the soldiers’ need for rum—”it’s easy for the blokes at ‘ome / To talk of honest water”—don’t understand the extreme conditions of trench warfare. This is a common sentiment among soldiers who felt that civilians, removed from the front lines, couldn’t truly grasp the sacrifices and suffering they endured. The speaker implies that if civilians had to endure even a fraction of what soldiers faced—”stand in mud / And water to the knee”—they too would turn to rum to ease their pain. The tone here is sardonic, as he recognizes that this comfort in the form of alcohol is a coping mechanism, a necessary evil in a context where human endurance is constantly tested.
The speaker’s description of the “tot o’ rum” is almost reverent. He likens the warming sensation it provides to “a warm hand round your heart,” a comforting, life-giving force in an environment where basic human needs like food, rest, and warmth are in short supply. The rum becomes not just a physical necessity, but a psychological one—“it thrills you to your finger-tips, / And thaws your frozen toe.” These lines evoke the bitter cold that soldiers had to endure, and the rum is portrayed as a literal and figurative lifeline, offering relief, however fleeting.
There’s a moment of humor in the poem when the speaker references the biblical verse, “See Tim. v.23,” as justification for the rum. The apostle Paul’s advice to Timothy about using “a little wine for thy stomach’s sake” becomes an absurd but clever justification for the soldier’s reliance on alcohol in the face of their conditions. The inclusion of this verse lends an ironic, almost absurd twist, as the speaker’s reliance on rum in the trenches is framed as an almost saintly or godly act in their dire circumstances.
The closing lines reveal the speaker’s awareness of the moral tension between the current reality of the trenches and a hopeful future, after the war, where they will be free from the need for rum. The idealistic vision of returning to “mothers and wives” and leading “sober and godly lives” suggests that the speaker knows that alcohol isn’t a long-term solution, but it’s what keeps him going in the present. There’s a resigned acceptance in the final stanza—“Thank Gawd! I see the Sargeant come!”—where the speaker’s relief at the arrival of the sergeant is not only a recognition of order, but perhaps a symbol of an impending reprieve, even if temporary.
At its heart, this poem is both a darkly humorous and poignant exploration of the human need to escape from the traumatic experiences of war. It captures the tension between survival and moral integrity, between the soldier’s duty and the desperation to endure. The rum, which might have been seen as a symbol of indulgence or sin in pre-war life, becomes, in the context of trench warfare, a necessary means of coping, however temporary or flawed. The speaker’s conflicted feelings about it—together with his acknowledgment that it is only a crutch until the war is over—reveal a deep sense of the personal cost of war.