A New Day by Beryl Matthews

out there.’ Bill came in blowing on his hands. ‘Shame we’ve got to make a detour instead of going straight home, but we managed to pick up a cargo for Germany on our way back.’
    ‘Will we have a chance to go ashore?’ Jack was always eager to see another country.
    ‘Probably.’ Bill’s expression sobered. ‘But you’re not to go ashore there unless the two of us are with you. Promise?’
    ‘All right, I promise.’ Jack was puzzled by their serious expressions, but didn’t ask why. They had looked out for him ever since he’d joined the ship, and he trusted them. In fact, Bill had become like a father to him, and Frank an uncle. He followed their advice without question. They were experienced travellers, and he wasn’t, so he was happy to do as they said.
    They reached Hamburg the next day and Jack watched the activity on the dock, and it wasn’t long before Frank, Bill and three more men joined him.
    ‘We’ve only got three hours, and then we’ll be under way again, so it will have to be a quick look round.’
    ‘That will be enough,’ Frank muttered.
    ‘At least I’ll be able to say I’ve set foot in Germany.’ Jack smiled at the group of men. ‘Are we all going?’
    ‘Yes, and we’ll stay together. Come on, let’s go.’
    They caught a bus into the centre of the town and began to walk along a street. Jack frowned. ‘Are all those men in brown police?’
    ‘No lad, they are members of the Nazi Party.’
    ‘There are quite a few of them.’ There was a sound of breaking glass and Jack spun round, pointing in amazement. ‘They’ve just broken that shop window!’
    ‘None of our business.’ Frank urged Jack to keep walking when it seemed as if he would go over to the commotion.
    ‘Why isn’t someone calling the police?’ he asked, looking back over his shoulder.
    They stopped round a corner and Bill turned Jack to face him. ‘This is what’s going on here, lad. The fascists are gaining the upper hand and no one is trying to stop them. If we interfere we’ll end up in prison – or worse.’
    ‘That isn’t right, Bill. They shouldn’t be allowed to get away with it.’
    ‘We know that, Jack,’ Frank said. ‘But this isn’t our country, or our problem – yet.’
    The truth suddenly dawned on Jack. ‘So this is the reason for all the talk about war?’
    ‘It is. There’s a lot going on in this country, and it could spill over to involve other countries. It’s worrying.’
    Jack grimaced. ‘You know, I haven’t taken much notice of all the talk, but I understand more now.’
    ‘That’s why we brought you ashore, lad, and why I was insistent that you shouldn’t come alone. You could easily have got yourself into real trouble.’
    ‘I could, and thank you all for looking after me, but I hated walking away from there. Why did they pick on that shop?’
    ‘Because it was a Jewish tailor’s shop, I expect.’
    ‘That’s terrible!’ Jack shook his head. ‘I don’t like it here. Can we go back to the ship?’
    They all readily agreed and caught the next bus back to the docks.
    The memory of what he’d seen lingered, and Jack knew he would never dismiss the speculation about what might happen with Hitler and his party again. That brief visit had been an eye-opener, and he was glad the men had taken him ashore.
    They arrived back three days before Christmas, and after receiving the pay due him, Jack signed on for the next voyage, and made his way to Kensington, eager to see his sister. They would have so much to talk about.
    The house was just as his sister had described, and excited to be seeing her again, he went round to the back door and knocked.
    A young girl opened the door and stared at him. ‘Yes?’
    ‘Could I see Hanna Foster, please?’
    ‘Oh, you must be her brother!’ Smiling broadly she opened the door wide. ‘Come in. She’ll be so pleased to see you. Cook, look who’s here!’
    An elderly woman looked up from the pastry she was rolling, dusted the