Cecil in Port Sudan - 2

Cecil had very few photographs and those he had were mounted in an album which had been used before. Most of the Port Sudan pictures, many of which are post cards, have no captions, but the few that are there give some idea of daily life.

Cecil lived in a 'mess' (above) with other young men working in Port Sudan.

One of the comments he made about the Port Sudan mess is that it was very well furnished with furniture from England. This is the dining room with one of the residents sitting at the table with a servant standing behind him.

The caption to this picture, taken in the mess, is 'Me'. It doesn't look much like my father but the brass tray in the foreground is very similar to the one of his which I still have.

The caption to this photo reads, "Sunday morning picnic in the hills 6 miles inland. Early morning - had to be back by 8.30 to avoid the heat. Phillips (centre, with his children) was manager, Welsh, a nasty piece of work. Joe Carlsson (left) was my friend and a wonderful violin player. Joe played in our dance orchestra and was a customs officer, also a first class pianist. Had little work to do so entertained the passengers as often as possible to pick up a girlfriend." Cecil is at right.

The caption to this photograph in Cecil's album states that two British naval sloops were permanently stationed in Port Sudan to control the slave trade which was still active in the Red Sea.

There are several post cards from Aden in the album, which suggests that, at some point in his time in Port Sudan, Cecil crossed the Red Sea to visit it.

Ernest Haylett’s ship called regularly at Port Sudan so he must have seen that his son, for all the pressure, was enjoying himself. However, the overwork resulted in Cecil becoming so ill that, in 1927, he had to be set home to England with suspected stomach ulcers, the doctor fearing he might not survive the voyage. He did, the problem was diagnosed as appendicitis and, after an operation and a well-earned holiday, he returned to Port Sudan.