How to be a Successful Subaltern

by “Sustainer”

Introduction - Rule No. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

Rule Number 4:

Know your enemies and join them.

There are very few officers serving who have executed the one master-stroke that assures a subaltern of success. It takes a bold, dashing officer with nerves of steel. Don't be ashamed if you can't face it.

Passing reference has been made to the wives' club, generally accepted in Soviet military intelligence circles as the most powerful power block in the British Army. The successful subaltern joins the wives' club. I hear you draw in your breath, you purse your lips, and you shudder as well you might. The SS (we'll call him that if you don't mind because the rest is such a mouthful) - where was I? Oh yes, the SS offers his services to the wives' club as its 'Military Coordinator'. He takes on the stultifyingly dull job of organising a room for their meetings, chats the master cook into making a few odds and ends to go with the coffee, provides sharpened pencils, pads of paper and glasses of water for the executive committee meetings, and makes himself indispensable, while at the same time hinting at the difficulties of the job. This strategy is all part of a " master plan and must not be considered in isolation. With flair and imagination, the wives' club can be turned to enormous advantage.

Next - Rule No. 5

Introduction - Rule No. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6