During this phase of the work great consideration was given to the method of issuing the food to the individual soldier. No data was obtainable except the general requirements of the army regulation. How to make these requirements fit into the planned system of feeding was a problem, which however was so successfully solved that the Leviathan system of issue was, either in whole or in part, practically adopted for all transports.
The general scheme is an elaboration on a rough, but efficient system of feeding landing forces of sailors at Guantanamo, where it was the custom to land the various ship battalions and go into camp at Deer Point for small arms practice.
The equipment then was a limited one, namely, a mess table at the foot of each company street and four syrup barrels filled with soap and water for washing the mess gear. From this crude idea was built up a system that operates as follows:
In the after end of the troop mess hall are placed twelve tanks fitted with direct steam jets. These tanks have specially fitted tops and are capable of holding eight insets or food containers, each container holding about seventy pounds of food or coffee. The steam jet is turned on when the tank is filled with the food containers, thus enabling the food to be placed ready for serving, some time before the messing, keeping the food warm and palatable.
This tank, or serving station, contains such items of the meal as meats, gravy, vegetables and beverages. In addition to each serving station is an auxiliary serving table from which is served, bread, butter and desserts. Each serving station and table has a detail of four men and a messing sergeant who draws the food from the galley and serves to the men as they file past their particular station.
The men march from their compartments under control of their compartment officer in four lines, two from forward and two from aft, meeting on E-deck at the grand staircase leading into the troop mess hall coming down the staircase four abreast. When in the mess hall the column is split into twelve lines and pass the serving stations at a slow walk through to the mess tables. When finished, they go on to the forward end of the mess hall, where there are the washing tanks somewhat similar to the tanks at the serving stations. These tanks have hot soapy and clear water in which the men wash and rinse their mess gear, returning to their compartments by other established routes. All the mess lines, both to and from the mess, are kept under control so that in case of an emergency during the messing the men may be brought to their proper stations quickly and without confusion. This arrangement of the messing lines and mess hall has kept intact and separate the feeding space of the troops from their sleeping quarters, an arrangement of much sanitary value and in evidence only upon United States Navy transports.
World’s Feeding Record
The system holds the world’s record for feeding the largest number of men in the shortest period of time, ashore or afloat. Nine thousand men in an average time of ninety minutes were fed. The best time, however, for the same number of men was sixty-seven minutes; this means that during the messing one soldier was served a ration every thirty-six seconds.
It must be remembered that these huge commissary problems has been solved with deep thought and precision, overcoming the enormous difficulties presented on shipboard by the confined space and the mass of floating population equal that of a large town or small city.