|
| 1 June 1915 Tuesday |
A Squadron doing duty on Popes Post. Lieutenant
BROCK shot dead in the trenches this morning. To date officers are:-
Lieut. BROCK, shot through base of skull
Major FULTON, shot through part of lung - pleurae.
Major PRIESTLY, bullet shattered hand.
Captain Lewis, of C Squadron, shot through lung. |
| One dead and four wounded. We left Heliopois
with 485 on strength and to date have had nearly a hundred
casualties. |
Force Orders posted up on beach reviews the
month's operations April 25th to May 25th. At the commencement of
the campaign the Turks had 34,000 troops, all Nizam or 1st line, and
100 guns, on Gallipoli and 41,000 troops half Nizam and half Redif
or second line on the Asiatic side. These latter were transferred to
this side. By May 12th we had them wet and would soon have finished
them off, but for the reinforcements to the extent of 20,000 arrived
from Syme and Constantinople. Later they received an additional
24,000 reinforcements making a total of 120,000 and also received 21
batteries of artillery reinforcements.
Their casualties at the date of the order, according to a
conservative estimate, were 55,000. So that they should not have
many first line men left on the peninsular.
The prisoners brought in a day or two were elderly men. Questioned
one of them who stated they lived mostly on bread and olives. Their
pay is 4 francs per month, but they never see it. |
PONSOMBY back from Lemnos tells us something
about the women there. All females are either children or middle and
old aged women. The Turks, some years ago took all the eligible of
the weaker sex to stock their harems. So no wonder all women and
children fly at the approach of a soldier. The population is mainly
Greek, and it is a Greek possession. 25,000 is his idea of the
population.
The Marivitavia was in harbour, having brought over 5,000 Tommies.
It is rumoured that 25,000 French, English and Colonials lie over
there now, waiting for the time to land here. |
| Am afraid my costly bridging etc., is going to
the pack on account of this awful war. I pulled a piece of gold
crown off one of the teeth as big as a fingernail. Commenced to grow
a beard as they are quite the prevailing mode here, but I must have
aimed too high and now instead I am limiting my efforts to a dainty
moustache. I came in for such a lot of criticism that I decided the
whiskers were a failure, so they were erased. |
| Knickerbockers are very fashionable too and most
of us have cut down our infantry trews down at the knees. As my
knicks are fairly baggy I can quite realise what it feels like to
wear kilts. Especially if one has to stand to Arms as we do at 3.30
a.m. every morning. |
| Finished my 24 hours shift at 5.00 a.m. |
Lousing i.e. searching for lice. Has become
quite a common occupation among us. We sit in our dugouts dwindling
times of slackness, in the most approved Cairo manner (we used to
feel sick when we saw the nigs up to it) and carefully go through
our underclothing inch by inch. And in most cases it does not
require much patience to indulge in this latest form of hunting. Am
becoming more and more experienced each day in culinary arts.
Discovered that by crushing the whole meal biscuits and boiling and
adding salt and sugar, they make a very fair porridge, especially if
jam can be added. Onions, desiccated potatoes and bully beef make a
very fair representation of stew. And yet we are at War! We are
living better now by miles than we have lived since first enlisting.
|
| 3 June 1915 Thursday |
| Down the beach swimming this afternoon. A shot
splashed in the water a few feet off. Snipers are getting busy just
near this point, the left flank beach. |
| Going down I noticed a group of craft about ¼
mile from the shore and composed of two or three trawlers, a lot of
lighters and two small barges loaded with cases of stores. I thought
at the time they made a splendid mark for the Turkish gunners. Sure
enough coming back the enemy had came to the same conclusion and
shells were throwing up the water around the boats. And in nearly
every instance the shell would land somewhere among them. One either
grazed or hit one of the loaded barges with quite sufficient force
to move it through the water. The trawlers with one exception made
themselves scarce and the exception was slowly getting under way
with the two barges in tow. Up to now I had not seen a sign of life
on board but a shell striking on the deck of the trawler sent
several of the hands scurrying forward. |
| I don't know why everyone should laugh on such a
serious occasion for the shell caught her with a frightful impact
and at first it looked as if it had set her on fire, and I don't see
how a shot could land as that did without injuring and killing
someone, but I suppose it was the same instinct that makes everyone
laugh and cheer when they see a comrade ducking around the corner of
the sand bag barricades in the gully to avoid having his brains
blown out by a Turkish sniper. |
| The way that trawler dropped those barges and
scuttled off like a startled terrier was distinctly amusing. It did
not take her long to get out of range, and the two barges began to
drift towards Kapa Tepe. The final act was the dashing out from
shore of a fast and furious little pinnace to rescue and tow to
safety the two drifting tenders. That pinnace made some pace and
perhaps was going between 25 and 30 knots. |
| Arriving at bivouac I found everything in a
state of confusion. We had got orders to shift. By 6.00 p.m. we were
in our new bivouac in the narrow but deep ravine between Walkers
Ridge and Popes Hill. Alick and I took up temporary position
unfortunately we were too close a proximity to the latrine,
especially was this fact brought to mind when we began to prepare
our own. |
Issue of rum to court many happy returns to his
Majesty.
|
| 4 June 1915 Friday |
We were 'imshed' out of our retreat at an early
hour this morning to make room for the road makers. A nine foot road
is being cut through at bottom of the gully. So we are now installed
in a fine dugout of our own making, situated some 40 or 50 feet up
Pope's Hill. A sap runs nearby and I have just been looking at the
soles of three hobnailed boots that protrude from the face of the
sap with mixed feelings. These boots are about 4 feet from the top
of the sap and whether the occupants are Turks or Australians is
hard to say. If they were our boys their grave would be marked with
a cross I should imagine.
It is not the first time we have had dead men to keep us company in
our bivouacs. The rest of the Regiment are also hard at work making
"possies" to camp in. |
We go to the trenches next Wednesday I hear.
Snipers got to work this morning and five of our men went down, two
of them for good.
|
| 4th June 1915 Friday cont… |
Left Alicks and my waterbottles and waterjar at
the old bivouac this morning, Sergeant Cook PAUL found them and took
the bottles down to the pumps to fill them. He was shot dead on the
way back. A very strange thing happened in connection with this. The
occupants of the next door dugout were busily sleeping while we were
making ours. I can say for sure that no one came and imparted the
news of PAUL's death to them or that they left their dugout that
afternoon until 'Licker' SMITH climbed out and remarked that he had
dreamt that PAUL was shot. He had been killed about an hour
previous. "Licker" says that nothing similar to this has
occurred to him before. As the top of their dugout was covered with
a blanket keeping out a good deal of the sound I don't see how he
could heard any body below calling out the news. And then we were
working within a yard or two from them and would have heard it
before him if anything. But MacKenzie who was also sleeping in the
same dugout reckons that Licker was asleep. In any case I can't
believe Licker would say a thing like that if it was untrue. It
seems a case of telepathy or clairvoyance.
|
The war boats have been keeping up one continual
roar all day and they say poor Atchi Baba is getting fits. This
presages the grand court. It is rumoured the Turks want an armistice
to talk about peace. Am pretty tired tonight, have been carting
stuff and working the pick and shovel all day.
|
| 5th June 1915 Saturday |
We were attacked, the New Zealanders this time.
The Turks position on Quinn's Post, the hottest bit of ground in the
whole of our line.
Hard to find out exactly what happened, but believe we gave them
hell and they returned the compliment.
As we are support for Pope's Hill at present. It did not affect us
much but the right was made hideous by the heavy artillery and rifle
fire not to speak of the bombs and the bursting of star shells which
illuminated the whole of our valley with a gruesome light.
|
| 6th June 1915 Sunday |
First Church parade I have seen since coming
here down in ravine this morning.
Cantabury Rifles. On duty 5 a.m. yesterday until 5 a.m. this
morning. Sanders overslept the morning before and blamed his lapse
onto Ottoway. Adjutant Viney had to come up the hill and hauled me
out of bed. But it was nothing to do with me as I was not on duty
that morning.
SergeantMajor had all signallers lined up in Viney's Avenue and
'administered in a fine flight of passionate oratory, a stinging
rebut'. |
Last night passed very quietly, though I found
my lonely vigil standing in the bottom of the valley under the
Adjutants dug-out, dragged very tediously. Spent some time rummaging
in other peoples' pantries for something to make a supper on.
|
| 7th June 1915 Monday |
While on the beach today, which has the
appearance of Manly during surf bathing season, I saw about 20 Turk
prisoners hard at work navvying. They were under guard of cowise,
and were putting up a dugout for their own accommodation. Most were
in ragged drill khaki and some had glaring red or pink shirts.
Herded along with them was one of the Engineers who had enlisted in
Broken Hill and had been arrested that morning in the act of
signalling to the Turks. No handcuffs on but he had his boots
removed. Some of the fellows reckoned he was a Greek or a Levantine
of some sort.
The first thing the prisoners asked on coming in were we going to
cut their throats. The Constantinople Press reported that for the
first time in history Turkey was invaded by an Army of cannibals.
Thats us, and we eat all our dead. Various rumours going around
about Archi. According to the latest, we have gained a portion of
it.
I hear they have got another spy. This time a stretcher bearer.
The sortie of the 5th appears to have been not a success. We gained
their first trench but found few Turks therein. Then we got into a
support trench and "imshied" the beggers out of that. Got
to work and got material in by way of communication trench.
Galvanised iron, timber, spades and shovels, sand bags, ammunition,
bombs etc. Held it for about four hours but the pace got too hot on
account of the enemy pouring bombs in. The bombs were downing half a
dozen at a time, and we had to retire. About a hundred men missing,
wounded and killed. |
Its about time some other scheme of getting
those particular trenches was tried.
Fever has broken out at Lemnos I hear, and we have had a few cases
here during the last day or two. I would not be surprised it enteric
or something like that shortly makes its appearance. Big green
blowflies and the ordinary variety of flies are beginning to make
themselves a pest. A conference between the Turks and us has
occurred, but it was not a success owing to the Turks wanting too
much. |
| This afternoon three of us went on digging a
sap. Plenty of cigarettes. I am getting more than I care to smoke.
We are getting lately quite a packet a day. The last lots were
'Major Draphers'. The latest are 'Honeydew'. |
Our losses today amount to about 25%.
Supply ship came in today and pinnaces were taking out customers.
But our representatives got in too late and found her cleaned out. |
Things at English prices. Very cheap.
Issuing clothing. I got pair of worsted socks and flannel shirt. All
Tommie clobber. Could have got a pair of slacks and a drill jacket,
had I cared. Also boots, big heavy black ones with horseshoes on
heals, and big studs all over them. Fine footwear. As far as our
material comforts are concerned it is an impossible to growl, plenty
of everything. |
The Peninsular Press states that the advance of
a few days ago (we heard it amounted to the capture of Atchi) is an
advance of 500 yards over 3 miles following artillery bombardment.
Lieut. DAVEY QM has gone to Lemnos with a 'footballers knee'.
After doing a few days mining on Quinn's A Sqdn we are doing a week
in the trenches have only a couple of casualties. Lieut BROCK killed
and Joe MUNN (Cowboy Joe) shot through the leg. We have fared worse
than that in our bivouacs.
Even our Doc and Padre drew drill jackets. In fact the officers are
looking, as far as our regiment goes, as much of the scarecrows as
the privates are. Major Barret Garibaldi, shirt, money belt, and
pair of privates slacks. Captain VINEY about the same, though his
slacks are cut down showing a pair of 'Highlanders Knees'
It looks as if we are to get no more clobber from Australia. All I
see now comes from the Old Dart.
|
We shift up to the firing line tomorrow.
|
| 8thJune 1915 Tuesday |
There is practically no Australian infantry men
left in this sector now. 1st Light Horse Brigade and New Zealander
Rifles. Another charge on Quinn's Post last night but I don't think
it came to much good.
|
| 9th June, 1915 Wednesday |
| Shifted bivouac to the top of Pope's Hill. |
| What with the extra kit a man has been
collecting this bivouac shifting has become a bit of a contract,
cooking pots and pans, tucker, extra water sheets, firewood, water
tins etc. So here we sit, very near the top of Pope's position with
the open sea before us at the bottom of the valley. |
| Destroyers prowling up and down and exchanging a
shot occasionally with the Turkish batteries, are the only craft
seen at present. |
On the opposite side of the ridge where the New
Zealander Mounted Rifles are entrenched is a battery of howitzers
which, though we can not see them from here, keep coughing and
barking over our heads. We can watch the Turks shelling the Indian
Mountain Battery and the Indians replying. This performance usually
begins near to sundown.
We hear that four of our Monitors got up the Dardanelles and did
some damage. Also a submarine repeated the exploits of some time
ago. It sank a Turkish war boat, two transports, two supply boats
and an ammunition ship.
|
| 10th June 1915 Friday |
Received an issue of bread today, the first
taste of bread since leaving the "Grantually", much
appreciated.
Cholera said to have broken out among the Turks.
Warned for duty 5.00 a.m. tomorrow |
| ((11 lines deleted)) |
{Got an account of the last sortie made from
Quinn's. It appears it was the last time the Aucklanders in the
trenches. The Wellingtons were in the next day when the Aucklander
were given a charge *****
object of the charge was to get the enemy out of it while we
repaired and strengthened our own position. The Aucklanders didn't
see why they should always have to do the dirty work for the
Wellingtons
|
((two lines deleted))
|
( I take this information as it is told *** and
I don't vouch for accuracy)
|
| 11th June 1915 Saturday |
| Took pretty bad with diorher (can't spell it I
admit) last night. Doc took temperature and prescribed calomel
pills. Opuim pill after tea. Quite off colour and as week as a cat.
I wonder if that handful of dry figs I shook down at the
Quartermasters stores yesterday had anything to do with it. |
| Five rounds of rapid fire last night. The Turks
replied with something like 20 rounds I should think. Just a wh*er*e
to make them expend a bit of powder, which I hear is a scarce item
with them. |
| We are to be issued with infantryman's web
equipment shortly so it seems as if we have said goodbye to the
gee-gees. |
Though not authenticated we hear that the
Germans have recaptured Pe*rongel.
Corporal Capohlove, our popular A.M.C. man, again prescribed for me
after tea (wholemeal biscuit soup called porridge by Alick and I,
constipation pudding by the residents in the next villa) black pill
to ease matters and another variety to drive away the headache. I
hear those figs I was rejoicing over, were condemned by the Doctor.
Took a handful of dried figs when down drawing stores and attribute
the trouble to them now. There is more that a ton of them in bags.
Got Alick to change shifts so that he could take mine tonight. Had a
rotten night of it.
|
| 13th June 1915 Sunday |
|
| ¾ issued of bread today. Finished my shift at
noon and go on again at noon tomorrow. Waking this morning by a
terrific din, I looked out and saw a 4 funnel battleship pounding
away quite close into shore. She kept on the move and I hear she was
the HMS LONDON. Circling around her to ward off submarines were half
a dozen destroyers. In addition to this our batteries were kicking
up a frightful row. A nice awakening for such a balmy Sunday
morning. |
| Had to take the sanitary diary down to DAMS on
the beach and took the opportunity to have a dip. I have never
enjoyed swimming in all my life as I do from this beach. Passing
over a few yards of pebbly beach on comes upon firm sand. The water
is very icy at first but once into it, it is splendid. |
Quartermaster fatigues to draw headquarters
rations this afternoon.
At tea time one of our aeroplanes passed over us to the Turks
position. We saw her drop three dark objects in succession, heard
three explosions, as an Australian cheer to each "bang".
We could hear volleying from the Turkish lines as if they were
firing upon it, and shrapnel shells were bursting close to the
plucky airman. |
| The position here seems to be almost that of a
siege. We do not intend to advance but by means of sorties etc we
want to hold all the Turks possible. A field order states that there
are 30,000 Turks in front of us. We are warned not to relax
vigilance and not to take it for granted that the Turks will not
attack during daytime because they adopted that procedure in the
south. Though we know that they can not get through our line we want
to be ready for them as that we can inflict as great a loss upon
them as possible. Reinforcements will be arriving for us shortly and
the Turks getting this information will probably make another
attempt to "drive us into the sea", before they arrive. |
Wireless messages as to progress a war are being
posted up on the stacks of stores down at the beach, one states that
the British casualties are to date 250,000, deaths 50,000.
|
| 13th June 1915 Sunday |
Lt Col PLANE Chaplain to the 3rd L.H. has
received a call to Alexandria.
Everyone is anxious to know how people in Australia are taking
things. The latest paper I have is May 8th and according to that,
the Australians know that we have gone into action but have no
details. A chap was telling me how his people writing to him relate
the particulars of casualties was withheld with the result that
Sydney Town Hall was stormed or was threatened with storming unless
particulars were made public.
|
| 14th June 1915 Monday |
We have gone back on the old flour biscuits
again. I hope for not long.
Everyone is smashing their false teeth. I never credited biscuits
could be so hard. Like Joffre I am nibbling.
The Turks have had the neck to put a battery within 400 yards of
Courtney's post. Our howitzers are going to have a try at rousting
them out. |
We are now using a crude looking arrangement
made of iron and wood. Standing about 2 feet high with a length of
pipe poked cheekily in the air called a bomb howitzer. Seems pretty
successful but is very rough looking in construction, and from what
I can see firing a bomb from it accurately is a matter for
experience.
|
| 15th June 1915 Tuesday |
| At 6.00 a.m. this morning I had to take the
daily statement of ammunition on hand to the ordinance at Brigade
Headquarters. While near the Quarter Masters stores
"foraging", a splinter of a shell which must have hit
Courtney's whirred into a sugar stack close handy, cut open a bag
and the contents poured out, the stack collapsing as a result. |
We sighted a queer looking craft off our
foreshore this morning. A seaplane hovered over, hawk fashion, while
another kept watch over towards the Turks at the back of us.
Presently she began to spit fire. A terrific report then a sound
like an express train tearing over a bridge and finally the
explosion of the shell.
Getting out telescope to work, we made her to be one of the new
arrivals, a monitor. The main deck, fore and aft is quite low in the
water. There seems to be the usual decks in the middle and the only
guns we made out were turreted guns fore and aft. Probably 9.2 inch
though I have heard some carry 12 inch guns. Only one funnel and one
mast. I noticed that no destroyers and mine sweepers performing the
usual revolutions around her as they do when it is a battleship
doing the bombarding.
The aeroplane overhead, hovering hawk fashion and seemed perfectly
stationary to us, evidently spotting for her. She seemed to be
bombarding the rear of Atchi Baba. |
After diner I had to go down to the A.D.M.C. on
the beach Division Headquarters. Got an explanation re being
attached to New Zealanders. The whole of the forces here comprise
two divisions which in turn form one Army Corps. That is, Australia
and New Zealand Army Corps. One division is the 1st Australian
Division and is composed of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Infantry Brigades.
The remaining Division is called "The New Zealand and
Australian Division" and is composes of all the New Zealanders
and all the Australian Light Horse and in addition the 4th Infantry
Brigade. The former division was commanded by Major General BRIDGES
until his death. The latter division is commanded by Major General
GODLEY (I believe that is his correct designation). The Corps is
commanded by Lieutenant General BIRDWOOD. By the way this latter
officer announced that he would have a welcome statement to make to
"us colonials" tomorrow.
|
| 15th June 1915 Tuesday |
Colonel CHEVAL in charge of number 3 Section
Defence has gone to hospital ship with pleurisy. Lieutenant Colonel
STODDART is O/C acting. Lieutenant Colonel ROWELL is really his
senior but he remains in charge of Pope's Post.
|
The hours of changing shifts has been altered to
noon. We are now getting duty every second day as a consequence of a
lateral phone line being laid along this section.
|
| 16th June 1915 Wednesday |
Shifted bivouac from Pope's Hill to one of our
old bivvies behind Brigade HQ. Shrapnel has been bad today. Three of
1st Signal troop camped near here were topped. A lot more were
caught on the beach. A shell passed right through one man without
exploding.
Sat up last night to listen to "suspicious" sounds away on
our right flank. Heavy rifle fire a long way off accompanied by
artillery fire. The fellows were talking about it today and the
opinion is the Helles people are on the advance. There has been a
continual rumble down in that direction all day today.
|
| 17th June 1915 Thursday |
Went down to the beach for a swim, but had to
defer naval operations on account of unavoidable circumstances.
The Turks must always get wind of my coming or is it that there is a
fairly continuous downpour in that locality. No sooner got down that
shrapnel began to splash among the swimmers and there was a general
movement towards the piles of boxes on the shore. I got under
shelter of one of them and watched the display. How no one was hit
beats me. |
| A New Zealander was telling me how while at
Helles, he used to catch frags for trophies and get jam in return. |
| Frenchies are very active at night time so he
reckoned. They used to curse them being on their flank and making
the night hideous with a continuous rifle and artillery fire. He had
no time for the Terriers. They (his lot) one night were to be
relieved at 8 O'clock but the terriers didn't put in an appearance
until One, and then the first thing they thought of was their dugout
and when they got into it they stuck well into it. Sengalese were
great on retiring. |
Signallers on fatigue. Erected a sandbag
platform for a 400 and a 200 gallon tank.
Started work at 8 p.m. under superintendence of Captain FARR and
Corporal BLUE . Rather enjoyed ourselves especially rolling the
tanks up the valley to their position.
They made a frightful noise and the next morning we heard people
talking of the "horrific bombardment" of the night before.
We didn't know two persons we surprised at one of the barricades and
we found that the livid sulphurousity which accompanied the tanks on
their path drove them away. Was pretty late when we got them into
position. All water for these stationary tanks is brought from Malta
and other places. It comes up in canvas bags and aeroplane petrol
tins on mule carts. The water in some of the wheeled tanks or water
carts is well water medicated
|
| 18th June 1915 Friday |
Rum issue tonight. The first for nearly a
fortnight. "The Turks have lager beer and we had rum", the
latest 'latrine'.
|
| After breakfast the Turks gave us a surprise, in
the shape of 8 inch shells. The first landed two feet from our own
temporary incinerator, which is in the bottom of this small gully we
are in. Considering that there are about 20 dugouts within a radius
of 15 yards and the nearest of them only a few feet away we had some
apprehension as to what was to happen next. Luckily it struck in a
very soft spot. We were on fatigue duty. Had to go to the beach to
get some chloride of lime to burn two bodies we unearthed digging
the sap. We were rather glad to move. Before leaving we received two
more. One (landed) in the stores and the other on the rise above our
bivvies. Scattered cheeses and shifted a ton or two of earth but did
no other damage. Went down to inspect the damage when we heard
number 3 coming. Number 3 hit about 30 yards away, I ducked behind a
big high sandbag barricade which shook like a jelly from the impact.
Then we discovered that Sergeant MITCHELL urgently wanted that lime.
I think they had intentions of reducing "Farr's Fort". |
Fried bread for dinner.
Hurried outside our dugout to witness affray on one of the many
terraces constructed by the landscape artists on Courtney's Post.
This hill overlooks us and the terrace must be about 300 yards way.
These two combatants were plugging into one another on one of the
middle terraces. The terraces above and below were crowded by New
Zealanders. |
{continued somewhere}
|
| 19th June 1915 Saturday |
| Issue of cigarettes today. No tobacco. Matches
box to section in Squadrons. We scored one box to two packets of
cigarettes per man. |
| Rumoured that Greece is into it, but I suppose
that, that is only the Anzac version of Veniglos being returned
Premier. |
| Sneaked down to the beach with Bill Boyer this
morning ostensibly to fill water bottles. Met General BIRDWOOD on
the track in the sap. Asked where we were going and if we had an
order to go to the beach for water, and what we belonged to. Have
passed the old chap many times before but that was the first time I
have troubled to speak with him. Got some onions for a stew, as a
result of a foraging expedition and was nearly arrested for my
pains. As usual the Turks started their schrapnelling, putting a
couple on the waters edge below the steps just as we were going up
them on our way home. |
At about 4.00 p.m. one of our aeros went over
head and dropped some eggs for the Turks' tea. Bacon and fried
biscuits for tea.
|
| 20th June 1915 Sunday |
| On duty at noon today. BOYER and MORTIMER,
remainder of gang. Why am I in charge of party in preference to
MORTIMER, who is a Lance Corporal, I can't quite understand. |
Some buzzes. Turks have sent an ultimatum. If we
don't surrender within 24 hours they will. It is also rumoured that
they cut off our searchlight to within 2 feet of the lamp.
|
| Addition to our menu, boiled rice for tea. Rice
preventative of diarrhoea. |
11.00 p.m. a sham attack tonight. I was on duty
when it came off and was ready for it. About half an hour before the
Officer's whistles sounded on Courtneys. Don't know where this came
in. Attack was preceded by what I thought was a very unnatural
stillness. The signal was two shots from the war vessels in the
gulf. The next second and it was almost impossible to make yourself
heard. The Turks must have spent a little ammunition in reply so
some good was done. The bullets were cracking into the opposite
bank.
|
| 21st June 1915 Monday |
Came off duty at noon. Store ship came in today
and the Brigade drew a proportion of stuff for the three Regiments.
We (twelve signallers) got two bottles of sauce, one bottle of
pickles and a tin of milk.
I see that the post at Quinns has a sort of wire netting fence
erected in front of those trenches as a result of last nights dummy
attack.
Lots of diahorrea about and I have got another slight touch. After
having diner, rice and sugar, I went down for a swim. A large size
tugboat was near in towards shore and I surmised from that that
Greece is now into it. |
| A wooden jetty about 12 feet wide and about 50
or 60 yards has been completed in the centre of the Cove. The
Engineers have made quite a substantial job of it. According to the
latest reports the French are making good progress today and have
captured several lines of the Turkish trenches. In fact the buzzes
going around favour the idea that the Turks are almost driven from
Atchi Babar. |
Saw a party practicing bomb throwing under the
direction on an officer, who did the observing and gave the range.
The thrower of course was in a trench and could not see his mark and
the "bombs" were jam tin filled with solids.
Last night with Artie HUTTON officiating on the mouth organ we
commenced a singsong. "Home Sweet Home" sung very feeling.
"Sweet my Lord" and such like songs seemed to appeal. More
than the comic. Perhaps the effect of the night and the
circumstances and the fact that it was Sunday combined to make it
so. We got quite a coterie of good singers around so that the likes
of me shut up and listened instead. The night was still and the moon
at its half. The shooting was very intermittent and the machine guns
were exceptionally silent. Shouts from the supports and from the
muleteers down below carried across to us with exceptional
clearness. |
The stillness was explained about 11.00 p.m.
when the warships boomed out and row commenced. The Jap bombs could
be traced by their trail of sparks from the mortars muzzles until
they disappeared and crashed over the ridge. I was surprised at the
time they take to go the short distance they do. This is accounted
for the fact that they must have travelled a couple of hundred feet
or more into the air before turning over. There were three on
Courtneys and were firing from half way down the ridge. The noise
was terrific. I had to shout into Dick MILLER's ear to be heard. He
was on sentry guard and we were the only two on duty in the bivouac.
|
| 22 June 1915 Tuesday |
| Went up to see the position of the 9th Light
Horse this afternoon, via the beach. Looking from the beach one sees
a deep ravine with base precipitous side which run to the top of a
high flat hill. The climb was very steep and one has to go through
nearly a half mile of saps before arriving at the mule track which
skirts the edge facing the sea. |
Arriving at the top we entered a labyrinth of
saps which were the bivouacs and support trenches of the regiments
occupying the firing line. There was Gun Road, Todd Road, Broadway,
Shrapnel Street, Meldrum Lane etc. All marked by their respective
finger posts.
Looking down the precipice in the narrow track at the bottom were
the transport mules which bring the water and rations to the post. |
Noticed in one part the following posted up,
'Persons are requested not to stand about here'. It was a few
seconds before I realised what was inside the shelter. It was a big
gun, probably a six inch however pointing out towards the Turks
right flank. The sandbags and roof of the gun itself were decorated
with branches, as to almost hide it from passersby.
One trouble up here is shrapnel. Went into the firing trenches where
my mate found his friend who is in C Squadron 9th L.H.. They seemed
to be taking things easy, and the trenches looked quite comfy. All
periscopic rifles in use. Sniping was going on and occasionally a
Turkish bullet struck our sandbags. Had a look at the Turkish possie
and had a few shots.
The Turks at this point creep up at nightime and bombard us with
bombs. We retaliate in the same way.
|
I could see one of our outposts entrenched about
½ mile off. A splendid view overlooking the coastal country towards
Bulair is seen from here. Cultivated fields and about 2 miles away a
town about the size of Salisbury.
Suvla Bay had two Destroyers in it.
Near here is a salt lake near the shore. On the other side of the
Gulf, Eros way can be seen in the distance.
The Turk trenches are shallow here and are so built that if we took
them they would afford us no cover. |
We came back to our own bivouacs by a different
route, which led us down a narrow deep and winding sap to our
bivouacs which are really on the slope of Walker's Ridge. On the way
down we could see the country as far as the Asiatic side of the
Straits and the Turkish lines on Quinn's and Popes were plainly
indicated. The trench we were in appeared to be almost our extreme
flank on that side and was a dead end.
A Squadron man named Rhodes killed today in the sap above.
|
| 23 June 1915 Wednesday |
B Squadron shifted up into the trenches on Popes
today.
In the morning went down for a dip, I always try and get where I
can. My "daily shrapnel" am getting to call it. Shells
began to strike the steps going down the hill onto the beach itself.
They appeared to be shrapnel shells striking the ground before they
burst.
Had our swim in peace, however, on coming back I remarked to Alex
that we would "imshi" some over the dangerous zone. Sure
enough half way through we heard the shriek of an approaching shell.
I ducked and made myself as small as I could, and everyone else did
the same. I though my last day had arrived. It passed just overhead
and landed about a chain away where it did no damage. |
My day for duty today.
|
| Orders came out that applications will be
received from non-coms and privates for Commissions in the new
Armies being raised. Age 18 to 30. 30 preferred unmarried also for
preference. Applications must be recommended by our C/O. Suitable
applicants go into a training school. Fifty Pounds is given to
supply clothes etcetera, to the successful one. Everyone seems to
have put in. In fact I'm of half a mind to myself, but a late rumour
says that General GODLEY does not intend to pass our Colonel's
recommendations on. Saunders, Sergeant Major and Ottoway amongst
Sigs put in. |
"Peninsular Press" says that the
French have taken the well known Turkish redoubt dubbed by them the
"Hariest"
|
| 24 June 1915 Thursday |
| Came off duty at noon. Nothing eventual occurred
during the shift. |
| This last two weeks has been a very quiet
period. Except on one or two occassions there has been none of the
heavy bursts of firing that were so frequent when we first came
here. |
Disaster on the beach today. Saw two shrapnels
wing 33 men. Three or four killed, the first shell got 17. The
clearing station was full of wounded. A pinnace came in with a barge
piles high with shining empty kerosene or biscuit tins. Shining in
the sun it made a splendid target and the Turks had a hard try to
crack it.
Unloading guns down there, I should imagine a battery at least of 5
inch field howitzers. Royal Field Artillery City of Glasgow
Territorials.
Observed a beautiful "shrapnal effect" overhead tonight. A
bursting shell formed a perfect smoke ring, which remained intact
for quite a long while to be admired and commented upon.
|
| 25th June 1915 Friday |
While swimming this afternoon, whistles blew and
everyone was ordered out of the water. A Dreadnought could be
steaming up from Cape Hellas, accompanied by a retinue of
Destroyers. By the time we had got back to bivouac the fun
commenced. I borrowed Alex's glasses and climbed up along the sap
towards Walker's Ridge. Picking up a "possie" safe from
Turkish snipers, I had a good view of her in action. She was in
quite close and half a dozen destroyers were circling around her.
She was said to be the "Lord Nelson" and was firing in the
direction of Atchi Babbi. After firing about 20 shots from her big
guns, she steamed back to Hellas. The Turkish batteries were
bursting shrapnel all around her and amongst her and the protecting
Destroyers. She would fire four shots in quick succession, her guns
making a terrific explosion and emitting a blinding flash. Could not
observe the effect though a cloud of dust arose from the valley
beyond Courtney's and a pall of brown smoke hung like a cloud over
the spot where her shells were bursting long afterwards.
While I was there I had a look towards Hellas where transports and
war vessels were engaged near the shore. A licker cloud of smoke
hung over here too and the bursting puffs of shrapnel.
|
| What we suppose to be a Taube, passed overhead
this evening. Instead of the customary red wings she had black
crosses underwing. Our men fired upon her and she dropped some
bombs. |
We exploded a mine under the Turks at about
10.00 p.m. on Courtney's Post and accompanied the act with a good
burst of rifle fire and bombing to which the Turks replied
vigorously.
|
| 26th June 1915 Saturday |
A yarn I got from Otto:
Lord Rochdale who has since taken a Commision in the Army was
stopping at the Tewfir Hotel at Helwar. The Light Horse went down
there to bivouac and he met and conversed with a lot of the non-coms
and men at the hotel. However, it was a flash hotel and was put out
of bounds by the officers. His Lordship was disgusted and locked
himself up in his room and refused to have anything to do with any
of the officers, who he described as nincompoops. Commenting that
the men, as a class, were better educated and compared with the
former to the officer's detriment. So the story goes. |
| A shrapnel burst over our bivouac at midday
wounding one C Squadron's men. |
| Reported that Chanuk was in flames yesterday.
Everyone still in good health in spite of the rumoured outbreak of
enteric, of which I have heard was nothing more. Diahorrea is the
principle trouble. (Howitzers = how.is.its) While on duty this night
between 10.00 p.m. and 12.00 p.m. saw two bombs burst well over
behind Quinn's Post. They came over like comets followed by firey
tails of sparks. Pieces splashed all round but I think they burst to
high to do any damage. The Turks are evidently using bomb catapults. |
Alex ground up some wholemeal biscuits in Bills
mortar and pestle and after making it into a paste put it into a pan
to fry with fat. We eat these patties with marmalade, and, I wish I
hadn't. Diahorea is very prevalent and this is my third or fourth
attack.
|
| 27th June 1915 Sunday |
Up again on duty at 2.00 a.m. after a couple of
hours sleep.
Very bad and all I have eaten today is a couple if pieces of toast I
managed to make, and marmalade. |
The Turks gave Walker's Ridge a terrific
peppering at daybreak. 40 men are on the casualty list. The 8th
Light Horse lost their Adjutant and Major, and their Colonel is
badly wounded. The terraces on Courtney's where the supports are
bivouacked were stirred up by a Turkish bomb. Eight wounded.
|
| I heard two partners having a row this morning,
one told the other he was, "too lazy to get up to b____ well
knock off." |
| At about 5.30 a.m. the Turks attempted an
attack. It was half hearted and only a few got out of their
trenches. The supports hurriedly got their accoutrements on and
stood ready. Lasted about 20 minutes. I turned in and went between
the blankets and went off to sleep in the middle of it, which shows
how crook I was. The Officer jumped out, game enough, but the men
did not follow so their attack was a failure. |
A note was recently tossed into our trenches on
Quinn's Post.
It said, "Cheer up Australian's. When Bulgaria and Greece come
in you will be out of this."
So runs the story. |
During the shrapnel shelling this morning a
pellet pierced the ground sheets over our dugout and landed on my
blankets. Luckily I was outside cooking breakfast at the time.
Heard a good gag today about our General Birdwood and Sir Ian having
a row, it depends upon a pun on Birdwood, "bird would".
|
| 28th June 1915 Monday |
At about 10.00 a.m. this morning everybody was
talking about the string of transports and war vessels moving out
from the islands towards Hellas.
|
| Went up into saps on Walker's Ridge where all
the southern portion of the Peninsular can be seen. A warship
surrounded by half a dozen destroyers and many sweepers was moving
up to a position on the Turks right flank and about two miles from
the shore. A balloon boat had a big dirigible shaped balloon of
saffron colour up doing the spotting. A couple of destroyers were
spitting fire. A continual rumble was going on and there appeared to
be a bush fire raging down there. The 'bush fire' was the smoke and
dust from the bursting shells either ours or the Turks. It is hard
to imagine anyone living under such a bombardment. A black jet of
smoke would rear itself upwards to a height of 50 feet or more
marking the spot where our gunboats were hitting. Half a dozen
transports were lined up down there and we are conjecturing as to
what is going on. |
At midday a cannonade and rifle fusillade
commenced along our lines waking things up considerably. The Turks
disturbed our dinner by landing shells about 50 yards above us along
the saps we go up to do our observing from. The firing along our
section has eased off now, 4.00 p.m., but is still heavy on the
right flank. We hear that the allies have taken 500 yards of
trenches down at Hellas. I'm tipping something happens before the
week is out. Things have been dormant for about a few weeks now, our
snipers and bomb throwers have gained a complete ascendancy over the
Turkish ditto. The Turks have sniped very few of us lately and
daren't man their loopholes now-a-days. Very few of them will stay
in the fire trenches either.
|
| Peninsular Press of 28/6/15 states. The Douctor
of the Military Museum at Constantinople has issued the following
notice:- |
| "The public are hereby informed that the
700 British mitrailleuses and 300 French cannon captured during the
battle of Ari Burnu at Gallipoli by our heroic troops in the course
of bayonet charges in which they drove into the sea and drowned more
than 20,000 of the enemy, will be on view in the foreign gallery of
the museum,, immediately after the cessation of hostilities." |
Tonight we made demonstrations to scare the
Turks. They were sending up green flares and star shells, one of
which burst over our bivouac. There are about a dozen balls of flame
in the main they were in three colours, red, green and white. Our
fellows did a bit of rapid firing. And shouted and put their guns
above the trenches but nothing serious happened.
|
| 29th Jue 1915 Tuesday |
Yesterday's engagement.
Owing to the heavy fighting at Hellas yesterday the Turks sent
troops from here to reinforce. When we learnt this an attack was
made on the Turks left flank. We were to take two lines of trenches.
This was done by the 2 Squadrons of 5th Light Horse 2 troops of 7th
Light Horse and 2 Companies of 9th Infantry. Supported by the 11th
Infantry. The Turks had sent reinforcements which had got as far as
Eski Keui but these returned to meet our men and the batteries and
machine guns played havoc among them. But as usual our men were
impetuous and they went further out than they should with the result
that our own fire (from war vessels) did them a lot of damage. Our
casualties amounted to some 200 or so, perhaps more, and I hear that
the Turks let our people go out and collect the dead and wounded.
The engagement occurred near the position known as the Lonesome
Pine.
At about 10.00 p.m. a squall struck us suddenly. Dark clouds
illuminated by a continuous play of lightning passing over, but
there was no rain. Simultaneously heavy firing commenced all along
the line and the effect was errie.
|
| At 1.00 a.m. we were all called to arms and
remained under arms until daylight. We have been in reserve for the
last fortnight. This morning we have got a more detailed account of
what happened and I can see the result of last night's work. It
appears that the Turks made a couple of half hearted attacks
respectively on Courtney's and Pope's Posts. On the latter position
the poor devils seemed to loose themselves as soon as they got out
of their trenches. |
| But the serious attack was made down the valley
in which we were bivouaced a fortnight ago. Between Pope's Post and
Walker's Ridge. The number of Turks that charged down into the
valley is hard to get at. They made a terrific noise. You could hear
them yelling "Allah Allah", and officers or non-coms
howling to the men. |
| Estimates of number vary from 100 to 600. There
are 20 dead laying up there now quite easily discernible, but the
greater portion of the damage was done by our machine guns when the
Turks were silhouetted against the skyline scurrying back to the
trenches. The 2nd Light Horse were in it and they lost their second
in command, Major Nash, and three men. The valley is very thickly
covered by undergrowth and there was nothing to mark the position of
the enemy when they got among it. Though it was a full moon and it
was principally the flash of gunfire we had to guide us. |
| I got some momentos of the event in the shape of
clips of Turkish bullets taken from a dead Turk's bandolier. |
| Some of the dead struck me odd, being 3rd line
troops uniform much better and in some cases and one scraggy little
Turk had a leather bandolier which was fastened by bits of wire and
looked as if it had lain in a sublime heap for years. Others again
were splendid looking chaps some wore blue uniforms. |
A Turkish aeroplane dropped a message a few days
ago informing us that it was time to surrender as our fleet had left
us and that we would be well fed by them (the enemy).
1st Battalion Departure:-
I wonder if the departure of the 1st Battalion on the night of the
29th had anything to with the Turks attacking us. They have gone to
Imbros for a few days holiday, and the enemy may have imagined,
having seeing the tug leaving with lighters of me that we were
sending reinforcements to the point. |
Attack of the 29th on our left flank:-
A factor which contributed greatly to the checking of the enemy was
that unknown to them General RUSSELL had thrown out a secret sap
between the Turks and us, and this completely protected our extreme
flank. |
