The Incomparable 29th and the "River Clyde" Part 18

_October 8th._--Daily writing of these notes gets monotonous as there is nothing much doing. Artillery duels are constant, and during the last few days the naval guns have fired more than usual. Occasionally a Taube flies over us and drops bombs, but such things are now not worth noting.

Four new officers joined us yesterday--Captain McLean, Lieutenants Russell, Campbell, and Hodgkinson, and to-day Lieutenant Fyfe, so that we now have ten medical men in our unit, or one over strength. Forty medicos landed at Suvla yesterday, fifteen at Anzac, and fifteen at h.e.l.les, and more are landing to-day. More than enough surely, but all units must be very short.

The Turks used poison gas to-day for the first time. Tomlinson of the Lancs., who told me his experience, says it made him feel sick and his eyes smarted, but his respiration was not affected. One or two men were overcome by it but none fatally. Curiously the evening before all our naval and field guns were bombarding Jeffson's Post, the front line of the Turks on Hizlar Dagh, and on climbing to the top of the hill behind our camp to see what was doing the smell of chlorine was well marked, although I was nearly a mile from the above place. The sh.e.l.ls were bursting well over the Turks who had to fly into the open where our machine-guns got them. (The smell of chlorine probably came from chloride of lime somewhere near, this being much used as a disinfectant.)

_October 11th._--The statement that the Turks used gas the other day now turns out to be false, it was ordinary lydite the Lancs. mistook for one of the new fangled German devices. My apologies to the Turks.

Yesterday we had a visit from General Sir Julian Byng, our Army Corps Commander (formerly in the 8th Army, we are now in the 9th). He roughly inspected our camp, and the C.O. being in undress and unshaved I had to take the party round. Sir Julian was complimenting the Turks on their straight fighting.

_October 13th._--A day of intense cold after a still colder night.

Last night while we were at dinner a terrific rain came on suddenly, and when I got over to my tent it was to find my bed soaked through, as was almost everything I possessed.

To-day we had a lecture on the hillside by Sir Victor Horsley on surgical wounds in warfare, mainly of the head. A very good lecture it was.

This afternoon one of our aeroplanes came down in the Salt Lake. It was well sh.e.l.led and must be useless for the present. The two aviators were seen leaving it amidst a storm of shrapnel, one evidently getting hit, he was seen applying something white round his leg.

This is one of the great routes for the migration of birds. Yesterday and several times to-day I saw flocks of geese flying over our heads and steering south, likely on their way to the Nile and great African lakes. During last night they kept up a constant cackle as they flew over us.

_October 14th._--Geese in large flocks are crossing to-day, mostly in V formation of twenty-five to thirty. A good many are in two V's and some of the largest flocks must number about 500. Many thousands must have crossed before 11 a.m. when they suddenly came to an end.

A shrapnel sh.e.l.l struck the back of my dug-out at the dressing station two nights ago, blowing all the walls down. Two of our new officers were in it at the time, one being rather badly hit on the head by a flying stone. He is besides badly shaken and has had to go to a hospital s.h.i.+p. The other was blown right into the trench in front, got well shaken up and had a hand cut, but he looks on it all as a bit of a joke.

_October 15th._--I have been off colour for some little time, and I question if I'll be able to carry on much longer. Of the ten officers we had the other day only three are quite fit, and most of them landed but a few days ago.

_October 16th._--This morning, about 4 o'clock, the orthodox hour for attacking being one hour before dawn, a furious gunfire opened on Sari Bair, which I got out of bed to watch. Many sh.e.l.ls were bursting simultaneously all along the ridge and down this side of the hill. It is hard to say whether the Turks or the Australians were the a.s.sailants, but I noticed in the forenoon the Turks were sh.e.l.ling a spot near the bottom of a gully which crosses Sari Bair, and which a few days ago was in their own hands. All forenoon a most interesting sh.e.l.ling went on in these hills and foot hills, but after watching it carefully I cannot satisfy myself that there is any material change of position. The Turks and ourselves have fired many thousand sh.e.l.ls to-day, and the Turks have kept the end of Sari Bair held by the Australians enveloped in a continuous smoke.

About three days ago the Turks had placed a new gun of large calibre in the line of Hizlar Dagh, and its huge sh.e.l.ls come screeching over our heads on their way to Little West Beach at all hours of the day and night. Its first day's bag I hear was forty-one, and its second eighteen. This is the busiest landing place we have, men in large numbers embarking and disembarking all night long.

A Turkish aeroplane crossed over our camp about 10.30 a.m. flying so low that, when I heard it in my tent, I said to myself only one of our own machines could fly at that height. It must actually have gone right over an anti-aircraft gun on the top of Hizlar Dagh, almost immediately behind us, and before this fired a shot it was allowed to go nearly a mile. Then it opened fire and sh.e.l.ls went after it in quick succession, but every shot burst, as is almost invariably the case, hundreds of yards behind it. The machine glided gaily along past the point of the bay, straight over the British lines to Sari Bair, rifle shots being fired in a regular fusillade. It turned, perhaps three miles from here, went to its right, came straight over the wars.h.i.+ps in the bay towards us, all the time flying at the same low elevation. It then went to the east right over our centre lines where all our infantry opened on it, but it never veered from its straight course. I was watching all this with an officer of the London Territorial Fusiliers, and asked if he thought there could have been 20,000 rounds fired, and after thinking a little he said there must have been twice that number. At least fifty sh.e.l.ls also went after it.

I hope the aviator got a V.C. or its equivalent on his return to his own lines. Our sh.e.l.l fire was atrocious; I felt so thoroughly ashamed of it that I hoped the Turks were not watching the puffs of smoke as the sh.e.l.ls burst a good quarter of a mile behind their mark. When the machine came within range again on its return journey the anti-aircraft gun opened fire on it again and did no better than at first, but at the very end there was a distinct improvement. I can't think how all these shots at such a short range could have missed a vital spot. The man's sailing over us a second time was the coolest act I have ever witnessed, and I would have been sorry to see him drop.

As McLean was coming in from the dressing station after dark last night two bodies of troops pa.s.sed each other, a sergeant of one shouted to a ditto of the other, "Are you the West Ridings?" "No," was the reply, "we are only the b.l.o.o.d.y Monmouths walking."

Lt-Col. Fraser, our C.O., who has been ailing for some time, left for hospital to-day. This leaves me as C.O. of the Ambulance, d.i.c.kie and I being the only officers remaining of the original ten.

Up to the present time our losses are six killed (including one officer), two died of disease, and either twenty-four or twenty-five wounded (including two officers). (This is an under-estimate.) Sickness has also been excessive, and we cannot have more than a third of our original men. We have had four drafts, mostly Englishmen.

_October 19th._--Walked to our new dressing station this forenoon and examined "well thirty," this being by order of the S.C. of the Engineers of our Brigade. I was presented with a bottle of water thick with blue mud. Being intensely thirsty I adopted the only test available and drank it off, and promised to report if it had any bad effects.

In the evening another draft of thirty men reached us, this time from Swansea. Every man is turning up his nose at the thought of a Welsh detachment.

Had a long interview on many subjects with the A.D.M.S. (Lt-Col. J.G.

Bell).

A large flock of geese crossed this morning, but I have seen none for the last day or two.

_October 21st._--Preparations were made to meet a Turkish attack yesterday, which was some great feast or fast day with them; however, it did not come off. d.i.c.kie thinks such exertion on either a feast or fast day would have been a mistake. Then at night when there was a full moon we half expected this attack, and an Engineer officer at present at H.Q., who called to see me yesterday, said he was always to keep his boots on at night after this, as he said he had no faith in the troops we now have in our front line being able to check any sort of attack.

Another of our heroes, Nightingale of the Munsters, left for home yesterday in bad health, but greatly against his will. He pleaded to be allowed to go back to the trenches, but we were partly influenced by a letter from his C.O., who requested that we should give him a rest as he had been on the peninsula since the landing. Almost without exception those who get a chance to go home go with the greatest pleasure, and it is refres.h.i.+ng to come across one who is really not suffering from "cold feet". All are more or less ill I admit.

_October 24th._--A particularly cold, wet and rough day. According to an article which appeared in the "Westminster Gazette," and was reprinted in our local "War Office Telegram," there is always a cold rough snap from October 20 to October 25. The first date was correct, and I trust the latter, which is to-morrow, will be as accurate, for we are miserable. Geese are crossing in very large numbers to-day.

The thirty Welshmen who were attached to us were exchanged for an equal number of the 4/1 Highland F.A. from Aberdeen. Our men had taken to the Welshmen and were sorry to part with them, especially as they were doing excellent work.

_October 25th._--The above weather forecast was wonderfully accurate, the cold snap ran from the 19th to 24th. Yesterday opened rough, wet and cold, but later in the day the wind fell to an absolute calm and the temperature rose. To-day is ideal, not a breath of wind, a few fleecy clouds, and delightfully warm. Geese are flying south in thousands. Where do they all come from?--the lakes of Norway and Sweden, Finland and Northern Russia, or where? Their destination is no doubt that delectable country for the winter, Africa. Yesterday the A.D.M.S. thought I required a change and recommended me to go there also, but I refused absolutely. I prefer the hards.h.i.+ps of Suvla and it may be the Balkans, to a life of ease and comfort in the hospitals of Alexandria. Had things not looked so bad here I might have accepted such an offer, but now that the outlook is as bad as could be, and the danger to ourselves gradually thickens, it is out of the question.

Mackensen is said to be in Servia and pus.h.i.+ng south rapidly. He has an army of 216,000, while the Servians can oppose them with only 80,000 or 90,000. French and British troops have been rushed north from Salonika, and we are in contact with the Bulgars, if not the Austro-Germans. All here expect to be ordered to the Balkans any day; at Suvla we are now being wasted, all we can do is to hold up the Turks which is not good enough.

_October 26th._--We hear to-day that the "Marquette" which brought us from Avonmouth to Alexandria was torpedoed two days ago, on her way to Salonika. About 1000 troops were on board, and 600 are said to have been lost, including thirty nurses. The "Marquette" sent out the S.O.S. signal, but the submarine came to the surface and signalled, "No a.s.sistance is required".

_October 28th._--Nothing much doing except artillery fire. According to evidence given by the Turkish prisoners our artillery fire does little harm, they are so well dug in, one Battalion putting its daily casualties at six. Yesterday about mid-day every Turkish gun opened fire on our trenches from the extreme right to the extreme left and along Anzac, and all at the self same moment. We wondered what it meant and whether it was preliminary to a wild a.s.sault all along our lines, which was to drive us into the sea; one would have expected something extraordinary to follow, but in less than fifteen minutes it was all over. No doubt they caught many of our men in the open, sitting smoking on their parapets and such like, and 100 or 200 may have been knocked out. We are continually being caught napping, and one sh.e.l.l often lands in the middle of an unsuspecting group and plays terrible havoc.

I see in G.R.O. (General Routine Orders) that General Sir C.C. Munro takes over command of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force from yesterday's date.

_November 2nd._--The weather on the whole gets colder and more bracing, sometimes too much so, but by day it is occasionally uncomfortably warm. The Turks and ourselves keep sh.e.l.ling each other as of old.

I am now feeling so very much off colour that I know I ought to go home, but I am unable to tear myself away from Suvla in case I should miss the chance of going to the Balkans. Still, I am afraid I will be left behind if our Ambulance was to go. During the summer I had two months of dysentery. Since then I have never felt quite fit although I have carried on the whole time, and for the last three weeks I have had an attack of jaundice, of which there has been a very widespread epidemic. (This epidemic was afterwards proved to be Paratyphoid.)

_November 7th._--For some days the weather has been perfect, bright and warm as midsummer, and the nights cool without being cold, but with dews heavy enough to drench the tents.

To-day we had the most deliberate sh.e.l.ling the Turks ever gave the Red Cross. So far they have shown us more or less respect, in fact no one could find fault hitherto; when sh.e.l.ls came among us, there was always some excuse for it. To-day I think they must have been retaliating for some mischief our guns had unintentionally done to their Crescent. The 88th F.A. is encamped alongside us, and six big high explosive sh.e.l.ls fell among the two of us, costing each of us a tent, but strange to say no other casualty occurred. All, including about sixty sick, made for our two big trenches which we made some time ago in case anything of this sort should happen.

_November 8th._--A Medical Board was summoned for this morning for the examination of a well-known rascal, and being one of its members I had an opportunity of a talk with the President, our A.D.M.S., Colonel Bell. I represented to him that I had long felt I would be compelled to leave the peninsula, although much against my will, but after three months' illness my strength had got so undermined that I could stand it no longer. I took no care of myself, otherwise I might have felt better now, but since I landed on April 25, I have not been a day off duty. As Colonel Bell remarked, I should have left Suvla long ago. I am now writing on a hospital s.h.i.+p, trying to feel that I have done my bit.

d.i.c.kie, who also goes on sick leave, and I decided to go forthwith, so we packed up all our belongings. We boarded a lighter at the C.C.S.

and came out to the hospital s.h.i.+p "Rewa". The evening as we came out was beautifully still, with a little haze hanging about the foot hills, chilly, and we were glad to put on our overcoats. I felt depressed at being forced to leave, and cowardly when I thought of those left behind; still on gazing around I felt astonished I had been able "to stick it" so long. The monotony lately has been very trying; living on a small piece of ground with the enemy in front and the sea behind, and no progress being made, could have been nothing else.

_November 9th._--Went to bed early last night and had a. talk with Major Turner of the 53rd C.C.S. who was in bed alongside. Talking about our being sh.e.l.led on Sunday he said his hospital was twice sh.e.l.led, getting three sh.e.l.ls each time, and they were informed, with apologies, by the Turks that they were retaliating. On one occasion one of our naval sh.e.l.ls landed in the middle of a Turkish Ambulance.

This confirms my theory that our sh.e.l.ling was an act of retaliation for something or other. Although the door and port-holes were open last night I was greatly oppressed by the closeness of the atmosphere, due to my revelling in the open air for many months.

_November 10th._--We lay at anchor outside the boom of Suvla Bay till mid-day to-day, when we had got on board nearly 500 sick and wounded, and we set sail for Lemnos. Our boat is so coated with barnacles that her speed is reduced from 18 to 12 knots. Two monitors were firing at Achi Baba as we came opposite it. Each had two guns and the four were fired together. We pa.s.sed close to one which gave a magnificent roar, the like of which I am not likely to hear again for many a day.

The sick officers occupy one table in the saloon, the Staff eating at a separate table. The latter a well-fed, happy lot, the others yellow and jaundiced, and looking very weary.