FROM THE FRONT

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2421, 29 March 1915, Page 6

FROM THE FRONT

« The sojourn of the New Zealand and Australian Expeditionary Forces in Egypt is calculated to give a iillip to tho rapidly-thinning ranks of Archaeologists and Egyptologists. One Wellington trooper writes: "I have seen a good deal of Cairo and the surrounding districts, and have generally had a good time. I have been out to see the famous Pyramids, and and have been to Sakkara where I saw the dead city of Memphis, and also the ages-old statues of Ilameses 11. I also inspected the ancient tombs of Sakkara, and the crumbling Pyramids, and noted the wonderful state of preservation of the characters on the walls. I went right through the Tomb of the Sacred Bulls, and saw the great marble sarcophagi in which the buffs were placed after death.

. . . I came out of the tomb of the Imaculate Bull feeling about three hundred years old, and kicked a donkey to get the mummified feeling out of my bones. That is the worst of having an imagination.

"The Turks are now retreating," continues the letter, "and I don't think we shall see them again. Wo captured in all about 650 prisoners and buried another 600, so the Turkish losses for the two days' fighting approximated 1100. . . . Tho prisoners are quar-

tered at the Ivasr-el-nil Barracks. I havo seen them. Whilst some look worn and haggard, the majority are strong, and have the appearance of boing quite capable fighters. I also saw the Turkish wounded arrive by tho hospital train. The wounded were brought up to lsmailia by Indian troops. Australian motor ambulances (about 100 in all) were used to convey the wounded from the railway station to tho Hospital. 1 think the troops are returning immediately from the Canal, so cannot say when there will be any moro fighting, but we would like to be on the move again."