The Dominion. MONDAY, MAY, 10, 1315. OUR SOLDIERS IN BATHE.

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2457, 10 May 1915, Page 4

The Dominion. MONDAY, MAY, 10, 1315. OUR SOLDIERS IN BATHE.

The story of the landing of the Australian and New Zealand troops on the Gallipoli Peninsula will niako one of the most thrilling chapters in the history of the war. The reading -of Mb. Ashmead Bajitlett's graphic account of the incident (a second instalment of which will be found in another pa-rt of this issue) cannot _fail to stir the most sluggish imagination and arouse feelings of pride and enthusiasm in the_ least emotional mind. The exploits of the soldiers of Australia- and New Zealand at the Dardanelles have been quite as fine as the grim heroism of the British Army during the desperate retreat from Mons, or the magnificent gallantry of the Canadians in their ~fight against overwhelming odds in the vicinity of Ypres. During the early stages of the war the British Empire # was filled with pride at the splendid behaviour of Tommy Atkins—his courage, endurance, and unfailing cheerfulness. Then the Indian troops came on the scene, apd showed that they, too,- could fight and die for King and Empire in the true soldier spirit. ' Within the last few weeks the first of the men from the Overseas Dominions have made their appearance in the fighting lines in Flanders. This honour fell to the Canadians. Their quality was tested by one of the most terrible experiences of this most terrible war. They did not for a momont flinch from the trial. 'They did their duty valiantly, and proved to friend and j foe that the younger of the British family of nations' are imbued with all those splendid characteristics which have enabled Britain to win and to hold her position as the greatest Imperial Power the world has ever known. With the story of the daring deeds of the Canadians still ringing in ' our ears, ouy thoughts are now fixed upon the equally brilliant doings of the men from this-part of the Empire at the Dardanelles. These "raw colonial troops," as Mr. Ashmead Bartlett calls them, have put to silence the misgivings of those who feared that, owing to inexperience,' they might not be able to stand the shock of battle at close quarters with a wellequipped and determined _ enemy. But our young citizen soldiers have done all that could be expected of seasoned troops who have made soldiering their career in life. They have not had the opportunity of becoming gradually hardened to the nerve-racking experiences of actual warfare'. Their skirmishes in Egypt were not of a very trying nature. Yet they 'never wavered for a moment when they were called upon to undertake the tremondous task of landing on the Gallipoli Peninsula In the face of the fiercest opposition and scouring a firm foothold on Turkish territory. The men from Australia and" New Zealand were given "a tough proposition to tackle in the' darkness." But they were keen for the fray. For weeks past they had been looking forward to the day when they would be able t-o get at grips with the foe in real battle, and when the chance came the.v were eager to do and dare. We are told that they "did not' wait for orders or for the boats to reach the beach, they sprang into the sea." Their valour is not "the valour of ignorance," for they knew'from the outset that the Dardanelles campaign was bound to be fought with the utmost fierceness. They arc well aware that the Turks are brave soldiers, led by German officers. They fully understand that they are taking part in operations of momentous importance, and that the Allies are aiming a blow at the very heart of the Ottoman Empire. In such circumstances the most desperate resistance must have been expected. The Australians and New Zealanders know that the eye>s of the world arc upon them, and they are showing that they are not a- whit behind their British and Canadian comrades in courage, resourcefulness, dash, and endurance. At the start they had to hack their way with cold steel, and having gained a footing they have maintained their ground with unflinching determination against all the attacks of a stubborn and well-equipped enemy. It has been a memorable day for the New Zcalanders and Australians, and He that outlive? this day, and comes safe home. Will stand a lip-toe when l|ie day is named. Old men forget; ve( all shall be forgot, Bui ite'll rfMSWMi' with tulvuiHiipca What fcat6 hs did that day.

Nothing could bo more touching than the fortitude displayed by the wounded. Theirs is the hardest part. The joy of battle is no longer theirs except as a remembrance, ant! they have the bitterness of feeling that instead of a help they have become an encumberance. But no one sympathises with the sick' and the wounded more than their own comrades in arms. The story is l.old that during the retreat from Mons a regiment of worn and thirsty soldiers came to a halting place where there was a scanty supply of walxir. They naturally made a rush for it, but'when they were told by an o(lieer that it. was all that was available for the wounded they at once expressed regret, and continued their weary march with thirst unquepehed, "I have never seen anything like these wounded colonials in war fore," says Mr. Ashmead Bahtu'it. jt is a fine tribute. When one reads of the indomitable courage of the British troops in Flanders, and tho splendid dash and daring of the men whom the Overseas Dominions have sent to fight tho Empire's battles one cannot help feeling that Britain must be victorious in this tremendous struggle.. The deeds of our soldiers proye that the present generation has its full measure of the fighting spirit that caused the defeat of the Spanish Armada, that frustrated the attempt of the Dutch to wrest from Britain the supremacy of the seas, and that carried our ■forefathers triumphantly through the long and exhausting struggle with the great Napoleon. In conversation vjth a German officer, a French priest recently predicted that the British would he victorious in the present war. "Bead history,'' he said. "Have they ever been de'feateci at the finish? They may suffer defeat'for a- time, but at the end, all through,their history, they have succeeded in defeating. A map of the world proves this."