FROM THE MAHENO

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2618, 13 November 1915, Page 6

FROM THE MAHENO

IMPRESSIONS OF ONE OF THE STAFF • CHIVALROUS TURKS Writing on September 21, one of the staff of the Hospital Ship Maheno forwards to a friend some impressions of the Gallipoli debacle as witnessed from the shore:—

"All the way across wo bad painted mental pictures of what it would be like, and itched to bo there, and on August 27, in the early, afternoon, wo found ourselves off tho famous beach. As wo steamed up tho island passage from Lcmnos the presence of warships was a preludo of what was to follow. Thero wero cruisers, destroyers, and monitors all waiting in their marine lair till darkness camo. Then they caino out to pour shells into the'hidingholes of the Turk. On the starboard side lay tho mainland. The light, sandy boacli stretched,along for miles, backed in somo places by low, scrubcovered hilLs, and in others by high, jagged hills. Tho wliolo of tho hillsides were clothed with rudo burrows, where tho human rabbits conccaled themselves by day. Dusty-looking tents, wooden shelters, and mules sprinkled the foreground. All was quiet save for an occasional sholl. Tho batteries wero concealed somewhere in the hills. II olios peered and twinkled in tbe sun. When bedtimo came, tho stillness of tho quiet hour was rudely shattered by a cruiser's guns. A, flash of firo, a puff of suiolcc, and tlion a report. Then the firing started in earnest —the short bark of the 4.7, tho quick crack of the 6-inch, tho deafening crash of a broadside, and tho deep note of tho monitors' 12-inch guns contributed to a symphony called 'Holll' A monitor lay right in our line, and fired right over us. Tho Maheno quivered with each report, and all the doors and windows rattled with the concussion. From midnight to dawn tlio firing continued, and as soon as daylight disclosed the land, wo could sco mspafcch-ritlors dashing across tho bullet-swept beach, and little trains of .mules, laden with ammunition and food, could be seen moving off ( to different points en route to the firing-line. . . . "At i p.m. on August 28 the warships again moved up, and onco moro the fair face of heaven was obscured by tho dun clouds of hell, as devilish as. any scene Danto could have painted.' Old Nick hold tho cards, and it was a, routine flush for him all tho timo. All night long the hellish gamo had gone on with no half-time or breathing spells. Soon wo f wero to witness tho fruits ,of it all. Through the darkness came tho lighters laden with their human freight, poor follows. lying on stretchers , with never a moan, although most of them must have been in deep agony. Barge after barge camo alongside, each man labelled according to his wounds, quickly and quietly taken on board,and sent to the wards. Nurses and wardsnion worked willingly, and soon the wounded wero made as comfortable as possible, and some were asleep. .All night long tho Red Cross men were at work, but the grim harvester had his share by tlio morning: "In the early, hours of Sundav tho sea of pain was left behind, and wo were speeding to Mudros. A fow miles out the engine-room bell clanged and the Maheno lay 'listless on the sea. A portion of the ship's railing was removed, and four heroes found a f resting placo in the bluo of the Mediterranean. Their end had been an example of how Britishers can die. They turned life up without a murmur or complaint. Let us hopo that tho cruntry which gave them birth will not forget them.

"You people in New Zealand do not know half tho truth, and things at the Dardanelles aro desperate. What it will bo with the winter coming on God only knows.. The bombardments are a great sight, with the pyrotechnic shrapnel bursting everywhere, and the monitors with their big guns do give the old ship a shake up. A'fow stray bullets have come on board, and one went right through our launch. Everybody who comes on board speaks higlily of the Turk as a fair fighter. They arekind to our wounded, and time after time our fellows have been bandaged up by them and made comfortable. So far we have not had any mail since we left, but are looking forward to getting one on arrival at Malta to-morrow. The . Field Ambulance aro doing heroic and wonderful work, and tthe way the wounded come on board! is something to marvel at. Our boys are standing up to it well, but the strain is,beginning to tell on some of them, as we have been going solidly for a month without _ a stop. What is wanted is a store ship from New Zealand with some decent tucker. It is damnable the way the men are being exploited. The naval men take tins of condensed milk astore . and sell it for as much as 2s. 6d. a tin. Our boys would sell their souls for butter, which they never see. Bully beef and biscuits is all they get, and you know what. that is to fight on. Somo of the fellows who come from Flanders say it is a picnic there compared to Gallipoli, and after seeing the place one can Tealise it. "Beachy Bill." "There is a: Turkish gun. here between Achi Baba and Gaba Tepe ' which shells the Anzac beach every day. They call it 'Beachy Bill.' and so far wo {have not been able to silence it. It is surmised that it is in an. underground passage. It certainly plays havoc on the beach, and so far is.said to havo accounted for 1700 lives. From the amount of shelling done from the ships it is a wonder that there is a single Turk alive, but tihey are so well dug in tha't nothing seems to affect them. Through the glasses our fellows aro plainly visible in the trenches, but though the enemy's trenches are equally visible, so far not a_ single Turk has been seen from the ship. . . . Ono of tho funniest sights I have 6een was that of a wounded Maori and a Hindoo trying to teach each other their languages."