BEFORE GAZA

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3110, 14 June 1917, Page 3

BEFORE GAZA

TROOPER'S LETTER FROM PALESTINE. A WeUington momber of tho Now Zealand Mounted Forces operating, in Palestine, writing to a relativo, says that the engagement at Gaza was "pretty willing" and that they wero fortunate in having 60 few casualties. "Jh'S y 3 ™!' ho says, "is verv strongly fortified. Iho infantry attacked from tho trout, and our mounted men got round tho back or tho village, but wo did not get tho word to go in until lato in tho afternoon, and when about half a mile from tho village darkness came on and wo had to retire. Tho Turks were reckoned to have about 40,000 men, a great number of them cn= trenched, and.plenty of snipers all ovei tho place. My mate and wyselt had a pretty hard day stretcher-bearing. Avo had to carry one of our lads back wno was shot through the ankle. . On tlie way back we asked him his weight, and he said 13 stone-and our dressing station half a roilo away. It was strenuous, to say tho least of it. Some of our men got nasty wounds. Tho stretchcrbearers and doctors worked on until j.m that night getting the wounded away in sand-carts. Since the fight wo havebeen digging trenches—pretty hard wmu in the hot sun—and wo have to keep on digging well into the night . • • Tho other day, whilst coming m from outpost duty, the whole brigade was ! photographed for tho pictures, so thai; I expect before long you wilt see us on the screen in New Zealand. Aucklands are in front, then come the Canterburys, and Wellington bring up the rear. 1 suppose Jerusalem would be our Searesc town at the present time. We reckon we aro only 70 miles from the old city, and I tell you wo are all pretty eager to have a look at the place. "In the Gaza scrap we wero lucky, as in the whole regiment only two were killed and 23 wounded. The British, troops suffered heavy loss. We are m great fettle-as hard as nails, but, sorry to sav, not as clean as wo-might be; often'two or three days without a wash, and a shave is out of the question.