IN PERSIAN WILDS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 109, 25 January 1918, Page 8

IN PERSIAN WILDS

AN AUSTRALIAN SIGNALLER'S EXPERIENCE.

Signaller James Carroll, an Australian member of the Mesopotamia:! Wireless Corps, who recently joined a Russian wireless station in Persia, tints interestingly describes his eventful journey through the mountain wilds to his destination:— . . "We went out with a British osccrt, and alter travelling mountain tracks for four days we. met a party of Kussians, with whom we went.on. We aie now at Kermanshah. 200 miles from Bagdad, but still in the hills. We experienced a very hard and somewhat exciting journey. We were warned to he ready for an attack by the Kurds, who arc very wild and roam about these hills just living on what they loot, the road was in a terrible state. "About noon one day we readied a gully surrounded on three sides by mountains, and which to all appearances seemed a dead end. This was the renowned pass on the Bagdid-Ker-manshah caravan route. At 2 p.m. wo set off again, and at 8 p.m. we wero only three miles or less from our starting point, but at 1000 feet higher elevation. A couple of days later we arrived at Kermid, where : we spelled for two days.' "The Kurds gave some, trouble at the big pass, and some dozens of shells were poured into the sides of the hills to clear the way for the transport, deleft camp at sunrise, and were just about to enter a pass when down cumo a volley on us. Two of our wagons and most of the Russian transport were given orders to retire, but how they got hack without any man or horse bein" bit is a miracle, because the bullets (explosive at that) were flying around like hailstones. The first volley went right among 150 infantry, who were in massed formation, and the rest vollev was all i.round us. It looked as if we would be cut off from the B.ussian infantry, but they put up a good fight, although there was not a hit of cover anvwhera for them. I saw about 20 Kurds coming down the hill at the double. They were after loot, and after they had taken all they could from our gharries we saw no more of them. The looting was all done in a couple of minutes.' How many Kurds were killed I cannot say, as they never leave their wounded or dead behind them. The casualties on our ride' were heavy, as we had no cover. One of the Russians, shot through the ankle, was robbed of all his clothes. Several others caught by the Kurds were also stripped. One of our Indian drivers was shot in three places, hut the rest of our wireless section escaped safe and Round. Ever since leaving 'Kurd Hill' there has been trouble, One dav some Cossacks were surrounded, but the artillery opened up, and about 500 Kurds are now markod as missing. t „ , "Having arrived at Kevmanslvib, wo are fixing things up. There is plenty of fruit and a good bazaar, but we have no money. A rupee (Is. 4.1.) is only worth 7d. or Bd., and the 40 I had are only really worth 20. We sro now waiting to bo paid in Persian coin, and as we are the first and only Britishers here it is no easy matter to arrange. Our wireless is on a nil on the outskirts of the town, and we are supplied with a small Russian guard. The Kurds give a lot of trouole even here, and every night there is shooting, but we are getting used to it, *nd don't take any notice. This is a fairly large town, and we can obtain anything we want in the shape of socks, shirts, soap, etc., but prices are very high— sugar, for instance, is 6s. per lb. '