THE FIGHTING AT GALLIPOLI.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 1448, 18 September 1915, Page 4

THE FIGHTING AT GALLIPOLI.

HOLDING THE GROUND AT ANZAC.

THE GASSING QUESTION

OUR FIELD OF OPERATIONS

(From Malcolm Ross, War Correspondent with the New Zealand Forces.)

An/.ac Cove, July 19

Since I last wrote there has been little or no change in the position. We remain iu statu quo, and, though each day has its incidents and incidences, there is necessarily a great deal that the war correspondent cannot at this juncture be permitted to discuss. We are all expectantly looking forward to approaching events. Meantime the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps is successfully hanging on to its little bit ot the Peninsula, while the Allies iu the south are hammering away at Achi Baba, which largely dominates the situation, and cannot be taken without considerable losses on our side as well as on the side of the Turks. THE NEW ZEALAND POSITION.

New Zealanders will naturally be anxious to know what their forces have been doing of late, and I may perhaps be allowed in a succeeding article to give a general narrative of the week’s doings. They will already have gathered from the lists of killed and wounded cabled officially and published in the newspapers long before this reaches the Dominion that, though as yet no forward move is being made, there is nevertheless a fair amount of activity being displayed day by day and night by night in the firing line. Not only is this the case, but the whole position is daily under shell fire. Meantime our defences, though they are repeatedly shelled by the enemy, are being materially improved and strengthened. The nigged nature ol the country on our front, however, gives the enemy great facilities in regard to the disposition of his artillery, and makes it extremely difficult for us to locate his guns or to knock them out once they have been located. With bis wider terrain also, he has the advantage of moving his batteries either by night or by day from one position to another. So far the Turk has “played the game,’’ and the fighting has been clean. An exception may perhaps be made in regard to the first tew days of the campaign, but it is certain that the tales one heard of. atrocities were greatly exaggerated The question we are now concerned about is whether, under German precept and example, the Turk will condescend to use, or be forced to use, those diabolical aids to warfare that for the first time in the world’s history and iu defiance of all convention were used in Europe by the modern Hun. One feels almost certain that, if left to his own devices, the Turk would not descend to the use of such methods.

[Note. —The remainder of this article has been bodily cut out by the censor.]