DARDANELLES LETTERS.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 290, 7 September 1915, Page 4

DARDANELLES LETTERS.

FAIR'S FAIR. NOT ENOUGH CREDIT. EOli NEW ZEALAND'S PART. Bugler C. Chegwidden, writing to hi s parems from Birmingham fEwUad) says:

"I have just finished reading Captain Bean's account of- the landing at the Dardanelles. 1 do not know it all the accounts are th e same, but, if so. I am surprised that the New Zealand Press Association did not S en d a correspon-

dent with u s so as to give us a little jjniore of th e credit that is due to us,, and I not accept the tale told by the Austra- : lian boss correspondent as correct.. It

was our boys who held, the ridge for three nights and two days, and some of them took part in the charge up the second hill. I do net want to take accredit from the Australians, but "fair's fair," and I like the New Zealanders to receive what is due to them. Again, the account says 'the New Zealanders received their baptism of shrapnel in the afternoon of th e first day.? Why, I myself saw shrapnel bursting about the boat s that took us in before eight in the morning, and it was not midday when w e were up on th e ridge furthest inland, which was not retakem by the Turks.

"Here i& another matter I would like to mention. When I first came to my proper senses out of the delirium, I wrote to the New Zeafland High: Commissioner and received 10/ I ran out of that in five week s (a long time for 10/ to last me.) I wrote for more,, and received a refusal, on the grounds that the hospital, authorities would not allow it, but to let them= know a- few days before If left the hospital and they wou!!d fix me* up. I wrote again, when I wa s going on furlough. (Now,. lam not asking for his money or anybody else's, but for money tliat is due:* to me. I wTote to him personally, telling him what I thought of liis ways- of dealing with New Zealanders who had

no friends within 15,000 miles.l have to be in a Convalescent Heme for at least six weeks, and ! if the High Commissioner thinks I am going to be a pauper for that time he is much mistaken. "I have had an invitation to spend my furlough with a Mr Burt, who lives about twentjy-five miles from here: Some New Zealand lady has got a few of her friendg to visit us, and I can assure you tfhey are very welcome. Besides bringing us delicacies, they find us a place to stay at whilst recuperating. A Mrs Jefferson sent two of us shaving gear, tooth brush; etc. We needed them Badfljy. She said how good' it wa,-~, of us to come all that way for the Home Country's sake; and" that others would be willing to help u s if they knew we were wanting anything."'

"EATING THE PRISONERS.-"

NEW ZEALAND "CANNIBALS."

Private Harry Ward writes from

Gallipoli to his brother, Mr.T. Ward, r Raetihi, -stating. "We are still here, r because we are here, and the Turks t will never shift us. The daily risks, are , innumerable—bullets, shrapnel, bay- , onet, bombs, mines, hand grenades. I j would, have been blown, up myself by . a bomb, ojily for a timely thought. We r •had been pelted with, these deadly , missiles all day, and.at last one landed. u fairly, between my feet. Not knowing . quite, how I did it, in an instant I i dropped my overcoat fairly, over th,e t bomb; advanced a few paces and. lay 1 flat- on. my face. The, force of the ex- i plosion was so broken that I escaped , scot free, -while my- mate was only ' siUghtly bruised. Tfte platoon corn-man- I der commended the action, for it had j aayed three lives. Of course, the bomb was probably ilMimed, otherwise tlhe result would have been- disastrous. On the samc da i y an . ex P loslcm blew a dead Turk right into our trench. We have had artillery dtaefls, and at such times you would think that' tte gates of g_ had *>&en thrown open. Smoking rifles and maeihine guns pour out their ' contents like rain, the air- becomes hot with friction, and the boom of big guns is terrorising. We often semi mess- . -o-es to aMV fro. Our neighbours wanted to know what we did with the prisoners. We sent back word that we ate them all! They reckon that we are tihe fools of 'Greedy Britain' and that they are the tools of Germany The j only thing we don't get much of to sJpr African *. will ! ' soon be able to sleep standing up. We ' do ,ot get much bere---on y so : ma „y different yarn, and rumott bat 1 ' OTi * notic* ol tfcam.