OUR BOYS AT THE FRONT.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 348, 2 December 1915, Page 7

OUR BOYS AT THE FRONT.

ONE BAGS FIVE TURKS,

A CHARMED LIFE

The following extract is from a letter written by Private J. Nicholas, of Auckland, who is a brother of Mr. Gregory Nicholas, of the Masterton Post Office. He can easily be described as a warrior, for he has seen plenty cf service. He took part in the Boer War, and was chosen for the contingent that represented Now Zealand at King Edward’s Coronation. When this broke out he immediately volunteered his services, and wont with the First Expeditionary Force to Samoa. When he returned to the Dominion, he volunteered with the Third Reinforcements, and has seen a lot of fighting on the Peninsula. He writes on board the steamer 1 Alania on August 12th, and tells the hot engagement he was in. He states:— “We have had a very hot time of it this last week. I received a little wound on the side of my head, but it is not much. Anyone who got wounded and could walk out of the engagement was very lucky. We started out (on Wednesday night. We were told we had a certain amount of country set aside for our lot to take, and then we would be finished. This lot

consisted of one communication trench and then three trenches up the hill. As soon as we had got that done they found a lot more for us to do. as it took the Tommies longer to get round than they thought it would.

‘'l have to tell you that a person gets very weak about the knees after marching, all night, and then have to charge up steep hills in the morning. You quickly begin to wonder what is the matter, and conclude you have been going for a week. “On the Sunday night we were sent out to take up a new position, and were told that we would have to hang on to it no matter how hot it became. I can tel! you that it was hot enough. The Turks came on '.n mass formation right along our line. They kept singing out, 'We are Johnny Gurkhas,’ and we really thought they were till ‘we heard the German officers driving them on to us. Then we could just make them out on the skyline making short rushes towards our lines. We allowed them to come on until they were about 70 yards off, and then we let them have it as fast as we could. I have the idea they were very glad to get away from us.

“About two hours later our boys hopped into one of their trenches and drove them towards us. I hud pleasure of dropping five of them, one being an officer, so I reckon I did not get so bad a bag. They gave me a good go for it, though. Splinters of a bullet went through my coat sleeve, but never hurt. Next a bullet took my gun barrel off at the hilt. next hit my disc. Then a piece of shell got me on the side of my “^ ac but the wound is not very deep.