DINKUM LAST MAN.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3375, 2 January 1920, Page 3

DINKUM LAST MAN.

UNEARTHED BY GENERAL RYRIE STORY OF THE EVACUATION. “ M3113’ Diggms have put forward the claim of having been the last man to leave Grallipoli at the evacuation; but Major-Generalßyrie says he saw the last m-a.n——there was only one of him, Sir Grenville was telling the story of the evacuation to a big wdcomc home gathering. “There is one incident,” he said, “that would h.'.lve been most humourous 1f it wears not almost tragic. A man had been on listening duty in a tunnel. Generally the. period of duty was about two and. a-half or three hours. Five hours passdd, however, and {the man was not relieved, so he crawled back to the ‘ trench to investigate. Judge of his. Surprise and consternation when he‘ found all the trenches deserted. An' hour and a-half later an exhausted, despairing figure st’3.ggercd down toj the beach——just in time to be assistcd| into the last boat. There was that lone man for hours after we had reached"; the beach holding up the Turkish -army i of 160,000 men. There are, I believe,| about 5000 last nlen——(laughtn.r)--buti he was the dinkum last man to myl lmowlcdge” I General Ryrie adds that the Turks! were completely ‘deceived, and that itl was all rubbish to say that they know 1 of the impending evacu'ation, and leti the Anstl'a,lia«ns depart in peace. For: hours after the ships got under way,§ rifles and bombs, cunningly arranged,f exploded automatically, and they‘ heard that soon afterwards the Turks charged with the bayone-t, to be overcome with astonishment on reaching empty trenches. .