THE AUSTRALIAN TROOPS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 294, 21 May 1915, Page 6

THE AUSTRALIAN TROOPS.

THIRD BRKIADL AT LE.MNOS. DIFFICULT WORK OF DEBARKATION'. •BOM'nARD'MKNT OF DARDANELLES WITNESSKI). (Special Representative Melbourne Age) Alexandria, April ii. After three weeks of mysterious silence f. am able, to disclose something of the Movement of the third brigade of our troops under Colonel Macl.agan, whose departure from camp at Mena some weeks ago has been the cause of much speculation. Evwi yet there are conjectures as to the true destination of this force. Time and again the force Has supposed to have been in action, but it was really playing Rugby. Time and ligain it iwas thought to have landed in England. It simply appeared to have been swallowed up. / The troops left camp in the evening, mid the next morning the transports put to sea. By the time this message reaches Australia the last man of the Australian division will have embarked for the front—the new eastern Mediterranean front —the position very indefinitely described bv the 'Dardanelles. Ailthat will remain of the camp under the Pyramids at/Mena will be a few tents of the Light Horse Brigade and some reinforcements, and those, in time, will move, 100, following in the wake of fjie main army.

As T'beard one officer describe it. Lemnos is "a horrible lump of an island, fearfully bam-n and darned cold, with a wind sweenim/ over it." The Australians have landed there. When T saw them they looked hapuy and jolly enough, and though tliev had no means'of 'retting into temptation, seemed fo find life nlc-i----saut enough. Tliev looked wonderfully fit. r had a. .-Iv.t. with the oflicors, and they give a good account of the men. This island lies right at the entrance »f the Dardanelles, a score of miles from the end of Gallipoli Peninsula. During the recent, gales that have retarded operations,in thi' Narrows, the island came in for what a captain described to me as "a bit of a dusting." It is almost barren of trees, and tile inhabitants, mostly Greeks, are engaged in cultivating small farms, milking a few buffalo cows, and living frugally on fish and green produce. It lias a-fine harbor, but the water shallows rapidly. There is only a small .jetty for the casques—small fishing smacks—to land their hauls, and barely enough water to permit even these "shallow draugbters" to approach. One may therefore picture the arrival of forty transports or so, and their dropping anchor well out from the shore. The storms that arose compelled some of the ships to leave the harbor altogether, as their anchors would not hold, and all had to keep steam up, for the anchors dragged. From reports given me 1 believe the Australians were the first to land on the island.

The transports came as cToso inshore as was consistent with safety, and the troops scrambled into the boats. In these, boats they came alongside the little jetty. It was not even possible to use warships' pinnaces to tow the boats, as their draught was too great. Diilicultics were naturally encountered' in slinging stores and tents, heavy baggage and impedimenta into improvised barges. Tlie horses in some cases were slung overboard to swim ashore.

l-'our transports were thus unloaded, and 5000 men were, encamped on the polato fields by the evening. The' island does not boast a large town, so the unit had been made quite self-sup-porting. (Field bakeries and camp ovens were at once started to feed a very hungry army. This was campaigning in real earnest, and rrom wnat t hear the troops acquitted themselves splendidly. They were in funds when they landed, and on their first pay day had several pounds apiece to spend. The little villagers, mostly Creeks, have blessed the troops. During the day the air was filled with vibrations from the guns of the warships tiring in the Dardanelles. Some said that 'when the air was still or the wind changed a point or two the booming of the big guns could be heard quite distinctly, but the vibrations came almost Without a break.

There is some uncertainty about the ownership of the island itself. It appears to bear a relationslkip akin to another island which was the subject of dispute and eventually fell iuto the hands of a third party. On most maps this island is marked down as Greek. The Sublime Porte, . however, would never admit the island was Greek territory, and two or three islands in the vicinity at the outbreak of war were still subject to negotiation. After the last Balkan disturbance Turkey was ]iot in a position to dispute the landing of any troops on the island, her licet being bottled up at Constantinople; and if she protested, as there was a hint Germany was urging her to do, then the neutral territory of Greece was being violated. Then she admitted the Greek claims to the island. The Powers, however, have not agreed to the exchange of the island to Greece.

Jt was in the harbor on. this island that Sir lan Hamilton met the admiral in charge of the Allied fleet bombarding the Dardanelles. In March a huge Atlantic liner carried the general, who while on board bad early news of the Australians. With an officer of his staff lie paid a visit to their camp, the white tents of which could he seen'on the brown soil from the ship, and he found a game of Jlugliy in progress. After watching one or two scrums and noting the "willingness" of the game generally lie came to the conclusion that the Australians were, very J m rdv indeed, and could take all the knocks likely to be given them.

General Hamilton saw a big day's bombardment of the forts some distance up tliu entrance to tlie Dardanelles. Tlio fire of tin: Queen Elizabeth's guns raised what appeared in the distance to be a sandstorm, which, after a number of rounds bad been lived, .simply obliterated tin. objective. (ireat clouds of dust and debris were flung into the air. Looking through Held glasses twelve or "fifteen miles away, it was not possible to tell the further effect of the shells, weighing nearly a ton. Aviators were char*, ed with that duty. When this immense battle cruiser came into closer action she was hit by. field guns which could not be located amongst the hills. The high angle of lire caused a projectile lo full on her decks, but it was like shooting at a box with peas. Though the shells might burst, "they did little damage, anil not a man was injured. On tin's day alio fired 170 minds.' It was probably to this island that General Jiirdwood went on a warship on the davs he was absent from Cairo. '

This little community, isolated from the rest of the army, bas not ben worrying much. The engineers are building' a jetty out into the deeper water. Transports are continually arriving with supplies. Warships are now no unusual sight in these usually unf>c(|uonted wafers. The arrival of French troops, llmiisfh their stay was not long, gave a touch, of interest. One chief dilliculty is the water supply. It is not really bud, but it is iiisiidicient. Nevertheless, the island reirnins so far fhe central noint of interest in the operations.