THE DARDANELLES.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 July 1915, Page 6

THE DARDANELLES.

NEW ZEALANDERS' BRAVERY

some STinnixu accucnts. (By Malcolm floss. Ofiieial War Correspondent with tin' X.Z. forces, | Iky 24. Kvery account (lr.it I'cnu-s to li!i=:-l from tin l I'eninsula of Callipoli incroa.-K-s one's admiration of the splendid bravery and n'jjhtinj; quality of our troops. Already they have liad ■ L'nnit variety »f fighting. The landim; on an open beach in liie face of shrqm.-l. machine gun, and rifle liro hei;an a. glorious day's work. Since tin a they liave had .in}; in th« open, entrenching, outpiftt work, jiiitrol work and bayonet chargesand, through it all, they lmvo been absolutely sell-supporting. Tlii'y have lint simplv 'moved into trenches faeed with barbed wire entanglements already built for them. They have had to ■! i their own digg'ing-in, except when they drove, the Tio'ks out of their trenelies at the point of (he bayonet. And ih.'.v lmvo done nil this on new ground and or. "round of the most difficult description to I'mlii ovir. A Herman ollicer of (he better class who was taken prisoner nud who is now here is aniaa'd at the lightItiir qualities of the Australian and X.-w Zealand troops. Tie says (he Hernia? officers cannot get over 't. They rega-d it as a miracle that si Sanding should have been successfully mad" in the face of such tremendous (aids. Indeed, they thought the phco to be absolutely im pregnable. Xo greater tribute than Hi s to the valor of our troops could be obtained. From other sources i learn that 0:1 several occasions wounded men sent out of the firinji line found (heir way buck into it and had once more to i.c suit back, so keen were they for fighting, indeed, that happened often. This frp'i'r:t was in accordance with the Maori motto of one regiment: "Ake. Ake. kia kaha" ("We wi!i light on for ever and ever'), and the French motto of another. "Pour Devoir," which ?iiinc'of ov'r men freely translate into "Lot Viii all coiue." The Australians went in at fast shout; ing the name of their Native land: but later when they were driving the Tii'k'i out of their trenches the'r batlo-cry wa.; '•fnishi"! an Arabic word much used in Cairo to inferiors when von want them to l>a aivay. The Australian translates it, "Get out'' and "get out" it was fo~ the Turks and tln\ Hermans on those first days of bard And so. from, latest news, it is still.

THE MASTERY IN THE DARDANELLES. The.slmg.'tlc for, mastery in the Dardanelles is by no means an easy. one., and it may take some time yet; but, of the ultimate victo.ry_pX.piir anris there, no one except the enemy l;as any doubts and even the enemy is iiegiuniug to nil.) | his eyes in A'Til an who! has jusiVoiiw Kh»k fr<otn important wor'q there is ijnite optimistic, lie says an-: other six weeks will see'the back of the, Turkish resistance .broken. Many of the wounded New- Zealand-; ers are kern to get back into the light.] Colonel' Hall tells hne that several have! been to the ciimn alreadv, and tliev have' absolutely cried' when 'told that t'hev; could not fro back yet. The heroism andj f-hce'dulne.s.oC.even the badly .wounded: ■simply'.astonish .one. ■• > WOUNDED NEW ZEALAXBEKS.. : !

-: It seems .strange indeed to see Xevv Zealanders.' walking about the streets' of Cairo .with:bandaged hands and heads,, and with arms in splints. Occasionally; even at this early stage of the lighting,! you may see a,man walking about with; only one arnyleft, 'Such a one is Jack; frw'in, sou of "t'he 'Rev. Mr. Irwin, of; Cliristeljurch. die yras hit by an exj plosive bullet arid: walked down to the! iiea/lt 'with 'his tleft hand almost' revered 'from t'lp aitii'. He' c'fliire- baclc to -Alexandria on the troopship he had gone up in. The doctors decided to amputate immediately. To-day he was walking about! the oft C,a]r<£,with jjlie bandages: off Imt wwffi»g ; i , t<)jJ4>'i'.:it'oother go atj the Turks. He, however, will do in} fighting, but will' return to Xew Zealand!. Hi's main complaint is that be now lias* to keep all his 'lirorrey in the right-hanil pocket! ■' !■' | ' Xorris, an'old Christ's' College' hay, was killed in Hits' trench, beside Jrwim The latter Was smoking a cigarette and chatting with his friend three'or 'our yards ivwaSV •■ After! lighting- the .cigarette .he said; soiiiet-lrin'R '.to - Xorns and roccivett no reply. AVheroupon an t.Australiaji next to Irwin, said, "If''yaii're;tttlk-hig:to. your mate you'll get'.'no'answer:, he vva;s tliot dead; ;i few minil'teiago!','-: '-.'•'

MLRAOULOUS • ESCAPES. On the other hand there are many instances of the most miraculous escapes. Private. R. Ileaton Livingstone, an old Christ's College boy, got a bullet through his cap. It drilled a neat hole through the centre of the badge and <cnme out ■at the top, without touching his head. Private Maxwell had the 'haft of his entrenching tool, which be was carrying in his belt, pierced by a bullet. The iron collar at the top of the haft was hit by I another bullet. This bullet would ceri tainly have gone through his hip had the haft not been there. Private Cecil Vork, late of the Lyttelton Times, whose chief fame in his regiment \vas the very fat diary he used to keep, also had a remarkably narrow escape. The much-ridiculed stopped a Turkish bullet when it was in York's breast pocket right ovee his heart! That bullet would certainly have finished him even had the dairy been but a thin one. York is rather afraid that it has destroyed some of his notes. Another incident related by Lanee-Corporal Xoel Ross. On the Monday afternoon a Turkish shell l>urst over three of them while they were making their tea. The bullets spluttered up the ashes of the (ire and raised a dust all round and in between them. Unit no one was hit. "After the shell burst," said the Laiu-e-Corporal, "we lay down flat, in the trench. That was of course a silly thing to do because we were giving the shrapnel a larger target. A man standing up is only two feet wide, from the point of view of bursting shrapnel, but lying down he, is 6 by 2. However, we soon returned to the fire and got our tea."

EXPERTEXCES OF THE WOUNDED. Going down in the train to the Xew Zealand camp at Zcitoun on the day after my arrival, I fell in with two of the Xew Zealand wounded —Private W. H. [Cameron (10th North Otago) and Pte. J. Petrie. (Taranaki Company, Wellington Infantry Xegiment.) Ikith had got bullet wounds, but were already able to get about, and were poing to the camp to draw sonic pay. From them I gathered that the Otago men, who had lost so heavily, had been enfiladed when occupying a Turkish trench. They had to 'lie at a certain point at 7.30, 'but for some reason—probably owing to the diflienlt nature of the ground—they were an hour and a half late. In the meantime tlie Australians, who were due at the same time, bad a*jvcd and gone on. Cameron was on the Monday morning. He got a. bullet through the shoulder. The Taranaki man was so badly hit that he could not walk, and the stretcher-bearersltook him out. Both men praised the work of the stretoiier bearers. Tt was magnificent. At'-about 4 o'clock -on- the Tuesday, aftcrijoon the '■" "'■• •• bavonet, ehan'e. in

were, killed and wounded. Tlii'.V occupied I il Turkish trench, but tin: enemy in nnothcr part lnul the range (if it, ami poured in a hot. rille tire. The Turkisii; \ snipers picked nil' a number of the oi'lieels mid men, am.' also fired on tlie lie:!; Cro-;s worker-; whenever they got the o'jH.i.rtiinity. Lieutenant t'owan. a. school (earlier. was one of the first Otago ollicers killed. Vininjr Nisbet, a son of llui late Kev. Dr. Nisbet. of -Dunedin, war! wounded three times. The bravery il-.; played (ii every hand was remarkable; Indeed, Mime who went in with the bayonet were almost too brave. The Tur.r> jsb positions and some 'Turkish tents in the locality where the Otago men found tiioui-olve-, were very cleverly ■.oiicoalod wit!'. M'eeii brushwood, and so the aeroplanes had failed to loeafe them. ACe;> man eli'icer ju an Australian iiiiifonn had jfot into one of the New Zealand trenche-, and -was. giving orders in Engli.-ii to mislead our men. As soon as he was discovered he was shot by an Otago officer, and after that our men were very careful as to whom tliev took orders from. -The -tinker,"' said one of the a. men, "was very good. I had a piece of bae.m which I 'could cooic very easily on two or three occasions. We siept in dugouts in the side of the bill. Y\'e were told at starting that we would have a. hard time for two or three days, and would have to rough it: some, knew pretty well what was ahead or ns. The ■oi'licci-s fare,! just the same as the men. Even the, head-quarter.; staff had to sleep in a dugout at the bon.h." While (>::•' of thi-ic men was being put on the ho-pUal

tv.v, imliaii soldiers and two Indian o'li- ! rcrs hit with spent bullets; When the '.l'loou Elizabeth opened lire with her lain guns (lie vibration was tremendous, and ships over a ipiarter of a mile away '.vore shaken from stem to stern. The Turks were \erv brave. When tlie New /calenders were sterming the heights thev could often see nothing but the lla--i of the Turkish rille.s in the brushwood, but at other .times the I'urks came right up to the .New Zealand and Australian treaehe.: aad threw band granules. A striking incident of the pluck of our men was given by !'te. Cameron. One man —Mitchell, he thought Ids name was—wa, wounded by a Turkish grenade, and bad to ; have-his .aaui'i taken off on the hospital'ship. Aii'huir after the operation be was up on deck smoking a cigar- ; ctte. The doctor remonstrated with him, lr.it be continued to walk about as usual.. His lighting davs are. of eour.se, over, 1 and he is going back to New Zealand. "Ily-Jcvc." added the '•Tommy," "that fellow is a .marvel!" Some of the Indian troops did good work currying ammunition, water, and biscuits. The engineers made, a.load right up to the top of the' 1.r.-t hill. The stretcher-bearers worked (ill they dropped.

Till' CAMP AT ZI ETUI'N. { C,n arrival.at tlie. New Zealand camp,! 1 found it almost deserted. The Maons ; i'.iui left for -.- —, and one may expect, si on to bear of them in the tiring line,. Their physique and their war-dances'haVci impressed everyone. Even the Mounted; liuaiitry have gone away as "foot-slog-! gers," leaving-their liorses iliebind. XeW;,j lias just come through that three of, tiled.-- otlivej's.tAi'cklaml men) have been•killed. Their 1 horses are idle in the Zictoim Canip,aud long lines of. sun sho.l-i tens are being built for their protcct'on now the summer is here. 1 found' Major C. T. I tall;(since promoted colonel.) in' charge of. t'he base details here, both Australians and New Zealanders. Kein-, forccujen.t& were .still arriving, and there ncre busy times ahead. There was alsoi an enormous mass of-detail work to doj in connection witl| the wounded who; were .a.nriving, ■ NJriv Zealanders, Ans-j traliaiis, umi" nriti&h were, mixed up iiv the .various batched that landed, and worcseiit into the hospitals without loss .of time (together.. .It was, therefore, tlie■most dillicalt tiling to find' any particn-i lar Xew.Zca lander or Australian. Colonel'■ Hall.had deputed '(Captain Cameron to', make a round of,-Utf hospitals, and .find! out exa.tly wher.e. the New Xealandcrsi were and how they were faring. A chap-! lain was al-o engaged in similar work.' rivo/tims wa-sr-lpst 'A get ting; ajSpeeial rh'os|teU" fo*r the 'w'orttided *Ncw "Zeaiafalcbj This was the Egyptian Military Hospital at font de Kuiial. There the New Zca-j hurl wounded are now being concentrated; as far' as -.'possible, and are- receiving every attention. There iko, of course, many cases that caiinVi. he removed front other hospitals owing to the serious na'r tare of the wound-. I found the Xevf Zealand Hospital in charge of Major lfolme-s The matron was a capable and charming Englishwoman, untiring in her efforts.'Dr. liatchelor was also doing \vork in. connection 'with it, Lis X-ray work hiding specially interesting. He is returning to New Zealand by the. AVil-.lochra.-.Major Holmes has dor-e splendid work.;in this hospital. Tmieed, he has worked -himself to ». standstill and lias , bad to run down to the cooler air of Alexandria, fur three or four days' spell. The New Zealanders are fortunate in having such a good huilding. It is a cool building, and much better appointed than many of the' hurriedly-organised hospitals. (

A .STIKT.IXC STOEY. A pale young soldier in an ill-fitting uniform and dustv boots, his hand bandaged and in a sling, was sitting en a couch in the great rmrl of- 'Sncphcard's Hotel. The corporal, '"ho was sifting beside me, telling me of thoie stirring days of the first attack, rose suduenly, for he had recognised a friend whom he thought to be dead. Such meetings arc rather common nowadays in Cairo. "Crcat Scott!" he cried, "that's P'r-ier!" Tn half a minute I was introduced, and soon I was listi'iiinif to another stirring story from the laittlelield. The wounded man was Corporal A. H. Piper, of the Otago Infantry, and from Oainaru. Tt appears that there were two other Pipers—M, Piper and J. 'Piper—in tlie Xew Zealand Forces. One was killed in action and the other died of wounds, Corporal A. 11. Piper was at first reported missing, bojanse he had got among the Australians, and had 'been fighting with them. It was six davs before lie could rejoin -hist own battalion, and then he found that lie had been reported dead by the sergeant who had buried the other Piper. -Subsequently Corporal Piper came, over to Cairo with J. Piper, who died in the Ksr-el-Any Hospital of a septic wound. When the former went to camp to get some, elothe.s, and gave his name as Corporal Piper, they asked his number, and in reply they said: "Oh, hut you are dead!" The corporal—he was the ono 'who threw back the hand grenade, an incident related elsewhere —however, was aible to prove to them that he was still alive, even t'hough they handed him a letter stamped "Dead." Corporal Piper, in the talk I had -with him said he had been splendidly looked after, and spoke in praise of the selfsaerifici'ng way in ivhich the women of Cairo were -working in the. hospitals. Amongst those was Lady Rosters, who not only cabled to his people, but wrote letters for him to Xew /enlnnd. He also pays a- high tribute to the work of the Xew Zealand Army 'Medical Com- Doctors and ovcrvoim connected with the corps dhl splendid work under lire, The orderlies v ere tlie most tender and solicitous in (heir care of the wounded. Indeed, -aid the conioral. thev might have been women so wnllv did thev deal with ns. In the section in which he was, fighting the did <-plcndid work. a-> did the doctors. One Australian dov-tnr climbed into a flench, and for five hours attended there, under heavy fire, to wounded who could not I be rrnt. out. Later tw-n stretcher-hearers '

a badly-wounded man along the trench oil a waterproof sheet. l!y this lime it was clear moonlight. One of the stret.dicr hearers said: "1 think I must he hit: I'm spitting blood.' lie was hit sure: I'l'.oiiyh, but be stuck to his job and got liis man out of the trench,'which was 1 ton narrow to permit of the taking of il .■•.tretelier into it. Then there was one of the New Zealanders-- a corporal—who all through the day, from 10 a.m. to ii p.m., was under lire haiidnging wounds mid taking water tu the wounded. He was an Otago man. My informant did not know hn name. -I'.ut," lie added; 1- il ever a ni:.n worked that chap did. 7 lie was under heavv (ire nearlv all the time. (Vutbiumg his story. Corporal Piper said: "f uo: nut of (lir Australian rrencbe, „n tiie t-'iidav night, when I was relieved by a. mail from the K.M.L.I. When 1 got into the Australian trench there was neither < dicer nor n.c.o. with them, so I had to take charge. Such was the nature of lie' lighting that many similar places senior |,rivates were in chare-,' of a trcii-li a iiuinired yards king.' TAKI.NT, Cl' A XEW POSITION.

iln the secou I Sunday wr K'l't our main |iiis-iti<m mii the beach'along to the left at ."i.:ill in tin' evening, went r..>u.'i«l to tin' right, an.l up the hiain gully in compii:j«iiv«> :-]irJtiT In take up a new posilii.n oil the extreme It-it. To get to this pi sitioii we hail to climb up' the sides mi a hill -,v:tii (he iiiil .if a rope, and all !,.;< :.:,.,■ 'am v.eiv being siii,:c,'i ;>(. I'hen v.'c '..:-i| ;„ v.a.k a.'nii;.,' a narrow trail; tilt liy (he Kugiuici's just about six leet ih'l nv i.im lop of ll;i' ciili' in (icad ground. \\ 1.. I! »'• -Ml to U;e run „f this little track v.'.' iia.l to .jnmu up on to the side ol' a gradually shr.iiig hill snv;it by machine guiis and heavy rillr lire, amours: which lye.'c U] pemed to '.U' a large number mi' .'ifiipMc oiiil-ls We could see them cxji.m ling as they struck tin- hiil opposite. I.us a ay, ,tt night, it being S o'clock wi.CII lie g,,t on to tin; ridiiv. Colonel Moore was'in charge. We had'to hop up on to the top of this lidgc and run to tin' extreme, left. It was y<i dark thai you i'oiiM not sec six feet in, front, of \oii. Tlic man in front of me uvut over ti dgo of tlit' ,"Ui" !, iust managed tr prll myseir uj> in lime, but uct'o'c 1 could 'get, going again 1 bad lost touch with. file. re-t. Several others had a similar experience. The result was that thoio were numerous hatches of men oniv four or fire strong scattered over the. hillside. 1 hail lost nil idea'of funk by that time, and spent about an hourj trying to link il'p these batches of men to, make one Jiang" line. We eventually .managed to get a single line, and 1 went along to tiie, extreme, left, ami entrenched with some others. At times we were' Within twenty, yards of the Turks. Indeed, so eln.,c were we that 1 way,'able' to throw back one of their bund gren-: ados inti their own trenches. We work■yd all night up till daylight entrenchimy.' Stragglers kept coming' in on our leit, ami early in the toi-cuoon our trench 1 was tou-siiiii.il to hold all the men ive had.: About S o'clock ;iext morning tin; ell-i einy worked rouwi ami bred on usovim the-,ear left and: tile left proper. L'j> till Mien we liad.in tins adventure lost only three killed and one wounded, One man was shot'through tin: hand, and whi.'e: I wJis bandng'mg.it lie was shot through, tlic bead. WiM'mild not get word to the rest of our batiaiion on the ligbt. so; about in o'clock, 1 got out of the trench! and went along to the right. I had to : run a-Tus.-, twelve yards of open ground,; and in doing so l.gof three bullets —onei in the shoulder, one grazing the wvist.i and an explosive bulled., that smashed my rillo and my thumb. I ,)iianager| to.get into a little du'g-oiit, so small and .naih'oiv, that there, was, uot.roijm tor me to band-i age my arm. The Turks lice watehing mo closely., so I'bad to lie there, on. uiy liaek, from 10 in tile, morning fill's sit: night. It. was. the longest day' I. ever; s>poiit. as in addition to the wojimls I hail dv..''eiiti;y., ..During the, afternoon, •limvever,, 1 had tlit nmasjirb nf. I'vitjujssmg .the .niarudlons, fiiy of tiie X-'ayy.' They : wero placing lyddite shells iiUo.;lhc;. c.ii-'< i.'niy|s.-t•■ euelics only..thirty ya'nlft 'i-uTfrol'ifr of me. T was nearly stilled by the! fumes, which-vmelt sometliing like- burn., ing linoleum.! Then word was sent alon" that .wo'wbrp 'brinp; rrinfiirrfii by thfl Arstraliuns. Kvr.ntuallv T got nrit of iny little hole its'niglit fell, am! aftei- craw'l: ing abmg for about ISO yards. J fell over the-cliff amongst a lot of Turks'Vllif had been killed on the first Sunday. .\Vv xvord, they were "bail, tfto! 1 assure, you they were not drawing-room Turk?, bv anv means! I got into the : 'bottom of the gully, which was'mud lip to mv kiiecH ■" 'places, and finally I' reached the first dressing station. There an awfully ni,e young fellow—a 'doctor in the tliird-bri-gade.—drosaed. my wouui)s and gave nip' a, cigarette From there I got to th : e ! tioht station, whore I was well treated. ,1 liail.t-wo mugs of hovril and some, biscuit,' and 1 was jolly nleased to get it, too, us I had had'nothing for 24 hours. At 2 o'clock in the. morning I went over in the naval pinnace to the Oloneester Castle, a transport which had to do dutv as a hospital ship. The stewards of that ship treated us splcnrridly. I filialt'd and two stewards put me to l bed. .Next day one of them took me into the bathroom and washed me. Most of them refused to take money for their trouble, though it must have been rather if gliast. ly business for them. However, before we left we collected CO for them. Wc

landed in Alexandria and I was sent on to hospital here, -where I have been absolutelv treated like, a lord. You can take it from mo that the fellow who 'arouses' about his treatment has never had such good treatment 'before .in his life." "On the second Sundav.'' added Corporal Piper, -we had to retire from what came to be known as 'Dead Man's Oullv.' or 'Sui.ide Cully.' It was crowded with Dead—New Zealanders, Australians, and Turks. On one occasion T had to liarbor under the lee of a dead Turk, and he was a -pretty old corpse, (on. it was o ii the second Sunday in the dark that the Otago Battalion got so badly cut up. Lieutenant Cowan was killed while leading a bayonet charge with nothing but a whistle in his band. General (todley, under fire, was cheering tin on at the start. In one trench mv equipment was burnt with an explosive 'bullet. All I got out of it was a, bottle of hot water. Explosive bullets also started fires in the, bushes. Capt. Fleming, of Dnnedin, who got a hand grenade in the face, was very brave,,and as cool as a encumber. How they got him off the hill I don't know."