DYING FOR A REST.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 September 1915, Page 8

DYING FOR A REST.

"MOST DAMNABLE WARFARE!* Writing from the front to friends in Chi'istchurch, Sergeant H. McD. Vincent, says: "I have been well surfeited witV excitement, and am dying for a restjust a chance to crawl away somewhere and sleep, away from the continual noise of the fighting. Candidly, I am fearfully tired. [ have only slept three hours during the last twenty-four, and that is somewhat of an average. lam putting in eight days at a post where the Turks' trenches are at the most twelve, yards away. All night, and most of the' day, both sides throw bombs at one another -•the most damuabe method of warfare the devil ever invented, ss the bomb.? have great bursting power, throwing railway slsepers high in the air. I susv pose you wonder how on earth liumu nature can stand it. Weil, in the first place, as the thrower can't expose himself even for an instant, he naturally doesn't see his target, so thai ali the bombs don't land in the trench. Again, a second generally elapses beioM the bomb explodes, so that, if you see the bomb, it gives you a chance". It there is no room to run, the mathod 9.dopt«d is i 0 throw a coat on the bomb (which has upward bursting effect), thrjv. vourself Hat, and take your chance. <h>i of our fellows on ono occasion fathered a bomb in this way. As he kj with his noise iu>li in the air, another grenade lobbed over and fell between his legs. I don't know what his thought wer>:, hut lie Biua-i have done some deep thinking as he waited his turn for cternitv. We!?, when they picked up the bomb, which by a miracle had failed to oxniod;", the man ■had fainted. At the present time there ia a mar. who wander.-, I'wmt the beach. He i s q«:t e a hfirvuleas individual, who spends his time trying to lob stones into a hole. When *Ue"succeeds he laughs childishly. Hu was ft man who was detailed to'throw bombs. He was good at the business, and very keen. It was noticed, however, that lie began to throw bombs whenever he could lay hands on them, and, of course, the supply has its limitations. The climax came when he threw the company's rations of tinned bully beef, tin after tin, into the Turkish trenches. The strain had proved too much."