V. C.'S.

Taranaki Daily News, 30 November 1915, Page 6

V. C.'S.

HOW THEY WERE WON. • (From Captain C. E. W. Bean, Australian Press Representative.) Gaba Tope, Nov. 1. The following are the details of the deeds for which Victoria Crosses were given to Australians during the battles of August in Gallipoli:— CAPTAIN SHOUT, Ist BATTALION. After nearly tlfree complete days' fighting in the Lone Pine trendies, during the longest and fiercest hand-to-hand struggle which yet occurred in the peninsula, the Turks still held a big communicaTion trench, winding almost directly into the heart of this maze of trenches. This trench led almost directly to a point which was at first chosen for headquarters, and while Brigadier Sinythe was standing outside his office the' Turks had eome up the trench, marching calmly three abreast round the last elbow into full view of some who were standing with the headquarters party. Only a low barricade, breast high, separated them. Lieutenant Howell-Price, now commanding the 3rd Battalion, shot two with his revolver. The Ist Battalion, coming in shortly after to relieve part of the garrison, Captain Sass, of that Battalion, decided it was worth while to see how much of this sap could be captured. Accordingly he called for three men to follow him, carrying no rifles, but only sandbags, and started. His method was for himself to run foi..ard to the next bend in the trench, fire round it fiercely whether the Turks were there or not. The men placed their sandbags in front of him, making a low parapet. Then he ran on to the next bend, repeating the process. He shot about twelve Turks, and won about 20 yards of trench before stopping.

Early that afternoon Captain Shout came along and joined his friend. They had a talk and decided they could go further. They started tog-ether, Captain Sass with a rifle and 'Captain Shout with bonibs. Shout had a good look round to see the position, and then pushed the barricade. Down went the forward two abreast, Sass shooting and Shout bombing. As Shout's bombs fell those following could hear the rustle of accoutrements, scrambling, and cries round the next corner. They finally reached a point where they decided it was suitable to build the last barricade. Captain Shout, who all the time was laughing, joikng, and cheering the men immensely by his example, resolved to make a big throw before the final dash, and tried to light three bombs at once so that they might be quickly thrown and the Turks prevented from hindering the (building of the barricade. He ignited all three and threw one. Then either the second or third burst as it was leaving his hand, and shattered one hand and most of the other, destroyed one eye, laid open his cheek, and scorched his breast and one leg. Captain Shout nevertheless remained conscious, talked cheerfully, drank tea, and sent a message to his wife. Since the day of his arrival he has been the heart and soul of his section. In the firing line his invincible buoyancy and cheerfulness were a great help to the men. LANCE-CORPORAL KEYSER. Lance-Corporal Keyser, of the Ist Battalion, obtained the V.C. chiefly for hia action in the south-eastern corner of Lone Pine, where the situation was so difficult that .the action at the outer trenches had to be abandoned —these have not since been held by ourselves or the Turks—and in superintending the retirement during which gallant Colonel Scobie was hilled. Lance-Corporal Keyser was one of the best bomb-throw-ers in the army corps. During these fierce attacks, he was throwing for fifty hours almost continuously. In one corner he was not only throwing bombs, but was constantly smothering with his coat or with a sandbag the enemy's bonrbs which fell in the trench, and afterwards threw them back. Finally, when the enemy cut down the time of the fuses, he caught several bombs in the air like cricket balls, and threw them back before bursting. The picking up or smothering of bombs, or even patching in the air, was a matter of such common occurrence during the fight at Quinn's Post, Hill 60, and Lone Pine that scores, probably hundreds, of cases went quite unmentioned, even where a man picked up half a dozen in one fight. But several cases stand out above l,he others, and Keyser's is one of these.

HAMILTON, THIRD BATTALION. Private. Hamilton's Cross was also won at Lonesome Pino, about daybreak, when the Turks were beginning to creep up communication trenches to attack captured trenches with bombs. Hamilton climbed up on to the top of the parapet, and law down there in the open overlooking trenches, up which the enemy came, and, making a little position behind sandbags, he told the officer below whenever the Turks were coming up the sap to attack. Several other men were up beside him a portion of the 'time doing the same thing, but Hamilton stayed up there under the open sky entirely unprotected from shrapnel or snipere five or six hours, shooting approaching Turks, and passing down the word of their advance.

LIEUTENANT 'THROSSELL. ""eond-Lieutenant Throssell, of the li Light Horse, won the Cross at Hill ) on August 20, when the Tenth Light _orse was put to charge a parapet four hours before daylight in order to round off the capture of a redoubt which we had not previously been able to complete. Lieutenant Throssell came in the second line in charge of a digging party. He found himself on tj.io extreme right of a captured trench near Captain Fry, who was doing perfectly heroic work holding the elbow of a trench against Turks, in which our men had built up a barricade. The Turks had retired after ' some resistance, but in the first faint daylight they came on again, and were [plainly visible through (he scrub throwting bombs from both si'des of the trench. Throssell and Fry were fairly caught in the middle of putting up an overhead cover against bombs. Fry was picking up and throwing back the Turkish .bombs. One rolled in and the men shouted "Leave it, sir." Fry did not heed them, but picked up the bomb, which killed liim. From this time, Throssel, a young second-lieutenant promoted from the ranks, was left to continue the work of holding the trench end, while his men built a barricade. Twice they had to retire and build a fresh barricade a few yards further back. Lieutenant Throssel held the end of the trench practically by himself, killing siv or seven Turks with a rifle. He was hit at two oViock by a bulletin the shoulder, but took no notice of the wound. About four he was hit again through the neck, but went on fighting till eight, when ordered by Captain Kidd to leave the trtDC&PA *