Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his family January 1915 - May 1915 - Part 12

& so I got a terrible cold which really
troubled me more than the wound
I think. And wasn't I lucky compared
to hundreds & hundreds of these poor
fellows here some of whom (fortunately
few) are blind & dumb or crippled
for life. Surely your prayers were
with me darling I hope I shall
receive a letter from you soon to    
let me know how you are &
how my wee pet loves are faring
It is lovely to hear about these
two wee rogues & their ways
Now Goodbye my love & God
be with you all
Your own husband
Didda Donny
 

Maadi
Egypt
13/5/15
My dearest Katie
Here I am again. I am glad to
tell you the wound in my foot has quite
healed over just a dry Scab on each side
It is just a wee bit little stiff to walk
with on & a wee bit sore little painful if the going is
rough but otherwise I am perfectly
well & quite fit to go back which I hope
to do in two or three days time. I
am still suffering from Bronchitis
which makes me speak quite horsely
but this also will soon be right again
now. They have sent me out here to
a beautiful home with some Scotch
people named Crawford. The reason of
course being that while I am practically
perfectly well they reckon I am not
yet quite strong enough to stand
fatigue & they need the Beds at the
Hospital for all the new cases that
are coming in. I wonder what
people in Australia thought of
that dreadful slaughter. But the men
were just splendid they seemed to
think no more of it than a football
 

match & the wounded are were so cheerful
& are all ^now so anxious to get back. I am
very proud of my seventh Boys but all
were alike & I saw none hold
back
The Crawfords like dozens of the
other English people here have offered to take
in patients who like myself are recovering
from wounds or sickness. They are very
nice & kind indeed. They have a
wee laddie called Ian. He is a dear
little chap but very small for his age.
I think our laddie would be quite
as big as he is. Then they have a
girlie about 8. She goes to School
I think her name is Ailsa. So they
are Scotch enough. The Daddy's name
is John & the lady's name is Jean &
they all come from Ayrshire. They seem
a very happy couple & seem very
comfortably off but I don't know yet what
he does. They have a very nice garden
All the Light Horse regiments which have
been camped here are being sent to the
front leaving their horses behind. So there
 

is evidently urgent need for men to go to
the front or this would not be done. I saw
some of my boys yesterday who had just
come back. He tells me that Colonel
Gartside who was 2nd in Command to
Colonel Bolton of the 8^th Battalion has been
given command of the 7^th Battalion. I suppose
they though Rupert Henderson though
he was so cool & brave on Sunday
was too young for the responsibility.
He told me that our Brigade under
Colonel McCay & some New Zealanders
had been withdrawn from the Spot
where we landed & sent down to the
Southern end of the peninsula where
the British line was held up & that
when they arrived there they delivered
a very fine bayonet charge & took this
village of Krithia driving out the
Turks but that many of them went
down just like Sunday before their
machine guns of which the Turks seem
to have dozens. He told me that he
had heard that Major Henry Bennett who you
will remember had been killed - shot dead in
this charge but he was not certain
 

& I am not going to believe it until confirmed
as the report of my death was spread all over
the place after I was hit. I know Henry ^Bennett was
shot through the palm of his hand on this Sunday
but after coming to the Ship & having it
dressed he returned to his regiment
I have heard rumors that Col. McNichol
was killed too but this also I am not
inclined to believe. Well now my darling
Katie I dont think there is much more
that I can write about except to tell
you that you are always in my thoughts
you & our two sweet wee bairnies.
God be with you all & keep &
protect you always. There will be
much dreadful fighting before we capture
Constantinople but it must be done &
we can only trust in God who has
been our friend so far So be my own
dear sweet Sunshine girl still. &
keep a smiling face & cheerful heart.
God bless you dearest wife. Give my love
to Nana & Dear & keep some for your own
dear self & millions of Kisses for you and the dear
wee pets. I am longing to get a letter telling me
how you are getting on. Goodbye now darling
from your own Didda Donny
 

"The Craig"
Maadi
Monday
17/5/15
My dearest Katie,
Here I am stuck here still
I am not sure when I will be
able to get away. I went out yesterday
to the Camp at Zeitoun. There are
about 15 of my boys there waiting to
go back including Ken Walker. He was
on guard when I got there. He is quite well
again. I had to walk about 1½ miles from the
tram to the camp & back the same distance
back. It quite knocked me up & my foot
swelled up a bit so it convinced me that
I was not as strong as I felt. I was
telling Capt Stewart ^5^th Batln whom I, saw at
Heliopolis about being so weak & he
told me that I was much worse with
Bronchitis at the Hospital than they let me
know at the time & they were surprised that
I got round again so quickly. So you see
Providence was on our side again. It would
be bad luck to dodge the Bullets or nearly dodge
them & snuff out with Bronchitis or pneumonia
which the Dr was afraid would develop. However
I am practically all right now & the people ^Mr & Mrs Crawford here are
wonderfully kind. You must write to Mrs Crawford
 

2
& thank her. I showed her your picture & she thinks
you look lovely. She gave me a native bracelet
from the Soudan which the nigs there make
out of Giraffes tails for their wifes. It is for the
wee [[Dhusach]]. There has been another big
battle on the Peninsula. They tell me there is
hardly any left of the poor old 7^th Battalion
now and of all the officers only Lieut Grills
is now fit for service all the other officers
being killed or wounded. Most of them
^who are ^wounded are getting on well. I heard that Rupert
Henderson was killed. I hope this is not
true. It would be dreadful for his people
if both boys have been killed for as I told
you in my last letter poor Allan died on his
way here on the ship & was buried at sea.
as did also Lieut Chapman and Lieut Darcy.
I hear Capt Hunter was killed also
on Saturday week last with many others but
that the Boys behaved with extraordinary
bravery & that the 5^th & the 7^th were both mentioned
in despatches. Colonel Gartside from the
8^th Battalion was put in charge of the 7^th Batln
I suppose they thought Rupert too young &
I hear now that Gartside was also killed. I
wonder what people are saying in Australia
 

3
now. It must be worse there than it is here
on account of the suspense. I am afraid it
will be months & months before people will know

if ever they do the fate of some of their relatives
for in that dense scrub a man might be
for ever undiscovered & particular as they took
the Victorians from the place where we fought on
the Sunday & transferred them down to the South
of the Peninsula. I hear the Regular Soldiers
were astonished at the reckless daring of
our men & have nicknamed them "The
white Ghurkas," but we hear all sorts
of strange stories & wonder if they are true.
One is that after the ^second big fight the whole Victorian
Brigade of 4000 men could only muster
200 men fit for service & that the Brigadier
& all his staff were wounded though fortunately
none were killed.  i hear that Capt Finlayson
was dangerously wounded. I hope this is not
correct. It would be sad for poor Mrs Finlayson
if he died. A great many of our Sergeants have
been promoted. Tell Geordie that Jack West
was made an officer but whether he is alive or
dead I cannot say at present Sergt Major
Fraser of the Essendon Rifles was made an officer
 

but has now been wounded I hear. It was
very bad luck for Ken Walker that he was
wounded or he would have had his
commission by now but on the other hand
had he received it he would probably have
been dead killed or wounded on Saturday week
for I believe that the fire was awful. The
Germans held a village & had machine
guns in every other house almost  
& simply poured lead at them. But  
all this is just what I hear from the
wounded men. Very few of them are now
coming here. Crowds of them including Lieuts
Scanlan Swift & Derram have been sent
on to Malta as all the hospitals here are full
& at Alexandria is as well while Lieut Denehy
& many others has gone right on to England.
Quite a lot have died owing to neglect on the voyage
from the Dardanelles to Alexandria. The ships were
crowded out with wounded & there were not nearly
enough Doctors & in many case no nurses at
all. Here again I was very very fortunate as I
was put on the Hospital ship & not in a Transport
I believe Major Blezard would have certainly died had
he been put on a Transport as poor Allan Henderson was
 

Many of the nurses at Heliopolis are quite worn out
Sister Knox who was so good to me when I was
there has contracted Blood poisoning & is in a very
bad way. She was good to me. In fact all the
Australian nurses are wonderfully good. Sister O'Dwyer
who was the night nurse also was wonderfully good
She was like a ghost the quiet way she used
to skim about. When I was worst I used to
look up & find her bending over me in the night
listening to my breathing & I never once heard her
come into the room. Well Kitty my darling
old sweetheart I think this is just about all
the news so far. I have not had a letter
from you since I left Egypt on the 3^rd April
& only the one from Belle which reached me
at Lemnos. Goodness knows when I will get
another & it is very lonesome without them. Fortunately
Mr Robert Were said "All well" so I feel
contented that you are all right. I hope you are
carrying out Belle's promise to be fat & healthy
when I am coming back. It is a mercy you
had the operation over before the fighting took place or
it would have been hard on you. I have learnt that
Mr Crawford is the Inspector of the National Bank
of Egypt here so that is how he has to travel all