AWM41 1065 - [Nurses Narratives] Sister Louise E Young - Part 1

Butler  Colln.
AWM 41 6/10
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AWM 41
AUSTRALIAN ARCHIVES
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OPEN
SISTER L.E. YOUNG.
A.W.M 
LIBRARY
CLASSⁿ N^o 373.2
[1065] 

Lemnos Sr L.E. Young 25/29
10^th August - wounded arrived
tents erected hurriedly Corps mostly
patients prepared for ops straight
away. Washed one of bed pans,
nothing else available
water scarce, no sanitary
arrangements whatsoever.
Orderlies engaged most of the
time in carting water, etc, had
no time to help in wards.
Sisters tore up their aprons
and underskirts to wash
patients with. Sisters used 
a frying pan to wash
thermometers in, but it
disappeared so they were
reduced to using a drinking 
mug. Sisters, like patients,
slept on the ground until
later on mattresses arrived.
Nursing patients  on this 
ground very difficult.
For instance enemas ordered
no screens, orderlies did
not know how to give them.
so sisters went straight
ahead. Medical officers
nearly all went down
ill - not so sisters [*126 27 12  14*]
cold however in winter,
but tents always blowing
down. The original huts
had been commandeered by 
the Canadians who refused
to go into tents, so Aussies
had to go on erecting tents.

Lemnos Sr L.E. Young 25/29
10^th August - wounded arrived
tents erected hurriedly, Corps mostly
patients prepared for ops straight
away. Washed one of bed pans,
nothing else available.
Water scarce, no sanitary
arrangements whatsoever.
Orderlies engaged most of the
time in carting water, etc, had
no time to help in wards.
Sisters tore up their aprons
and underskirts to wash
patients with. Sisters used 
a frying pan to wash
thermometers in, but it

The Official War Historian of the Commonwealth 
Government (Dr C. E. W. Bean), after his study of 
the collection of private war records preserved in the Australian 
War Memorial Library, wrote: 
"The private diaries in this collection furnish some of its most  
valuable historical records, but, like all private memoirs which were  
not compiled with any historical purpose, they should not be  
regarded as first-hand evidence except where it is certain that they  
are so. The diarist is almost always sincere in his desire to record  
accurately, but he is subject to no obligation or inducement to  
indicate whether he is recording his own observations or incidents  
told him by friends or heard at third or fourth hand at the mess-table.  
Thus, in some of the diaries in this collection, scenes described with  
vivid detail, and without any warning that they are told at second  
or third hand, have been found to be completely inaccurate in  
important details. A certain number also have been written up 
or revised long after the events, though doubtless usually from notes  
made at the time. In most cases the student must rely on his  
experience and on internal evidence to guide him in judging what is  
and what is not likely to be historically accurate".

XI
Hand drawn diagram see original 
Experiences of
Sister. L. E. Young A.A.N.S.
with No 3 A G Hal Lemnos
Original letter & one two _^typed copies

Hutmend  Remarks
Privileged & Confidential
Na Vale, Cooper Street, Strathfield
19.7.18
To
Lieut. Col. A.G. Butler
Dear Sir,

It is a long time since The Lemnos
days & much has happened since then. Now &
again we would write up a little in our diaries
also I am having some photographs copied, &
hope they may be useful. On Thursday 5^th
Aug. 1915 we arrived in Mudros Harbour, most of feeling
very sick after our Cholera inoculation, & glad
to really be _xnear our objective, courage, curiosity &
energy very high, disappointment met us.
Col. Fiaschi. O.C; came on board, & was beseiged,
but nothing was ready, no equipment, no tents,
food very scarce, our hospital equipment had
gone astray although we did not know about it
at that time. On the 7^th we were transhipped to
the Simla (a dirty ship) it was a supply boat
at that time, & the hospital ship was rushed
up to Gallipoli; taking six of our staff as well
for emergencies. On Aug 8^th half our staff was
taken off in the evening amidst very great excitement; 
and on the 9^th Aug. the rest of us
went. When we landed. Matron Grace Wilson & 

ii
and Col. Fiaschi with Corp. Monks met us. About
half an hour later the Col. had with infinite trouble
persuaded us to form fours quite creditably &
Corp. Monks leading playing the bagpipes to
which we marched, & then  the Matron & Col.
& over fifty sisters marching, amidst the heat
dust flies & rough land about two miles to our
hospital site. It consisted of three rows of bell
tents, very badly pitched on a slope going down to
the harbour, These 

were our sisters' line, a truly
beautiful spot as far as scenery goes. Then came
the luggage, while we were photographed, & we were
told to sort it out, get & orderly (three were
detailed off for this duty), to take it to one of the
bell tents, which you shared with your friend
get into working uniform & report, as many
rumours said 800 wounded were expected
any time, & we had no equipment. The
orderlies were putting up the marquees for
our future wards (of which they knew next to
nothing) just the tops, no time for the sides
etc, as for trenching we knew nothing about
it in thes early days. This happened on the 10^th
Aug. The patients arriving all right, & here you
have the picture of them on The ground with a
tarpaulin & blanket under them, another over
them not a stitch of clothing on them after cutting
off their gore soaked & dirty uniform & washing
them preparing for the theatre, which we did
in bed pans they being the only vessels holding water

iii
to be procured or borrowed at that time, no forks, spoons
or plates etc for feeding these men most of the Sisters
fortunately had a duplicate of these, half of which
we handed into our own mess & the others we took
to our wards, it was the same with our surgical
instruments. But we had to carry them round
with us, otherwise they were pinched. I myself
nursed three trephining cases operated on by
Col. MacCormick while on the ground & they
all healed by first intention. After a few days
mattresses were forthcoming. We never asked
questions, it was not polite, & so our very sick were
a little more comfortable. Of course there was no sewage
in those days & water very scarce what little we got was
all carted from long distances, & our orderlies we found
were practically attending most of the time to this outside
work, or to help put up another marquee roof. The
Sisters some of them tore up there aprons & underskirts
to get something to wash our patients with, as for
ourselves, we had a frying-pan for three days, which
suddenly disappeared, commandeered no doubt
by the officers' batmen & them we were reduced to an

enamel drinking mug. The harbour we were not

allowed to bath in, as all waste material from hospital 
& the big naval base, made it unhealthy.
So of course baths or bathing was out of the question,
& the insects, dust & heat was terrific, at this time I
also slept on the ground for a week then we had

mattresses & finally beds six weeks later, some of

the sisters had there own own beds, (so did I afterwards) & so 
were better off. My hair use to full of burrs also my
clothes, so in the end I cut my hair, some other doing
likewise, this saved a lot of trouble, but centipedes etc.
were very bad. Nursing men on the floor is back back breaking

work, & they were packed so tightly, enemas were ordered,
we had no screens & the orderlies did not know how to give
them. So there was nothing for it, but to go straight ahead.
In the meantime our own mess was in a terrible state
the travelling kitchens would burn on windy days & we
had tea like dish water & sat on the ground to eat our food
sometimes not waiting for knives or forks to be washed 

iv
up; just carrying on after the other, biscuits & jam, the dirty
coloured greek bread giving us dysentery, which soon ran
right through the island. The naval men at this time
were very good to us & a sack a newly baked bread from one
war ship or another would arrive every now & then, but
by that time we were always hungry or thirsty, it did not
go very far. These kindness helped to keep up our spirit 

more than anything else, as our own medical officers
were so neglectful, they having their smoke & recreation
tent up, while we did not even have a bath tent, much
less a recreation tent. At the Canadian hospital
which came after us, their Matron & one sister died
within the week & their O.C was carried off in a
stretcher. Then we began a sick sisters ward & the
O.C. of the whole military world of The Island
said, all sick sisters were to come to No. 3. So soon
we had Canadian & English sisters, also a Red
Cross lady sick there. With dysentry spreading
rapidly, & no proper food for the patients & feeling off
colour ourselves, we had our work cut out. Nearly
every one of our Medical officers went down &
most of them went to Egypt or England for the
trip & six of our Sisters. By this time we were
becoming more civilised. Our equipment had
arrived, water laid on, proper sewerage established
& things were working more smoothly throughout
& more we were all able to devote a little time
to the outside of our tents & wards & now competition
set in to whose would be the nicest. (I am sending
you the photographs of the beginning of the hospital
& the finished product as it stood before evacuation
both of the Sisters & as well as the hospital lines.
Our greatest trouble I think as winter came on
was The hot water, we only had primus stoves
& bell tents to use them in, we were always
having accidents. Then the bell tent would sit
down suddenly in the middle of the night. I was
on night all the Xmas time & hardly a night or
day did not pass That a tent did not collapse
somewhere, there was no hold in the ground & the 

v
winds were terrific. I don't think I shall ever get over my
dread of wind again, night after night, every bit of canvas
creaking, shaking & straining & your mind always
wondering which would collapse next. Then all the
water became frozen, so that we took a hot water
bag to bed to have it to wash in in the morning, &
we couldn't take any exercise, as the  roads were 
practically unwalkable. One day I woke
up with my fellow nurse to find ourselves
soaked through bed etc, & we had to get up &
go to another tent & so try to sleep again, it being
day time & we were on night duty. Later on we
had our huts erected they were not long finished
before we left the Island. Our original
huts has been commandeered by the second
Canadian hospital which arrived & they
refused to go into tents, hence we had to go in
putting up with tents although the longest
white women there. The boys patients & orderlies
gradually built little mud ovens that a dixie
could sit in nicely outside each ward & so we
were often able to give the patients extras with
the help of the Red Cross goods, which were
the greatest boon to us & the hospital in those
early trying days, of course I daresay there
was waste too, but one only arrives at the
big things by one's mistakes. When our huts were
first put up seven of us were packed into one hut
& as we hadn't escaped the chats, having caught
them from the patients our troubles were seemingly 
only beginning. Three months there & then six 
miles inland on donkeys to Therma where we
had our first glorious bath from hot springs
It was good. The scenery rugged as we passed
between the mountains & came upon primitive 
Greek villages dotted here & there like an

vi
oasis in the desert. As we waited for the evacuation
who will attempt to describe our feelings. Most of
us had brothers or relations there, & then the glorious
news of no casualties practically. We were
allowed as we gradually emptied out, to go in
batches to Castro the capital, on the other side of
the Island. It took a whole day & was worth
seeing. Of course when Sarpi camp
was established, it helped matters a great
deal, their  sports, concerts etc. made a break
which was very welcome & they also loved
coming over to the hospital & seeing over
it etc & helping us all to have a fairly
Merry Xmas 1915. When Col. Featherton
had invited us. Things made a decided change
for the better as far as the Sisters were concerned
we had a recreation tent up in no time
also a bath tent & then we quite happy as
far as one can be on active service. Also
the day Lord Kitchener visited us &
shook hands with one of the sisters
before she was aware of the honour bestowed
on her, & was away again. Our
Matron was very good to us in every way,
doing her best in all our interests & I
believe had a very up hill task of it,
but she generally managed to get
there in the end.
Yours sincerely 
Louise E. Young
A.A.N.S.

P.S. The hospital washing was one of our greatest
trials & we lost a great deal of good bed linen
waiting for the Greeks to do it, finally we
established, our own laundry, the same
trouble we had with our own private
washing for some mths & then we did
the most if it ourselves when off duty.
L.E.Y.
I only hope some of this material may prove
useful.