AWM41 1011 - [Nurses Narratives] Staff Nurse E N Miller

Conflict:
First World War, 1914–18
Subject:
  • Documents and letters
  • Nurses Narratives
Status:
Open for review
Accession number:
AWM2021.219.69
Difficulty:

Page 1 / 11

Butler A 11 an A
5
23 On Septenber 9th 1717 I emberted at hebbour bound for E9ypt an tenker of th A.R.H.S after a her rough tep arreived lt Durban ot de I was bet by an Audralian J.M.C.A. Ma & ten taken to the ses Drays te whih had bee recomneded by a nglet ofen who had sayd the o fee before it hen haw allars conciduably inthe peas as it was not e thd rate bath would hav been neareth hast of th s hurres I did not hear on grambl th following herg I saw th sfe chargs & tls that could go whe we likes for tekfest and that in world by very to another toke later which wided a well quite comfortably seted by the came canot speek tor highly the pople of an they sames to do thei wost to that bur St a Enjoyable & possibl not ony suter but th he who were palting through I than o e wh tenfortunately steed ofe Me it s se os to at th ndf few week e lo still ther g eable to get Fanghort Howene hat of as harages to fee in the te son of as helping in Huts with afternos ta lor N Ibakes a th ron which Wa takng rook to Bribil Gat Grg & Bombey cales at Kilwar Ba but not accowed to land a ever slow Hhe fairet light the a had shelled a ship from the hanland the night before The across was r hot sumbers of the trime becam ill & fdt the da before arriving in Boube on was porated o for appedicite. we was not accoe to go aolor at Donby Sone Autaba te cam aboad & in the everig i parapppe
in the hastone &f the Mn to Suey let suty our little ndwas spt up som she goin to aboad caus Kana & Bt Said All Briberh hopital to go to Post said Arrived at I was on of ter the 21st Gural Ho o Dc 2d n I shald sa at said not a so to meet in after ahen HP foud a a gharre to the Actors Hom & grom the w take anas to canat to the Ke which in peate we a largs enguidey Work Or Cibrle which could fast confortably hols a bed a wer petitions off with rust thatteng but as it n actin service on never thought about the discong of tho accomosation. The Rebt Torneg I went on du in nacd wad t cale he hat Relaphing fiver, Malars, & Premmoni ll I seem to d wes the prepare patients for ine ginectio I cours that was not all but it seene as though It was. A liker later half the ward was turned in to a enegeal ward. F.S.W. che & th san to sped the ten giveng oeygun & getting the watc read Ever now and again ther would by a khansen & dust as you would t patent bet wouls fell up wtt dust & could could alway deper on it that the how dust there was, that would be the t the redial office would cone along ant to ope an absei or take some sress down th whol th patient fares well to famr 19 ute aked for for duy aein was of yaati up wle given this days haw to cane to get cmp t the take by Hopia ra to Cavarg & the on to 2 ares on th and seseet. The kip up was wentfut bu cold & we were all my glas when the train pulled up
at a siding n wee as glad to geet out wal atout for a whle a few henate late a lte wona an along t gly with ses cuffs & cotter on &tls bowinglad the cose to see in t how badly we were needs. Had breakfurt & te show to ou uwhh we of w t a ofa few ea hk tn boces & cretiine byth eed of the day were were fired up & ready to work to the A.M. went to the ward which of core was cannos for the for fow dgo tee seened be mry litte doing but that aid not last for long meti i seened to be on long dler do of admitted Convoy's & saide patients down the len some of the boye was fearfully don up ebeng ady wounddthy wold in all probably to regaring with a attack of Malaris or at Tep of 100 or 106 with relapte faur & was in astent wl which had yo beds but more often the wer go patient on hatteelles on the floor, It was just a theat to seeto he mns & Ausrehan alle not of the world Tyter far fany sle is the prt whl woma haw seen for two pear & the looked 11 to their faeseem to be f prt t water had been law on from Rastard but ere wa very huh reptis & Ho wate was hard to get & in a surgieas wa vr ofter all i has in the way of a stor tin little Lett leter stor & primue wa a we alt forhedde you could ha on b it had to be well away from the best & th was out of te blou Sheet were a busear, & in my sildon saw then to by hnd the case tarked wackers alway seemed to unsatefastor, with stretches yor nearly
alway te what you had I rine t boy of about so cony in well a kean io a walker who san a tenp for sone das &it discoued that of he lunbr le pstical rate away wi care, that ba was sent don the n b Hetalate & to by knowledge to has not reported suct on an prinious occaton, we kenages to sed thart of the spen case down the li on an bits & w Just guet to know that we seend to be abb to do such a let for the he and thos so the Anttalan he as son of then had not had newepe fragus so one ma b wellow & by the h thy has gon around to canp thy wa ong pt for the fa a honing in tharch 1919 i se a coms in the ward about 11 spitelie Left remain at dukeg was forhde in the ward but of com be all knew that the he did dork & m of the he who had been wvarated the none had pet the bett end of a agaretts at the heas of ep mlde hiilde & good wend was blowin the order a along tome in a great state & sad ster our ward io or fire i nean occurred to m to blow the whichle e first thought wa of coms the patiets who by the ten were well no offes i all fortunity to look after then e a with the rxception of M Kan we had has hor wee o s to be hoves after he arelting had been finded he was put i the seen infortuatily under the tent ropes & as ther was not I fact knep to be had to cut the ropes it was ratter an ordear gutten; the bed out of te wer of the glanc &f they were pretty nearly or the top of a ae by the time. Evertually the bed was fried the a guite sae well sgh
on his frea The burn o th fact that the wald had been bunt to the growd aid not seem to wriy hem his trobl was the that he led a poke of worch sance & two piaster in ti lockwhich to gos de of Denes get the was practically nothing aft but th eron hes shead low be expected he to f the perti to has the I. an by wa I lip to th contie rom pred up th same & padts supplied the we on the spot. The lanly seened to be the greate difficulty cach no any thel non Wastery & done on the time off which was not huch very often & parrafare t seale Hre cai caw we 90 the sent up practically daytgio ta asked for y an wer very ofte send for stait be ed ou cloth in a moner to & seemed to age my well. Hhe but ne of knd & whe 1t gan which It and by hach in fanuar& feleuary the had world kelt & the cons tthrough the roof o te i beat a ou sheet & an unkells for at right. I a whole the kell was good plty of Bullybg & occationally army bissut of the retion trai happe to be delayed. H flt pleasere were n good mbers the Mew Not sily al one food but our clotter, oo one offit uth cap was directly th ses I few huber walk from our hess would take yo nto t see whih was a guet reslection not or the ler but also to pteets whe w able son of a went for bonty & ca ede bet usually the were hard to geet & sharl po was necety always our hod of low which was only on the Denrt along to see show o a pusis into the reased dases, as we was neme to sue what the bedowns we going to a mt w did not ereplor too far clard
When the koops get ap as fer as the Fordan hally so havy of the get Malana & byeetey along wich thit wound & druns seene be the ode of the day wh we has been give fection of 1025 a we how g rle to cans & ty sad wer were to daw th 3rd Satinar who we has works very had I had really had a vay Lappy ten in pit of the andy, fliel, & sad & everyon camp seemed to be soor that he we g int eportes xt to car for duty at the 31gere is ther for some time the work at tim beng fairly heavin bt the time off du was good on hel day each fruth da & mdy onth that was th conneced & the h were luck to get off at all Ever bth room It seened had a bed pirted in onwle, & ogge seeet to bt orde whl the cases day lt ona &t o so very well. Euly in Septenbe I was to Salonks oe of twenty sitier, severa oth se te going ouer has Influrys & tll b i t all he had in the an Arrived in Batorcks in the har i & bards wend blowin t tac the said the fert thy has has for month A I know to that it was intersely cold for a horth 1t nener aared raining& I thoght to colder place on earth & hd 1 Meally La to l anth en wld, ash site had with twenty frue teds, hath Ledical by first tont o a Ralsees played such a duty S ope relieve by part each ward be for a defferit tatent for a I cores gather the anes twhat the tratwas the a
seened to get reculent attects & lnded up by Low t gu he e is t a we The word he sold & the never seened to be really anyting lil warn yh con to keep the I spent senery week in atet with te Intaispaten aso had artea talan, he wa qu tete t whol tie & whe t by td Dge to woit of I was guite saw I seend suchs ti By this time the had got a good hold an the troos & I was in the Dr ward where it was on long ren from, AMite Pr oft t i s a hander of cases prictue tb a same th partients did n spit of you 2 the he who ars wa matly fine beg skappen youth but I lill It did not seem to help at all hee wer well out on the Lett & whe it was for it was really my pleasant, th washing I warle was an th deaw back, we are one oun & it was busiets getting 11 d the wenter. The Tuarter were fairly confortabl somen tnt son in hat. It worl tak lot to 2 & treel for the fieth of Dalange it could beal anyting that I ever saw in 297t Brutet who war To the mlses woth Austratia thr two & the fear I sould the santg that would b be good bough tgu tte th sig plac thy could go for leaw wagted ongwell in the cate of the town anix as the smelh the were peally better offer tapita on duty. t stell on a whole they was afad on looking forward Leppy gatter to a thip to Blight which they eventially got ong th last 20 to leave & saw the an & geta glad to gy or a so to be eng the don & to
mle of patieents tike cens from Salonegus as fer a Seet Gybut the land to to Lar 1t 4 a br ty y bt to be sday or has in home tog he felt that it was well worth the de comfort a long reilie fourny not ty we had close in the batter arred at southhanpt a then ip to batalos & the busints of finding you way in tan for the first thio was re disfieu & & forgot that I was in Egla that ant popiles cores spek Engles forth fist day or two of I waited to know to be. I sole th ta by thatk to b thy could speak English. I even forgot tt an pohsen Staff Luese E. F. Millers Mo. J.D.G.D. Fetton bene

Butler Collin
6/18
[6/19]
[[?]]
AWM 41 

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STAFF-NURSE E.N. MILLER


A. W. M.
LIBRARY
Classn No 373.2


[1011]
 

 

Palestine Sr. E.N. Miller. 23/23
Salonika
September 9th 1917
To Durban, Thence to Bombay
to 31st General hosp, Port Said
1918 To Palestine, Hospital at
El-arish.
Malaria, wounds and relapsing
fever (T 108 and T 106).
To Salonika - bitterly cold.
 

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 as 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

experiences and on internal evidence to guide him in judging what is

and what is not likely to be historically accurate." 


 

 


E.N. Miller   
Egypt    
23/23

(1)

On September 9th 1917. I embarked at Melbourne
bound for Egypt as a member of the A.A.N.S
After a very rough trip arrived at Durban at
noon on a Sunday & was met by an Australian
Y.M.C.A man & then taken to the Sea Breeze

Hotel which had been recommended by an English

officer who had stayed there the year before. It must 

have altered considerably in the year as it was not even

third rate tenth would have been nearer the mark

of the 45 nurses I did not hear one grumble. in The 

following morning I saw the S/in charge & told that 

we could go where we liked for breakfast and that

we would be moving to another Hotel later
which we did & were quite comfortably settled
by the evening. One cannot speak too highly of
the people of Durban they seemed to do their utmost
to make our stay as enjoyable as possible.
Not only sisters but the men who were passing through
I think we were motored everywhere. Unfortunately 

instead of remaining there for a day or two at the 

end of five weeks we were still there & unable to

get transport. However most of us managed to fill
in the time some of us helping in Huts with afternoon
teas etc. On Nov 3rd embarked on the 'Coronia' which
was taking troops to British East Africa & Bombay.
Called at Kilwar Bay. but not allowed to land.
or even show the faintest light the Germans had shelled
a ship from the mainland the night before.
The trip across was very hot & numbers of the Tommies
became ill & just the day before arriving in Bombay
one was operated on for appendicitis. We were not
allowed to go ashore at Bombay Some Australian
sisters came aboard, & in the evening we transhipped
 

 

2)

in the harbour & then on to Suez. At Suez our little
band was split up. Some Sisters going to Alexandria,
Cairo, Kantara & Port Said all British hospitals.
I was one of ten to go to Port Said. Arrived at
the 31st General Hospital on Dec 2nd or I should say
at Port Said & not a soul to meet us after a time
An M.P.  found us a gharrie to the customs House
& from there we were taken across the canal to the
Hospital which in peace time was a large engineering
works. Our Cubicles which could just comfortably hold a 

bed & were partitioned off with rush matting, but as it 

was active service one never thought about the discomfort 

of the accomodation. The next morning I went on duty 

in an acute medical ward. The cases were mostly 

Relapsing fever, Malaria, & Pneumonias.
All I seemed to do was the preparing patients for
intravenous & intramuscular quinine injections
of course that was not all but it seemed as though
it was. A little later half the ward was turned
in to a surgical ward. G.S.W. chests & then one seemed
to spend the time giving oxygen & getting the
respirator ready. Every now and again there would
be a Khamseen & dust as you would, the patients
beds would fill up with dust & could could always depend 

on it that the more dust there was, that would be 

the time the medical officers would come along 

and want to open an abscess or take some dressing 

down. On the whole the patients fared well.

In January 1918, volunteers were asked for, for duty 

in Palestine & I was one of the five Australians 

sent up. We were given three days leave to Cairo 

to get camp kit etc. & then taken by Hospital 

train to Kantard & then on to El Arish on the 

Sinai Desert. The trip up was uneventful but cold 

& we were all very glad when the train pulled up

 

 

3

at a Siding we were all glad to get out walk 

about for a while. A few minutes later a little woman 

came along in grey with red cuffs & collar on & told 

how w glad shew as to see us & how badly we 

were needed. Had breakfast & then shown to our 

huts which were of mud. With the aid of a 

few ideal milk tin boxes & cartons by the end of 

the day were were fixed up & ready to work.  

In the A.M. went to the ward which of course 

was canvas. for the first few days there seemed to 

be very little doing but that did not last for long. 

Sometimes it seemed to be one long endless day 

of admitted convoys & sending patients down 

the line. Some of the boys were fearfully done up

besides being badly wounded. They would in all 

probably be rigoring with an attack of Malaria 

or at temp of 105 or 106 with relapsing fever. 

I was in a tent with which had 70 beds but 

more often there were 90 patients on mattresses 

on the floor. It was just a treat to see the men

Tommies & Australians alike. Most of them would say 

Sister just fancy she is the first white woman I 

have seen for two years. & they looked it too their 

faces seemed to be just parched. By the time the 

water was had been laid on from Kantard 

but were were very much refreshed & hot water 

was hard to get & in a surgical ward. 

Very often all we had in the way of a stove

was a tiny little methylated stove and primuses

were almost forbidden. You could have one but it
had to be well away from the tent & then nine

times out of ten it would blow out.
Sheets were a luxury, & we very seldom saw them
To my mind the cases marked walkers always
seemed to unsatisfactory, with stretchers you nearly
 

 

(4)

always knew what you had. I remember one tommy

a boy of about 20 coming in with a Medical convoy

as a walker who ran a temp for some days & it was
discovered that three of his lumbar vertebrae were practically
eaten away with cancer, that boy was sent down the
line on an air bed and arrd at a base Hospital later
& to my knowledge he had not reported sick on any
previous occasion, we managed to send most of
the spine cases down the line on air beds & was
just great to know that we seemed to be able to
do such a lot for the men and more so the Australian
men as some of them had not had newspapers for ages
so ours was very welcome & by the time they had gone
around the camp they were only fit for the fire.
One morning in March 1919 we sent a convoy down
& left remaining in the ward about 11 stretcher

cases as Smoking was forbidden in the wards but
of course we all knew that the men did smoke
& one of the men who had been evacuated that morning
had put the butt end of a cigarette at the head of
bed just on the sand. evidently it smoldered & by

midday & good wind was blowing, the orderly
came along to me in a great state & said
sister our ward is on fire it never occurred to
him to blow the whistle, our first thought was of
course the patients who by this time were well
out of bed & able fortunately to look after themselves
all with the exception of one manx we had had

in the ward for weeks too ill to be moved after
his dressing had been finished he was put in the
sun unfortunately under the tent ropes & as there was
not a Jack Knife to be had to cut the ropes
it was rather an ordeal getting the bed out of the
way of the flames & they were pretty nearly on the
top of us all by this time. Eventually the bed
was freed & the man quite safe with ∧only slight burns
 

 

(5)

on his forearm. The burns or the fact that the ward
had been burnt to the ground did not seem to
worry him his trouble was this that he had
a bottle of worcter sauce & two piastres in his
locker which he asked me to go & see if I could
get there was practically nothing left but the iron
bed steads & how he expected me to find the piastres

is more than I know anyway & trip to the canteen

soon fixed up the sauce & padre supplied the money
on the spot. The laundry seemed to be the greatest
difficulty each one doing their own washing & darning
on their time off which was not much very often
& parrafarin very scarce. The red cross in Cairo were
very good to us. they sent up practically anything we
asked for & we were very often sending for starch.
We boiled our clothes in a Kerosene tin & seemed to
manage very well. The huts were of mud & when
it ran which it did very much in January & February
the mud would melt & then come through the roof
& then it meant a ground sheet & an umbrella. over
fan at night On a whole the mess was good
plenty of Bully beef & occasionally army biscuits
of the ration train happened to be delayed. The flies,
fleas & mice were in good numbers. the mice not
only ate our food but our clothes, on our off duty
time. we bathed, our camp was directly on the sea
& five minutes walk from our mess would take you
into the sea which was a great recreation
not only for the nurses but also to patients who were
able, some of us went for Donkey & camel rides but
usually they were hard to get & shanks pony
was nearly always our mode of locomotion
which was only on the Desert along to sea shore
or a picnic into the nearest oasis, as we were never
to sure what the Bedouins were going to do next we
did not explore too far inland.
 

 

(6)

When the troops got up as far as the Jordan Valley
so many of them got Malaria & Dysentery
along with their wounds & Quinine seemed to
be the order of the day where we had been giving
injections of D.T.S. we were now giving quinine
as well. In June the Australian sisters were recalled
to Cairo & very sad were were to leave the

&3rd Stationary where we had worked very hard.
& had really had a very happy time in
spite of the laundry, flies & sand. & everyone
in the camp seemed to be sorry that we were going
Reported next to Cairo for duty at the 31st general
remained there for some time the work at
times being fairly heavy but the time off duty
was good. one half day each fourth day & one day
a month, that was until the flu commenced
& then we were lucky to get off at all.
Every bath room it seemed had a bed pushed
in somewhere, & oxygen seemed to be the order
of the day. but on a whole the cases seemed
to do very well. Early in September I was sent
to Salonika one of twenty sisters, several of the
sisters going over had Influenza & were very ill
& all we had in the way of an MO was an
Indian man arrived in Salonika in the
pouring rain & hards wind blowing
the folks there said the first they had had for
months All I know is that it was intensely cold
& for a month it never ceased raining. & I thought
it really must be the coldest place on earth & mud
well over your ankles every where. Each sister had a ward
with twenty four beds. Mostly Medical. My first month
on duty I spent relieving & as Malaria played such
a big part, each ward was for a different treatment
of the disease & as far as I could gather
no matter what the treatment was the men all
 

 

7)

seemed to get recurrent attacks & ended up by having
either quinine either once or twice a week.
The wards were cold & there never seemed to be nearly
enough coal to keep them anything like warm.
I spent seven weeks in a tent with an Enteric patient
who also had Cerebral Malaria, he was quite
mental the whole time & when the boy died I began
to wonder if I was quite sane it seemed such a time
By this time Flu had got a good hold among
the troops & I was in the Dr ward where
it was one long run from A.M. until PM.

Numbers of the very sick boys recovered but in such
a number of cases treatment seemed to be of
no avail & the patients died in spite of you
the men who died were mostly fine big strapping
youths but still it did not seem to help at all.
We were well out on the hills & when it was fine
it was really very pleasant, the washing & getting

of hot water was another draw back, we all did
our own & it was a business getting it dry in
the Winter. The Quarters were fairly comfortable
some in tents & some in huts. It would take a
lot to try & tell you the filth of Salonique
it could beat anything that I ever saw in Egypt
To the nurses both Australian & British who were
there two & three years I could ∧not think of anything
that would have be good enough to give them
the only place they could go for leave was a red
X home well in the centre of the town amidst
all the smells, they were really better off in Hospital
on duty. But still on a whole they were a fairly

happy gathering & each one looking forward
to a trip to Blighty which they eventually got
I was among the last 25 to leave & saw them
all go so glad to going on leave & yet in a
way sorry to be leaving still some sisters
 

 

8)

& a good number of patients behind
I came from Salonique as far as Saranto by boat
& then overland to Le Harve it is a very trying &
tiring journey but to be a day or two in Rome
one felt that it was well worth the discomfort
of a long railway journey not than we had any
choice in the matter. Arrived at Southampton
& then up to Waterloo & the business of finding
your way in London for the first time was rather
difficult & I forgot that I was in England:
& that all the populace could speak English
for the first day or two if I wanted to know the
way. I asked the man in Khaki to my mind
they could speak English. I even forgot the
London policeman.


Staff Nurse E. N. Miller
No. 1 .D.G.H.
Sutton Veny
  

 

 

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