Nurses Narratives Sister Mabel Isabel Brown (part 1)
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5/61
AWM 41
AUSTRALIAN ARCHIVE
ACCESS STATUE
Official
M/SISTER E. BROWN.
A. W. M
LIBRARY
[947]
[[?]]
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".
See Hospl Ships 728 1 VI 105/42
To Capt. A. L. McLean
Ass. Col. Med. History
Aus. War Records soc.
Sir
I am not clear at putting on paper my
experiences, which have been very varied,
& during my four years abroad I have
met most of the important men
of affairs. If there is anything in the
following pages I shall be glad to have
contributed my bite to history.
We left Aus. in the Kyarra 1914, & it was
with light hearts we landed in Egypt
nearly a month later, All sorts of rumours
met us , that No 1 was to return as to many
Sisters had been sent but eventually we
arrived at Heliopolis Palace Cross & happy
& it was a wild scramble to get settled
& in our rooms, but we got nothing to
eat until after 8.pm, as the 1st comers
had also been hungry ,& we thought greedy
within a couple of weeks we had a few
patients long before we were ready for
them. My ward under Col Summers then Major
was filled with pneumonias, & terrible it was
The only cases I can compare with them
2
are the Spanish pneumonic influenza . I
have seen such a lot of since, indeed
many times lately I have wondered if
it was the same disease. Sister Cameron
of the Melbourne hospital was my invaluable
assistant in that ward.
We were always being inspected, by
some authority or other,[[?]] Gen. Ford, Sir Gen
Baptic (I met him again later in [[?]]. )
etc to see if we knew how run
a military hospital , little they knew them
selves then that all or most of these
regulations would have to be upset by
the big rush, & that anyhow Australian
sisters of that year were to be more anxious
about the patient in the bed than the bed
& bedding. I was greatly honoured when
the day Gen Birdwood came round
& stopped to speak for a few minutes.
3 years later I met him at Abbeville
& found he had not forgotten me.
Gen. Baptic’s inspection was the most
thorough , beds, blankets, cupboards etc
he then & always appeared to have
his heart in his work. Another day
I have had the Sultan & his suite, of
2a.
course cameras had been for-
bidden, but needless to remark,
there was one at every corner,
but we had very poor results.
Early in March Sister [[?]] & myself
were sent to open & take charge
of the Red Cross department & most
interesting work it was, & the
experience was most useful to
me in after years, altho at the
time I was indignant at being
put to work that lay people could
& did do in after years. We
received and unpacked & sorted all
goods coming from Australia
then repacked & ticketed them.
There was a lot of humour
& pathos in all the packages. My
best helper I met again in France
with the rank of sergeant, altho
he was an imported Australian he
was a most enthusiastic digger.
We had
3
had 10 men to assist us & found
not one too many, & Major Barrett
at the head of affairs, Sister Lansing
did the books & general office
work & I had charge of the
packing store, Many thousands
of pounds worth of goods went
thro our hands, & the tears came
to my eyes many times on reading
the loving home messages
tacked on to many things, when
we thought of the brave boys
they were meant for, & who would
never probably see them, there
was much humour too, A very large
flannel needle book containing one
surgeon's needle, & the label sent
in the hope that it would be of
use in saving life on the battle
field, & could picture the way
back station it had come from
also the 2 ounce pkt of cotton wool,
"it may be of use in stopping haemorrhage
on the battlefield and the
nightshirt "all tapes" ticketed.
"A helpless nightshirt" indeed it
4
was "helpless" We laughed till we
cried, but we guessed the loving
[sypatic?] hands that had made
it. About a week before the 26th
April we got our first large order
750 shirts & sock for a regiment
then on it was to Gallipoli -
After about the first week of fighting
hardly a day passed but we
got an order for hundreds of
articles & when I tell you we
supplied every hospital ship or hosp.
on land, that asked us from
the whole of Egypt right to
Gallipoli you may know we
worked some. After the wounded
first came in we found we had
not sufficient nurses for the wards
so I asked permission to go back
to the wards, but was refused.
so after coming off duty in the
R.x rooms, I used to go to the
wards & work with the others
both early & late, it was tiring,
but such a happiness to be able
to do it, & those "Boys" I shall
5
never forget them, never a complaint
but, "when shall I be able
to go back again sister" Altho I
have been everywhere except
Salonika, I have never met any
one like the first wounded men.
All nationalities, & all filled with the
same brave devotion to duty. Early
in May I felt it was a terrible waste
to have two trained nurses doing
Red x work that civilians could &
should do, & I approached Major
Barrett to that end, but he would
not hear of it so I took my own
way out, & went straight in the
face or orders, & eventually accomplished
my aim, the Red x work
was interesting but I did not
enlist to do that - In the 1st week
of July 1915 the [[O'C?]] asked me if
I would care to go on a hospital
ship, as this was a very great favor
at the time I fully appreciated
it at the time I said yes thank you.
So on the morning of the 7th six of us
set forth, Sisters [[Kowarski?]] [[Mary?]] King,
[[?]] myself [[Sorrenson?]] & Lyons & at
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at Cairo Station were met by Miss
Collins [[R.A.J.M.N.S.?]] a tiny edition
of a nurse. But very bright & tactful
& as she held the rank of [[J/N?]] & some
of us were sisters, it might have been
uncomfortable. Of course she was
made Matron & a very good manager
she was, & a hard worker. We were
put on the "[[Grantully?]] Castle" it
was just being converted into an
H.S. We had to wait in Alexandria
a few days & then were hurried
away, not nearly ready. the beds
up but no bolts attached to the
tables attached to the bunks, oh
it was a terrible scramble, the
wards given to me contained 175
beds, & ten orderlies, good boys
but had never been inside a
hospital, but they worked. I have
never had better or more eager helpers
R.A.M.C. We were short of linen
& could only have one sheet per
bed. I did not hesitate & had every
one torn in half, & thus had two
sheets per man. I shall keep silent
7
on what the matron said when I proudly
showed her what I had done [[?]]
she flew round to warn the others,
& found that like good Australians
they had also used their brains,
poor little matron she had a holy
fear of the I.M. but after a few
trips with us, she also would
tear sheets or anything else that
was handy if necessary. We had
hard work on board.
We had six medical men on board
one being the O.C., a matron and six sisters
& about 30 orderlies & a 2 [[?]] etc
On this our 1st trip we did not have
any regular hrs as the 4 days
going up every spare minute was
taken up in preparing the wards
& making dressings, filling pillow
slips & getting them sterilised etc
& then when we arrived, we were
anchored off Cape Helles & almost
immediately began taking on patients.
we stayed there about 10 days
acting as a C.C.S. , we keeping
the serious cases & the others
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