Letters from Fred Leslie Biddle to his Family, 1914-1915 - Part 18 of 19

Gallipoli 
20.11.15 
  
Dear Mother, 
In the calm which follows 
the storm, I sit down to write once more 
the weekly budget. 
We have had a hurricane of wind here, 
the day before yesterday & all hands are now 
busy cleaning up the mess. 
We had a lively time in our "humpy" 
as we face directly to a steep nullah which 
served as a huge funnel for the wind. 
The landscape seemed to be moving bodily 
and huge chunks seemed to be flying around. 
It was impossible to stand up at the head 
of the gullies & our eyes were full of chunks 
of Gallipoli. 
Our galvanised iron roof was doing a 
great dance & we were rushing out all day to 
make it fast. 
At one time in the night I thought it 
was gone & it was a case of all hands on 
deck in their "little short shirts" 
The dust in the dug-out had simply to be

(2   
shovelled out, even off the blankets & we 
were all a sight to see. 
However the wind eventually dropped, 
down came the rain, & our trouble with the 
dust was over. 
Now we are busy on alteration breakwinds 
 ready for the next blow, which should 
be in about a week. 
However it's wonderful how soon the  
discomforts are forgotten. 
There is still nothing doing & judging 
by the barbed wire which the Turks have 
put all along their trenches they haven't 
any intention of trying to push us into 
the sea. 
The Germans seem to think that we 
will starve during the winter, & that ships 
will be unable to land stores. Well if 
"Abdul" thinks the same he will suffer 
a disappointment, & not the first he has 
had through relying on Germany's idea. 
Probably being better clothed for the 
winter, we will stand it far better than 
the Turks.

(3) 
I hope you received my Xmas letter & 
card. A barge with mails outward sank in the 
storm, but we are informed that our Xmas 
mail was sent away before. 
I haven't had any letters for over a fortnight 
so presume there was 2 weeks between mails. 
We hear that a big mail is now being 
sorted on the beach today, so may get your mail 
this evening. 
There is a chance of my getting 
command of one of the new batteries, but 
there is no definite news of how they are 
organised yet. 
Col. J. will be leaving in a few 
days for Lemnos & will go to Egypt shortly 
from there to assume command of the 
whole show.  I know he'll find a job for me 
if there is any opportunity. 
In that case it would mean spending 
the winter in Egypt again training the new 
men. 
However it doesn't pay to count on anything 
these days as they dig out all sorts of 
officers in Australia from unattached lists

4. 
& give them regimented seniority here from date 
of their original seniority on the active list. 
So that after 15 mos continual service we 
may be superseded by a man who has 
perhaps had actually less service on the 
active list in Australia without counting this 
job. 
As you can imagine this is a source 
of huge delight to us all. 
It certainly pays to hang back among 
the "deep-thinkers" 
23.11.15 
Since writing the foregoing we hear 
that 377 bags of inward mail were sunk in 
the transport, so that accounts for the 
missing letters. 
We have heard no detailed account 
of what happened beyond a bare statement 
that the ship was torpedoed. 
Things are still very quiet here & it 
looks like settling down into Winter Quarters. 
I hope Hollis is now quite O.K. after the 
operation & feeling all the better for it. 
Jon will be glad to know that fro

5 
in official circles here it is freely stated that 
the Germans have shot their bolt. 
Their infantry on both Eastern & Western Fronts 
are completely demoralised & throw up the sponge 
at the lead check. 
There is no doubt that this is so. We 
have heard it from all recent arrivals from 
France & it is now merely a question of 
time before the truth comes right home to 
the German people. 
The Balkan business is a last desperate 
throw to divert the minds of the people. 
If it fails in its object.ve - to come down 
through Constantinople & throw a large force 
against Egypt, the German nation can no 
longer be deceived. 
Heaven above knows how it will go, but I 
think the people here who do know the 
true state of affairs are confident of 
the Allies' ability to stop this rush. 
Everybody says our men in France & 
Flanders are in wonderful heart & the 
French the same. 
At the same time you mustn't forget

(6)   
that the numbers are huge, & it will 
probably be not sooner than 12 months before 
the finish. 
However, probably before that time "Abdul" 
will have seen which way things are going & 
will pull what chestnuts he can out of the fire 
by breaking away from Germany. 
Of course these are only my own opinions 
formed from little bits I hear & the ordinary 
officially published news. 
Well there is no more news. We are all  
fat & well, & since the cold weather came on 
we're not troubled with flies. 
Best love to Father, Hollis, Isabel, Noel & Your 
own dear self. 
Your affectionate son 
Fred