Letters relating to Brian Colden Antill Pockley, 1914 - Part 2

4.

Copy

of letter from Colonel Heritage

small degree do we mourn your overwhelming

sorrow, but you must be cheered to know

Brian's death was fully worthy of a great man.

With indeed very much sympathy

believe me

Most faithfully yours

(signed) Keith Heritage

Lieutenant

Copy

a letter from Chaplain.

H.M.A.S. Sydney

20th Sept.

*   * 

You have no doubt been acquainted of the

sad news concerning your son who I much regret

to say fell during the fighting at Rabaul.

He with Lieut. Bowen & the detachment of which

they formed a part were sent with our ship & during

the short time they were with us we learned to know

& appreciate your son.

It was both a great surprise & shock when during

the forenoon of that day word came through of the

sad event. We heard that he was still conscious hours

afterwards when conveyed on board the troopship for

treatment, but succumbed during the afternoon.

About 4 p.m. I was ordered ashore to conduct the

funeral. It was attended by some 50 members of both

Naval & Military services besides Surgeons Harley & Prevost.

I laid his body to rest in the cemetery at Herbertshohe

amid the peace & beauty of nature, which man's

interference has but slightly changed

*   *   *    *

(signed) V. Agincourt Little  Chaplain

(or Tittle ?)

Extract

Rabaul 

30.10.14

*    *    *     *

I have read some Sydney paper reports, in general,

as to the operations hereabouts - much grossly

inaccurate. I think my account of the 11th

may be relied upon, as I made a special point

of at once obtaining corrected particulars

*   *   *    *

(signed) Keith Heritage

Lt.

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Copy.

(Major Maguire)

Rabaul

New Britain

7th Nov. 1914

Dear Mr Pockley

I am in receipt of your

letter, & I cannot tell you how very sorry I am that you should

have been left so long in suspense waiting for news of Brian's

death, & the particulars in connection with it. I understood

from Capt. Donaldson & Private Henderson that they had

written to you at length & given you full particulars. I

will now give you the whole story as I know it, & try to

explain where there seems to be a mystery.

When we left Sydney, the Force consisted of a battalion

of infantry, & a Naval Brigade of five hundred men, all

under the command of Colonel Holmes. The Army

Medical Corps under command of Lt. Col. Howse V.C.

was in charge of the health of both parts of the Force

as no naval surgeons were sent with us. Thus, when

at Port Moresby instructions were received from

Vice-Admiral Patey to send on a detail of 50 naval

brigade by H.M.A.S. Sydney to form a preliminary

landing party at New Britain, it was necessary to

detail an A.M.C. officer to accompany them. Brian

was detailed for duty with them, & an A.M.C. orderly

sent with him. He was selected, because in our

scheme of distribution of garrisons he had been

allotted to Herbertshohe, & it was thought as well he

should land there from the beginning. We were given

2.

Copy.

(Major Maguire)

to understand by the Admiral that no resistance

was expected, & so he was sending only a small

landing party.

The party landed from the Sydney early on the

morning of 11th September, & were split into two parties

of 25 each. Brian detailed his A.M.C. orderly to

accompany the one party, while he himself accompanied

Lieut. Bowen's party. Being such a small party, no

stretcher-bearers accompanied them. No red flag is

carried in the field by a working party of A.M.

Corps. The story of how Brian unselfishly gave his

red cross armband to a sailor to carry back a

wounded comrade & thus gave up his own distinguishing

badge, you know. It was an act of heroic

self-sacrifice, even though it was contrary to all

regulations. You should indeed be proud of him.

He was shot from a trench. The bullet entered the

abdomen in the midline about two inches below the

ribs, & emerged in the lower part of the back, shattering

the last lumbar vertebra. I state here most emphatically

that it was not a dum dum bullet.

We have seen no dum dum wounds, & have given an

official denial of the statement that our men were

shot by dum dum bullets.

This occurred about 5 a.m. Brian was carried back

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Copy

(Major Maguire)

to the coast, & was seen at once by Captain Donaldson &

Private Henderson whom I had sent off from the

Berrima to attend a couple of wounded on a destroyer.

I had been attached for duty with the force landing

at Rabaul later in the day, & so was still on the 

ship. Brian was brought off from the shore to the

Berrima about 11 a.m. - He had been carried down

some distance, & thence the time between the wounding

& coming aboard. As soon as he came aboard we

saw his case was hopeless. He was conscious, &

recognised us all. We made him comfortable with

morphia. I asked him if he had any messages, or

any business I could fix up, but he said "No", he

had given messages to Henderson. I remained with

him till he died, at 1.45 p.m. Towards the end

he lapsed into unconsciousness, & the end was quite

peaceful.

We buried his body in at Herbertshohe in the

cemetery at dusk (about 6 p.m.) the same evening. The

body was dressed in full uniform & buried with

full military honours. Lieutenant Heritage

commanded the funeral party, & I provided an

A.A.M. Corps bearer party. The Brigadier, Colonel

Holmes was represented by his A.D.C., Lieutenant

Basil Holmes. *   *   *   - (signed) F.A. Maguire

Major, G.M.G., A.N & M.E.F.