Diary of Trooper Ion Llewellyn Idriess-Oct 1916-Part 10

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45

column would halt 
and we'd tumble off 
our horses, grateful for 
the few minutes rest. 
And so it went on until 
the column had a long 
halt, it must have 
been nearly two hours. 
We were waiting for 
word from the camel 
corps. Word came. They 
had cut the Turkish 
communication wires to 
EL Arish. On we went 
again, it was getting 
on towards dawn. Then 
gradually a slight light 
came in the east. It 
grew and spread. We 
must be very near the 
Turkish outposts now 
when would ? Their rifles 
crack. A sudden halt.
Our screen had ridden 

having their own baking 
and cooking houses, and 
all being very industrious, 
but in a certain sort of 
way. The womenfold are 
adepts in xx needlework, 
especially the girls, in 
mats and basket making, 
etc. The elderly and old 
men fashion spoons, 
combs, knives, and all 
that sort of thing, out 
of lumps of wood, of bone, 
or old hoop iron. What 
struck us particularly 
was the groups of fat, 
idle young men, who are 
apparently good for 
nothing. In one mat 
covered building there 
were a great many 
46
right on to a small
patrol of camel men
They had got away, only
to be captured further
on, xxxxx a Turkish officer
and six men. Then part

      our screen
of  xxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx  suddenly
rode on fifty Turks in
a redoubt. The Light
Horse sat and xxxxxxxxx
looked at the Turks,
who gazed back in
amazement. Then
suddenly the Turks
regained their senses
and with one accord
jumped from their
redoubt and absolutely
ran for it. Our men
say they had been told
not to fire. Why so,

46
God in heaven only knows
If this had happened among 
our own chaps we would 
have blazed away immediately. 
I did not see this 
little incident myself, in 
fact our troop saw very 
little all the morning. 
Up to now everything 
had gone splendidly. 
The Turks were absolutely 
surprised We all thought 
that now would have 
been one great rush, 
over the hills and 
right  into the Turkish 
camp two thousand 
yards away right on 
their outposts heels. 
But instead of that 
there was a lot of 
delay, dismounting

women and young 
girls sitting down on the 
floor mat making. Many 
of the girls are fine looking 
beggars, plump, dark eyed, 
dark skinned. There are 
many pitiful tales in that 
encampment, orphans, 
mothers with some of their 
children, fathers with wives 
and children missing, 
massacred by the Turks 
and Germans. But I have 
no pity for them, none 
at all. People who are 
too "Timid" to fight for 
their own little homes, for 
their own lives and their 
loved ones, will get no 
sympathy from me. Only 
in an odd isolated case 

47

for action and search-

ing about for any 
Turkish redoubts that 
might be heavily 
manned close by. And 
so the sun came up, 
and the hills, thickly 
covered with stunted 
bushes, shone out clear 
and plain. There is 
little doubt that what 
was done turned out to 
be a wise thing, as 
the Turkish camp of 
Mazar turned out to 
be a veritable 
hornets nest. And so 
the screen pushed 
slowly closer to 
the hills which 
surrounded the Turkish 
camp, hills covered

with redoubts and 
trenches. Just now 
our troop got orders to 
move away to the left, 
and find a Turkish 
redoubt supposed to 
be there, manned by 
about twenty men. As 
our troop numbered 
about the same, it 
would be a pretty 
close go should we 
find the redoubt 
occupied As it turned 
out, this order kept 
C Troop out of what 
fighting was done. So 
away we rode to the 
left, all on our little 
own. the sun shone 
out bright, and yet 
not a shot had

did the Armenians put 
up a fight against their 
taskmasters of so many years 
standing. It is not as if 
they were unprepared. They 
have lived with the Turk 
so long, and their peoples 
have been massacred so 
often before, that they 
know the Turk and his 
little ways to the very 
core. They young men 
are fat and strong 
and very healthy looking.

The only thing is that they 
don't, in fact won't, 
tackle hard work or fight 
for their own homes. In 
this age, such peoples 
deserve all they get.

48
been fired. What 
on earth was happening. 
We rode straight on 
a redoubt, but it 
had been abandoned. 
It was built very 
cunningly. Dug in 
among the bushes, 
winding about them, 
it could not be seen 
by horsemen until 
they rode right on top 
of it. If held by deter-

mined men, it would 
then mean sudden death. 
Long desert grass had 
been packed in the 
sides of the trench, to 
prevent the sand 
from falling in. It 
was a very neat and 
business-like redoubt

48.
25th Oct - Our holiday is 
long since over. We were 
allowed five days, and 
then called back. It was 
pretty miserable coming 
back to this wretched life 
and I couldn't bring myself 
to write about the splendid 
time we had in Port Said. 
We were intensely surprised 
at the rest camp at Port 
Said. For a military 
institution it was run 
solely for the soldiers 
comfort. We had all the 
leave we wanted, no 
guards around the grounds 
that we must dodge when 
we wanted to go into town, 
no distasteful restrictions 
at all.  And I did not 
see a single case in town

[*108*]
Pte J Conlin

Lewis Machine Gun

5th H.L.I

Headquarters Coy

E.E.F.

Trooper Cam 978

New Zealand Machine 
Gun Section

Squadron, N.Z.M.R.