Letters from Wilfred Evans to his family, 1915 - Part 9

We have just had just had another lot of
medical men arrived from Australia some of whom
I know, but they did not have very much
news to tell us, matters appeared to be
going along much as usual over there.
I don't think that I told you that dear old
Colonel Newmarch whose name I am sure you will
remember as one of my teachers at Sydney Hospital
where we called him “Berny Newmarch” has been
appointed as commanding officer of this hospital
- I am so pleased because it is grand to have
someone who knows you in authority here & he
is such a kind-hearted old chap, we all loved
him at Sydney Hospital. I fear th me that
my news is exhausted, mother & all the
bairns, so will conclude with the best of
love to all the family & a double share
for mother from
Her loving son, 
Wilf.
Many thanks Alice old chook for the Sydney
Mail - it has been very welcome.

No 1 Aust Gen Hospital
Sept 13^th 1915.
My dear mother,
I received another letter this
week from you I am glad to say, quite in
regular order. I believe that the reason why I
did not receive the earlier letters was that
either they were addressed to the different
ports or else that they were sent from here
to another Captain Evans who had been
here & gone elsewhere for I went one day
to our local post office in the hospital &
they had there the address of Capt Evans 
in the book as 7^th Light Horse or something
& I think my letters may have been sent
there for since I altered it I have received
them quite well. I have been leading a
quiet life since I last wrote you, but one
very good thing has happened - I have
stimulated some of the fellows to play tennis
& we have joined the Heliopolis Sporting club
which has two very nice courts at the back
of the place here so that we are able to go
down easily & have a bang there.

Wesley & I went for a trip this week to see
Major Gray (Mrs Jacomb's ) son-in-law) who
is at Mena House near the pyramids & then
went on to see the Pyramids themselves. Mena House
is about six or seven miles from Cairo & an electric
tram runs there through very nice country
- fields of green corn which is I think of
greater height than most of our Australian
maize even at Jella Jella. It all depends
on irrigation & is here very wide in area
so that it makes a delightful trip.
We had afternoon tea at Mena House
which was formerly a very fine hotel & was
one of the first hospitals we had in Egypt.
It is situated at the foot of the pyramids
& is now taking the slighter cases & Major
Gray is in charge. After afternoon tea we took
possession of a guide & a couple of camels & made
our way to the Pyramids. I had heard so much
of them & seen them so often at a distance & in
pictures that I did not take a very great
interest in them, though it is marvellous to think
of how the Egyptians in bygone ages transported
the huge blocks of stone there & more than that
hoisted them in the air to a height of 400
feet as the largest pyramid is that height.

It is possible to climb up to the top but we preferred
to look at others doing it, nor did we go inside
to what is called the King's Chamber where
the mummies were kept. It is necessary to crawl
on one's hands & knees through very dirty passages
& we did not feel in the humor to do that although
I believe it is well worth seeing. After seeing
the pyramids we went on to the Sphinx which
as you know is the huge carved face of
a man with the body of a lion. It is cut
of out of solid granite & is a tremendous
thing whose exact dimensions I forget
- it seems strange to look on these things
which I have seen in pictures from my
earliest days. After that we went into the
temple of the Sphinx  which was excavated
some years ago as it together with the
Sphinx itself had been buried for many
centuries by the drifting sand. One goes
down a flight of steps & then comes to the
ruins of this fine old temple & it proved very
interesting, it was built of tremendous
granite blocks beautifully cut & polished
& larger than any stone blocks I have
ever seen. There are rows of granite pillars
made from one piece of stone alone, & fully

15-20 feet high & each of the four sides about
3 feet across. Imagine the weight of one of those
huge blocks & the tremendous power needed
to hoist them up into position even after transporting
them over the sand. There are also in the temple tombs
where mummies were placed, dark passages arranged
in tiers now haunted by niggers who want
to extract the universal "backshish" (money)
by lighting them up with a candle. I took
the photos of Wesley & myself on the camels
& we rode back at quite a good pace.
Camels are frightfully rough things to ride
especially when they trot, but if one rises
to the trot just as on horseback it is not so
bad. When they lie down in order to allow
you to alight it causes the weirdest  
sensation, first of all they bend their  
front legs & one frantically clutches the
saddle to prevent himself being precipated
forwards & leans well back, then down
go their hind quarters & one clutches again
& leans forward, & finally the rest of
their fore limbs are folded up & one is
safe on the ground. I am very interested
in the medical work over here - I don't know
if I told you that we have a good number

of typhoid fever cases in spite of the
inoculation against it but not nearly so numerous as
they would have been without it, & it's course
is greatly modified by it, an being rendered
much milder. This however renders the diagnosis
much more difficult as there are numerous other
diseases over here which are not very well
defined & we don't know quite what they are -
principally mild forms of fever which last
for a few days & then the patient is quite well
but, in many cases impossible to tell from
the mild typhoid cases. We also have some malaria
& odd cases of pneumonia. I am kept moderately
busy with my work but not too much so by any
means. I am trying to finish this letter amid odd
snatches of conversation near me & cannot well
collect my thoughts & as the mail closes almost
immediately I will finish up so that I may  
not miss it. I received a letter from Harry
& Bruce this week which I was very glad
to have, is but am very sorry to hear of Linda's
further illness & hope that the attacks will not
recur. Please thank all the family for writing
cannot promise that I will write all round as
practically all I have to tell is in these letters as
arranged. Best love to all & a double share
to mum from her loving son  
Wilf

The splashes are by no means
tears merely drops of water from 
a glass
(1) 
On board Seang Choon
Near Island of Rhodes 2.10.15

My dear mother,
I am writing again within a few days of my last
letter also written aboard this ship before leaving Alexandria which I
fear may not have reached you as we omitted to get the official
stamp on it before posting & it may not go through or else be delayed
by censor. I hope sincerely that you did receive it as I gave therein my
main reasons for coming here. We have had a delightful trip so far, the sea
is as calm as a mill pond, the ships a good one & it's officers splendid
fellows. We left Alexandria about twelve o'clock yesterday & came straight
out to sea. I don't think I gave you my impressions of that city in the
brief time I spent there - it appeared much more of an English
type than Cairo. the streets are excessively narrow as in all
Eastern towns, apparently about half the width of Pitt street &
the houses usually about 4 stories in height. Many more people
speak English than in Cairo, & European dress is more generally
worn, the typical tarboosk, or little round red cap of
the Egyptian native is not nearly so much in evidence.
The city is situated absolutely on the sea, part of it being
on the ocean - the hotel where we stayed was situated
practically on the ocean beach, & part of the city
resting on the harbor not far away - the harbor
being formed by a kind of peninsula with a breakwater
added to it, the entrance being only narrow &
protected from submarine craft by defences

Note (2)
which I suppose I must not attempt to describe.
The harbor is not a very large one, but appears well
protected & is almost full of ships of all kinds.
Most of the largest of I think this is censorable
so I will cut it out. I did not tell you that we arrived 
about four oclock at Alexandria reported to the General 
& were told to embark that night - I managed to 
enquire of the whereabouts of our cousin Major John Evans 
& found that he was at Suvla Bay at Gallipoli. We 
proceeded leisurely to the wharf & drove round 
for a while without finding the ship amongst 
many & were overtaken by a despatch rider who 
told us that she was just about leaving & that 
we should hurry back & a fast [[pimace?]] would be 
waiting for us. We did so, found no [[pimace?]], 
but abused many niggers & eventually hired 
a sailing boat and sailed round the harbor 
in search of the ship & at last found her. 
I think I told you this before. This ship 
is a hospital boat purely for Indians & is 
run by members of the Indian Medical  
Service many of whom have been in India 
for many years. There is a Colonel, Major, 
Captain, Lieutenant, very nice fellows all  
of them. We have a very distinguished person 

Note (3) 
aboard in Sir Victor Thorsley, one of the world's 
authorities in brain surgery & of whom I had read 
in my text books. He is such a nice man not 
one of those who stands on his dignity & feels 
that he is a big man but he talks to us 
all easily & without assumption of superiority. 
The food on board is excellent & she has a  
good sitting room on the boat deck & a  
dining room on the promenade deck & 
a very comfortable spot to sit out on. 
The hold is turned into a hospital & a long 
line of beds stretches from stern to stern 
she has also accommodation for wounded 
above this & on the decks & a nice little 
operating theatre. She can accommodate 
500 if necessary. We expect to arrive at  
Lemnos Island tomorrow at midday 
which is the base for operations on Gallipoli 
& there we report to the A.D.M.S (Assistant Director of 
Medical Services) & will probably proceed to Anzak. 
We have been in sight of Islands today for the most 
part, if you look at a map you will see 
islands dotted along Asia Minor - Rhodes near  
which a boat was torpedoed, Carpathos & 
numerous others. Talking of maps reminds  
me of how we looked at a map before I

Note (4)
left & you were easy only when you saw what a  
distance Egypt was from the fighting. It seems strange 
that I should willingly go from the safety of 
Egypt to Gallipoli & cause you so much anxiety 
when I would wish to shield & protect you from it. 
But it is one's highest obligation in life to do his 
duty & it is undoubtedly known it is mine to go over 
here. I hope you receive my other letter in which I 
explained my reasons fully. But briefly I could 
not stay in Egypt when men are wanted at Gallipoli 
to help the sick & wounded there because there is 
some slight risk - the latter should be a  
greater incentive to going. Old & married men 
should not be expected to go. The risk is 
moreover not very great, few Australian 
medicos have been injured. But no matter 
what happens, I hope to have done my  
duty & that will compensate you my dear for 
all the years of selfsacrifice & devotion you 
have spent on me & for which I could 
never thank you sufficiently, except perhaps 
by a love that can only be quenched by death 
But my dear I feel that all is going to be well. 
I am in God's hands & He will guard me for 
your sake & bring me safely back to you again. 
My very best love to all & specially to mother from 
Her loving son Wilf.