Correspondence relating to Leslie Cecil Maygar, 1915-1918 - Part 2

2
of getting a fire going through the
Winton this coming March - Well
Edmund old chap after one has been
here in Egypt you can realize what
the future for Australia is, when our
people take on irregation, it is a
great shame to let all our flood
waters go to waste- I hope your Sinai
water melons do alright, I am enclosing
you a few of a melon something like
a rock melon they are great on them in
Egypt bigger than our rock, I doubt
whether they will grow by next Season
they have been in my tunic pocket since
last I was up in Cairo last July -
Well I have no news of interest to
write this day so will conclude as
I will be called to tea in a few
minutes, the climate is still glorious
here on the Blue Mediterranean Sea
Please give my greetings to all
old friends
With love & good wishes
to all Yours Sincerely
Leslie

 

Palestine
8^th April 1917
My dear Edmund
Received two letters from
you by last mail Feb 9^th & 22^nd- with usual
pleasure. There is a big area of good Country
here where we are at present, vicinity of Gaza
We have been all round Gaza, also a number
of our mounted men were in the heart of the Town
and brought away three of their big guns and
a lot of prisoners, however the Turks still hold
the Town altho we had a fair fight for it
the other day, it is now the job of the Infantry
to take the Trenches, we will go for them when
we get them in the open, we will strike hard
soon, as we have the Railway up here now
troops & supplies piling up fast- Gaza is
the place where Samson carried away the
gates on his shoulders, it is a fairly big Town
We are Camped at present a couple of hundred
yards from the Sea, will go & have a good
swim when I finish this letter, I am quite
at home in the Sea, hope to Swim the Helles
Pont before returning home, the weather is becoming 
warm now, however the Summer is
nothing like as hot up here as it is on the Sinai
 

2
Desert, all the same Sinai desert is not half
as bad as what you would imagine, I guess
Moses hadn't a bad time there during his
40 years with the Israelites, time appears to
go by like the wind when you are roaming
over the desert, I never found it at all
monotonous - Our horses got so as they could
plough through the Sand up to their knees
without destressing them in the least it is
surprising how they get accustomed to it
now their trouble is to get used to the hard
ground again, of course they are getting use
to it gradually as we still have patches of
sand country here. There is a lot of cultivation 
here consequently good grazing for
our horses, and now they are all fit for
our next big stunt. which you will have
read all about long ere you get this
scrall- The girl is Marie Stanley who
writes to me, Sister of my old Orderly George
George is now in England or France in the
Flying Corps I think he has got a Commission
my late Orderly Frank Moore got the W.C.M.
Moore is a fine lad I very nearly got him a
Commission in the Flying Corps, he had the bad
 

3
luck, after a 6 weeks course at a school
to fail in one subject of his written examination, 
which threw him out, he had gone
through well with all his other exams
I may fix him up in something
later on - I hope you got a good
price for the Wool - Yes you told
me about being Executor for poor old 
Rod's will - you and Fred Cocks will have
a lot to do before you get the business
fixed up. I am glad to know that 
you are all well at Strathearn
With love to dear old Nell &
Uncle, Emm & Ken and kindest 
greetings to all old friends
Yours Always Sincerely
Leslie
[* RC 10992-2)
1 DRL491*]
 

[*P.S.
When next time you
go to the City. look through
my trunk at Vic Coffee Palace
and see whether the moths have got
in to same - put a good supply
of moth balls in it again
You will be able to get a 
Key from McEwans
that will open it

LCM *]
Palestine 
25^th May 1917
Received two letters by
last mail dated 27^th March & 1^st April I am
glad to know that all is going so well
with you, it is splendid getting such fine
falls of rain during the last couple of months
It was hard luck you didn't beat neighbour 
Hill in price of wool all the same you did fairly
well - However I am glad you got such a
good price for fat wethers. Well old chap I
guess you were disguested, when you got registered
packet to find old bits of coloured glass only -
however the glass is from an old Roman Church
pf the 5^th Centuary built by Justinian, Near
Mayar, Napoleon excravated the ruions and
removed everything of value, I think I sent you
some photos of the ruions. We went out on a
stunt a few days ago a long night march
returned compliments with the Turks around
Beersheba, the Turks are well entrenched from
Gaza to Beesheba, we have a pretty tough problem
here now - We were out on the front line for
some time, but have now come into the Sea
Mediterranean, having a good time bathing etc.
 

2
There is the remains of the old Roman
road running along the coast from
Gaza to El Arish, formed principally
of cement, this road was about 30 ft wide
in places still the cement is 3 freet thick, almost
as hard as granite, will last until the end of the
world, they cant make anything at the present
to equal it. Major McAllister O.C A Squadron
died of his wound received during our big fight
on 19^th April, the bullet was in his lung and
they had to operate on him, he never rallied
after operation, he was a fine fellow 6 ft 3 in
well built, he leaves a wife and two little girls
to mourn his loss in N.S.W. Well old Chap
I wish I could send you a few thousand
acres of the country that lies between here &
Beersheba it would be worth about ₤60 per ac
with your rain fall at Strathearn. The climate
here is good not as hot as you get it at
Strathearn during the Summer - So you
see our luck is still in - Please give my kndest
greetings to Miss Gotch & Mrs & Mr Chrystal when you
write, Bugler Chambers was a nice well conducted
lad - well I am as usual fit & well. Well old chappie
Good bye for the present With love to All Yours always Sincerely
Leslie

Glass
[*1 DRU 491*]

Palestine
8^th July 1917
My dear Edmund
Received your more
than welcome letter of 11^th May I am glad
to know that all is going so well with
you at Strathearn - Yes it was a pleasant
surprise to us for the Labourites to get such
a knock out at last election - Yes old Chap
Gaza & Beersheba" well it was not the easy
Snap that most thought it was to be, however
we the Light Horse took a turn right around
Gaza on the 9^th April, it was an Infantry
show to take the trenches, well they failed
so I can ^not say any more, understand? Lieut
G. Fay returned back to the Regiment last
night he is quite alright again I am glad
to say, I am recommending him for his
Captaincy he turned out a fine Officer in
the field as cool as possible under fire.
I am afraid you will miss some of my
letters for end of May & early in June as
the boat with our Egyptian mails to Australia
was sunk about 16^th June. I suppose you
will see in the papers that I have been
awarded the D.S.O. - We are now back
 

2
from the front line in reserve, I think we
will be going back to the Beach for a
fortnight spell soon - as our men & 
horses can do with a rest as they have
had a pretty hard time on the front line
during the last six weeks, we would have
a stunt about every week generally about 24
hours continuous going, we would have a pretty
brisk engagement with Jacko every now & again
Our Brigadier Gen Royston has been away
on leave for the last 10 days he has returned
to day I must go over to see him shortly
when he is away I take Command, his
health has not been too good of late I sincerely
trust the trip to Alexanderia will have done
him a lot of good - he is great, one of
the Best especially in a fight he is always
well up in the front line where a Brigadier
should not be of course, all the same he
always has the luck to come out O.K.
I am still in the pink of health of course I
should be, as this is an easy life for me very
little to do, and a glorious Climate, the reason
why I have such an easy time, is that I only do
my own job & make all the other people under
 

3
me take their responsibility & do their
work, when the whole chain of responsibility
is carried on from the head down there is
very little for any one individual, you
will be surprised to hear that there are very
few who run on these lines, but try to do
everybodys job "so there you are "which
is the better way? -Well old Chappie
must Away with love to dear old
Nell Uncle Ernest & Family Emn &
Ken - & greetings to all old
friends
With love and no
end of good wishes
Yours Always 
Sincerely
Leslie
[*1 DRL 491*]