Diary of Gordon Colin Cooper, 1916-1917 - Part 18

DECEMBER, 1916.
Wednesday 27
Quiet day, usual routine
Wrote Mrs Rickman.
DECEMBER, 1916.
Thursday 28
quiet day. taube over
but nothing doing otherwise
Got some parcels; one
from Mother-
 

DECEMBER, 1916.
Friday 29
Quiet day: got order
for stunt. got all our

things ready

Raining periodically

all day.
DECEMBER, 1916.
Saturday 30
Left camp about 8.30 & made
due east: following the coast
right along for 8 miles to
Shiekh Zawaiid: arriving
there about 2.30. it rained
greater part of the trip
out: watered up in the
lake and went on
outpost about dark
 

DECEMBER, 1916.
Sunday 31
Came off outpost early, had
breakfast & left Shiekh Zawaiid
about 8.15 & proceeded straight
back to El Arish, arriving here
about 2.30

1/1/17.  Very cruel day. dust
storm all day: three Taubes
flew over & dropped about 10
bombs on El Arish: not many
casualties wounded 2 "bints"
First Rum issue.
Wrote Mrs Walker

2/1/17
Wretched day. rained &
sand blowing all day
On outpost at night, simply
Cruel weather: post near
NOTES FOR 1917.
the sea, everything wet through
Wrote Mme Piot & Lona

3/1/17
Cold all day: got good
mail, Mother 1. Theo 1
Lucie 3, Lina Elsie Rex
Cable from home, paid 30/-
Wrote Lona

4/1/17
Cold & Windy also several
showers;
Wrote Lucie (9 Cabeera)
5/1/17
Fairly clear day: section went down
for swim; clear night up till bedtime
Wrote Nedda (6 cabeera)
Greased saddles, built Dicks home
 

NOTES FOR 1917.
6/1/17
Got up early & went
to "Kilo 139" for reinforcement
took all day, pretty long way
Taube flew over but did not
drop any bombs
Got 3 parcels, Gussie, Monica
& Rex
Reg Letter with £5.

7/1/17
Quiet day. Two taubes flew
over, & dropped 10 to 15 bombs
Killings 28 ngs & wounding 14
tried to lob one on us but
missed by 200 yards
Out on outpost at night
Wrote Mother & Jess. [shorthand]
Billy & Theo.
NOTES FOR 1917.
8/1/17
On outpost at night; &
we had a midnight
air raid; dropped 20 bombs
but did no damage at all

(8)1/17
Quiet day on purifying
fatigue; started out on
a divisional stunt to
JRaffa; proceeded as far
as Zawaiid & camped
till 12.30 & proceeded on
to Raffa and the

9/1/17. Arrived at Raffa at
sunrise; & waited a while then
the artillery opened. & planes
flew over & dropped messages
the Turks replied with some
 

MEMORANDA
shrapnel, we then moved
round onto the right; &
here we actually crossed the
border into Syria; out of Egypt
at last: the country here is very
pretty & fertile: & inhabited
by natives (Bedouins & Arabs)
of a very low caste.
There is a battery quite close to us
firing away quite contentedly
giving the Turks "gippo"
We can see the Turks going in
all directions and our boys
are surrounding the "possy".
We got the order to advance and charged
across ploughed fields for about 1 mile
& then dismounted & advanced
across open ploughed ground for over
a mile with ammunition & kept going

all day: very heavy fire and
shrapnel high explosives bombs

from aeroplanes coming on the sea 

MEMORANDA.
about 4.30 they surrendered & the army

took possession: heavy casualties
on our side, we took about 1800
prisoners & several officers, we primed
up & came back to Zawaiid after
getting 2 Turkish Krupp guns

10/1/17 arrived back at Zawaiid
at 12.30 & watered up & camped
for rest of night & got up at 5.30. &
proceeded straight back to El 

Arish arriving about 12.30

11/1/17 Quiet day. swimming parade
went down to see Tonie in Hospital
Wrote Enid Mrs Branch

12/1/17 Quiet day; on day stable
man all day
Wrote Aunt Emily

13/1/7. Gen Chouval gave us a good
address in appreciation of work done
on 9^th at Rafee
 

Hand Drawn picture ~ see original document
The Sleeping Beauty?
 

  A close shave

Hand drawn Sketch ~ see original document