Letters from George Alexander Hugh Murray to his family, 1915 - Part 2

Egypt

Saturday

20/2/15

All at home.

I received your letter, the one that was addressed to

Egypt about a week after we landed, but the

one that Sera sent I got it over a fortnight

after we landed. Egypt is a barren country

you can look for miles without seeing a tree.

The city of Cairo is not a bad place to look at There 

are some very grand buildings. You would hardly

credit the natu structure of them. I am sending

a back & front view of the Palace Hotel. It

is now turned into a hospital. There are

1000 rooms in the building I am sending a

few handkerchiefs & some post cards. They are

mostly views of the places I have seen

The

streets of Cairo are only sand but the trucks

sand is cleared away & the road mutatted.

The

reinforcements have joined the battalion & they

went for their first march the next day

It was a march & skirmish combined on the

Sharha desert & it is a desert with a

vengeance for the sand is up to your ankle

 

all the way. We were out for about eleven

hours and covered about thirty miles not

including the shummishing We were all pretty

tired when we arrived back to Camp. We

slept till 7-30 next morning & then went

out into the desert again & began to dig

fighting trenches. I suppose by the time you

receive this letter we will be in another

strange land, for we have been told that

we have to be in France within four

weeks so we will see some of the

fun yet. It is getting very tiresome, just

doing the same work day in & day out

I was laid up with pains & cramp in

the legs & stomach but they are gone

now. It is very hot in the day time &

gets cool all of a sudden towards evening

& very near frost before morning.

Leslie

I & some other Light Horsemen went across

the mountains to the place called the Dead

City. While going there we passed many

skeletons of human beings, the wind had

blown the sand away & left the bones

laying the same as when they were put

in the grave. When on the mountains

 

 

3

you could see the Pyramids in the distance

We went through the Citadel & Mosque

It is turned into a Base Hospital &

guarded by the Manchester men. On

the door stp step is still seen the blood

stains where some men were executed

There are a number of large cannon

trained over the old city. When we

left the citadel we could see the fort

that was supposed to have been built

by Napoleon, & his men in fourteen

hours. It was built for to bombard the

citadel. When we left we went through

the old city and could see where the

dirt had been cleared off the houses &

hundred upon hundreds of graves. They were

just plain graves bricked up. The city was

very quiet without hardly a soul about

We left tramping up till six oclock so we

had a good day of it.

There is not much

more to say for I suppose you have received 

my other letter & few post cards by now

It is getting near bed time but that is

morning to you. So I will now close

 

with love from George

My address is

Sgt G. Murray

Reg No 1379

14 Bat Rft Coy

4^th Brigade

2^nd Exp. Force

Egypt

 

Helipolis

14/2/15

Dear Jim

I received your weekly letter by the

last mail and will answer it now

for I do not know when I will have

the chance again

The Wind contingent have 

landed but I have not seen any of them

yet for they are out at the Pyramids

We had one of the 14^th men die He

was the first that has died since we

left Australia. His company marched to the

funeral & the band played. There was the

shots fired over him & the last post

played on the bugles.

We are getting tired

of Egypt for you cannot go any distance

without being up to your boot tops in

sand but I suppose when we arrive in the firing

line we will wish that we never left Egypt

I have 

let my moustache grow & it is looking very well

for the first try

 

 

I received several letters from Wanoch

& Shea from home. Lena is trying to join

the Red Cross and come out here. It would

 be a rough life for I have seen some of the

men who have been in action & they are

knocked about a bit but that can not

is what can only be expected.

I have not much

to say for the mail leaves shortly so I will

now close

With love from George

No 2 Coy

14 Batt

Egypt

 

Heliopolis

14/3/15

Dear Dad

I received your letter by the last mail

and see by it that things are not too good

The first man to die since we left Aust

died in the Military Hospital. We had a

Military funeral. His Company marched 

and the band played at the grave side

The customary salute was fired over

the grave. The native funerals are funny

concern They have runners before the coffin

which is carried on the shoulders of

four men. When they arrive at the

grave they take the body out of the coffin

and bury it that way & take the coffin

back for to wait till next time it is

wanted.

I have seen most of the men

that have left home but I do not

know it there are any warrack boys

in the third contingent which arrived

about the 12th

I am letting my moust

 

 

moustache grow. It is coming on very well.

I got a letter from Jim & he told me

all his woes. He said he has tried

till he was tired to get away but all

to no good.

When this letter reaches

you I do not know where I will

be for we are to move off at any

time, for the troops are getting discontented

at being kept here. I have not

seen Les for a fortnight; but I got

a letter from him. He had not then

joined his squadron.

There is not much

to say so I will now close

With love to all at home

from George

I received Hetta & Lena's Letters the same time

as I received yours but theirs will have to wait

for the mail is about to close

I am sending a couple of parcels by signatured

post by this mail

 

Heliopolis

20/3/15

All at home

I received your ever welcome letter by

the last mail. It was mislaid & I

got it a few days after all the other

mail was given out.

When we are leaving

the sands of Egypt No one seems

 to know. Most of us are getting tired

of marching across the desert. The first

rain we have seen since we landed

fell the Second week in March. It

was not much but it laid the

dust & made the marching easy

for a couple of days. I have seen

some grand sights lately being

through some of the oldest places

around Egypt.

Jack Elliott is a

Sergeant now. He has been made

Sergeant Shoe Maker and he has got 

a good job for he goes into Cairo

every morning & makes his staff

 

 

of natives do the work.

Ken McRae is very

bad. He has been in the Hospital most

of the time since we have landed.

He cannot even stand a twenty

five mile march carrying about

fifty pounds. The first man to

die in the 14^th Bat died last week

He was the first since we have

left Melbourne.

All the news that

is Published in Australia about the

2^nd Contingent is absolutely false.

Our Commanding Officer wishes it to

be known & published when ever

possible denying the statements that 

have been written. Some of the

lies have reached up and there

was some joy for the time.

Jim Kilgariff

is to be invalied home. He has

been ill for a long time with pneumonia

I have had a cold since the

beginning of March and cannot

get rid of it, but it has not