Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/2/1 - January - March 1915 - Part 11

99
March 4                                                                                        
I go through the camp - "set of bally wasters" 
(what I am supposed to have called them - of 
course I didn't; but I don suppose they 
misunderstand the word "leaven" of 
wasters which I used referring to the 
handful of chaps - now mostly sent back - 
who were getting these chaps a bad name).
"Do you read the Argus?" & things a good deal 
warmer, occasionally, than that.  Now the 
history of the article is as follows:   It 
was actually written because the General asked 
me to write something to prepare the people 
of Australia for the return of the men who 
had been disgracing their country in Cairo & 
bringing a bad name on the whole force.  They 
are mostly old soldiers, few many of them not born 
in Australia at all & when one saw 
what splendid _^ willing young chaps most of the 
force was composed of one could not 
help being angry at the way these old 
hardheads were losing the whole of this 
fine body of young Australians their good 
name.  I thought something ought to be written about it but didnt think they would 
ever let anything through.  One gets very ashamed of oneself crying continually that all is well when 
name.  The General-first spoke to me about
as a matter of fact all is not well - It doesn't seem fair to the people of Australia.  However I
it - He had received a letter from General
was preparing to write a lot of little pretty trivial stories when the General met me on the 
stairs & stopped me.  He said he had received a letter from General

100.
March 4                                                                          
Birdwood, who had been spoken to by Gen. 
Maxwell about the conduct of this 
rowdy section of the Australian force.  
The General said of course I was not to send 
the letter itself; but he would show it to me & 
I could write something about it to prepare 
the Australian people _^ for the sending home of these rowdies.  I asked if I should 
do so by cable or letter, & he said he thought 
both.  I therefore cabled an extract from Sir 
George Reid's speech about "The " if there 
is any amongst you that is unworthy 
etc. etc., they must be cast out" - & wrote 
this 18^th article carefully avoiding any 
scare, understating the facts in every 
direction, & being as far as I could, 
scrupulously fair.  _^ They simply don't know - Some of them don't believe they were getting a bad name.  But I had heard the Australians 
discussed in the Admirals cabin on the 
Swiftsure, when there were about 20 distinguished 
officers & others at lunch;  Sir John Maxwell 
asked me if they all drank quite so hard, & 
when they were going to stop it; he said he 
wd have to put the _^ hotel bars out of bounds 
if they didn't stop it; every time one went 
into Cairo the censors, the telegraph clerks, 

101
March 4                                                                            
the civilians in the hotels used to ask 
me when the Australians were going to be 
tied up & nearly always _^ often drew some comparison 
between them & the New Zealanders & Territorials.   
I always said it was only the act of a few 
- & it seemed quite clear to me too that 
something ought to be written about it in 
order to see that it didn't happen with future contingents  
So I was glad when the General 
& also to make sure that the old hard heads 
who were sent home didn't go back & 
turn round & pose as injured heroes & 
start abusing _^ those officers & men who were 
here really doing their work in a way 
to bring credit on their country.  The 
article prevented that.   And now, in 
spite of the outcry in camp,  the General 
has not gone back upon his opinion.  He 
said the other day he thought it was 
a good article except in one point - 
that he it smaller to mention seemed to make out that 
the Light Horse at Maadi were better 
than the Mena men.  Col. White saw my 
point there - that the civilians at Maadi 
had done more for the troops than the

102
March 4                                                                                  
people anywhere else & that had (as it 
unquestionably did) its effect.  "I think it 
was a good thing it was written, Bean", 
Col. White said, " it is a wholesome article;
it will do a lot of good".
And I think so too, although I don't 
know that I'd have written it if I had thought any 
Australian papers would twist it into scares 
about their absent soldiers & that offe wives & 
relations would so hopelessly misunderstand 
what was so clearly written.  I believe the 
article has done & will do good - anyway 
my job is to tell the people of Australia 
the truth.  When things go wrong - & they went looked like 
going very wrong at Christmas time - my job is to 
see that at any rate the blame is put on the 
right people & that the innocent dont get a
bad name for what they didn't do.  When
things go right I have to try & see that 
the Australian people knows the right 
people to get the credit.  If they want 
some one to feed them on soft pap, only 
to tell them good & pleasant things whatever 
happens, then I am not the man for the job.

103
March 4                                                                                
I am not going to shift one little any part of 
the responsibility for this article onto other 
shoulders.   I have told no one except Jack 
(although some of the staff knew it before) that 
the General asked me to write this article.  
What I have done is (1) to try and correct the 
scare article in The Sydney Sunday Times 
(which I did not write) by a strong cable 
to Australia; & (2) to show the men that if 
I write about things when they go wrong I also 
write & give them the full credit when things 
go right.  I have got the staff to publish 
an extract from my article on the Division 
in orders & also an extract of a cable 
sent on Feb 26^th.  I have got Reuters
corres  In order that it was anything 
said in my article may not affect the 
reputation of the force outside Australia, I 
have got that Reuters correspondent here 
to telegraph an immensely appreciative 
(& to my mind perfectly true) summary 
of the work of the A.I.F. here to every 
paper in Great Britain.  I know it has

104
March 4 / 5                                                                       
had some effect in Australia because 
we have had a telegram from the _^ Defence Minister 
there (which has been published in orders) 
congratulating the troops on the work 
report.  I have seen that this also 
got into the Egyptian Mail.
I cant do more than that - & 
there I leave it.  I am not telling anyone 
that the General asked me to write the 
article because, for one thing, I approve of I wanted to write it & I believe it has 
it altogether done good; & secondly it would make 
him unpopular & f it is far better 
that I shd be unpopular than he. 
I could apply to be attached to 
the 2nd Divn - which doesnt feel the 
same way - but I'm not going to.  
The 1^st Australian one is the one I've 
been with & I'm not going to criticise 
them and run away.  I've no doubt the 
2nd Divn has just as many troublesome 
rowdies in it as we once had - perhaps 
more. 
March 5 Friday.   Spent last night at Heliopolis

105
March 5                                                                           
House Hotel as I wanted to see the New 
Zealanders returned from the Canal, & to 
get Col. Monash to let me have some particulars 
of the composition of the second force.  I saw a 
divisional manoeuvre of theirs the other day - 
something very fine spectacularly.  I had come over
to see Col. Monash or MacGlynn & found they 
had gone out _^ on a "scheme".  It was then about 1 o'clock The clerks in the brigade 
office didn't know if it was a divisional 
or a brigade scheme - thought it was 
a brigade one - out along the Suez Road.  I 
walked out in the direction indicated & after 
about 2 hours hard going found the Divl. 
Headquarters of Gen. Godley _^ on a steep solitary hill with the N.Z. 
Mounted Rifles brigade dismounted in 
rear of it - looking very fine.  They 
told me Col. Monash's Headquarters 
were probably away on the left - so I 
pushed on up a sandy wady & found 
it about an hour later.  The attack was 
just finishing - an assault on a hill; &
I walked back to Heliopolis, had tea 
there, drove halfway from Cairo to Mena 
camp - &, as it was cold & the trains were

106
March 5                                                                                      
crowded I walked the last 5 miles from Giza 
to camp getting back about 9.30 & having walked 
from 25 to 30 miles since 11.30.  That was a few 
days ago - Wednesday, I think.
Today, I got back to Mena at midday 
& we started at once on a divisional 
manoeuvre, our first.  The scheme was 
explained by the General from Cairn Ridge 
behind the Pyramids. Then we went out 
into the desert & placed our H.Quarters 
at Grey Hill & afterwds drew it back behind 
a smaller hill at the back.  The two 
brigades were both late in starting for 
their attack & afterwards got a little 
too much ahead.  Late at night the 
transport came up through the desert 
with the mens blankets and tucker.  It 
was a fine sight to see them coming - 
eight horses in a team - through the 
heavy sand. The old General slept out - 
just curled himself up in a gutter in
the sand - I saw him there all by 
himself as I was walking about.  He 
had only a rug on over his overcoat,

107
March 5.  6                                                                      
his cap on his stick _^ stuck into the sand, above his head, & 
his balaclava cap over his ears.
Sat. March 5th.  They attacked again - very prettily 
I believe - at daybreak, & then came 
in.  As they were coming up the Camp 
road, crossing the tramlines, the Generals 
horse came a crashing fall.  Behind 
him was the orderly & behind the 
orderly the Generals A.D.C.  Capt Foster. 
Foster stuck both spurs into his horse, 
was at the Generals side in two bounds, 
flung himself forward like an acrobat, 
& was holding the Generals horse before 
the horse had properly got to his feet. 
I believe it was a risky jump he took 
but it xx succeeded.  The Generals foot 
was deep in the stirrup; his spur was 
caught in the stirrup iron & he was 
a dead man for a certainty if Foster 
had not reached him.
Lunched in the 3rd Inf. mess with 
J & little Goldring & Col. Owen. This 
Colonel is an exceptionally nice man & 
the Battalion simply worships him.

108
March 7                                                                               
To show me that I was forgiven as far as he was 
concerned (and he did not agree with the article altogether) he 
gave me a bottle of Palestine wine which we drank at mess 
& enjoyed.  It is light but refreshing.  & cheap.
Sund. Mar 7.
Today Col. Paterson asked me in to 
see two officers - Maj. Maygar & Maj. Clark, 
both of the 4^th L.H. - who had come up to 
place before Headquarters a letter complaining 
of my article.  It seems the old South African 
soldiers had a meeting some days ago at 
which Maygar & others were present.  They 
were tremendously annoyed at my article 
& made up a letter to be sent to their 
secretary in Melbourne.  Maygar wd not 
forward it on unless it was first sent to Headquarters.  
Col. Patterson told them my letter was justified (though 
he was an old South African war man himself) 
& said they ought to think themselves under an 
obligation to me for helping to rid the force of the 
men who were ruining the name of the 
South African veteran - or words to that effect.  
I read my letter to them - neither of them 
had read it & understood it before; & in 
the end both agreed that every word of it 
was true & I think Maygar,  if not & perhaps Clark 
too (in a half measure at any rate), admitted 
that there was a go reason for publishing it.