Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/13/1 - August 1915 - Part 1

AWM38

Official History,
1914-18 War: Records of C E W Bean,
Official Historian.

Diaries and Notebooks

Item number: 3DRL606/13/1

Title: Diary, August 1915
includes reference to Lone Pine, German
Officers’ Trench, Otago Mounted Rifles
Regiment, New Zealand Infantry Brigade,
Gurkhas and POWS.

AWM38-3DRL606/13/1

Diary 13. Aug 6-9
[[?]] 1st month

Original    DIARY NO. 13
AWM38  3 DRL 606 ITEM 13 [1]
DIARIES AND NOTES OF C. E. W. BEAN 
CONCERNING THE WAR OF 1914 - 1918

THE use of these diaries and notes is subject to conditions laid down in the terms of gift to the Australian War Memorial. But, apart from those terms, I following circumstances and considerations to be brought to the notice of every reader and writer who may use them.

These writings represent only what at the moment of making them I believed to be true. The diaries were jotted down almost daily with the object of recording what was then in the writer's mind. Often he wrote them when very tired and half asleep; also, not infrequently, what he believed to be true was not so --but it does not follow that he always discovered this, or remembered to correct the mistakes when discovered. Indeed, he could not always remember that he had written them.

These records should, therefore, be used with great caution, as relating only what their author, at the time of writing, believed. Further, he cannot, of course, vouch for the accuracy of statements made to him by others and here recorded. But he did try to ensure such accuracy by consulting, as far as possible, those who had seen or otherwise taken part in the events. The constant falsity of second-hand evidence (on which a large proportion of war stories are founded) was impressed upon him by the second or third day of the Gallipoli campaign, notwithstanding that those who passed on such stories usually themselves believed them to be true. All
second-hand evidence herein should be read with this in mind.

16 Sept., 1945                C.E.W. BEAN
AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL
ACCESS STATUS
OPEN

[[Shorthand]]
(Love [[shorthand]] Cousins & neighbour Ali & all house
of Gman)
 [[shorthand]] Hannam.

Mehemet & Mustafa  [[shorthand]]
(2 letters from Turkish parents
to son at front - obviously
written by friend)

Diary 13. Aug 6 - 9.
1 shell near 2nd. mountain battery 1st month
20 mules k (incl 3 horses)
20  [[shorthand]] mules & ponies (2 ponies)
Men 1 k. 8 badly wounded.
Beachy Bill
-----
Aug. 12. All Ts. innoculated  [[shorthand]]
sm pox, cholera & typhoid -
we found their certificates
------
Diary 13
Aug 6/9 & some prisoners'
statements: (obtained about
Aug 15 -20.)

1331  [[shorthand]] (add 13 days - solar)
1333 lunar

2
Photos of heroes
 [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] martyrs  [[shorthand]]
photos  [[shorthand]] photos
 [[shorthand]] HQ  [[shorthand]] in
order  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] N. Army 30 V 1915
------
Turks call this  [[shorthand]] of Ari Burnu
5 Aug. 10 days pass word is "Balloon".
 [[shorthand]] 9.55 blew [[shorthand]]
125  [[shorthand]] 30  [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]]
lasted [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] No 76
[[shorthand]] 9.30  [[shorthand]]
yeshil  [[shorthand]] Kul Tepe  [[shorthand]]

on the Caucasus  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]]
1st Aug  [[shorthand]] 100  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]]

command.
 [[shorthand]] Galicia & Poland  [[shorthand]]

 [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] Warsaw  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] Oc. 16th2  [[shorthand]] Col. Rushti.
 [[shorthand]] O.C. 125, etc.
-----
Letter begins
My spirit  [[shorthand]]
-----
3
2 Bn.
2nd Bn. B Co.  [[shorthand]]  ) 5.30
Cove  [[shorthand]]                  ) prac. together
D Co over  [[shorthand]] as soon  [[shorthand]]
A  [[shorthand]] 6.40
------
B Co  [[shorthand]] of C  [[shorthand]] over into commn
trench & second line of trench & stood ' parados
& shot Ts  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] one of captain in B Coy went further
 [[shorthand]] cut up. He is still  [[shorthand]]
suffered.
[Diagram - see original scan]
Sent 2 men down each of trench from
A towards F. Put [[shorthand]] trench.
By 6 pm / barricaded  [[shorthand]] trench.
Left us [[shorthand]] alone whilst doing this
Next day
sometimes sniped & bombed

4
2Bn
They came back & bombed on Frid. night
but we were digging hard. We got
Sandbags onto reverse slope of trench &
dug firesteps - but no overhead cover
& no a little wire netting on Sat  [[shorthand]] at
extreme rt hand corner.
Used additional  [[shorthand]]
walk over dead.

Saturday 12.30 Turk I bombed
from X to Y so persistenly  [[shorthand]] Col. Scobis
[[shorthand]] from  [[shorthand]] between X & Y. He ws in
[[?6]] trench arranging  [[shorthand]]s when he ws  [[shorthand]]
bomb & killed. (West Maitland)
old S.A.. We fixed up barricades at X & Y
& made  [[shorthand]] trench Y toZ meaning
to join Z to X  [[shorthand]] recapture
XY. We got  [[shorthand]] from 12 Bn Sat  [[shorthand]]
& ^from 1 Bn 8 p.m. We  [[shorthand]]
Dont  [[shorthand]]. Turks w bomb
it from  [[shorthand]] 51 S. We held on bombing
back  [[shorthand]]. We captured 60  [[shorthand]]
own bombs &  [[shorthand]]

Sat Night hung on & bombed

5
2 Bn
On Sund  [[shorthand]] same. Lane  [[shorthand]], Sass k wd, 
Cook
Sat.  [[shorthand]] 12 -12.30. Capt. Pain: The
m.g.  [[shorthand]] killed, Sergt  [[shorthand]] before & not
I, all m.g.  [[shorthand]] exc. privates were k or
w.  [[shorthand]] Capt. J.H.F.
Pain  [[shorthand]] m.g.  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] m.g. had it hoisted
on shoulders of 3  [[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] The tripod
 [[shorthand]] Nichol, Montgomery
Goudemy. So  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] Payne Pain  [[shorthand]] on a firestep
head & shoulders out [[shorthand]] & used
the gun down [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] During 6 [[shorthand]] 750
 [[shorthand]] &gun  [[shorthand]] hit by a bullet,  [[shorthand]]
one of us same  [[shorthand]] hit Pain on
head, k. Montgomery. Had
 [[shorthand]] P. wanted  [[shorthand]]
when  [[shorthand]]is  [[shorthand]]
shoulder  [[shorthand]]

6
2 Bn
[[shorthand]]
Sund  [[shorthand]] 5 am. Stevens  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] Parapet of new  [[shorthand]] & straight down
S ws trench  [[shorthand]] full of Tarks  [[shorthand]]
enfiladed. We got up over  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] a lot  [[shorthand]] 12 [[?]] 15  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] for all worth. Turks in B were
 [[shorthand]] rifles held high in air (Td w
white skull caps)
At  4.30  [[shorthand]] we had  [[shorthand]]
On Sunday  [[shorthand]]
down Surprise Valley to S. carrying
rifles & kit - & sniped at them.
Sat  [[shorthand]] dowad.
-----
7000  [[shorthand]] m g belted. Dug out w
mat, fine coat, [[shorthand]], hookah
sever. 100 rifles. Maps, Very's signal
pistol, blankets, gtcoats. many
 [[shorthand]] sandals.

Antiquated homemade  [[shorthand]]

7
2 Bn
7 Bn  [[shorthand]] us. They lost v. heavily.
M.G. from J. Jolly hit a lot of our men
on  [[shorthand]]
(7th Bn)
[Diagram - see original scan]

8
2 Bn
Hooper  [[shorthand]]
She  [[shorthand]]

Shouth  [[shorthand]]
-----
2 Bn  [[shorthand]] on Morday 4.30 went
in  [[shorthand]] 4th (M'Naughten  [[shorthand]]
Sq. of 7 L.H Coy of 12 Bn (115)
ws scavenging -  [[shorthand]]
 [[shorthand]] sniping, all [[shorthand]] with us.
Stayed  [[shorthand]] Wed, (one man on Wed  [[shorthand]]
got 10  [[shorthand]] 4  [[shorthand]]
Bit of Bombing from E. but.  [[shorthand]]
----
Trench  [[shorthand]] 150 yds  [[shorthand]]
D Coy  [[shorthand]] trenches
22 [[shorthand]]
Stevens  [[shorthand]]