Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/96/1 - January 1918 - Part 3

19

I 'm not going, he sd.
You are going, sd Watson.
You'll have to bloody well
drag me there, sd / man.   If I
go, I'll go in an ambulance.
Watson sd, Very well - 
& ordered up an ambulance.
He tied / mans wrists
to it & then told / ambulance
to start. The man flung
himself on / ground - but
after he had bn dragged
30 yards he ws crying
for pardon.  He wd go,
he said.  The men, as the
chap passed them under
escort, were laughing at
him, Watson sd.
This fellow wrote to
 

20
Birdwood when he got to
France;  & Watson got a
"Please Explain" - He
replied telling B. the exact
circumstances.   He had to
do something definite, he
sd- he ws confronted by
/ flat refusal in / face
of 500 or 600 men all
under / same order to
start.   He received a reply
tt Birdwood completely
endorsed his action.
The man is now trying to
make a fuss politically.   I
heard a message version
of this affair from Box the day after
I arrived in London - so it
has clearly reached the
 

21
High Commissioner   I
must tell Box the facts
as I heard them.
The pleas wh came
in at Xmas time to Watson
for extra leave in London
were overwhelming.  Fathers,
Mothers sick, dying,
sisters being married -
something seemed to be
happening all at once to
/ whole overseas Training
Bde - officers & men.
On Xmas Eve - or one
of these days, I forget wh -
a wire arrived from one
of the ^Bde clerks who ws
 

22
in London:
"No one Sick," it sd,
"No one dying  Having hell
"of a good time - Please
"grant 12 hours extension
"Pte. -    -    Bulldog
"Club London."

The writer ws already
half an hour out of time;
but they cdn't resist the
plea - it ws approved.
Watson may not be
a perfe is on / whole a
good officer, I think;  & a
strong one.

The case took me
 

23
back to Tidworth  - & 5
miles from Bulford.
It was an eyeopener
to me as we came over
/ saddle o / hills in
/ dark & saw / whole
valley before us filled
w / lighted windows o /
great barracks there - not
one barracks, it seems
but a series of them.
Our Salisbury Plain
H.Qrs - the Command of
all these training Bdes of new
reinforcements & old troops
returning - The white blood &
 

24

the purple - is here,
in Bhurtpore Mess -
a fine Barracks mess
of red brick in the best
style of the regular  Barracks
o / old  British regular army.

Gen. Foott, & Col. Knox &
half a dozen others were
in the ^ fine Ante-room there
- like a comfortable club room
as where / fire was reflected
in the polished parquet
floor.

I walked back to
Bulford - Called  w Jack
on Purves, & found two
of the members o / newly
 

25

raised brass band o / hospital
practising in his room.
& having a cup of bovril. X
Of 100 patriots the
C.O.  Purves ws entertaining
them, though himself in
bed with rheumatism -
as cheerful as cd be.
His batman (he prefers
a patient to any of the
others) & the librarian
(one o / men) were there
also.
 Jan 15 14.   Back to
London.

Went with Wilkins to
the Gaumont Coys film
 

26
theatre to see / negative
of our Australian Film
put thro.  This ws /
film wh I edited last
January - it cost one
/ whole of a visit to London,
working hard;  we got together
a fine film of all /
pictures MacDowell &
others had taken with
me at Fleurtaix & Pozieres
 - pieced it together in order
& made a thoroughly true
interesting story o /
Australians in France.
I saw it run off (with
a flash where / titles
 

27
were to be - & left
these to be put in -

under Smart was
told tt / film ws
simply being held  back
for this.   He did not
come down & see it
himself.

It was a blow to
find tt / film wh
was sent out, as / result,
had no relation whatever
to / finished film I left -
neither / arrangement
nor / titles had any
connection whatever
w / film wh I put together.
A few lengths o / film I left
 

28

were scattered at random
thro the miserable
production on / screen -
with fancy titles without
sense or truth.   I couldn't
believe this ws /  way the ^∧ film in

question - it seemed impossible.

had done their work.
But it was the film, we
found.

Jury, who was responsible
for it, was knighted for
his other great services on
Jan 1st.

The whole of our Pozieres
cinema work has gone for nothing.
Jan 15th Da Thanks to these
British & their private
enterprise.