Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/22/1 - December 1915 - Part 2

A Taube ws over yesty but
not today.  Our airmen have
bn active.

9
not to call for volunteers but to
choose / best men.  It is / suspense
tt / men dont like. The suspense from
the beginning o / 1st night onwards
will be enormous.  The Ts will
have 36 hrs in wh they might break
/ line - 36 hrs of pure bluff on our part.
They might fall back on finding any
opposition in front of them.
The Turks started some sort of
works on Snipers Nest again today
(so Braithwaite tells me) but
our howitzers are having a go
at it tonight.  Since the last big
straffe there doesn't seem to have 
bn anyone there.
The last 6in Hs go off tonight.
The guns have been firing abt
as much as they used to - but
we are using the 5 inch more
& the NZ 4.5s.  The NZ guns on
Walkers Top can hardly be 

10
got off without being seen - at
present / guns are trying to
fire from different emplacements
& one gun is doing / work of
4 - trying to keep abt /
normal amt of firing.
Beachy is still firing tonight
one shot abt every ¼ hr - they
are going into / Hill at my back.
As I had my dugout burgled yesty
- someone as soon as Divl H.Q.
moved went through / dugouts &
took searched all my things
& took my camera - I have
brought everything across to Army
Corps & borrowed a dug out
there for a night or two - or rather
a wooden house - a very fine one.
I dont so much mind losing /
camera (my second one) as
Blamey has lent me his & I have

11
a small one from Embleton; but
it contained 3 pictures of the Bacchante
shelling Kaba Tepe - & those I do
rue the loss of.  There will always
be these prowlers - they are mostly
men who wd do just / same in
peace time.
I see / Turks seem to be
shelling the Suvla landing place -
or is it a storm. Probably the lightning
showed up some o / work.  I hope
it doesn't turn S.W.  N is alright
& NE better; but S.W. wd break up
our beautiful new railed pier to
the Milo - built by Maj. Williams
in 4 days.
1 a.m. A m.g. - I think it is ours - is
keeping up a constant rattle on
the Nek.  I dont know what is the
matter with it _ There's very little
bombing so probably no attack
more than a reconnaissance.  The
T. front line is very near ours
there.

12
Thank heaven the wind is N. still.
Firing on right continues.  It
is ours & 2 m.g.s are going sometimes.
I went outside onto Army Corps
terrace to see - & found Gen Lesslie
walking up & down there in his
pyjamas and an overcoat listening
to it.  "I think I'll go in  Light
in Signal office but none in Gen.
White's room.  "I think I'll go in
& tell White" sd Lesslie.  He did so.
Presently he reappeared.  "He sd he’s
bn listening to it," Lesslie sd.
"I generally used to go in & tell
Skeenoh" he added half apologetically.
Firing continued.  Seemed to
come from Chathams - so I pushed
off up that way.  Going past my
old dug out on / upper road I
found Lt Kirk of 17^th.  He
called to me.  "I'm getting ready

3
/ last time," he sd.  I have to cover
/ last lot” - Col. Paton in
command & I'm ∧practically second". &
So he'll be right at / end.  I
wonder if people realise what a
frightfully ticklish job this is.  "Worse
than the landing," sd Col. Hart. to
me up at / Apex today.  And I
think many people think so.  If only
they knew how our anxiety is
increased by / light hearted way
they talk about it _
"What on earth are we waiting
for?" asked one o / N.Z. staff at
dinner today.
"Oh - for Asquith to make
a statement ∧in / House, tt we're going to
abandon evacuate," sd Reid,
/ C. of Staff promptly.
- The third line runs across
Plugge's Plateau & to Queensland

14
Point wh is a mass of wire -
it will be held.  There are chevaux
de frise there being got ready to put
across every road & path -
it goes to Blameys heart to abandon
/ half made road up Shrapnel
Valley - & Monash has had
is thinking hard o / wonderful
underground barrackrooms his
men have dug clean thro'
Cheshire Ridge in / last month
But there are none at Suvla with
xxxx so far as I know - so /
place cdnt be held (They have
had exactly as long to dig as
we have).
Well - I went on to Y Ac;
there ws a light in Glasfurds room
but he wsn’t there.  Seeing a
gleam thro / chinks of a
neighbouring dug out I looked

15
in - & there was  Chauvel -
lying in bed w influenza wh he
has had for a fortnight (it is
probly paratyphoid) & Glasfurd.
It appears the 1^st Bn had ½
an hrs silent stunt.  Just at / end
of it the Turks opened fire &
so did we (or perh. we designedly
opened first).  Ryrie's Bde open
reported the same. I shall go
up there tomorrow so I didn't
go on.
I only wish / Turks wd attack
today or tomorrow.  When I sd to
Lesslie - "I expect its / Turks
coming out to find whether
we're there" - he answered 
"Well - they've found it out by
now if its / Light Horse boys they're
up against."  Somehow when /

1
I suggested to Chauvel tt Anzac
pier (where Beachy is so deadly)
shd have a line barrier of hay trusses
put down it.  It wd certainly
save lives for Beachy has / exact
range of the pier.  Chauvel
thought it a good idea - / only
question is - will a fatigue party
be available?  I shd say from /
3rd line they wd.

16
firing is from tt right flank one
has not / faintest misgiving.
They cant get thro tt 2 LH Bde
if they try for a year w its
grand men & its solid old
Bdier.
In / Auckland lines today 
I found out tt Pte Burton NZMC
who sent in t article on "Army 
biscuits" wh I was rather
suspicious of as ‘unoriginal, was 
a nice looking university youngster
& / article is undoubtedly genuine.
---
I stow this confidential
diary in my sleeping bag at
Army Corps H.Q. - & leave it
there during / day.  If t Turks
got so far it wd tell them
nothing they didnt know; whereas
if they rushed / firing line when

17
I ws there it wd tell them
too much, perhaps. I did
chance taking a couple of
confidential maps ∧in my pocket up Bully
Beef sap & to / Apex - But
after all - I shd have had time to
burn them; & if / Turks got
so far it wd almost be all
up w our plans.
4.15a.m. Woke up.  Moon is down.
Night rather stormy - flashes of lightning
over Helles - Turks firing rather a
lot. Constant bombs somewhere in lines.
Don't think anything especial is
happening.
The men are many of them
fairly convinced that the Turk is
doing the same thing tt we are
- & hopping it.  I believe he has
lightened.

18
Frid. 
Dec 17^th Woke up to find a grey sky
w heavy thunderclouds - & through
/ gauze o / window I cd see the
scud moving from the South West.
Just / wrong direction for us.
However, the wind was not
heavy & tho' there was a slight swell
there wasn't enough to disturb
the piers.
Met Howse Walked past Howse's
dug out as he was shaving.  "What I
shd like to know is what they are
going to do w us afterwds," he sd.
"I hope they'll keep us all together," I sd.
"So do I", sd he, "x I've been trying
to put it to Maxwell.  But he's in
favour of just / opposite & so are
they all - when they have good troops
they dont want to keep them all
together but to scatter them about
- & I'm not sure they're not right
looking at it from / Empire's point
of view.  Of course for Australia we
shd like to see them kept together.
But Australia has taken a very bg wide
view up to / present and I daresay she
will still."
White tells me I can have