Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/31/1 - April - May 1915 - Part 4

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[shorthand]
you do as told - take your bugler
& go & see if you can bring some
support & stretcher bearers."
I saw Lalor go off across dip of top
of Gully & towards Snipers Nest.
It ws last I saw of him. I went
down Malone's Gully, full of mud,
lost putties in mud - got onto
flat at bottom - found wounded
man of 12th hobbling shot in foot. Told
Quantrell to give him a hand. I
went on, met some s.bs. waiting
there - I sent them up & saw
them start & reported to some
Col. on beach tt Capt. Lalor
wanted reinfs. I had left Lalor
abt 4 p.m. I had left top of 700
abt 3.15 & there were 2nd Bn men there
still there at 4. o'c.

I reported to D.H.Q. & saw
Glasfurd & told him Lalors message
& he told me to stand by to reinf rt.

30
flank.

Then went back to place where
few slightly wds etc of 12th collected
just S of Ari Burnu - Lay down &
went to sleep - Green of 12^th ws there
collecting stragglers. A P.M came along
& told me I ws to collect all men
I cd of 3 Bde & report to Glasfurd,
to move out to right. Men looked
as if quite unable to do any climbing
at all. White came out & sd "You
people stand by: if we want you
we'll send." I sd w a rest they'll
fight but we'll never get them up
there.

We went into little gully near
Nomansland  A.C. headq. & had some tea.
In middle of tea had to go up &
reinf right.  Went up w all men
of 3 Bde I cd get. Met in Shrap
Gully Maj. Ross who ordered
us back to beach as 3 Bde were
trying to reorganise. It ws

Monday.:

31
now dark. Maj. Smith ws there -
& took charge of 12 Bn. I slept on
beach - Abt 12-30 it ws cold & I went
& got my pack & dozed off - got my
w.p. sheet. Sailors wd wake me up.
Got prac. no sleep. At dawn
(3.30 we moved up under Maj.
Smith & dug in in rear of N.Z.
on Maclagans Ridge - Everyone ws
digging. Mountain Batty ws down
near Hell Spit.

Then we moved up Shrap Gully into
firing line - just to S. of Wire Gully.
We were in support. Maj. Denton
ws there. We were there abt 12.30

There seemed to be heavy firing
near head of Monash's Gully.
We were on rear slope of ridge
digging shelves.

Abt dusk orders came along
"Australians will not fire
another shot tonight." "French
& English have enemy surrounded."
came along before that. "Cease

32
fire."

On Tues. morning early the Navy
fired one shot short - a big one -
& killed one man near me - man
in next positn jumped straight out into
mine -

Turks then started attack in
force near Quinns across Mortar
Ridge in small skermishing parties,
beautiful lines. Also across _∧E slopes of
Battleship Hill & Chessboard. Navy
got on to them - they were fairly
thick - & soon nothing of hill ws
visible except low lying green
curtain of lyddite. Enemy found
hill unsafe. They came down
opp. Courtneys. We cd see Turks
coming up. Australians ran out
to meet them, both w bayonets fixed.
Our men cd be seen standing up
shooting at abt 10 yds distance.
T.s gave way into hollow &
went I think took up positn there.
They had a m.g. there ? near G.O.T.

Supports had to be
dragged out w
bayonets shining in
moonlight all /
time to line rear
slope.

33 
We were waiting standing to for
exp. attack all morning, & all
afternoon. At night Ts. cd be
heard blowing bugles, shouting Allah,
shooting like / devil - we expected
bayonet charge every minute -
Every few minutes firing line wd
sing out "Supports ready to charge."
Once a cheer ws heard on left &
thinking it ws / charge to meet /
attack we left trenches & ran abt
10 or 15 yds forwd. There ws intense
darkness - saw nothing - so
decided to go back to trench.

Constant cries of "stretcher bearers
wanted on rt or left" - "Another
m.g man wanted." Continuous
rattle of musketry & m.g. all night.
No sleep. I went to sleep w head on
arm & revolver in hand on parapet.
Waked up by friend.

By daylight found tt several
snipers had got thro' to ridge in
rear of positn & in 65 minutes

Wed.

34
we had lost 5 men. After tt
abt. 8 a.m. 12 Bn ws relieved (Wed.
morng) & ordered to reorganise on
beach. No sleep since Frid night,
all beards, no one had washed,
few even had time for a rear.
Nerves felt at end - trowsers torn
to ribbons, boots all mud.
Alway plenty to eat, plenty of ammn,
plenty of water - supply people got
it up. Mules were party responsible
for this - no man there will forget
mules.

6 officers out of 29 turned up -
Maj. Smith, Capt Burt, Capt. Keyser,
Capt Rafferty, Lieut Margetts, Lieut
Vowels. Strength of Coy. 84 - Bn out
of 213. Bn. 8 offrs 472 others.
out of abt 1000.

Navy shelled Suvla (Lala Baba)
moved into Victoria Gully on Wed
night. Bn Parade on Thurs morng.
On Frid. 9.30 am moved into

Frid.

Saturday
May 1.

35
trenches and relieved 4 Bn. facing
Silt Spur. Trenches v. shallow but
room for firing line & supports &
Commn trenches. They sd there
was nuisance from snipers.
Battn had 3 sections – I had left,
Burt centre, Keyser & Vowels rt.
No casualties tt day. On left  1 bn
of R.M.L.I. under subaltern
of abt 18yrs. Spent day digging
imp. trenches, deepening & traversing.
by blocking trench & digging round.

Still digging. R.M.L.I sitting
tight not digging.

That night we laid wire in
front of trenches finishing
just before moon rise. As soon
as moon rose Ts attacked in
force in droves on our left front.
We fired rapid controlled fire,
in bursts, upset order of line &

36
heard cries of Allah & bugles.

Guns on right flank did
wonders at abt 700 yds.

Again Ts advanced & again
bursts broke them up. Sectn
Commanders had men well under
control - "5 rounds rapid " then
waited till another target etc.
One man shot thro' head.

In morning counted 37
dead Ts in front of our small
portion of trench. This scrap put
great heart into men.

Attack lasted till dawn -
they wd go back & get into gully.
When firing ws on front word
ws passed from marines for an
Australian officer I Found
1 of our men in charge of 3 men
w fixed bayonets, a sub. & a
Major - So I asked They wanted
to know if man ws an Australian 

37
I asked what he ws doing He
sd he ws DH.Q & had
had a slow time & come up for
a shot - "I struck / wrong shop",
he sd. It ws these marines who
(their Maj. sd next morning) shot
their own colonel & bayoneted
M'Nicol. They had a lot of
casualties tt night. We only
had one.

After tt on Sund morng
we were relieved by 8 Bn &
bivouacked on beach- Dug all
afternoon - Monday 3rd moved
to Shell Green to support 11 Bn.
One Coy went in & relieved
part of 11^th who next morning
at dawn went to Gaba
Tepe.

Lt Rafferty on Wed ws put into little
9 man rifle pit on right of street
on Maclaurins Hill & relieved on
Frid/ Sat night by Marines.

38
Capt. Rafferty 12 Bn.

Landed ½ way betw. Fishermans
Hut & Ari Burnu.

Instructions: to land & meet
26^th Ind. Mtn Batty at rendezvous
betw 5 & 7a.m. - as soon as
possible after 5 am. They were to
take positn on Hill 400 & we were to
meet them near foot of Shrapnel valley.
We were the gun escort - full platoon.

Got off Ribble w 1^st tow wh
dropped last boat, returned to pick it
up, then moving off 2nd boat caught
anchor, tore away. ∧Tug ordered to
cast off. She went to 2nd tow &
we rowed ashore w 3 oars under
fire, 2 men hit in boat.

Landed, assembled men in
creek mouth, took off packs,
put them together - One man just
charge - rec^d. orders from colonel
to go & combat fire on left. I told him
(We parked packs - man left in charge
ws aftwrds taken awy by someone)