Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/10/1 - June - September 1915 - Part 13

43
chance of surviving is simply the chance
th / war may end before they are on a
thick rough & tumble scrap. The 6 Gurkhas
had originally 12 officers & has received 8
since; it has 4 left (2 of whom arrived 2 days
ago).
Inaditell shurke truches are in corpt
ones to get allong. They are sportmen
they dont build trenches for men like
Anstalians o You are apt to be siysed
at wholeway, as you move along
them.
I found the 104H in fite new liy
captned trench.I believe thy found
body of Grant, the N.Z. Chaplain whois
K yesly - shat thro chest - in a
shallow i trench full of dead tarks in
interioo o1 circh (, sic note foot
Ang 30 Stayed i writing. Beachy Bill
opened out tis afteroon probably, after
visit of 2 Taubes yest. She pud. 27 shells
out the new N.Z. pier + depot - &
finished to 4 outside this dugout wh
killed ove tomy guardiy 1 prisoners,
wounded 2 (one fatally Im apair) & one
Turk. It is wonderfly shooting & a 4mshell.
Alanson rather impressed me by
one phrase yesty. Of course this is a war
of cuefficiency, hedd, and you sungly
 

But
 

of
 

ainy No

 

44
take
have to accept tt for granted & muddle thro
as best you canf He meant that the efficient
men had long since be used up, & Britain
had to ase old men & inifficient men to command
Battalias & Bdes - poor old thays they are
doing their best; it is really rate pathet
They fet killed - anyway - & they cant do
walk more. But no 6igadier really ought
to be over 45 & no colonel over 40 of as
mach. A move such as a of Ang 6/
wh required extreme energy is a foregone
faihure to such material. Seepy old
John Monash - cauteous if ever aman
was - is one of worsd sorted men for
sch a nove; but his probable brelliant
compared to some others
Aug. St. writing all day
9.20 p.m. very beavy firing & bombing on
lep. clearly some sort of attack. Firny
a little bombin still going on at 11 p.m. Macat
11.40 Job bombs
Tne 11t & 12th Light Horse have arrived
The 12th calls itself the P.L. W. own - & one of
tiis officers assund an officer of the HLHR.
to they are absolutely the firest L.H. Bde t
has over lef distradia. The squadrows of
the 2 regements have been turned over to
other LH. Regements belongeng to (same
states. When one NS.W. sqn. of t(1h) 160
 

strong, marched in to reinforce the St. C.HR.
they thought it ws a brigade coming in? The
whole regimet hadnt totalled 160 a few days
before. The 13th Kept they say is kept to
act as did cavalry for 2nd Dion.
The colonel has gone as colonel to the 8t LH
wh ws commanded by a subatern; & the
Bdier has remained in Egypt.
Dudd W. Smith ws down for a
bathe & stayed to dinner.
a cable from Mrs Vincent asking abt her
brother who aa msig on AugT. In apsil
there's no chance. He was in the r EH.&
all their messuy are dead.
thurs
Sept. End I have to go slow with Caryagilis
now that is over I have the begining of an
attack of the diarrhoca which is sunning
thro' the whole camp. We have had very litele
enteris - poor Col. Rowell of the L. Herse
died of it, I believe, in Alex & butany
amount of dysentery.
There is a report to night that a
transport has been sunk & 1400 lives lost.
Someday they are Australians. Lawrenc&
Vevenson are over here.
Sept S. Friday
Kect Murdoch arrived today. He is
going to London for the Syd, Stin & Mell.
Herold "to manage their cable service from
 

16
 

116
The times office. He sayd the transport
was the Northland & contained some four
Sixth Brigsde. Others say it is the Sankland.
One report is to no one was killed - all
boots picked up; another says I ship
wasnt sunk & maned to pet in.
I had to lie up, but took Murdoch
upto top of this hil to see (view.
Sa Sept4. In bed. Murdoch went upto
see gen. Walker + Lons Pine.
San Sept b. Hope to take M. out to the left.
but wasn't fit. He went out himself.
We hear the South and had some ofsixth
Bde.
MonSept C. Took M. Apto quenns. He had an
interview w little Walker yest. Walkes
was really Expansine - told him how he
had come to believe in & love his men &
how he ad not change his command for
I world. Theven like little Hooky o
too hes a man we owe something to
wevenson tells me to Hooky ws his name
at school.
en lap at medday 62 Bdeprway.
and dir who
the staf of the
ties
Sept
 

were on the Sankland, arrived during
night & the 131 Austrla Bde will begin to be
relieved today. They have been putting the
5 &6 Bdes gradaally into trenshes & now
the 5th is fairly well blooded. Our men are
a little cynicabl & jealous of these new Troops
because the papers have always said The
ast contingut ws I finest tt has left
Australia. To youvg come at last,
have you?sd one man as e new
ons file pastents Lone Pine. The new
men dedn’t say anything we reply. It
ay have bu meand for a joke budit
ws just a little bitter, The new Cot are
fine men but I officers dont impress one
at all - & some bus have not I remoten
idea of sanitation. The same ws 1 case
wil hight rse Be ch arrivd
day & was split up between the 1stg
Grd Bdes, each states regt getting a
squad ron from its own state. The Bdier
Col. Spivee Brown , ws left in Egyst
-I hear he has pt the 6th Bde in plece
Col. Lenton who ws drowned or rater
died of exposire - atter the Southlond
disastyy & Col Watson was to have had it,
but I farrangement had by alte.
The Southland disastor took
place (on Sept.2.
It is
 

118
pretty fully desribed in my cable of tday.
Gelllbrand, who is a cool + if anything Cynical
critic, tells me my account is decuret
+ not overdrawn. The new, he says
behaved excellently well. I did very
well for thenselves out of the availible
kit in (time at their disposal"f he added.
e ast somig himselfby th
he is sarcastic.
They some of them saw submeie
abl a mile away, it seemed. And guaval
gunner to the 4.7 gan on (stern got off
two shols at its periscope (wh ws possibly
hy it did not fi again. e be cesed
firig. The Submarine fired 2 Crpees,
of second one went jast under teir
stern It wod have se aled them. But
to only one bole - 45f by 12 their bulklen
stood & so long as it stood they were
safe. The donger wo to it night not
stand & a very great danger.
The ship eventualty got to ada
drawing 34f forwd 15 204 aft
her list had not ber heavy tho'
pronounced. The crews-were paitof
them hopelessi stokees + some stewards.
The first mate trid to keep them back
&fwal had to shoot to enforc his
ordersone man thro1 heads &
 

Ask on
Ha sh
Fasohi
Young as
The medicos
Articles
men.
The 01d Dug out.
Patts-day csrt-Quinins pronpa
man on Poeach
macna
onstow.
Police.
He 4
Cattes
Canlie
Spy, Stories
 

Wed.
 

116
another tro.
leg.
They eventeath
rushed some o 1boats I think thebie they
as capsized & ty overturned another
a Bdier (inton in it. Sellibrand tells
met overturning of boats wo
work of1 crew & heco a careful
narrator. Our men had to string some
of devits from wh 1. boats had been
cut - & fix new falls & tackle to them
All this took time. These new raw
Auatialian troops behaved in away
end have given an examply to many
old & hardened regiments.
Tumny still very sore. Bazley
is the same way
The Bt told us at quinns that
they krow $350 bombs last night There is
atso a short section of trench there which is
called the racecourse bec. you get a lot of
turkish bonbs in it I dont think they can
yet be up to the form o 1 troops they relieved
-naturally. Two Light Hone sergto went
thro a section of quinas (other day when I
new troops were in & found not a single
periscope up. Also some oInew lot have
no regard whatever for sanitation.
Sept S. Ihear they word appoint
an officer in Austi ander 23. Id
they cdud appt. an officer over
40
thered be something in it.
 

120
House tells mne that he is not to be
made D.MS. (austialia). The Australian
good is sending Featherston (who truck
me as a very foolish person) to invesligate
afairs in Egypt.
Sept 9. Thursday.
Gen lepp amind
two days ago. The 2nd Division - 586 Bded, 7 not
yet arrived - have been having a soot of introduction
to their work - 5th a pretty sough one on knoll
60- + To they have fone into quinns; 6th at
steels - + nowty are going ats hone Pine.
Ara English Dron is relieving the New Zealing
of whom Monast's Bde is down (largely Rro
sickness) to about 700 & te NYM.R to
300 or 300
Col Skeen has one away, ill.
The pt Bde began to come out of the
Pine last night; Ih rather came down to
beach. The 2nd Bn & part of NI were imbarked
before 4 arm. & sent to Mudias. I believe
an order went thro today to Egyst
for $10,0,000 bottle of beer for the Division
That is about15 perman) - to be
forwarded to mudros from Egypt.
for the troops canteen for the month
some Indeam troops & deteil
were disembarting at C same tie
when our men were emmbarfiam
+ (some of the ovaval officers or
 

121
British officers on the sier nearly drove i
wild by their shouting of orders at the
top of their voices. any turk on walkers
Ridy could hear him & hear what te
sel, & it is just a wonder to they were
not shelled - thy were on ang4 & we
know from dinry of a captain tuit
the Ilond noises on 1 English sier!"cd
be heard at night when those Crtit
troops were disembarking. our troops
last night worked without any noise
at all & without I lighting of matches.
The Navy very nearly messed I whole
decembarcation last lnyht by not
having the lighters ready before it was
almost down.
The 2nd Bde is going off waylt
except 7 Bn. The 3r4 Bnshavent gone
yet, nor 3id Bde wartilliry. I believe
112 Field ambees are going o the
Supply Coys out I'm apaid artillery
woud have a chance + probably
not Dt. I am going off to Sbros
in a day or two & probibly to atten
tanto
Sept. 10 Inday. Br
tleft of weak
tea without milk or sugar; a plate of porsidge;
a picer of toast - better than all the
condevsed milk of the past fewdays.
I went out to the left to monash & now
 

Esue Bde holds old Anstralian
line. The new Commn trinity on their
left is du into the trunck taken by
the N.G.M.R . Soth the 4th Bole, tho' Et
may have gobents the trench
X Cas Monesh
says) didnt

keep th truch.

Monash had
never been a cross
there - Irater
Kaiagit
Dere
wonder at his I
know no other Brigadies,
unless it be Hughes, that would not have
been through it.
the esue hold the sustation has t he down
across the Aghyl Dere Jully (sapy manned by
sught in meddle of gully) and up newhall to
monast. The London Bde makes a corty
in frond of them here - an inverted
and it right must end not far in frond
of Monash - near the Chailah Dire below
the farm.
 

122
where 38th Bde was a very catraordining poiitn.

toe
4ens
te
18

44

l

the
00
2

Commn trunch
Aperwods I went or to find to alases B3.
on as way I passed two implacements of the
agw
French 75 - where on the right of Aug 6/7.
The 154 found their wheel tracks sext morning
On to road, only two wheel tracks, with
the marks of a skid at the bend as if it
had be got out very hurriedly.
Near by a companion of the 15th Mower
me a point where the parks ade a bit of a
stand. They saw several, Tarks there +
etram
he saw one of our men - a little tater
e passed the place onmorning
and there was our man dead; shot