Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/10/1 - June - September 1915 - Part 8

Sm D
W.C.

66
Whilst these shells were falling over / cookhouse tonight
the batmen & others there were perfectly impassive to it,
laughing & running up w / officers dinner - or
sitting in bunches in / open - quite unsheltered -
discussing it - clustering round Donelly & asking
him what happened -  tho' it ws morally certain more
shells wd come - & they did.
The 18pdr shells are getting v. bad. something
causes the shell to expand in / gun & burst at / muzzle.
These shells are this year's make. (1915).
Monday July 26th It is extraordinary how when
secrecy is the essential in an attack everybody in this
garrulous force except the staff of our Divn & possibly
Anzac & NZ & A seems to spend his time discussing /
xxxxxxx plans. When Schuler & C.Smith (who arrd.
today) were sitting in my dug out young x - said:
"Well - you'll see something by July 31st (sh) " I tried to stave

things off - he's a good chap, an awfully good & generally
a wise chap - but he went on "yes I know their landing here
on the 31 stores & everything have to be ready for them". Then the
(sh)
questn came up of where they were to be put in. Oh On the left,
(sh)
he sd - Everybody thinks it is on / left. 
(sh) The same this
afternoon - we were told the(sh) big common up to the
left was being widened in order to admit / guns being taken along there.
(sh)
Surely if these things are so they shd be matters
for / utmost secrecy. The whole success or failure
of our (sh) operation might depend on the enemy knowing these two
"They're not going to wait long when they've landed" sd the first
(sh)
mentioned officer "2 or 3 days at most & then push straight in.
(sh)
(sh)
within a few days you'll have the biggest bloody battle on the ^ peninsula".
 

67
same way when we were coming on / Minneweska
the last persons to know where we were going to
land were Gellibrand, Patterson & Foote on the staff.

Col. Dobbin ws discussing it ab w his officers
& everybody on / ship knew of it weeks before the staff.
were told officially. It seems to me the only people
who ought to know of a matter like this are
Hamilton Braithwaite & possibly Birdwood & 
Skene. The landing place ought to be Q & the
objectives X Y & Z. However here everybody
knows what is going to happen. There's an
Aus.C. on our X who spends 3/4 of an hour walking
* X one of the batmen
up & down outside the signal office listening if
he can hear something. Gellibrand says tt
regular officers are extraordinarily difficult
to impress w any regard for secrecy - irregular
ones seem to me to be quite as bad.
Went out with P.Schuler to the left
flank today to the NZ no 2 post. Col. It

ws like a walk in / country. The post ws taken
up abt 3 wks after we came here. At tt time there
wasn't a trench outside of it - now the whole
place is fortified & entrenched. Patrols of Turkish
Gendarmes in bright blue go out across the plain;
up the Aghil Deresi, the little river wh comes into
the sea N of our lines down wh / T, snipers creep,
is the main H.Q. of the brigade or regt guarding
the N. flank - out of our sight behind the hills.
The hill wh slots in / view there is Bauchope
Hill on wh every re entrant has had
trenches built along its sides (diagram see original) & barbed wire at
 

frop
Brids

68
its head. In front of No 2 Post is the xxx long ridge
of Baby 700 w / main Turkish trench coming down
it from abt battleship hill - a very big work I shd
say - along wh they say all supplies come. Their
trench first appears over / hill crest abt Battleship
Hill & goes straight down towards Walkers Top (or
Russell's Top). From there a spur comes down
straight towards Snipers Nest - on the top of a 
lower sandy cone [ Hand drawn sketch - see original]
wh used to contain
an observatn stn
wh ws absolutely blown off by / destroyers.
Just behind this in / dense green scrub at / bottom
o / valley is a well from wh / Turks draw their
water for the trenches here abts - a heap of
bleached almost pure white earth just visible
above the green scrub. Turks can generally be
seen here or in / communication trench on top o /
hill. We saw one Turk w his black head & shoulders
over / trench top. Paddon of Otago MR who ws
in command for 48 hrs of this part o / post (The bivouac
is in the sheltered triangle betw No 2 & No 3 posts) had 
3 shots at this Turk at a mile & made him move his
head at the second shot. The head moved to / side & one
cd only see / top of it. A minute later this disappeared.
Paddon asked me if I wd like a shot any time - but
my job is not to shoot - I am not a combatant -
& I will not do so.
They hear quite a lot o / Turks at No 3
post. The Turks attacked them about July 16
- abt 100 men came at them but did no good.
 

69
(in my Regimental Book I have a few facts abt the Post &
its history).
Abt 3 wks ago they suddenly noticed a number
of men opposite them with in / trenches just outside
our left in pure white caps Col. S Col. Bauchope told
Col. Skeen & he sd: "By Jove, those are just / chaps
we were looking for. / chaps from Skutari." The
destroyer ws given orders to fire & the Chalmer or
Ribble put in a number of shots into / communication
trench. They all came running out laughing & making
a great joke of it - "Good fellows, I think", sd
Col. Bouchope. "I dont think we did them much
damage".
No 2 & 3 posts have a well down there in / bed of 
a little stream from wh they draw a large supply of beautiful
water. That stream is our absolute left. Just behind
/ well is a little fire trench wh we man at night
it is just across / stream. You can just look up
/ mouth o / stream meandering down to / end o /
commcn trench - Olive trees overshadowing it, rich
long grass w silvery feathery tops, masses of 
green shrub w a blue flower - the real indigo
plant - wild thyme. If you crane your head
out o safety you can also see a grey trench
on / top of a knoll w some loopholes. It is
death to go ten yds into tt country. Some of our men

tried it / other day. One went out & ws wounded.
He ws struggling back when another went out to
help him. He got to / wounded man & ws just
 

70
bringing him in to safety when / wounded man ws 
sjpt dead in his arms.
Our p. The Turks have a m.g. on / top
of a chalky white stratified cliff here just
outside our post. Their snipers get down into /
gully where / small stream runs into / hills &
shoot all night long. Our tren had one engr killed(sh) The
other day putting wire outside our trenches.
Our men too have gone out as far as No the
salt lake (wh appears now as white as ice)
but are now ordered to keep quiet & not [shorthand]
xxxxxxxx/. enemy here. [shorthand]
The Destroyers blaze off at / trenches
here (They are genly not manned by day
a far as can be seen) ; & when they have
broken down / wire an old man is sent
out to repair it. His name of course is
Achmet - you can hear them calling
him. He has a wheezy cough. Our Colonel
there doesnt like / idea of old Achmet
being shot & I dont think they shoot at him.
There is a sniper too, Old Joe who
has a trench to himself w abt 10 positions
in it. He dodges from one to / other. We pot at
him & up comes a shovel & waves a miss.
There is another - clucking billy with a 
rifle - port. & Mannlisher - wh always
goes "chuck - chuck" like a great hen.
"Hear that old bastard clucking?" say the men.
 

71
Yesty a Turk ws seen on a pony coming
down near / beach. The pony was a fine type of pony
- it ws covered w green boughs & had two well made
water casks one on each side. As / man came on 
our men made signals to him. He hesitated - then
clearly decided to come in, But his own side began to
shoot at him so he stopped. Our men at once went
out & captured him. He came quite easily then
but after he dismounted his horse bolted back. He
sd tt he had bn sent down by a sergt for water
- had returned without it - & tt / sergt then
told him he didnt dare go. "I came too far"
he sd - "I did not know / country". He
belonged to the 10^th Regt wh has bn there all /
time so Col. Bauchope says.
There seems to be no truth in /
rumour abt / two guns - just a scare -
tho' / chelmer ws blazing at / place today.
But the Turks have got a v. nasty 75m.
gun on the back of Bauchopes Hill - our
big howitzer & the destroyer were [[?fliring ng]] a
cross fire onto it today. It ws firing on the
Austr. Div H.Q. - it comes very fast - too fast to
hear & it burst 3 shells within 10 yds of Col.
Hobbs dug out, flinging one jersey into / air.
The Turks have done far more bombarding lately
- just as they as lways do in / days before an
attack.
They say Genl Smith Dorien & Winston
 

72
Churchill are here & tt Gen. Dorien was in
Anzac yesty. I know Gen. Elliston was,
Hamiltons old A.D.C. He remembered mother
& Father oin the [[?Otrants.]]
I cant go to Imbros - things here are
too much touch & go.
Gen. Laffe, Blamey, Gould, Elliott,
Watson left here for Alex & Cairo. Theyve
taken a house for D.H.Q It will be most
interesting building up the new Divisional
units - The Field Co is most difficult
perhaps. They exp. to be back before v. ling
[shorthand]
Tues. July 27
About 350 men left the Austrln
Anzac yesterday - most of them men seriously
sick with diarrhoea but some influenza cases
which may be typhoid. Our whole division is
living in an area much less than half a ^square mile.
and this illness is bound to come w / heat
& dust & overwork. It wd not be v. serious if
the men cd get back in a week as they ought to but
they cannot. They are taken to Mudros & sent on
from there to Alex & men who ought to be back in
a fortnight - who are practically well by / time they
reach the post - are asked whether they prefer to
go to England or elsewhere. The consequence is tt
men who ought to be back in 6 days are not 
back in 6 weeks. The division is just keeping
its ^ present strength and that is all - w all / reinfs.
 

The medical Authority in Mudros - I think
it is Birrell but may be wrong - has not even
bn provided w a launch to get away to 
/ transports & find what theyre doing. The result isn't 
merely tt he cant get round / ships & see wh
are going when; but he cant even get a message
to them" As from hour to hour the transpts dont
know when they'll leave on a/c of submarines This 
is rather necessary
Col. Howse tells me tt he saw a
message from / Admty saying : It is absolutely
vital tt / Aquitania & Mauritania shd
not be kept more than 24 hrs in any one
port. The Aq. is sd to have brought 7000 troops. X
They are bringing special landing stages barges: Why
on earth didn't they have some before. I 
believe these are steamers

X Of course if this is true she was
not then a hospital ship. If she
was a hospl. ship it certainly
wsnt true, for the British were
very clear in this matter.

73
coming forward.
This has bn placed before The generals again
& again. Each one says: " it is not my business -
it is L. of. C." Really Gen. Woodward ought to lay
before Gen. Hamilton the state of affairs & get him to
represent it - I have had it said to me : isn't it
your business? but it is not. It is strictly agst
the regulations for me to criticise and I have not
been asked by / authorities to do so. My job is
to tell / people of Australia all tt I can abt
their troops here & I shd be sent back if I tried
to do anything else - that I know only too well.
Besides even if I were free to criticise L.of. C. I'm
not on the spot - I'm at the front & not at the base.
The unofficial correspts in Cairo & Alex will
take it up & it will be righted through a press
agitation & not thro official channels I have
no doubt. 
The commands of our battalion c/ 1st Brig.
have now been given to capable men. Bennett has
gone from 4 to 1 in place of Dobbin, Scobie has 2,
Brown 3, & MacNaughton 4. It is a little hard
on Kingdon who was an admirable commander of
1 in some respects - quite inperturbable the 1st day
they say.
Extremely quiet day. Turks jumping every
night now - evidently new troops in trenches.
Destroyers every night barg every now & then
into the trenches on our left. The
We have landed 4 new batteries of 
Howitzers as a/c troops. 69th Batty is one. They
 

74
are sd to have definitely given us / upper hand over
/ Turks in artillery. They fire every night.
We must have now:                      20 Austrln guns less 2 = 20
Aust. Div. DFA.20       N.Z.F.A.  8       12 NZ (89.4 how)        =  12
69 How}            16        Low. L.H. 8      12 mount guns           = 12
         Bde                       N.Z.H.      4       3 6" howitzers wh
Heavy Bty. 4.7} 1            1 6" H.     1       very seldom fire
                     6"    2            ---------           owing to shortage of
                    --------                       21        ammn                      =    3
                          39                  Lowland 2 how batteries     =     8
Mtn Bty. 12 guns               69th(4 5 how. batteries          =    10
   39                                         1. 4.7 naval gun                      =       1
   21                                                                                       -----------
   12                                                                                           69     70
-------
  72
=====
Besides the destroyers, Humber & Talbot
The howitzers knocked out a 75 on Bauchope Hill
yesty but another ws firing there today. Evidently
they had 2 guns there. The aeropl. saw the
gun go - or someone did.
Decided on White's advice, not to go
to Imbros. Sent Bozley over to get my films.
Peter Schuler is still with me.
C.Smith w Col. Monash for a few days.
Wed. July 28th: The Turks started shelling / beach
from Olive Grove at 1 o'c. This morning - It was full
moon. now I did not I did not see / shells burst
except one wh went into / water. But this morning I
heard tt they had killed Onslow. Gen. Birdwoods A.P.C.
He ws sleeping on / roof of his dug out & a high explosive
shell hit it. He was an exceptionally nice boy & /
best looking man in camp, a big fair haired exceptionally 
handsome savvy English boy. 
Bazley got back this morning. He says
 

75
that when he reached Imbros there were about
14 trawlers cruising round in circles just outside
(Diagram - see original)
the net. He heard a rumour tt
they no had netted 1 submarine
(They were saying it on / beach
at G.H.Q.
The Exmouth had a shield each
side of her then - an old transport moored close to her.
This morning three shields were off the Exmouth. Numbers
of officers were returning to Helles. There were 3 monitors
& a tiny monitor in harbour (a miniature of the big new
ones) & a two funnelled French Cruiser I saw a couple of
days ago with tumble home sides ; & two Edgar class cruisers
(with [[?cofferdams]] I suppose):
The Abercrombie, Raglan, Roberts - the tiny monitor
-The Theseus & another similar name - The French Cruiser.
Russell says tt they fired torpedoes at / big monitors before
they started & it did them no damage at all.
There is a division of K's army at Imbros
Dorsets & Lincolns are two of them (I bel. 11, 13 & 13) 
They are very good, Bazley says, big chaps. He saw them changing
guard - all you could wish for, he says.
Jock tells me tt a man in his bn a couple
of days ago started a duel w a Turk, each stood up
bread high above / parapet & blazed at / other in
turn & when he missed, the other signalled a 
wash out. All of the line stopped firing to watch
them. An officer came along presently & made our
man get down but he got up again as soon as
/ officer passed & started anew. Presently a 
sniper Turk from some way down / line to / South
shot our man dead.