Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/17/1 - September - October 1915 - Part 2

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searchlights did one of two things
-either flashed straight onto them-
when they could not see the fall of /
shell unless it went short (they cd see it
then sometimes; or else shut its
iron eyelids as soon as it saw their guns
flash - each light is behind steel doors.
That ws absolute protection agst their
shrapnel. The Chanak light they say
ws a splendid one - but there were at
least 4 - probably many more.
The wonder is they had none on /
coast of / Saros Gulf.
Of course / navy meant to
go thro' tt night. The French ships
were very gallant - went at it
splendidly.
The Canopus used to be on our
left flank after from the first Monday morning at
Anzac. The of naval officers are all
very modest abt their guns - wonder
if they do any good at all. They say
they doubt it. But th second morning
they did - & they know it. They cd see
/ Turks coming down / main range
by Baby 700, "getting out of trenches" one
officer told me; & / ships guns were
getting right into them.
They also told me of several
 

8
attempts to rescue / men in / boats
near Fisherman's Hut. One ws on the
Monday - & ws unsuccessful apparently.
They saw our men go out, armed, & /
without a red cross flag. They saw them
suddenly fall & [lie] there. Some want
on firing & a stretcher party went back;
they think some were hit & [[? tt]] /
stretcher went back empty. One officer,
/ doctor, sketched / scene very well
indeed. A parson ws [[?is]] / party - went to
read / burial
service [[?try]]
began digging
graves but
were
fired
on.
[picture inserted]
They cd see / naval coxswain  in /
boat sitting up by / tiller, dead.
The men lying down may have bn
dead; some shamming dead possibly.
They passed an overturned
boat 2 miles out - it belonged
to the Devanta.
Fire ws coming probly not
from Fishermans Hut but from /
top of the hill ^just above - / small hill

 

[The venerable is now doing some good
firing, punishing / Turks quite a
lot I believe]

Thursday Sept 23.
[mudr os] - at daybreak-
& smooth water. My insect is still
quite upside down w this tropical
dysentery; but it managed to
keep straight last night in spite
o / wind. I ws sleeping on a stretcher
in "virginity alley" outside  / officers'
cabins &  the doctor had got his
servant to bring me (at my urgent
request) a big wooden bucket in
case of necessity. But it never
arose - ^neitherthe necessity nor anything
else for tt matter.
We left our kind Latona at 109.30
for / Imbros trawler - or rather for /
Euro pa, / useless old cruiser
wh never was any good except for
swallowing men – under gunned,
under engined, over sized. She is
acting as flagship here now - &
makes quite a good post office.
On board her they told us in
one breath tt / trawler had guns
at 8am. & tt they could not put
us up - they did nt wait for us to
 

10
ask; poor beggars - every lost being
tt comes along I suppose asks for
a berth in /  Europa. However-
Lawrence knew the [2 men] [[?Cormvallis]]
people, so as went along side here
& her captain like a good Samaritan
took as all in - 5 of as including a
Greek interpreter being sent to GHQ
(Ross & Ashmest Bartlett stayed.
in Mitylene waiting for / Victory
but it must have bn far too rough for
her to put to sea as yet. It is still
blowing agale.) The [Cormwallis] is
all very young seamen or old men
& naval reservists - but a cheery
lot of chaps. She has many reserved
&[[?vo waten]] officers & a Number One
who is a rather brilliant in an
but who had / bad luck to pile
up two torpedo boats as a you
youngster - The Admiralty will
forget one, but two - never.
It is a pity because he really
is a good man - I cd see he ws
a [[-] ] man intelligent above /
average. She has also a London
surgeon who had just settled down
 

11

to a good practice & married when
he ws called up as a volunteer

---he ws sunk  in / Hogue but
managed to escape because he ws
[[-] ] a fine swimmer. He ws a Cambity]
man & used to sing atin Kings Chapel &
he keeps t ward room alive w his songs
--Irvine by name, I think. Also a
midshipman who [[fot]] / V.C. for his
work in the River Clyde.  Gallipoli
has won ever so many V.C.s & deserved
them;  but our Australians & N.
Zealanders, who are certainly
beyond comparison the bravest
corps here - the 29^th Divn &
possibly / [yeomany]  may be
excepted but it doesnt stand
argument in / case o / rest- --
have only got one. I suppose it
will get thro. I think British

hear someday tt these Autsralians
are not inferior to but at least
3 times as good as / British
soldiers of / same training &
quite as good as / best British
regiments. To begin is  theyre not
in / least nervous o /  Turks -
even on / darkest nights they are
hoping tt / I Turks will come at them.
They are quite content, if necessary
 

12
to let / T. get into a truck, knowing
tt they can drive him out - so we can
hold our trenches lightly in certain
circumstances - a very great[[? awaiting]]
However, this is by / way.
went over & see /  3rd Australian
Hospital. No's 1. 2. 3 are all at
[[?Mudros]], & No's  1 & 2 Canadian next
to them - all on a very bare hill on /
S. side of  harbour.  When No 3
(wh is / [byjus]t & has a st. surgeon &
Sir Alex Mac Cormick & Col. [[?Fiaschi]]
at (head of it) came to London it
ws ordered back here after 3 wks
in England. But the transport with
its [[?stors]] ws not sent a long w
it. Consequently the staff, nurses
& all arrived at [[?Mudros]]
without any equipment at all. The
medical authorities on / [[?anajon]]
wdn't give / Australian hospital
anything- bec. it ws supposed to have
its own kit (wh by / arrangements
o / British authorities it did not
have) and consequently / staff has
to sleep outin / open / - except/
nurses.  For sometime / surgeons were
sleeping under their deck chairs- /
only shade they had.  Patients rolled
in & they had 150 or more of them
 

13
sleeping out in I open on I bare ground.
they were given no food for typhoid.
& dysentery patients or anyone else,
nurses or doctors include - except
bully beef & biscuits - they fed their
typhoids I believe on a little
condensed milk. Finally Capt. Grant
of the Cormwallin, I believe, saw I state
they were in & took it on himself
to go aboard [[?Tarragon]] & tell /
heads there / conditn of affairs. At
first they said it ws impossible tt
this cd be so; then they sd it wd
be irregular or something o /
sort to supply I Australian hospital.
At last after a frank talk they
did do something. But even then
When I [[?wretihes]] dysenteries &
paratyphoids - (its almost all
paratyphoid here - I innoculate
seems to prevent typhoid) got better
& were discharge from hospital
to a "rest camp" I rest camp
consisted of I hard ground, /
open sky above, & no gear at all.
A thunderstorm came down &
drenched them one night, – & / weather
is getting very bitter now - & /
consequence was tt over 50 were
 

14
back next morning asking to be
taken in - & many of them really
ill. Where on earth are all /
Red X comforts & money Australia
has subscribed,? I why are these
British medical people allowed to
live?
The Canadians had a very [[?hard]]
times too. They only  had bully & biscuits.
The nurses all get typh dysentery
like / rest & two o / Canadian
nurses died as / result o / conditions
they were working in -  so / naval people
say. The Australians are nursing
more British Tommies Than Australians
- but they till me tt if it hadnt bn for
/ navy thy don't know where they wd
have been. The navy sent them ice,
& all sorts of little delicacies -
some o / nurses ^too were delighted w
presents of cakes & a few little dainties
fom / ships. All this time I [[?arragon]]
ws simply wallowing in ice. The
navy- it wasnt its business,
but it put up the condensing
plant - lent  / men for /  labour
& supervised it.
30 dayThe Mudros Hospitals
dealt w many o / wounded after /
great fight of Aug 6 -- 10. They were
 

15
oprating on men lying on bare
boards or on / ground w a little
antiseptic lint under their heads;
but they managed t boil /
instruments & / cases did wonderfully
well- Tthey have a magnificent staff.
But now they are limited to cases [[
?  sickness]] wh will be right in 3 weeks,
paratyphoids, dysenteries + diarrhoeas;
& there is Sir Alex MacCormick, a
surgeon of world wide reputation,
going around looking at [[?]] / tongues
of men whose livers are out of order.
Frid. Sept 24. Started at 8 by
a very slow trawler for [[?Imbros]]
& arrived at abt 4. Saw mt
Athos on / way, for / first
time, I think.
[sketch inserted]
I hear things have bn dead
quiet at Anzac & rest of front
except for aeroplanes.
Sat. Sept 25.
Head today details
of / amusing raid made on
 

16
Any 6/7 into Turkish territory
which the "Nation" calls / "most
ambitious" landing yet made.
It occurred at a place called
Cari Kalar - or something like it, on /
West & N.W. coast o /  Gulf of Sarvo,
opp. to Bulair. It ws made by
all 350 Cretans. These scallywags
were sort of half- enlisted in / French
foreign Legion - at anyrate they were
under a French officer & were given
French Uniforms. They were to be taken
up here by / cruises Minerva & [[?]]
destroyer Jedd. The French say
tt these ships called at /  wrong
end o /  island of rendezvous &
were [[therfore]] abit late - or something o /
sort. Anyway I expeditn started
under / sap control of Lieut. C.S..
Binns Of Intelligence Dept.
They were put ashore alright &
were supposed to go ^several miles
inland, cut certain wires, &
[[?genly]] lead / Turks to believe a
landing ws to be made thus.
They were seen from Balair as
they went up & signals were