Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/62/1 - October 1916 - Part 2
1 11
but without their 8in armour
- But these (I had not heard
of them before) are not
being made here, but in
some other yard - & they
dont think they will be
made again. If any
commerce raider gets
out I believe she will
have these huge ships,
of enormous speed, an
top of her ,we after
her.
The Germans at present
are starting - clearly - a new
submarine campaign; but
Hinde a lot of our ships
were recently sunk off /
American coast - probly as
a concession to an answer
12
Curtin
[*Let America stand out if she wants to.
It is also quite a question whether it wd benefit
us for America to come in. So long as she is neutral
there is some sort of public opinion for Germany
to play up to; once she is in - then all the world
is in - & knowing Germany, we know quite well there
is no frightfulness to which she would not resort. Her
scruples wd go to winds instantly.
*the German Empire to its foundations. But What that
sight was I will describe in my next article a
- the sight merely turned out to be the return of
German Guard Reservemen, wounded, from the war.
He said tt what he saw ws the relic of the Guard Reserve
- [we who fought agst them a month later when they
retook Mouquet Farm] know how true tt is.]⇢
If only our Press wd not print this Balderdash
- any one cd have written / same sort
of stuff any day on what he saw
in London. Thes*]
1 13
to / German outcry o part
o / German people for
"ruthlessness" but. Hindenberg
is sd to have asked them not
to press this demand for
ruthlessness (train too shakey).
I suppose this is either to deceive us
or else to conciliate America.
I wish very much tt our papers
wd cease this perpetual howl for
America to intervene. If the Yanks do
not think their interests sufficiently
damaged (by the loss of American citizens)
to intervene - why shd we be continuallyper insisting that they are? I hate all
this fighting with your mouth.
The Daily Mail & The Times have
just been publishing a series of articles
by a man named Curtin - whom
they claim to be a "spy" of theirs
returned from Germany. He has
written seven or eight long spun out
articles on what he saw in Germany.
They are in the regular "to be continued
in our next" style. The first one
ended " There I saw a spectacle
which, if only the German people
had seen it, wd have shaken ⇡*
14
1 15
Murdoch tells me tt Young (S.A.) O.C. Beale & another
have gone across (at his request, by Haig's leave) to address meeting
upon Conscription, amongst the troops
& see if they cannot send somenote in itself resolution calling on the Australian
people to send more men. If the
resolutn is in favour of
conscriptn, it will be telegraphed
to Australia; if agst, it will
perhaps be telegraphed to Hughes,
but he will not publish it.
I shall send the result of all
three resolutions or none at
all, to my papers. Hughes
says the Sinn Feiners have sent
agents to Australia & tt / Irish
& I.W.W are agst him. I
believe the women will carry
him through.
Murdoch undoubtedly is
a fine strong helper. He told
me tt Kiggell & Has Haigs Chief
1 16
of Staff told him tt there were
certain divisions on wh
they looked as divisions
which if they gave them a thing
to do, would do it. All the
Australian divisions were in
that category, Kiggell said. He
did not say tt / Australian
Divisions were better than English
divisions - & I daresday they
are not - but he classed them
with the best (whether Murdoch
inferred this or Kiggell from the
above statement or Kiggell
explicitly said it I am not
clear.)
I saw old Win tonight. Her
husband has just come out of
his third term in the Somme battle
with the Royal Canadian Regt.
Their second ^or third time of asking was
much the worst. They had
one innings, then 48 hrs out, then
this terribly heavy battle. One
1 17
company came out of it (Win says)
5 strong; & the Regiment 85. Claude
put it to her: "The casualties are not
the sort of thing we may generally
mention; but you you may take it
tt the Regiment came out of actionabout the strength of the full
brass band." Win heard also
from another source - 85 or 81.
That is frightful fighting.
Everybody here excited
about the Referendum. Birdwoods
circular to the troops did little
good - rather the reverse, Col.
Anderson thinks. Hughes is
getting as nervous as can be
about it. Anything favourable
from here will be telegraphed out
to give Australia a lead. Anything
unfavourable will be suppressed.
Sir Newton Moore did not issue
Hughes memorandum to his troops
at all. Anderson, who is his
enemy, says hints that this was because
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Moore wd like to see Hughes
& Labour out of office as a result
of the loss o / Referendum, in
order tt he (Moore) might get
some job or positn from the
Liberal Govt tt wd follow. But
this is absurd.
Anderson is a clever man
but a jealous & ambitious one. He
has saved a bit of money for
Australia - but sometimes his
motives are not purely public
spirited.
I believe Anderson tells me tt Lord Fisher's
examinatn by the Dardenelles Ctee
ws exceedingly funny - He ws
asked what he thought of some
proceeding.
"Oh - sheer blood lunacy!" he
wd reply - then turning to the
reporter "Dont put down that
bloody - leave that out."
What did he think of Winston
Churchill.
"Oh - the man's damned clever
19
Noel Ross tells us of their
Big Battle [[shorthand]] & Hydroplanes
& 1000 [[shorthand]]
1 20
- damned clever - but of course
he's a bloodly little bounder
- you neednt put that down."
I dont know how far this is
literally accurate - it's what
Anderson says Sir Mr Fisher
told him, & Sir Thos. Mackenzie
(who were both present).
1 21
Temporary altern [[shorthand]]
Carbon [[shorthand]]
Mandriel particularly impt.
[[shorthand]]
27 on Mantel. Heated
xxxx Pressed & drawn out
Then cat outside men
Men [[shorthand]]
Forging past, squeezing
them out little pretty
Men to Hell but old & unfit
( Outer tube (tunnel_
( Inner tube (Linen then)
( wire (round counter)
( Hoops
Gear [[?]]
B tube [[?]] just
1 22
Elswick 8in Hows (outpost not yet at [[?]]
60 pds 5 [[shorthand]]
3rd Day
---
Order for machine gun
Apr. next year
18 pdrs Oct 1918
60 pds nearly reached outpost
now
[[shorthand]]
[[shorthand]] Saltman [[shorthand]]
to our [[?]] xxxxx guns coming up
no one from C[[?]] & B[[?]]
[[shorthand]] Back in 3 trenches
18 pd ammn - no shortage
Outer [[shorthand]] treated
2 mines at [[?]] by
10 trenches to remove & fill
23
30 degrees of elevatn on April
15th at beginning of war. No use
agst aircraft Aft to fire guns
against aircraft.
[[shorthand]] probly wounded at
[[?]] left to [[?]] at mostly
delicate work. Women will [[?]]
& fight agst husband & brothers
now at war.
German [[?]] will be bouyed by
[[?]] Admitted ??
{?Conscri]]
[[shorthand]]
1 in [[?]] lining board 6in 4 castors
Counter [[?]]
24
Havent the [[?]] Dont think
La Mere training ship for RNVR
9.2 hows not necessarily dismantling
8in 4
9.2 no trawler
[[?]] Hows in Rly Monday
Guns a bit difficult to get
Mounting slower
Manager of [[shorthand]] never had a day
5 Sundays since [[shorthand]]
Sunday ws 4 now [[shorthand]]
----
Many new 18 pdrs- to replace losses
Shrinking - have to cool lower
end first bec, ^gaps [[?]] shoe [[?later] of gun
must be level - how to get a
grip first. Cdnt w [[?]]
keep tight.
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