Diary of Trooper Ion Llewellyn Idriess-1915-1916-Part 2

went past with a

dining car brilliantly

lit up, the white tables

The well filled by with

officers. It was a bit

of a contrast to our

lice infested carriage,
crowded with dirty

arabs and our own

selves. Not to mention

our humble bully beef

and biscuits. 4^th. It

was a bit amusing

early this morning.
We slept on the
platform at Zag-a-
Zig for a few
hours, and the people
arriving at daylight  

filing towards a side trench.

Then I saw hissing sparks
come falling over the parapet,
a cry of Bomb, Bomb. I tried
to jump back, but the men
behind were new hands, and
did not know what to do.
Poor old King was in front of
me.  He jumped forward, but
the new men crowded and blocked
his way in the narrow trench.
He was on a slight incline, and
the bomb rolled a few feet
towards him.  I thought the
end of all things had
surely come for me, tried
to throw the great coat
over the hissing thing,
then instinctively threw my
arm across my face

xxxxxxxx
xxx this morning
seemed intensely
interested at the line
of cuddled up, sleeping
soldiers. Of course
some of the silly asses
had to wake up, laugh
and pass pleasantries
with the Arab women.
Wouldn't be Australians
if they didn't say something.
I don't think the Arabs
on this line have seen
much of soldiers, anyway.
Australian soldiers, by
the way they cluster
around the carriage 

Then the air was dense
with smoke and earth and
deathly smell of pungent
fumes. I was on my back.
Then King calle A little
while and King called
out. I'm wounded,
boys. I called out, So
am I Kingy, and
struggled to get up.
Poor King had an
arm and leg broken.
Two sergeants were
trying to get him
away, but in that
network of narrow
trenches they did not
know the way. Another
man had his ankle
smashed, another

At every village siding.
The arab has a peculiar
sense of humor. If an
Australian reaches out
of the window, seizes a
fez or cap, and then
belts the owner over the
head with it, the crowd
of arabs around laugh
loudly in huge delight.
But should one of the
laughers get hit on the
side of the ear with
a rotten orange sold
to the soldier, he immediately
shows his teeth,
flashes the white of
his eyes and fails
to see the joke at all. 

was groaning with
a fragment of copper
through his back, yet
another mans leg was
hurt, my arm was numb
with the blood trickling
down. We could not
see for the fumes, and
if the Turks threw another
bomb among us crippled
wretches it would be
terrible. But they got
poor King down a narrow
trench, and we moved
at last, through narrow
pitch black trenches to
the tiny dressing shelter,
and King holding back
his agony through clenched
teeth. And from there they

. . . We are here now,
the sixty of us on
baggage guard. It
looks a nice place,
plenty of date palms the
ground intensely cultivated,
though the desert is
only a few hundred
yards away. It is a
curious population of
arabs, egyptians, and
Greeks. There is a stack
of home fodder near
the line, with a little,
fresh faced Tommy
on guard duty. He
told us a great tale
of the arabs firing on
got the badly wounded
on to stretchers and at
last down to the main
beach dressing station,
where they were laid
down to finish the night
with other poor suffering
wretches. I was in
very little pain, only
having been struck in
the arm.  . . . . . . And now
we are in the hospital
ship Salta, and what
a contrast to the
Franconia. Beautiful
long lines of clean bunks,
clean tables and decks,
lifts up and down the
holds for shifting the
badly wounded in,

his mate in the early 

hours this morning. If

the arabs try any of

these tricks on us, there

will be something 

doing. April 8^th Abu

Kebir Railway Station.
8.45 p.m. Old Morrison

and I are off to Cairo on

48 hours leave. Hurrah

But we have very

few piastres, worse

luck. In Egypt the

ordinary old private

has to travel third

class, with the niggers

and arabs, in hard 

wooden carriages

that are crawling

splendidly kind nurses

and attentive doctors

But I must growl a

bit at the tucker. It

is not always what an

Australian would 

call a square meal. Of

course we have got

voracious appetites,

having come off the

tucker of a battle field,

and getting plenty of

sleep here, it makes us

long for a real good

feed of plenty of meat,

plenty of tea and

plenty of bread. But 

there is a frightful

lot of work to be done

on in the management

with louse. Only

our brave, intelligent

officers can travel

in the first and 

second class carriage.

12 p.m. Zag-a-zig Railway

Station. Our train is

going no further tonight

The next train leaves at

six in the morning and

arrives in Cairo at 11. so 

instead of spending to-

night in a decent bed, 

which was to be the 

best part of our holiday,

we have to walk this 

wretched platform or

the filthy streets of

zag-a-zig. All  

of this big ship, and

we may be quite satisfied

in the tucker line when

we move away. Other

wise, this ship is a 

perfect haven of rest.
 A few days after. We

are having a most 

perfect trip us fellows

who are not having 

much pain. Poor 

King is putting up

with some horrible

agony. Gus Gaunt

and I promenade the

big boat deck regular

ly, it is such a great

change there being 

nobody to say clear

our, this lovely big

because of our 

brainy military commanders 

do not know the

through train to Cairo,

so that from 6 p.m. to

11 am. is seventeen hours

which the military 

heads beat us for 

the proper train to

Cairo leaves Salhich

at 4 p.m. daily, not six.

And then we wonder

why the war has 

given us no brilliant

victories. And the

responsible officers of

our brigade do not

know when the 

through train leaves 

room deck is for

officers only. I was

telling one of the nurses

how us Australians

were pining for more

meat, but she said

why they fed us on

plenty of bread and

butter was because

after we come from 

the trenches it was

noticed that food

like that upset the 

men. I can see that

she is right, but

Gus Gaunt and I

and others would 

take a lot of upsetting 

in that line.

our camp for Cairo, 

the principal city of

Egypt, 9th 11.5 a.m. One

thing is amusing me. Our

letters are strictly censored, 

trivial little things

are cut out, we are not

allowed to name the

place we are staying in

in a letter. And yet every

nigger, every arab, every

Egyptian and Greek

trader and hawker and

lemonade seller knows

perfectly well where

we are. They can tell 

us of our battalions

and where they are,

though we have no

Gus has already had one

feed from the engineers

and eight from the crew.

I have scored several

minor successes. But

even if they do feed us

healthy fellows on bread

and butter, it we have 

seen so well that the

doctors, the matron, the

nurses, look after the

poor badly hurt men

just as a mother looks

after her child. We will

be in Alexandria

soon now. It is a 

lovely trip. Sept 9th

Steaming into Alexandria

Harbour. King is dead.

idea where they are

ourselves.

Cairo is very slow. The

Australians and New

Zealanders have all gone

away. The business people

are crying of course

"Australia go away, no

money." The thieving swine

will have to do a bit now.

.....Morry and I spent

most of our time in bed.

Our rest was spoilt though

We kept on thinking we

were dreaming and 

were continually

waking up and feeling

the beds to make sure

they were real. Morry 

He died last night at

twelve, and was buried

at sea at six this

morning. Poor old

King. It is a shock to 

me. Gaunt and I were

so confident even 

yesterday that he would

live and go back to

Australia. Poor old King.

One of the gamest men

I ever met, he lived

li as like a gentleman

and died a brave man. 

Sept 9th Back in the 

Egyptian Govt. Hospital

again. How strangely

things turn out. And

How glad I am to be

back in the "old home". 

Same doctors, same
nurse, same good old
tucker and first class
attention. I am only
slightly hurt and won't be
here long, though. Gus
Gaunt is in the bed
next me, with a huge
smile on his tough
old dial.  18th Sept.
We were given some books
today, from the Australian
Comfort Fund. It is a very 
good idea. Decent reading
matter is a God send. I
also received a parcel with
two good pairs of socks in it,
from Sydney. A very thoughtful 

present, too. There are no
letters, but I am nearly