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[Page 12]
24 are now laying in waiting for (what) on the opposite side of the island about 15 miles from our destination we will possibly land tomorrow morning
25 The fun has started we are preparing to land firing commenced about ½ past four a wounded C. Sgt of 3rd Bgde has just been brought aboard. 3 casualities so far.
Its now about 9 oclock we have landed & one or two of our Co have burned bits of shell. The 3rd Bgde has done well so far clearing the ridge behind us or at least in front of us I hear the 12 bat had a very hot welcome. The hills are low but very steep and broken, a gun boat close in to us has fired a good of metal at a fort or Battery which has succeed in getting two or 3 shells close to us they have a nasty visious hiss I have seen several wounded chaps they seem pretty jolly on the strength of it
26 We had a splendid day yesterday with as much shrapnel as we could wish for its beastly stuff a knocked a lot of our chaps over our own guns were not landed save one mountain Battery which did not last long, things may be different today the gun boats have
[Page 13]
been talking some, & Queen Lizzie has been hurling her ton weight missles over our heads the row she makes is something like an overgrown thunder clap our chaps are banging away still no sleep last night one continual fusilade. I myself have seen no one to fire at, we are handicapped with heavy scrub, it makes splendid cover for snipers got a bit of a grueling this evening.
27 are pretty comfortably dug in the guns as well as we as far as we can judge have been giving the turk particular hell –
Killed by a sniper on the 28th April
[Transcriber's notes:
El Abbassia page 3 – is probably El Abasia which is a NE suburb of Cairo.
F.L. page 6 – furlough ie leave.
Gen E. H. page 6 – General Earl Haig
Heliopolis page 3 – is a kilomtre or two from El Abasia.
Iadros (Mudros village) page 7 – Mudross is spelled Moudros and is about 20kms east of Myrna on the coast in a bay, the main city on the island.
Ismailla page 2 – is Ismailia which is on Timsah Lake which forms part of the Suez canal.
Mena page 3 – Mena Camp is in Giza, very close to the pyramids.
SS Minnewaska page 7 – built in 1909, it was an ocean liner for the Atlantic Transport line. It was damaged by a mine on 29 November 1916 while serving as a troopship.
Riot 2 April 1915 - As 2 April 1915 was Good Friday, many ANZAC troops waiting to go to Gallipoli were on leave, and many of them went to the Birka (the red-light district) in Cairo. About 4000 troops rioted and wrecked and burnt many buildings, and threw prostitutes and pimps out onto the streets and their possessions after them. The riot started about 4 pm or 5 pm. and ended by 8 pm.
Tigers Tooth page 4 – This was one of the many places around Mena Camp that had been named by the Australian troops various areas were called such names as Observation Hill, Jackall Valley, Sentry Point, White House, Daydream and Crosspath Hill etc.]
[Transcribed by Miles Harvey and Judy Macfarlan for the State Library of New South Wales]