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[Page 11]
proclamation was read, & marched back to the ship by a round about way to impress the natives with our might, they seem a quiet docile lot of People & seemed quite pleased we had come, as the Germans had told them that the Japs were coming & would burn all the place down. We had only been on board the Berrima 2 Hours when we got a wireless from Herbertshohe asking for Reinforcements. G & H Companies were rushed off just in what we stood up in & got into the Berrima's boats & pulled off to the Encounter, we climbed up a straight ladder on to the Quarter deck & passed on to where we could find room, the Crew of the Encounter were very good to us as they gave us some tea to drink, as we were rushed off in quick time, I also landed a prize in 4 Packets of cigarettes which I got off one of the crew of the Encounter, we arrived at Herbertshohe at about 7.30 & got into a very big cutter which held 90 men we landed all right, only the officer in command of the boat speaking, we were quiet & landed there to find out that some one had given the alarm at seeing a large party of niggers going along in the distance, perhaps moving camp to more secure quarters.
we camped at the same building for that night having no blankets or overcoats with us my stock of cigs soon went, as lots of our chaps had come away without cigs or tobacco or even a Towel, I had a Handkerchief which I used as a towel, fresh water being scarce & what there was we were afraid to drink as it might have been poisoned as we were up to all their games by now.
Sept 14th
up at 4.30 & started on a march to a place called Toma, we went very slowly searching every house we came to & rounding up niggers & trying to get some news of where the Germans were hiding, we found a few germans & sent them back under escort to Herbertshohe, we also got a map on one of them showing where the Trenches were at Toma, we halted on the road then & sent the Plan to the Encounter who soon started shelling their position, the shells went right up over our heads