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[Page 57]

Baba as well, but that if it was too late he would take Achi Baba on the following day. This shows how hopelessly he misread the whole situation, because far from taking Crythia or Achi Baba on that day or the day after, these two places were never occupied by our troops up to the very end of this disastrous campaign. General Hunter Weston was in a constant habit of misreading situations, for it was he who aanounced to his division before the Expedition ever landed that it was absolutely essential that Achi Baba should be occupied the same afternoon. A little after 10 o'clock I left him and took up my position to watch the fight. (For full account see elsewhere). I spent a greater part of the day in the company of Jack Churchill, who had come ashore with the Staff. Sir Ian himself and Braithwaite also came ashore, to direct operations, and spent part of their time with Hunter Weston who was acting as a local commander of all the troops present, and partly at another observation station belonging to Headquarters Staff.

     In the afternoon Lawrence also turned up, but being very blind he could only see a few hundred yards away from him and therefore the magnificent panorama of war were somewhat wasted on him. When the fighting was over I returned to the "Implacable". As I left Lancashire Landing one of the Brigades of the Lancashire Division was just arriving. These unfortunate raw troops were no sooner got ashore in the darkness than they were pushed right up into the firing line and many of them were killed before they even got a chance of getting a view of the enemy's position. It was a terrible mistake to employ troops in this manner, before they have ever had the chance of settling down and becoming accustomed to the sound of bullets.

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