Item 01: R. T. Vowles diary, 22 August 1915-23 February 1916 - Page 20
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[Page 20]
also it is very hard to conceal.The instrument used at night is the Begbie lamp. This is a cumbersome piece of work weighing 28 lbs in all. It consists mainly of an oil lamp on a tripod. It is extremely noisy in operation & can only be used for distances up to five miles. Its operation is the movement of a key that mechanically operates a venetian blind arrangement that is closed normally but opens when the key is depressed thus making dots & dashes. Neither of these instruments are used much owing to their disadvantages that are very much against them. The flags, which are used at day time are two feet square on a pole 3 feet 6 inches long. Two flags are necessary. One, a blue flag that is used against a light colour such as a background of snow. The white flag has a blue stripe through it, thus (a drawing) & is used against a dark background of say trees. In actual warfare however the white flag is done away with altogether & only the blue