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[Page 32]
Shrapnel Gully
It was the deadly machine gun and the accurate fire from our brilliant gunners which invariably annihilated the broken hearted Turks, and which brought honour and fame to the New Zealand and Australian troops who during the whole campaign were knitted together in an indissoluble partnership.
So it was that it was like veterans who had seen years of service, but our men some of whom were mere boys clung to those trenches against most desperate odds. The Turks were fighting on their own land, they had more suitable conveniences, more water, a better equipment line of defence and heavier artillery. Yet from April to December our men held the trenches without practically any spell, and without any reserves. Always above us were the Turkish trenches and the incessant firing of their machine guns and rifles. Exposure above the trenches meant instant death. Yet our men from time to time were asked to make charges in the hope of strengthening our position, only to retire again when ordered.
Down these mountains during the rain and inclement weather ran torrents of rainwater which found an outlet through the gullies through which we walked some way as if Pilgrims on our way to Mecca.
Every inch of this gulley was obviously well known to the Turks who continually and unmercifully shelled it as long as their ammunition was available.
The natural geographical outlay of the country afforded them an excellent view of all our