Item 02: Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett articles on the Gallipoli campaign, 1915 - Page 207

[Page 207]

and dictate the daily round in the fire trenches to the enemy deciding whether there is to be complete quiet or constant sniping bomb throwing and mining. The Turk has in fact ever since his last repulse shown but little agressiveness and seems content to sit in his trenches rather than try and fresh trial of strength with such a formidable enemy. If the work of the Colonials at Anzac has not been so spectacular as that of our own troops at the southern end of the peninsula on account of the absence of these periodical advances on a big scale it has never the less been equally useful and has entailed an enormous amount of physical labour on the men, and at the same time very heavy losses have been inflicted on the enemy.

This force on his flank handicaps all his movements to the south and prevents him from deploying his full strength against General Hunter Weston's Army, for in the eyes of the German Commander there is the ever present danger that if he depletes the innumerable trenches before Anzac of many men of the Colonials may break through and cut off the Killd Bahr Plateau from the north as only four miles of difficult country has to be passed to bring them to the shores of the Dardanelles.

Both armies at Anzac are handicapped in an attack. Thr ground is so broken and hilly and some of the hills are so razor backed that it is impossible to find suitable emblacements for heavy guns and thus to bring that tremendous concentration of shell fire on a particular section of the enemy's line which must proceed a successful infantry assault in modem warfare. Also in this northern maze of hills and valleys no spot can be found for an aerodrome and the guns cannot therefore be registered to a yard as they are registered on the Turkish trenches and redoubts in front of Achi Baba.