Item 03: Ellis Ashmead-Bartlett telegrams, 1915 - Page 172
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[Page 172]
[Telegram form – The Eastern Telegraph Company, Limited. Alexandria Station. Dated 2 Sept. 1915. 212 words]
[Continuation of Ashmead Bartlet's report on the second combined British/Anzac operations at Suvla Bay and Lone Pine, 21st August]
Daily Telegraph London R.T.P.
Cable six section two stop officers and men with only nine months training behind them cannot be expected to have the experience and cohesion and dash of regular troops who have been trained together for years until every officer knows his men and the men have gained that implicit trust and confidence in their officers stop
another factor which told heavily against these new troops was the fact that they had obviously been trained for service in France and Belgium and had accustomed themselves to move over flat ground from trench to trench in solid rushes after a prolonged artillery preparation keeping in touch with one another and not losing their formations stop but the ground at Anafarta is very close and broken and rises gradually to the hills stop it is essential to advance in very open order and the men thus speedily become separated and out of touch with their officers and comrades stop it requires troops highly trained in skirmishing and self reliance where every man will push on to the objective of his own accord without stopping for orders or to see if his comrades are following stop for this kind of warfare these new troops had not been prepared stop
Ashmead Bartlett / Maxwell Censor