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[Page 74]
Grasshoppers, about the size of a prawn, and just as red. If my memory serves me correctly these same locusts are the identical kind which provided many a feed for John the Baptist or some other biblical desert-trotter. There are a few islands of a high barren nature in the Red Sea, and near the Aden end one small town, popularly known as Hell's Gates. At dusk on the 9th the land was just visible on each side of us, and Mount Sinai was distinct on the east. This was the entrance to the Gulf of Suez. At daybreak on the 10th we drew slowly up to our anchorage, among many other large steamers, in the harbor (so-called) of Suez. Suez from the harbor has a certain amount of charm. The hills on the one side – the African – are high and rugged, and with the sun on them have a quite unique purple haze over them, which, together with the pale green of the water, makes a beautiful scheme of colouration. But with the exception of the area occupied by the town, the whole of the rest of the scene is desert – sand, sand, sand. The buildings of Suez are nothing to look at.
A few of our men landed here, bound for Cairo O.S. In the afternoon we drew up to the wharf and landed the Infantry. They were in great spirits all of them, and were given a splendid send off.
These chaps provided most of the fun on the boat, and altogether were the life of the crowd. I had an opportunity to say good-bye to Goog Tyson and Bruce Grant and some other chaps I knew just before they went. They were packed like sardines in very 3rd class carriages for a 7-hour trip to Cairo. One of the last of the many things yelled to us as the train drew out was from the dry throat of a Scotchman who bawled "Oi bet oi have ai booze afore ye Jock!" They were great chaps, these three regiments of 7th reinforcements, and, we heard afterwards, they were met with 500 half-starved, dazed and wounded lads, the men who a few days before had left Cairo in just such good spirits – the 6th reinforcements.
Yet they will be all smiles when they set out. Such is the way with these men. Some of the A.M.C. and nurses landed here too, so our ship