Series 03: John Brady Nash letters, January 1914-December 1915 - Page 625
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[Page 625]
,hammer hammer hamer, of the machine guns break into the fray with startling suddeness A great gun, on a warship away to the left, spoke six times in succession: flash, boom bong, swish swish swish swish, ending away in the hills with a bang. The character of the noise immediately following the flash depend upon the stratum of air through which the projectile and its accompanying column of gas and smoke are forced or force themselves. This relationship of gun air & surrounding country give rise to the variations in the sounds which designate to the listening men the special weapon from which has just been discharged. What injuries to men result from all this clatter and sending into the air of smoke iron lead brass and copper? Apparently very little.
Sleepy. A short read and then to bed.
Good night. Good Night. Good night.
[Three groups of Xs and Os]
Car. Joe. Kitty.
9.30 a.m. The morning has broken fair. Sea smooth. clouds high up in the sky. Imbros island, its mountains, are sillouhetted against the Western sky. Somewhat to the North is Samothrace, an island of mountains with a very ancient history. Steaming across the water horizon from South to North, in succession, is a fleet of war ships heading apparently for Sulva bay [Suvla Bay]. Wonder what the arriving of so many portends?
Two hospital ships still lie in the offing and at the wharf a hospital barge is receiving the sick men to take them to the ships, a sad procession is this stretcher after stretcher few wounded but many sick.