BACK FROM THE WAR

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXXV, Issue 8204, 29 July 1915, Page 7

BACK FROM THE WAR

SERGEANT F. C. R. UPTON

EXPERIENCES WHICH ARE THE SALT OF LIFE.

Scott has said that "One crowded hour of glorious life is worth an age without a name." If there is a vestige of truth in tho poet's words, then Sergeant F. It. C. Upton and any of •those who have seen service at the front must be very rich in experience, an experience that is regarded by many as the "salt of life." To bravo death in many fearful forms, to race across open spaces with it lurking in every foot of the way, to be sent on secret missions, not knowing whether it will be one's fortune to como back alive, maimed, or dead, and to emerge safely and ■triumphantly from all these happenings and occurrences is experience enough and sufficient to last a man a whole lifetime. '

Sergeant "Clive" Upton, who recently returned wounded from tbo Dardanelles, in tho course of an interview with a '''Guardian" reporter, related a few of his own experiences, and also happenings which had come under his notice 'in the fighting at the Darda 7 nelles. ' •.

Sergeant Upton stated in the course of the conversation that the men occupied th«'trenches in spells, and when supposed to be resting from the arduous life in the firing line, were set to dig roads, etc. On one occasion, he was working half-way up the side of a hill when the order came for his company (the 13th), comprised of men from North Canterbury and Westland, to furnish a bearing and covering party to bury some Australian dead, who were lying some quarter of a; mile or half a mile along the beach, and who had been killed at the first landing. His platoon was selected as tho covering party, and the fellows were told not to take any notice of Turkish snipers. Thero was no coyer on the beach. ' The party had buried two of the dead and were searching for equipment, when a concentrated fire was poured down upon them, sweeping the length' of the beach. It got so bad that the order came for them to retire. The party lost three men killed and two were wounded, all in burying two already dead—an expensive operation so far as human life was concerned.

On.another occasion, Sergeant Upton had been down on. the beach preparatory to going into the trenches, when the order came for his company to supply 50 men and three officers to go on a secret mission. He was one of those ' ordered to go. The party embarked on a destroyer, which took them about three miles along the coast to a .spot where there was a hill, which was [ supposed to be a German observation i station. The men went ashore in vow- \ boats, and landed about daybreak. They advanced in-open order, with fixed bayonets, up the side of the hill —a fair. gradient. There was no cover. As , the nu«n neared the top, making little or nocnoise, they momentarily expected to be fired on. The summit was reached without an alarm from either side, and at the top they looked down in a trench where there were'2s'Turks comfortably asleep. The sentry had slept at his post. The enemy was awakened by the cry of: "Hands-up," and jumping up in great confusion, they commenced to fire on the assaulting, party. The New Zealandcrs retaliated, a.nd killed four and wounded-t-hree,- taking the remainder prisoners. None of the landing party was hurt. ' The advantage the Turks would have had if they had been awake, and the losses the assaulting party would probably have suffered, can bo imagined. Apropos of this little experience, Sergeant Upton furnished an instance of the cool bravory of a naval officer aboard the destroyer. He asked permission of the captain to go ashore with the soldiers, and the permission was granted. Clad in the dark-coloured pea-jacket of the naval uniform, and wearing a peaked cap, ho would have made an excellent target for the defenders. He armed himself with a revolver, and when the Turks, aroused from sleep, began to fire, he peppered them with the firearm. He was quite oblivious to danger, and acted as if taking his life in his hands were sin everyday occurrence. The soldiers wore back at their previous position by 12 noon, their task being a successful one. '

On the night of this same day, -Sergeant Upton received his wounds, which necessitated his temporary retirement from the front. His company was at the bottom of the hill when the order came to advance into" tho firing line for an impending big attack. The Canterbury and Otago Regiments had to advance on the left of the position and the Australians on the centre, and right. Tho attack was timed to commence at night, when the navy's guns started to fire. That was to be the signal. The men had to descend down a ravine, and then scale a big hill where the' Turks were. They got to the top and started to dig in about daybreak. No shrapnel was flying then, but the enemy's dofenco consisted of rifle and machine gun fire. As men were falling fast, the command was given to retire to the previous position —down the ravine to the opposite hill. It was during tho operation of digging-in that Sergeant Upton received his four wounds, all in tho space of one brief hour. It was during this attack also'that Lieutenant Skelton, of Christchurch, was killed, and Lieutenant Allan Stitt, formerly of Ashburton, was wounded. Sergeant Upton did not get tho, word to retire, on account of so many men on either side of him having fallen out of the ranks, killed or wounded.. When he looked up and found that his comrades had all gone, he scrambled back. Later, he went to the dressing station behind the firing line, and had his wounds dressed, and was afterwards conveyed down to the beach by two Australian stretcherbearers.

In commenting on how men arc wounded and cut \ip at tho end of a bayonet charge, .Sergeant Upton said it seemed to him that tho actual charge was not so nerve-racking as lying down on newly-conquered ground, and being compelled to dig-in. They had to remain comparatively still, at tho same timo being subjected to heavy fire, and especially an enfilade fire. It was tho latter that caused so many casualties. The Turks could not withstand a dashing bayonet charge, but they were past-masters at closing-in on the flanks at the end of a charge and mowing down the enemy with a raking enfilade fire.

Sergeant Upton gave a couple of instances of narrow escapes when men were supposed to bo in safety. Sergeant Rutherford was hit by a partial-ly-spent bullet, which struck him on the money belt and completely, doubled two sovereigns lying one behind the

other. The bullet had not enough force to penetrate through to his body, arid dropped out on to the ground at his' feet. Another man, who had been lying down on his side, had had his trousers' leg just neatly scored from the calf up to tho hip with bullets from a machine gun. The protruding hip had stopped a bullet, however. Just a fraction of an inch higher and the man's leg would have been torn away by the bullets.

Sergeant Upton stated that the Turks are bigger men than the average New Zealander and could give the latter about half a stone in weight. They were stolid fatalists, and made exceptionally good fishters, despite the fact that they would not willingly face a bayonet charge.