MESOPOTAMIA FIGHTING.

Press, Volume LI, Issue 15464, 17 December 1915, Page 10

MESOPOTAMIA FIGHTING.

A >*EW ZEALASDER'S

ACCOUNT.

A detailed account of some of the lighting of the Expeditionary Force in Mesopotamia is given in a letter from Captain R. Clifford, which has just been received by Mr Paul A. Clifford, of AVaihi (reports the New Zealand ••Herald"). The communication was despatched from Aziziyab*. on the Tigris, about .Vi miles from Bagdad, and is dated October Kith last.

•\\\. are just through with the biggest fight then- has been yet."' says tho writer. -"The Turks—about 10.000 strong—hold a portion at a place called Ks Sinn, across tho Tigris. ft was a most -appallingly strong one . You sec, in this councrv, uu 1 advantage is always with mi' drieiiuors. as the whale pbuo is as flat as a billiard table. The eiiomv hold a lino of high ground, and had entrenched it in a most marvellous manner. Their forts were really underground cities, juid they had barbed j wire, bombs, mines, etc., and they were commanded by Suruddin Pasha. 1 think he commanded at the siege of Adrianople in the last Balkan war, so you could not tearh him much in the way of fortifications. Wo had about 7000 men all told, but we had a preponderance in. artillery. On September L'Oth wo came to a place about four miles from their position, and on tho night of tho -'(ith-i'rth. leaviug a i'orco to demonstrate in front, we went with the majority of the force by night and marched round between marshes, etc., and. getting almost behind their left flank, swept down on them. That made theii ieu flank retire, and wo got them and kept them on the run. "The force in front, however, was unable to make any headway, and asked lor help, so we started to get right behind tho forts they were attacking. It was now o p.m., and wo had ono hour of daylight left. Suddenly a large force of Turks appeared on our right. I think they were reinforcements from tho other j,idc. of the Tigris, numbering about. 4000, with a battery and. four machine-guns. We changed our direction and went straight lor them, and in an hour and a quarter turned them out of the last, position they took up. The charge took place in the dusk, and it was really a very brilliant attack. The men—both 'Thomas Atkins' and 'Jack Sepoy"—were beyond all praise; nothing could stop them. "We bivouacked in their position for tho night, during which the Turks retired. Our casualties were heavy— 1231 —but the extraordinary thing is that the number kiiled was very small, only 85. Of course a number will probably dio of wounds, but even so it will be a Tory low percentage of killed to wounded. This regiment had the heaviest list of casualties. Three British officers were, wounded, including the commanding officer, seven native officers were wounded, nine killed and 154 were wounded of the rank and file.

"We got rather badly 'strafed' by shrapnel n't one period, and in the evening attack rather bore the brunt of it in tho beginning. The Turks lost, in dead, wounded, and prisoners as iar as one ran eaJculnte, about StOOO, ne-sides six guns, two . machine-guns, and .seven old smooth-bore guns, which are not much use. Clearing up tho battlefield was a nasty job, and even two days afterwards wo were still bringing in tho Turkish wounded, etc. 1 think it is just ul>out as hot a place as I ever want to be in.

"Wo had no water, except what wo •starteel with, from 7 p.m. on the 2Gth ill 9 a.m. on tho 29th. W c must havo marched quite eighteen miles before wc had finished. It gave us Kut-cl-Amara, and makes Nasaiizah, which wc are holding on tho Euphrates, safe Wc havo jollowed tho Turks up here, but their advanced position near here is now unoccupied. Jt is just beginning to get cool now, but tho sun is still unpleasantly strong in tho middle of the dav.

[ am glad to sen tho New Zeaandors in the Dardanelles speak up for the lurks. Tho truo Turk is a rerv «ood chap, hut tho Arab is a regular jMkal. Ho will turn on whoever the day goes arainst. He will also loot tho dead and kdl the wounded. However, one or two shot* from .a gim are quite enough to make him run. '.Nuruddin. the Turkish commander, is very «ick of life. He is said to havo written to Constantinople that ho could hold nil the British forces at Es Sinn lor six months, and ho \va s turned out position in a. day."