FROM THE FRONT

Evening Post, Volume XC, Issue 88, 12 October 1915, Page 8

FROM THE FRONT

m NEW ZEALAND SOLDIERS RETURNING INTERESTING EXPERIENCES. The following is a list of the New Zealanders who arrived in Sydney last week, and are due in Wellington tomorrow by the Maitai :—: — Auckland District. — Capt. E. G. Fraser, Auckland Infantry Battalion; Staff S.M. E. Purdom, Orderly Department, Divisional Headquarters; Pte. W. F. Sefton, N.Z. Medical Corps; Pte. D. A. M'Ghee, Auckland Infantry Battalion, 2nd Reinforcements; Pte. W. E. Edwards, Auckland Infantry Battalion, 4th Reinforcements ; Pte. J. Parry, Auckland Infantry Battalion; Spr. J. Goyle, 2nd Field Company N.Z. Engineers, 4th Reinforcements; Tpr. J. Hunter, Auckland Mounted Rifles. Wellington District.— L.-Cpl. F. C. Foster, Ist Field Company, N.Z. Engineers, British Section, attached Main Body; Spr. C. Gudge, D Signalling Company, N.Z, Engineers; Pte. J. Dunn, Wellington Infantry Battalion; Pte. F. Burgess, Wellington Infantry Battalion; Tpr. W. C. Morgan, Wellington Mounted Rifles. Christchurch District. — L.-Cpl. N. Taylor, Canterbury Mounted Rifles; L.-Cpl. B. Aldridge, Canterbury Mounted Rifles; Pte. W- T. Bowis, Canterbury Infantry Battalion ; Pte. P. W. O'Malley. Nelson District. — Sergt. E. H. Burnett, Canterbury Infantry Battalion; Pte. A. B. Crombie, Canterbury Infantry Battalion; Pte. A. Gridley, Canterbury Infantry Battalion, disembarked at Melbourne. Dunedin District.— Cpl. F. J. Wall, Otago Mounted Rifles ; Pte. C. S. Fraser N.Z. Medical Corps; Spr. F. Daubney Field Troop, N.Z. Engineers ; Pte. C. A. Little, Otago Infantry Battalion. Dunedin District.— Pte. W. M'Kee, Otago Mounted Rifles (missed boat at Fremantle). NEW ZEALAND V.C. An interesting outline of the part taken by the New Zealanders at the Dardanelles was given to a Sydney Daily Telegraph reporter by Lance- Corporal Foster, of Wellington, who is attached to the Ist Company of Field Engineers. Foster joined, in London, the British section of the Expeditionary Forces — a body of 50 men, who went into an engineer company, and took part in the landing operations on 25th April. "That was when hell broke loose," said Foster, recounting his experiences. "We worked all night taking trenches and gun-pits. On the Tuesday following the landing, we went to Quinn's Post, and were under fire for a month. Then we had a rest of three days, and went to the beach. We returned again to Quinn's Post for another month. The work at this time consisted mainly of making new trenches — advancing our firing line, making underground loopholes, and mines. Most of our men were lost through bombs thrown into our sap-heads. When you get out into the sap-heads there is nothing to prevent a Turk creeping up and throwing a bomb on to you. The engineers are at a disadvantage because of this work, and having only a spade for defence. One morning we lost five men while they were cooking their breakfast. They were the victims of sniping. Before we had been there a month we had lost 60 per cent, of our men. " On the first, second, and fourth days we lost officers, and a. month later another officer was killed. He was sniped by a Turk. One of our men — Spr. Carlyon — went out and brought him in on his back. Carlyon was recommended for the V.C, but two days later he was killed in his own dug-out, being struck by a fragment of shell. He was a real hero. Everyone in my section looked up to him, even more than to the officers. He would climb on to parapets and hand over the wounded, or do anything else. He was a rare daredevil. The officer he brought in was sniped while reconnoitring round a trench.' Carlyon was having his tea in his dug-out when he was killed. It just shows you the luck of the game. Carlyon and fifty others were all in dug-outs — in as safe a position as it is possible to secure in the arena of danger, yet, when this man took every chance in the world amongst bullets, shell fire, and shrapnel, he never received a scratch. " About three days before I left, one of our company had his side blown out, while another New Zealander lost a foot." MAORIS GRAND SHOWING. "The Maoris made a grand showing," said a lance-corporal. "Their work on the peninsula was really fine. They landed at 2 o'clock in "the morning — in J\ine — and went straight into the trenches. They held • them until the August advance, when they made a world-wide reputation. All the wounded men are talking about the Maoris. They have been cut up, however, and have had to be abandoned as a separate unit. Two of the Maori officers are now on their way back to New Zealand. The Maoris who were left behind have been attached to other units. There are probably not 200 left out of over 500 who landed at the Dardanelles." .FOUR BULLETS AT ONCE. To be wounded in four separate places and lose an eye all at the same moment was the unfortunate experience of Spr. J. Coyle, of Auckland, who is with the 2nd Field Co. Engineers of the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces. "The damage was done by a bomb," said Coyle, relating the experience. "There was a genei'al charge, and a 'smack up' resulted. I was at Quinn's Post, where the New Zealanders occupied Nos. 4, 5, and 6 posts. Some of the trenches ■were about 15yds apart ; in some places the distance was less on this part of the line. The majority of my company got cut up badly. We had a great number wounded, but .not so many killed. I was in the firing line for ten weeks, working night and day sapping, before being put out of action." PRAISE FOR RED CROSS. 1 An officer, referring to the Red Cross and hospitals of Malta, said -the wounded soldiers were loud in their praise of the manner in which their comfort wa» studied. "At the wharf," he said, "Red Cross ladies met the boats containing the wounded soldiers, and provided them with plenty of comforts. As soon as you arrive at the hospital you are presented with a bag of Red Cross comforts, and then the ladies come every da.y to see how you are progressing, and to cheer you up. There are 14 hospitals in Malta, and every week a concert is given to each institution. I would like to say that Captain Maybin, the white officer in charge of the Maoris, who is now in charge of the Pembroke Convalescent Hospital, at Malta, under Lord Methuen, where there are 1700 patients, cannot be too highly praised. He did excellent work for the wounded men, and not only did he provide them with every possible comfort, but on the morning we left he saw that we got, the men 355, and the n.c.o's £2 each, so that we would not go away 'broke.' We were the only uien who got that. When we arrived in Egypt we were paid aorain. being allowed to draw up to £5 each." "AN AUSTRALIAN BOMB." A little bunch of New Zealanders were loud in their praise of the Australians as fighters. Private Bowis, one of their number, told the following .story :— ■ "Australians and New Zealanders were

alongside one another in the trenches "at Anzac. At this time the Turks were bomb-throwing, and an Australian caused great amusement by filling up a small jam tin with cotton waste. After putting some petrol in the tin, he lit it and hurled it into the Turkish trenches. The commotion among the enemy was astounding and they scampered away until it burnt out. It was a new kind of bomb, unknown to them."