HILSON BOYS AT THE DARDANELLES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLVIII, Issue XLVIII, 10 July 1915, Page 8

HILSON BOYS AT THE DARDANELLES

IN THE FIRING- LINE. Private P. J. W. Westrupp, or the New Zealand Force, writ> ing to this .parents. Mr and Mrs S-. Westrupp, of jrort Nelson, from Malta*, after beh>g wounded at the Dardanelles, says: I have just got some writing paper and I thought I would write a few lines and tell you what we have been, doing since we left Egypt. Well, we left sandy Egypt on- the 9th April. We didn't know where w« were going, but to' were on out way, and. didn't care where we went- so long as we left that sandy -hole. Well, we got aboard the boat at Alexandria, and left, and steamed for' just on four days, and called at Lemrios. : 'We stopped there 10 days. I didn't get ashore; I was on police duty. •X do three • hours on duty and nine off, so you" can guess I was on a good job. I -could have ihad the job when I first joined, bub I wouldn't'take it. We left L-emnos on Sunday, the 25th April, for the" Dardanelles. - We arrived there the same day, arid we had a great time •landing, "shells flying everywhere. We were lucky enough, not to lose »■ man, but some of the other .New Zealand companies •got cut about. The Australians' got cut' up, tod. We stopped l at this place for 10 days. We drove the trenches and got in. them, and the Turks couldn't drive us out-. The Nelson company was very lucky. W r e got the job of making a road up to the firing 'line, so that they could get big guns up. Some of our boys found, a Turk tent with about 10 dozen eggs in. You can bet .we had a> goodi feed- then. Not many can say they had eggs at the front. Well, -we left that to go and help the English Tommies to takie a village and a hill. The Turks think we can't take it,-but they will find their mistake. We w'ent dowis there in torpedoes. It took a-bout''2o minutes to go. We arrived there about 2in the {morning. We went on to -the .beach till daylight, and my word- it' was cold'.' We never saw a blanket a£ter we left Egypt, till we came here.'.' I don't like getting out of bed mheri" I get in, _I don't 'know what I wall be like when' I get back. Well, we marched about two miles inland, and stopped there for three days for a rest before we started again. We left there on a* Friday night to anarch for the trenches again. We slept in trenches about 'a mwe behind' the firing line. The shells were- flying' all round tts there. One .thing, we will be able to sleep through jaujything after this lot. We started for the firing line about 9.o'clock ©n Saturday morning. The New ZeaJariders had to advance 600 yards past the Tommies. Then .the Austral'ins were- to come '"op in the evening for the attack.

Weß, we started, and ran about 50 yards and down. "We "bullets flying all round. us, and;started "to get further on when, I got one in the wrist. It ooly knocked a bit of skin off, and down we got- again, and that was as far as I went.\l got it in -the shoulder. I thought Ifcad bit waili'a sledge hammer. I car* ,teD.'you it made'me think of home. I.bledi.lßce..&' pig; but I am alright now. You- vrou&hi't <t2wnk I had- anything wrong- wiiih me. Bnghie Owen is- here with" me. He got one throush the back! of the neck. He is- alright, and his ■wound is fceaJed up' agam>. Malta "Is a venc -pret*y/,place, different from Egvot. I hWn't seen' -mrudh of it yet. .They tell-"us-wo will' get ou* "to have a look round as soon as we pick urp a bit. I tell yon" we 'lost some weight living on IbulSy "beef andr -biscuits.