SOLDIERS' LETTERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 15964, 8 July 1915, Page 8

SOLDIERS' LETTERS.

Ox ABA TEPE EIGHT. ADVENTURES OF A SCOUT. SNIPING THE ENEMY. SEARCH FOR A BATTERY. LOST ON THE BATTLEFIELD[iiY TELEGRAPH. OWN" CORRESPONDENT.] ("HRisTCHunrH. Wednesdav. ! In a letter written on board the hospital ship Itonus to a friend in Christchurch, i Private G. A. McAlpine, of the Ist, j Canterbury, Regiment, who is now convalescent in England, describes the land- ! ing on G;>ba Tepe and the advance to the top of the first hill. Of. his subsequent experiences he says: "It was while we were standing here that the order came, 'Ammunition at the double,' whereupon another fellow- and I grabbed a box and started off. We soon found that one hindered -the other, so I took hold of the handle on one end and doubled down, dragging it after me. The bullets were ringing 'ping-ping' both in front and behind, but I crossed this place safely. All that were left of our platoon followed. |On arriving half-way up the other side ! I caught up on Lieutenant Robertson J with a few more of our platoon, thus I bringing our number up to about sixteen. Every little root and bush had to be utilised by us in order to scramble up, as the track was but a foot in width, over fairly loose soil. However, we all managed to reach the top. W e were still in the line of fire, though we could see neither our own firing-line nor that of the enemy owing to the roughness of the ground and the scrub. ■Showers of Bullets. ''Lieutenant Robertson once again led us for safety's sake into a trench, and I, i being scout, was sent ahead to see if I could pick up either our own or the Turkish tiring-line. About 800 yds further I on I picked up Major Grant with a small i party in a trench, so I doubled back and brought our party forward. Here it was decided that Lieutenant Robertson should push forward with us as far as possible, so off we went orice more. For about 500 yds or more we covered ground absolutely swept by shrapnel from one of their batteries- which our ships could not locate. Here we had to duck every few yards to escape the bullets, which positively I showered down. On the nest ridge we j had to stop, as our party was smaller than ever- Lieutenant Robertson sent me back j to Major Grant for orders, as it was sheer suicide to advance further in the face of such fire without the remotest chance of retaliating. My luck was out. I couldn't find Major Grant, and I concluded he had either gone forward or retreated, and so went on again myself. From this onwards I lost touch with my own chaps, and didn't manage to pick them up again. Shot at the Turks. " In a gully a mile away I could sea a light cloud of smoke, so I rightly concluded that it was their battery "which could not be located. Here I picked up three Australians, who decided to come with me and try the enemy's own game— sniping the gunners. We had not travelled a-quarter of a mile when two of the chaps were blown over a cliff about 30ft high. This left only Woodberry, of the 12th Australians, and myself to continue. We got up to within about 400 yds of the battery, and, though there were three guns, we could only get a clear view of one. Woodberry had first shot and got a Turk. I was not so lucky, but with my second got a chap who looked more like a German, as he had a cap on and seemed to be dressed more smartly. But before we could do any more harm we were compelled to retire, as a party from the guns made towards us. We had to go for our lives. Just before reaching our lines poor Woodberry was shot. I could not see where, but tried to carry him back. On coming out of the bush I had a very narrow escape of being shot by our own men, but they either had the "wrong range or were very poor shots. On reaching our lines I dropped down behind cover, and it was not till then that I found I had dragged a dead man. He was shot ctean through the heart.

Order to Retire. Whilst we ".-ere firing from this ridge a major of the Auckland Resriment joined us and ordered us to fall back to the next ridge and make a ftard, which we did. About 2.30 p.m., or thereabouts, I got a shot through the scalp, grazing the skull. Directly I was shot I started to crawl back, whan I got two more shots, one through each leg just above the krees. I just lay and rested for a few minutes and then turned on my back and, vsing my elbows as props began to drag myself backwards. At about 5 p.m. the Turks just about overtook me, so I loaded a rifle I found near an Australian. But I did not need to use it. as our machine-gun was not far behind and soon made them bolt. A few minutes later I came upon our party and kept on going and just behind them a sergeant of the 2nd, Canterbury, Regiment helped me to dress my legs and tie a handkerchief round mv head. I arrived at the field hospital about 9 p.m. and. my head having been dressed, I was put aboard a lighter lor the hospital ship."

ACHI BABA FIGHT. TAURANGA MANS STORY. An account of his experiences in the fight at Achi Baba on May 8 is contained in a letter from Private S. Pemberton to his father, Mr. S. Pemberton, of Tauranga. The letter is directed from a hospital in Malta, whither Private Pemberton was taken, wounded. Descr!trn<r how he and his company were taken further down the Galfii>oii Peninsula than the original landing place. Private Pemberton says:—"We "landed there on May 5 and had a dav's rest, J then were put in the line next nighti ; | and there we stopped till morning, when' the word went round for a general advance at half-past ten o'clock. Well, we started, passed the Tommies' line. ' but did not get far owing to the heavv fire of the Turks. We managed to hold the position till half-past five, a.id then an other advance. Then the fun commenced. 1, "nth a few others, got across a daisy field about 250vds wide, hut we lost a few men. We then took a breather, after which we had the order to charge and so we did. but I had not gone "further than about 7yds when T was hit in the thijrh. so that ended my charge, and I or, afraid the others did not get much further.

THE "WHITE GURKHAS."

TALES THE GERMANS TELL. Writing to his father. Private Sin, ms - *'• Tf V -' ney ' T am as fit " a fiddle. It is » peri.l.nr feeling one gets after Hems; 'winced.' You want to ret hark asrnin with the bo V in .-,11 nrobabilitv to he «win~d' a<*ain. Our Ws aor-nrdin.r to some T.rk'-h pri=one-s hav» drive,, f.ar Int.- the T„rk = . and tW r a l| 11. tho 'white 0„,.l-V, as .- 0.,0 r f tKpTn I, cr,nn-efl ♦'! have .<=nid that 1P A"«»»r;,1'*«n« '•ill *he Turks, and th» \> w Ze-.Wo rs -at tnem afterwards. \V. are petting a fine reputation' One Tnrk wanted to know where all the German men-o'-war were. ] hey have eHH*ntlv been pitched some yarns by the Germans."