THE CASUALTY LISTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 16098, 11 December 1915, Page 9

THE CASUALTY LISTS.

HOW THEY ARE COMPILED.

MISTAKES AND DELAYS.

PRESENT SYSTEM DEFENDED.

Tin: following reference to the complaints as to the slowness with which the names of those New Zealanders who have fallen at, GaUipoli have been forwarded from the scene of action is made by Mr. Maico.m Ross, official correspondent with the New Zealand forces, in a letter dated October 11 : _

" The method adopted is the best that could be devised. In fact, it is the only safe one. . . . Battalions send in their reports once a week direct to the base *nat is to save dealing with two usual intermediate channels of communication— the brigadier and divisional headquarters. Tins report contains the names of casualties—killed, wounded, missing, prisoners, and sick. The base in this case is necessarily at Alexandria, For each man there is a page in a loose-leaf ledger, and particulars are entered opposite his name. The urst return—especially after a battle of any magnitude— is invariably incomplete, and contains errors. Before an accurate m- can be made out it must be checked with other returns and information such « the base receives from the medical uiuts and the hospital ships. When these returns are compared, a large number of discrepancies are found. When Mistake* are Likely.'* "Mistakes are especially apt to be made m the case of a big battle, or where a position has to be stormed in the darkness. The mistakes are equally numerous in an action where a force has subsequently to retire over a rough ground or from enemy trenches that it lias captured. Many of the bodies are never recovered j they he in the no-man's land between the opposing trenches, into which none dare venture, even under the cover of night. Others are buried by the enemy in hur-riedly-dug graves amongst the scrub or in the trenches, where they fell Thus it will generally bo found that not many of those finally classed as * missing' return, though sometimes days afterwards a few straggle in, wounded or exhausted fcy the fighting. Many a man has saved his life by shamming dead when ho has found himself in a hopeless situation; but, generally, the New Zealanders and the Australians fight on, and after a few days there is not much chance of the return of their 'missing.' The only hope is that, either wounded or unweunded, they are prisoners in the hands of the Turks, in which case they will be well treated, for the Turk, uidike the Bosches, has. on the peninsula, at least, proved himself humane and a clean fighter. Over and over again, in a charge, men have been reported kil.ed, and afterwards they have corns in, wounded or untouched. There have even been cases where a chaplain has reported burying a certain man, and that man has turned up safe and sound I

Causes of Delay. "The delay in the first instance was no doubt) longer than it is now; but it is easily accounted for by the character of the fighting and the enormous and unlocked for number of casualties. In that case one must remember that our men were fighting hard and practically continuously for a month under extraordinary difficulties in regard to the transport of wounded, ammunition, food, and water. The mails were the last thing to be considered. It became a question of succouring the wounded and maintaining the living rather than seeking out the dead during those first terrible days. " The first estimates of the casualties are in nearly every case exaggerated. With the official as well as. the unofficial accounts it is the same. A man will tell you that bis regiment has been cut to pieces; that only 40 or 50 are left! It i is presumed that the rest are casualties, l but for days afterwards men will come I dribbling in and, after all, it is not so bad. It must also be remembered that in i the first week of the fighting it was largely a soldiers' battle, and-the units got almost I inextricably mixed up, and that everyone, I including the officers, had come ashore as light as possible, and practically without office requisites and conveniences. The company commanders brought their rolls with them in pocket-books, and the regimental records were brought ashore in the packs of the people concerned. Several of those officers were killed on fixe first day, but, in any case, some days must have elapsed before, under the shrapnel and the continuous sniping;, they could calmlv sit themselves down to compile a list of the casualties.

No Help from Hospital Ships.

A friend -ha written suggesting that the hospital ships carrv the lists givmg the name* of the dead if the wireless is blocked. That is quite oat of the question. The hospital ships in no wav come under the control of the army on shore, and they go their several ways at the behest of those who are directing the sea lines of communication, the captain and the medical officer in charge frequently not knowing till they get a signal at the last moment whether their destination will be Madros, Imbros, Alexandria, Port Said Malta, or even England! As for the less—well, that must be reserved for operations !

*i."^V T V 8 vow a Cflb>e between one of the islands and Alexandria, and it wall be noted that the names of the officers who have fallen are sent hv cable. It mav be thought that a preferential discrimination is being shown. Snch is not the case. The names are cabled simplv because it is of urgent importance to replace as ouirklv as possible those officers who have fallen in battle, or who have become seriously ill Tn the case of the wounded there is no difficulty in giving prompt information as accurate lists ran be obtained from 'the snips as thev come in."