WITH THE AUSTRALIANS

New Zealand Times, Volume XL, Issue 9076, 22 June 1915, Page 3

WITH THE AUSTRALIANS

MEN UNDER HOT FIRE DASH FOR TRENCHES AT GALLIPOLI. (From Captain Bean, Official Correspondent with the Australian Forces.) The following cable message, dated Alexandria, Juno Bth, was sent from Gaba Tope on May 31st: — Fighting lately has been almost con- , fined to that portion of our line known as Quinn’s Post, where the Turkisn trenches and our own are within a few yards of each other. It was here, that the Turks temporarily rushed a section of a trench early on May 29th. That night the Turks sapped up to two holes, or craters, which had teen caused by an explosion of our countermines during the previous week. These craters were within three or four yards of our trench. By morning the cnemj had turned them into bomb-proof shelters at the middle. Our artillery bombarded the enemy's trenches. Two small parties of Light Horse dashed over the parapet, and could be seen throwing bombs liko cricket-balls down into the craters, and lunging with their bayonets, although falling right and left. Then they hopped down into the craters. A furious bombardment oy Turkish bombs followed. One party came back in four hours all wounded. The other party, although all wounded except two, remained till nearly midnight, and fortified the crater, which wo still retain. During this action it becaim. the duty of some of our machine gunners to keep down the fire of the Turkish machine guns. YOUNG GUNNER’S jiRAFERV.

Ono gunner, a young man from Balmain, engaged two Turkish, machine guna of which hei knew the position, and wiped out tho crew of one. The Turks -obtained a second crew, and for live imnutee endeavoured to hit our gunner. Whilst tho Turkish gun gradually felt Tor him—with shota creeping up on one •ado of the loophole, then below, then across the top, ripping the sandbags to bits—he continued' tiring without paying the slightest attention to the danger. finally the enemy's machine guns blew the sandbag off the parapet, and presently reached the gunner, who fell wounded with another member of the gun's crew. - The general commanding, who happened to bo present, saw the uln-to episode.' and told the youngster, as he lay wounded, that he intended to r-'iommind him for tho Distinguished ‘ Conduct Medal. The youngster raised himself as best he could and saluted. NBVV ZEALANDERS IN HOT - CORNER-

The trench beyond our left, which the New Zealanders ,ook and held fer 48 hours, was afterwards enfiladed by Turkish artillery, and became untenable. The Maorilandcrs therefore retired during the dark to the old position. All the troops here are in, splendid fettle and well fed. The enemy’s attack of May 19th was directed h> General von Sanders. I have heard men say that they. only hope that ho directs some more attacks.

In a dispatch dated Gaba Tepe, June 2nd, Captain Bean says:— It is now possible to state that the. brigade which made the magnificent charge described in my cable message dated May 9 th, was the "2nd Australian Infantry Brigade (sth. Gth. 7th and Bth battalions, from Victoria), commanded "by Colonel J- W. McCay. [ln hi« previous cable Captain Bean described how a brigadier, with sword drawn, had led his brigade of 4000, men in a great charge across bare shrannelswept country. The brigadier is now identified as Colonel J- IV. McCay (V)ctoria), who was wounded in the thigh.J On the same day the New Zealand infantry advanced most gallantly, in the face of a very hot fire, losing nearly as many men as the; Australians dm. "YOU HAVE MADE HISTORY.’’

Major-General Godley, commanding portion of the New Zealand and Australian forces, addressed the 4th Australian Infantry ' Brigade (which includes the 14th Battalion, from Victoria), commanded bv Colonel J. Monash. The men were sitting over the whole hillside, which resembled the gallery of a theatre, and they were enjoying their first well-merited rest. , "You have been," he said, ‘five weeks in the trenches, fighting continually the whole time, and have never been free from shells and rifle fire, to say nothing of bombs. You have always been in utmost din and turmoil. You have made military history for Australia as fine as any troops in tie world could have made.” . , , The Turkish work in the second crater outside Quinn’s Post was blown up by ns last night. LATE GENERAL BRIDGES GREAT WORK AT A CRITICAL TIME. In a cable from Alexandria dated Juno 9th, Captain Bean states: — The loss of General Bridges came as a real shock to the whole of the Australian forces. I believe few people in Australia, even those in the military forces who knew him well, realise what a great soldier he had proved himself when it came to the test of a very critical and difficult operation. Ho was known to be an able administrator and a good organiser, but many of those who admired his ability and capacity for hard work in the time of peace scarcely expected him to rise to the level of a great general in the operations of war. From the first critical hour of landing General Bridges showed qualities not merely of. a capable general but of a great soldier. During tho first operations, especially in the morning and afternoon of the first dav, administration was naturally carried on under conditions which might easily have resulted in the utmost turmoil. Every unit which went into the hills sent down at some time that day argent appeals for reinforcements. Sometimes. even, companies sent down direct' to headquarters messages that _ they could not- hold on much longer if not reinforced. Some units, hard pressed, and cut ofi from their brigade or battalion. did not know where else to apply except direct to headquarters- Similar requests were all day coming from some of the larger units. There was no doubt that all were urgently needed, but only few could be granted, because landing troops is a most difficult military process. Able officers, whose opinions no one hero would question, tell me that, looking back on that first day, even with all the knowledge which they now have; they cannot think of ono case all through these critical hours in which General Bridges allotted those reinforcements wrohglv. All through the tumultuous day. with the beach a seething mass .of landing troops, animals and supplies, the general was absolutely unperturbed. The day he was in sole command ashore, the New Zealand troops’ landing was temporarily allotted to him Ho never showed the least signs of fuss or hurry. He allotted one company here and a battalion thereconsidered each case as it came in the light of the facts before him.