DARDANELLES

New Zealand Times, Volume XL, Issue 9076, 22 June 1915, Page 5

DARDANELLES

THE FIGHT FOR fluHl' oflofl GREAT ARTILLERY PREPARATIONS. tjy Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright LONDON, June 20. Reuter’s Agency supplied details ol the fighting on the front of Ac'ni Baba on Juno 4th. For an hour, every British and. French gun on the peninsula poured shell of various calibres upon the Turkish trenches, while the British .battleships on the right and French on the left battered tne flanks. The whole lanoscajte was obliterated under a curtain of smoke. A tower st ivritlua, which had survived the pre-1 vious bombardments, toppled over, and; the village was set on tire. An infantry charge began at noon. The first few trenches were easily taken. The enemy, being dazed by the avalanche of shells, merely fired a few shots upward at the British soldiers who were stabbing down at them. A large number were dead in .the trenches, victims of the shell fire. AAa had the enemy fairly on the run for -» time, until our centre held the fifth trench. Two armoured . turret motor-cars oi the Naval Air Service did useful work, but the toads are mainly unsuitable for this method of warfare. Using the two fairly good roads from Sedd-ul-Bahr and Cape Helles to Jvrithia, which cut the . enemy’s trenches at right angles, light cars advanced, crossing our trenches ovei; special bridges, and ran close to the enemy's lines. They opened machine gun hiv, but the deep entrenchments of the enemy made further progress impossible, and the cars at the same time offered a goort targel for the enemy’s guns.. Shells began to drop around them, but the motorists backed out of the danger zone. Two cars were slightly damaged. Our centre dashed so far forward that it was unable to maintain all its 1 ground, although the Naval Division fought with the utmost gallantry. 1 The Turks reserved rigorous counterattacks until Sunday, when reserves came up from beyond Aohi Baba. Our men were very -bard-pressed, and abandoned - two of the conquereo trenches. They held the remainder-of the ground, repulsing the Turks with great loss. The storming of Achi Baba is a difficult problem. The hill presents a series of smooth slopes, terraced at intervals and as difficult to mount as the glacis of an old-fashioned fort. A Turkish officer taken prisoner said: ‘'Germany is our ally. AVe know our country’s hours are numbered,' but wq fight tor her as you would fight forj yours-” , i ' (An account of this engagement supplied by Sir lan Hamilton was published on June 7th.] AN OFfICEIfSJKPERItNOE NARROW ESCAPE FROM SHELLS. By Telegraph—Pre*a Association—Gopytigh "Times” and Sydney "Sim” Services LONDON, June 19. An officer who was at tho #Dardanelles on recent dates writes“ There has been a great deal of firing from the trenches. The trenches are most interesting; they are mostly deep enough to walk upright in without exposure. - X went round with General Birdwood and Admiral Thursby one day. They fired at us a lot, but never got nearer than six inches. We saw the mountain guns at work. The enemy caught one of the Australian guns a fair smack, and; killed the officers, woutided -seven men, and killed twenty-six , horses and mules. Subsequently w© sat on the top of a hill where four days before it would have been highly unsafe to even lie.' On returning, we delayed to collect firewood. This Undoubtedly saved our fives, as four shells suddenly burst thirty yards away. We bolted to a dugout. I was in a precious funk, and felt like a tortoise on whose shell some one was tapping with a coal Hammer.’’

AUSTRALIAN OFFICER'S PLUCK By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright CAIRO., June 21. A stirring tale is told of an Arfc Italian lieutenant named Sutton. He volunteered to go out with a .email party and blow up a Turkish trench. Before it was poss-ble, the Turks’ sud-l aen attack forced the party to hastily' retreat. Sutton took reluge in a Ghurka trench, and amused himself oy returning the hand-grenades to the Turkish trenches, until one exploded and blew off his right hand. He re-, ceived a field dressing, and was sitting in the trench nurs.ng the stump when the Turks made a rush. Sud-l denly he found a huge Turk above him with a bayonet. Quick as thought, Button snatched the kukri from the nand of a dead Ghurka and slashed as the Turk’s neck. The Turk fe.V upon him. Sutton grappled with his left’ arm, and during the wrestle embedded his teeth in the Turk’s ear. -He held him for ten minutes, unt:li assistance arrived, when the Turk' was lifeless. Another Australian had his foot rid-, died by shrapnel. He was being as-, .listed down a gully to Gaba Tope, and met General Godley, who made inquiries. The man replied; “I am a blooming kangaroo now, ain’t I, General?”.

AUSTRALIAN CASUALTIES DENIAL AS TO THE TOTAL. By Telegraph—Press Association—Cop-right MELBOURNE. June 21. In the Senate. Senator Pearce (Minister for Defence) announced that arrangements had been made for the. United States Ambassador at Conn stantinoplo to supply information re*! garding prisoners of war in Turkey. ■ Mr Pearce emphatically contradicted the statement that the casualties' amounted to 10,000 monthly. Our| men had been fighting over a month) and the casualties had not reached) 10,000. Many who had been re-! ported Wounded were already back in the firing line. The hospital ship Kyarra had left) Suez with 11 officers and 29 men, eni route to Australia. AUSTRALIiINSJJCiMfINDER try Telegraph—Tress Association—Copyright MELBOURNE, June 21. Colonel Legge’s appointment la succession to the late General Bridges, as officer commanding the Australian Force, has been gazetted, with the rank of Brigadier-General.

ALLEGED ATROCITIES

DENIED BY THE AUSTRALIANS. B? Telegraph—Pres* Association—Copyright CAIRO, June 20. The majority of the wounded deny the Turkish atrocities. They state that the Turks are fighting mast fairly- In one case a Turk dressed the wounds of a British soldier under fire; another left his water-bottle with a wounded Australian. Another Australian, who was made a prisoner but escaped, states that ho was very well treated. After tho furious attack at Sari. 2air on May 19th the Turks sent this ■message; —“We are going to drive yon (Australian devils into the sea to-mor-row.” A Turkish aeroplane dropped messages at Gaba Tepe, saying: “Australians and New Zealanders, surrender. AVe will treat you well,” and exhorting them not to fight in’an unjust war. Wounded men state that the Australians and New Zealanders get on splendidly together. They are like one big family. “IMSHI VALLA!” The Australians recently sent the following message to No. 3 New.Zcaland Battery, which did excellent work upon Colonel Plugge’s plateau; “Go it ‘mates; no need for us to use rifleswhile you fire like that.” The men are so keen that they do not desire to leave the trenches. The 16th Battalion of the 3rd Australian Infantry were five weeks in tho trenches before they were relieved. The Australian war-cry on the Peninsula is “Imshi Valla!” Arabic words meaning “Be off; move on.” Before the Triumph wds sunk she did excellent work cutting off Turkish reinforcements coming up the gullies near Gaba Tepe. Captain AVallingford is a champion shot, and his machine gun was one of the mainstays of the force at Sari Bair.

"ALLJPET" NEW ZEALANDERS' GALLANTRY By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright > SYDNEY, Juno 21. Captain Bean, writing on June Bth, says that everything was quiet at Anzac, except at Quinn’s Post, where constant fighting by small parties resulted in a slight advance. The New Zealanders, after gallantly holding a (trench for eight hours, were driven lout by a fusillade of bombs. They again took the same trench, but were again driven out, leaving the position ‘•as you were.” “POSITION JIMPRE6NABLE ,f 3jr Telegraph—Prc«« A«sociation—Copyright LONDON, June 20. The German Staff regard the posiuon on the Gallipoli Peninsula as a stalemate, as* neither side is able to use more meii within the space. There is thus only danger if Boumania and Bulgaria intervene. REPORTED BATTLESHIP MISHAPS "Times" and Sydney "Sun” Services. (Received June 21, 6 p.m.) LONDON. Juno 21. A Constantinople report, declares that a battleship of the Agamemnon, type is semi-submerged in Kehalo Bay. • GERMAN YOUNG MEN MORE CALLED OUT. By Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright (Received June 21, 10.40 p.m.) ROTTERDAM, June 21. It is understood that Germany is calling out a’ further four (?) thousand young men, first-class material, mostly railway employees. , A NATIONAL JSHELI FACTORY By Telegraph—Press Association—Oopyrighl LONDON, June 20. It has been decided to establish a national shell factory at Birmingham. BERLIN PROFESSOR DERIDES FOREIGN UNIVERSITIES. "Timefl” and Sydney “Sun" Serried* (Received June 21, 6 p.m.) ’ LONDON, June 21. A Berlin professor states that advocates of the exclusion of Germans from foreign universities; as a reprisal, are harmless, because foreign countries do not possess good for Germans. The Rhodes Scholarship has no value, except to enable a German student to get shot and to spend a large income.

THE NAMELESS HEROES "Times*' and Sydney "Sun** Service* (Received June 21, 6 p.m.) LONDON, June 21. The French Chamber authorised the burning of fallen unidentified soldiers and the burying of -those identifiad. THE MONTENEGRINS OCCUPY TARABOSCH HEIGHTS. Ib y Telegrraph—Press Association —Copyriflit (Received June 21, 9.15 p.m.) ROME, June 21. The Montenegrins have occupied the heights of Tarabosch. Their objective is Scutari.