SEPOY’S BRAVERY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24607, 15 May 1941, Page 7

SEPOY’S BRAVERY

INCIDENT IN ERITREA MACHINE-GUN POST CLEARED (Rec. 8 p.m.) RUGBY. May 13. An Indian officer with 10 years of active service took part in the storming of the fort at Dologoradok, the key to the main defences covering Keren, and he described the action as being as hard as any he knew. “The fort," he said, “had concreted machine-gun positions, a double apron of wire, and some field guns. Our gunners did very well, but they could not find suitable positions to cut the wire, and wc simply had to advance straight up to the fort, cut the wire, and drive the Italians out. After we had taken the fort we got our observation and started for the first time to do some effective counter battery fire. Under its cover our battalion advanced to the top of a small hill just under the Italian positions on the crown of the heights. We lay there for several days, shelled from right, left, and centre, and having constantly to repel counter-attacks until we could advance again. There were many brave things done. Our platoon had' been told to capture two machine-gun posts which were troubling them. Instead of using the whole platoon the officer asked for a volunteer. The youngest man in the platoon—-he was only 18 — stepped out. He filled two haversacks with hand grenades and worked his way round behind the machinegun positions, each of which contained four men. He killed the whole eight with two hand grenades. When he was retiring on the rest of the platoon he was counter-attacked by 12 Italians, and he killed six and captured six. He was an ordinary Sepoy.”