“CHARGES ARE HOT STUFF”

Otago Witness, Issue 3215, 27 October 1915, Page 52

“CHARGES ARE HOT STUFF”

HEAVY NEW ZEALAND LOSSES

Writing from St. George’s Hospital, one of the New Zealand soldiers says, under date September 5: —“I suppose you will have heard of the fight we had there last month. Wo had a of a time, and lost a lot of men. Of our regiment there were only about 60 left, and when we went there first we were about 500 strong. Of course they are not all dead—wounded, sick, etc. If it keeps on much longer there will bo no Now Zealanders left. 1 got my arm hurt during a charge. The Turks set a land mine off, and I was almost on top of it. I was thrown about a mile, and I can’t remember much of what happened after that. However, I stumbled on and got th; re. These charges are hot stuff, I can tell you —scrambling up hill and clown dale, through scrub, etc., and bullets flying all tho time. I have seen all I want to, I can tell you. Wc had a charge on tho night of August 6, and wc drove them hack close on a mile. A dark night it was, and of all tho picnics evei’ X was at it easily took tho cake. Malta is not a bad place, though, of course, I haven’t seen much of it yet. Fruit is very cheap, especially grapes; we can get a hatful for 3d. Cigarettes are also cheap. I hoard to-day that they aro_ going to form a regiment of all that remain out of the Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago mounted men. That means that threo out of four regiments have gone. I

don’t know what they arc going to do with the infantry, but there can’t bo many left of them. The Maoris got cut up also, but they don’t mind. They are happy-go-lucky beggars, and fight well.”