THE DEFENCE OF EGYPT.

Otago Witness, Issue 3277, 3 January 1917, Page 13

THE DEFENCE OF EGYPT.

ANOTHER TURKISH DEFEAT. Official Egyptian reports state: Our mounted men captured Turkish strongholds at Alaghdabah, capturing men, guns, and a large quantity of booty. The enemy's casualties were considerable. Our aircraft co-operated with their bombs and machine guns, and our aeroplanes are still continuing to harass the enemy. The enemy were completely routed. The total of the Turks captured was 1350, including five officers, also seven guns (four mountain guns and three Krupp guns). The total enemy force engaged was about 2000, therefore tho whole force was practically destroyed. Further southwards our mobile troops penetrated tho Mitla Pass and destroyed the defences at its eastern end, also the Burnside camps in its neighbourhood. Tho situation in the Sinai Peninsula is developing satisfactorily. Our mounted troops are well beyond El Arish, and the southern portion of the Ginai Peninsula is being cleared of the enemy. *" IMPORTANCE OF THE DEFEAT. Tho Daily Chronicle's Cairo correspondent writes: "The evacuation of El Arish ends the Turco-German pretensions of attack upon tho Suez Canal. The Turks have quitted tho most important strategic point in Eastern Egypt and relinquished a strong natural position, offering many difficult points to assailants. Part of the British column was at the railhead. Concentration began at daybreak, and tho rolling desert all day presented a wonderful spectacle. As far as the eye could reach lanes of Australian and New Zealand horsemen, with yeomanry, camelry, and Territorial infantry, wound over tho high scrub-covered sand dunes. Some were hidden in valleys, and others cutting the skyline liko black razor blades. Airmen, 10,000 ft up, escorting the column, kept off the enemy machines. The airmen, from dawn to dusk, besides patrolling to'protect the column, denied an opportunity for the enemy to reconnoitre. "Meanwhile a heavily-laden train carried forward stores, while thousands of transport camels followed tho fighting force, moving with uncanny silence on a comparatively narrow front. '•lnformation was brought to tho railhead early in the evening that tho _Turks were leaving El Arish. and it was decided to push forward a division to secure tho town, which, after a difficult night march, tho horsemen and camelry had completely surrounded by daybreak. The bulk of tho population remained, and welcomed tho troops with unfeigned relief owing to Turkish extortion and oppression. Tho majority wcro hungry, and immediately arrangements were made to feed them. "El Arish has been bombarded from the sea several times, and, were proof needed of tho navy's desire to spare civilians and of tho navy's good gunnery, it would be found in tho fact that, while the strongly-built stone fort on the southern edge of tho town was demolished, hardly a mud or brick house among tho many in the immediate vicinity was touched." THE SURPRISE OF THE STROKE. The operations at El Arish and Maehdabah wcro conducted under orders from Sir Philip Chetwode. The victory was duo to the masterly surprise of the stroke The British force—consisting of tho Anzao Mounted Division (under General Chauvel),

the Imperial Camel Corps, Australian, navai bridging', train, Territorial, and artillery forces —covered 20 miles of difficult eandj ground, mostly at a rapid trot, in 24 hours. A portion of the El Arish garrison fell back upon a stronjr position at Maghdabah, consisting- of several well-situated redoubts. iThey did not anticipate that the British would come so soon into action. Before daybreak one redoubt was speedily demolished. Others in a more difficult position resisted longer, but the whito flag was hoisted at 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Tho British casualties wore five officers and seven men killed, 17 officera and 117 men wounded. The losses wero insignificant, considering th© strength of the position, and-this was duo to the. skilful handling of tho troops, tho accuracy of the artillery work, and the close co operation of the aircraft. The present British position menaces the communications with the rail ways and the remaining enemy garrisonson Sinai; therefore the enemy are rapidly withdrawing further south. After crossing tho Mitla £ass the British pushed on and burned an enemy camp at (Sundredheitan, 48 miles from Suez, also a camp eastward on tho road towards Nekel. A CORRESPONDENTS ACCOUNT. Mr W. T. Massey, correspondent of thy Uaily Telegraph, writing concerning the El Arisn operations, warmly praises tno horsemen and camelry. Their day and night march, through extremely difficult country, was performed with great precision, the movement enabling tho town to bo surrounded. Mr Massey accompanied the convoy to El Arish. He says tho first eight miles consisted of rolling billows of sand, with deep valleys and plentiful scrub. Th< dunes have sharp crests and steep sides lik« cliffs, necessitating long, tortuous windings. The hoofmarks on terrific gradients showed that whole regiments had scaled giddy pathi in yielding sand. It was almost incredible; These intrepid horsemen had ascended seem* ingiy impossible steeps. The difficulties neac Ei Arish appeared insurmountable, and perhaps this explains the Turkish neglect to construct trenches. Yet all were overcome In a despatch from El Arish Mr VV. T. Massey describes the victory at Maghdaba as one of the most important battles of tha campaign in Eastern liigypt. It added fama to the Anzac mounted troops and proved tho sterling value of tho camel corps, comEosed of British yeomanry and colonial orsemen. It was a brilliant stroke, under extraordinarily arduous conditions, inflicting an overwhelming defeat on the Turks. Tha swift, fierce, and irresistible attack will have an important moral effect, tha mounted men travelling 25 miles to Ei Arish in a single night—a feat which has been hitherto considered impossible in desert warfare. The Turks are hurriedly trekking eastward, their calculations regarding Northern Sinai having been completely upset. They evacuated El Arish, not expecting its loss, but they did not reckon on tho remarkable mobility of the desert column, whoso pursuit caused nervousness regarding communications. The feeling of camaraderie between the Anzac mounted men and tho camel corps was strongly cemented by the Maghdaba action. They have co-operated before, bu 6 not in such close proximity, and under the mutual admiration for strong, determined work they have become a band of brothers. Tho Anzao mounted division has never known failure. Nobody understands the resourcefulness, courage, and endurance of the Anzacs better than tho enemy. Tho Anzao are simply invaluablo in Egypt. All are anxious for another move to keep tha old Turk on the run. PRAISE FOR ANZAO MOUNTEDS. General Chauvol had entire charge of the operations at Maghdaba. It was recognised that tho movement must be swift, or the Turks, getting -wind of it, would evacuate the position as they did at El Arish. Therefore, tho force did not assemble till three hours after sunset at Wad El Arish, three miles south of tho town. The men partook of their ration, and the horses were led and watered—a somewhat prolonged operation owing to the difficulty of bringing camel convoys 15 miles from the railhead across a waterless, heavy desert. At 1 o'clock on Saturday morning the First and Second Australian Light Horse Brigades, the New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade, and eight companies of th* Imperial Camel Corps, under a winner of tho Victoria Cross (Brigadier Smith), ■ four batteries of tho Territorial Horse Artillery, and a mounted battery of tho Hongkong and Singapore Artillery, moved off at a rapid pace to cover 22 miles before dawn. The forco halted at 5 o'clock two miles from the enemy position. The Turks clearly did not anticipate an attack, as the bivouao fires wero burning. General Chauvel decided to send the' Second Light Horse and New Zealand Brigades to the eastward, giving the Camel Corps tho task of tho frontal attack, with the First Light Horse in reserve. The airmen reported that parties of Turks -were leaving, so the two brigades on the east hurried forward to complete tho envelopment. They were met by shell and machine-gun fire, whilst tho Light Horse moving to support the Camel Corps heavily fired on tho machine-guns, and deployed westward to prevent an attempted escape on that side. . ;

It was plain that the position was strongly hold, so the attack proceeded in deliberate fashion, aeroplanes bombing tho Turkish entrenchments, the artillery accurately firing, and the dismounted troops matin sr periodical rushes. The position wus difficult to attack, because onlv one of five redoubts could be observed. That was soon wrecked, the surviving Turks showing- the white flag; but from other redoubts cams very heavy fire.

From 8 till noon good progress was mado, and it was then evident that energetio measure? were necessary if Maghdaba was to be taken before darkness set in. The question of water for the troops and horses was becoming pressing Though tho men were suffering greatly from thirst, their efforts never slackened. Early in tho afternoon all the reserves were brought into action. Aeroplanes brought fresh supplies of bombs, which they dropped under n continual fusilado from anti-nircraft_ and machine-guns. The artillery poured incessant salvos from their 18-pounders, and ai terrific rifle and machine-gun firo was directed on three sides. At 4 o'clock tha Turkish commander, seeing that his forces had suffered eevere losses, accepted tho inevitable and surrendered, but some rifle fire was kept up from sand dunes till dark. Tho action was brilliantly conducted. The troops had had three night marches in four clays, but their spirit was never higher. The. capture of this, their strongest position, haa

rendered many Turkish positions in Northern Sinai untenable. The Admiralty reports: Aeroplanes sue* pessfully bombarded camps at Galata, and jeaplanes destroyed the Chikaldir bridge, 18 Iniles eastward of Adana. THE DEFENCE OF THE" CANAL. Hr Mgssey, the war correspondent, des-

cribing 1 the defence -works of tho Suez Canal, emphasises tho permanency of the works, as well ae their enormous magnitude. Tho expense has been heavy, and tho work arduous, but tho troops' stout hearts were equal to tho task, and the money has been well spent. Tho army has oivilised the dosert, and tho results will remain when the war has become history.

It was necessary to push the defences far enough from the canal to place the canal out of range of the heaviest modern artillery. Consequently many pipe lines for •rater supply have been laid down, and many roads and railways now link the Mediterranean with the Gulf of Suez. One remarkable railway is of standard gauge, on which London and South-western engines

draw loads as heavy as any they drew in England. They do the 200 miles out-and-honie journey night and day to strict timetable.