PAST THE GARDEN OF EDEN.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14195, 12 January 1917, Page 8

PAST THE GARDEN OF EDEN.

" A V- -V/'iv i. m.A r <V-.v,:, AUSTR^LIA^^-seL^-mil'S'. IMPftliS. ».■■;•"%■ - : ' ; V'J SION.< f*'--*Y|- . ' !';:■; v. XX^AB;-(N*.svwi);W. 3. • ': ; '. Sapper H. B. Cody, 'sOn of. tmi local ipostmaster, ih r the course of a 'letter, , 'stated:— •' i'Y ■■■ ■■'""/ A ' ; . ' i "I "We travelled' 'from 'Bombay Yip ■through the Persian Gulf to Basra on a •mailboat of aboi|t' 8000 tons'; « but from. r ßasra' : "Up the'riyei'. won't permit of the: '« nagivation of • latge vessels'; ;,: heiice ' the, «oVea'nmeiiti''has k fleet Of paddle' steam-^ -ers- • doing' transport work; and' they do : it well. YL-eCcK; paddle -steamer has' 'a ■;' 'couple of- barges ' (whi x dh carry a big . load) on either side of'itY'' ! '- -•■•' { , Y '''MesOpoti^ia^td.'the'kudeto^^^ full : 'Of significance.- •Hete'' yoU ratty s'qe, as < ■you ' creep slowly ' up- the "Tigris'; the 3 reputed' 'sites' of the' 'Garden of ''Eden'. Ai few miles, away* . to 'the west, a ruined 'city,' lies t-He- ! 're'm'n'arit#*of , '?B_",by_dif, built „ rOuPd the tower' of Babel aiid before f reaching' Amara "the tef t -bank di^loses l the doomed tomb^of Ezi'ir, Uhe ; Heb'rew . prophet*/ sot; in' a ' clunip s ; of palm trees'. .*) . > "We 'have gone through some r hb£ jweathei'' here. It's much worse than Bourke at its best. , (Sapper. Cody was). /stationed at Bourke for over. 12- moiitlis>, .7 ;.aud Was there during, the worst part bf' the slimmer.) But now we ate -dose M ,the Persian' Moubtains, and>th'e -mOr'n-. ?ngs and nights are bitterly cold,- with' ■thy, days fairly .'Warm Where we ai'dY now there is -no shade, not^ge^much' as ' .the" scraggy, date; palm- WpYget some' fbad dust storm's up here;' you eat sand? have 'sandi! in : your 'eyes,' 1 ears, and .clothes. Sandflies'.'worry you at 'nieHt.* -No. doubt the tasW of. civilisation will be* the ' Bweetei'V for" the experience. 7 ''"' '* "Nothing could be more appropriate,' , I think', than that our ; army and-v 6o' much of its energies should have been; directed against a v position called 'Sin.' We are now. only a few : miles •.f^•p > m|the , . firing line, and all.tlie firing l * that goes on. This^, morning the firjhg , Seemed to be 1 a • bie * more : tioletit **&aij usual,,, and Lhope., t*h-at...^_e .hay^inade) an impression. On the! average we see 12.

■ ' . ... " '■'' »•' ■ ■■■ , about a dozen aeroplanes a day and j just near us is a big observation balloon • that goes up each day. A few days ago - ' tve witnessed an aerial battle. An enemy plane, whose object, I think, was torget rid of the -balloon, was chased by two ->f our machines-, and returned to his awn lines'. ..-•■' , ' y.- : i* "While on our way to' the river* for a, swim yesterday, tivo mates and myself were -spoken to by General Monro, «*ho asked us seyexal questions as to how we M*ere keeping',' and how we liked 1 Mesopotamia. . ! H*e seemed' to take .an interest in Australians. I have been doing night watch this last couple ot nights, and it is cold "and miserable sitting out' on guard with nothing but the squeals of jackals and the boom of the guns to keep you company."