AIVALI SHELLED BY BRITISH WARSHIPS.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13783, 2 June 1915, Page 5

AIVALI SHELLED BY BRITISH WARSHIPS.

(Received June 1, 10.15 p.m.)

Mitylene, June 1

British warships shelled Aivali, where an enemy submarine had taken shelter.

THE AUSTRALASIANS' LANDING

ANOTHER DESCRIPTION,

A UNIQUE FEAT IN WARFARE,

London, May 28.

• "The Times' " correspondent says:— "The great landing operations of other wars were never like that at Gallipoli. Never have landing forces fought their way through such obstacles as did the British, French, and Australasian troops. On six beaches the grim fight was simply hell. Every Turco-Prussian ruse was employed. Our losses were heavy, but the wounds mostly were slight. The wounded are cheerful and confident, and longing to be back at the front."

CABLE NEWS-

[Press Association —Copyright. ]

An Australin officer told the* correspondent: "We were anxious before it began, knowing that some of our men were rather raw. On nearing the beach the enemy opened fire with shrapnel, machine guns, and rifles. The Australasians just fixed.bayonets and went up ' the rocks and hillsides. Only two men were not killed in one boat, and they jumped out and rushed on with the others. They charged over the rough barbed-wire entanglements, arid the Turks bolted. Some units rushed on too far, and suffered heavily, being cut up by machine guns. The scrub everywhere was full of snipers, who were provided with a week's food and 2000 rounds of ammunition. They were deadly straight shots. One sniper who was killed wore an Australian uniform, and had eight identification badges round his neck. The snipers fired till our men/ were five yards away ; then they prayed for quarter.

"A disguised stretcher party cried: 'Make room for the wounded.' The peculiar accent revealed that they were Turkish. Tho Australasians shot down a dozen of them. The stretcher contained a machine gun and three boxes of ammunition. It was difficult at first to restrain the men from firing, but they soon learnt."

The correspondent says: "There is reason to believe that some of the Australasians actually got close to Maidos in their first impetuous rushes. Wounded left in place, and temporarily abandoned, were found to have been murdered. When the positions were re-won the Australians had their revenge, the Turks counter-attacking in dense form-

ation

"The spirit of till ranks is amazing. One Australian, who was climbing down a cliff, was warned that there was a mine below. His response was : 'Catch me when I come up!'

"Swarthy men sprang up at one place, crying: 'Salaam, sahibs. We are Punjabis. 5 The sceptical Australians attacked, -and discovered they were Turks and Germans with blackened

faces

"The New Zealandens fought heroically. The Turks fought well, but fled screeching at the sight of the bayonet."

A naval officer in the Dardanelles writes in "The Times":—"The Australasians obtained the most startling success. We rushed six thousand ashore in half an hour. They were absolutely irresistible. The first two boats were wiped out. The remainder went through everything as if no- obstacle existed. The barbed wire did not check them, and the trenches were child's play. They did not fire much, but used their bayonets with tremendous effect, killing every Turk and German reachable, and capturing the deadly machine guns.

"Then they charged up a hill for 700 feet, clearing everything before them. Hot shrapnel fire drove them down part way, but they doggedly dug themselves in halfway down, achieving a wonderful performance. The landing was a great blow to the Turco-Germans, who thought the place impregnable."