INDIAN BRAVERY AT YPRES.

Taranaki Daily News, 30 October 1915, Page 12

INDIAN BRAVERY AT YPRES.

THRILLING DEEDS IN THE POISON GAS.

THE UNDYING RECORD OF THE LAHORE DIVISION.

(London Express)

Stirring stories of bravery are told in a long account by an officer iu touch with the Lahore Division of the Indian Army Corys during the operations round Ypres at the end of last April, when the Germans first used asphyxiating gases.

This was the first experience of the division of anything of the nature of asphyxiating gas. At a distance of 50 yards the gas affected the eyes to such an extent as to incapacitate a man from using his rifle for some time. Within 300 yards of the start of the assault on April 20 Lieut.-Col. Rennick, commanding the 40th Pathans, fell mortally wounded. He was dragged into a ditch by the adjutant, Lieut. Campbell, and lay there till dusk. His last thoughts were for his regiment, and as he was put on a stretcher he said: "Please send two of my Pathans with me. If I die on the way to hospital I should like them with me."

A machine-gun officer says that the line was advancing steadily when suddenly whole bunches of men fell as if a scythe had been drawn across their legs. Nevertheless the line pressed on, officers' and men falling everywhere. The majority of the machine-gun detachment of the 40th Pathans were hit and the guns were held up. Sepoy Mukhtiara who had reached the shelter of a small ditch in advance immediately volunteered to go hack and try to bring up a gun. He succeeded in his attempt and returned under a hail of bullets carrying the gun. Sepoy Naji Khan, 129 th Baluchis, volunteered to carry an important mes-. sage under the heaviest shell and riflefire, Although badly wounded and almost knocked out by the concussion he? managed to crawl on and deliver his message. For this he has received the Indian Order of Merit, Second Class. Sadly reduced in numbers, our men attained to within a few yards of their goal, a goal which they would undoubtedly have won. Here they were met with the final resort of a fiendish, enemy. Half-suffocated by the poisonous fumes of the gas, they yet succeeded in holding their ground through a terrible twelve hours. Truly one would have to look far to find a more striking instance of self-forgetting devotion toj duty and British bulldog tenacity. The position at 2.30 p.m. was roughly, that the French attack and that of the Jullundur Brigade had failed, and the Ferozepore Brigade attack was held up although the centre of the brigade j was well advanced.

DARING NIGHT RECONNAISSANCE.

General Keary decided to make a further attempt to push the attack home in co-operation with the French on the left of the Ferozepore Brigade. About 7.45 p.m. the 15th Sikhs and 14th Gurkhas advanced from La Brique, with the 9th Bhopal Infantry in support, the whole thing being under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel J. Hill, 15th Sikhs, with orders to attack on the original front.

The advance was carried out with great resolution and rapidly, not without heavy casualties, to a distance of some 300 yards beyond the old British trenches. Connection was established with the French on the left and Major Deacon's party on the right. Owing to the unavoidably unfavourable conditions of the attack, this very partial success had cost us dear. During the night a very daring and useful reconnaissance wa3 carried out which resulted in determining the lie of the German position, and rendered it possible to make more exact plans for the infantry attack and artillery support than was feasible on the previous day! On April 27 the Sirhind Brigade was met by a heavy enfilading fire on its progress towards some enclosed ground sloping towards the valley. The Ist Gurkhas had to swing round towards the N.N.W. in order to face the fire, the 4th Gurkhas being at the same time checked by this enfilade. One company of the Ist Gurkhas managed, in spite of heavy losses, to push on, under the command of 2nd Lieut. Fry, 1.A.R., to a ruined farm in the valley, which wds only some 250 yards from' the German position, where they succeeded in holding on until they were withdrawn at night, being exposed to heavy shell and rifle, fire all the time. The Ist Gurkhas were reinforced by the 4th King's Liverpool, under the command of Lieut.-Col. S. L. Allen.

This fine Territorial Battalion advanced by rushes in the face of a heavy fire, and carried the line forward to a distance of some 300 yards from the Germans, under the leadership of Major E. M. Beall, who has received' the D.S.O. for his gallantry on this occasion.

A "REMARKABLE SCENE." Under cover of a bombardment the Ist Battalion Highland Light Infantry and the 1-Sth Sikhs pushed forward, but were met with such a terrible lire that a check ensued. Just then a remarkable scene took place. An unarmed German got out of the enemy's trenches and walked slowly over towards the French line. Just as he arrived there, and was about to get into the trench, he was shot by the Germans. At this juncture the lath Sikhs sustained a very severe loss by the death of Brevet Lieut.-Colonel Vivian and Major Carden. Fear appeared to be unknown to Colonel Vivian, and it is related that on one occasion, being anxious to ascertain whether a trench was occupied by the enemy, he crawled up a ditch to the enemy's parapet and, being unable to see sufficiently well from there, proceeded to climb a tree which overlooked the trench. The trench was occupied as he soon ascertained when the enemy commenced firing at him from a few yards distant. Hearing a bullet strike the tree immediately behind him, he dropped out of the tree* and managed to crawl back to our trench. There it was found that the bullet had gone through the many clothes which he was wearing, as it was then winter, and had struck the tree without causing him any more harm than a mark on the skin.

The gallantry of the stretcher bear-' ers not only in this but in every action cannot be too highly praised. Whether it be the Sepoy stretcher-bearer or the more humble Kahar, the unvarying report is that they are never known to shirk any danger in the execution, of their very perilous duties.