ANZACS IN FRANCE.

Waipawa Mail, Volume XXXVI, Issue 7739, 22 June 1916, Page 1

ANZACS IN FRANCE.

LANDING OF NEW ZEALANDERS. TWO DAYS BY RAIL. “A COUNTRY WORTH FIGHTING FOR." An interesting description of the landing of the New Zealanders in France is contained in a letter from Bombardier Herbert Wittner, of Auckland, to his father. "As you will see by the above address," writes Bombardier Wittner, “l am writing this from , France, which place we arrived in last night. We left Moasca Camp, in Egypt, on the sth, arriving in Alexandria on the 6th. We stayed there overnight and left on the morning of the 7th. The boat we were on was the flagship of the New Zealand Division. On board was the General Staff, including General Russell, who is now in charge of the division. As we were in the first lot to leave camp, we, of course, were among the lirst to sail. Two boats left about twelve hours before us, but as the boat we were on is very fast, doing about twenty knots, we passed them the second day out. The trip over, which took four days, was very enjoyable, the sea being as smooth as glass the whole way. Of course, the topic of the day was submarines, and everybody had to wear a lifebelt all the time. Luckily, however, we encountered none of these pleasant things, although we received two wireless messages to the effect that submarines were in the vicinity, but evidently we were too fast for them.

"At about 5 p.m. on the 11th we sailed into Harbor and went straight alongside. We were the first shipful of New Zealanders to arrive there. Of course the Australians had landed about a week before us. We slept on board that night and entrained at 7 o’clock the next night. While in we were granted no leave, so we did not have an opportunity of seeing the place. "The train trip, which took us two days, was full of wonders for us. We were passing through little villages the whole way. The people were more than good to us, and at every big station where we stopped there was tea and sandwiches supplied to us, mostly by French nurses. The fellows were very grateful for this, and they showed their appreciation in good spirit. For the lirst day we were passing through the south of France, where most of the farming is being carried on. The scenery is absolutely beyond description. I have never seen anything like it in all my life. Every possible scrap of land was cultivated. This, with low hills on each side, had a very pretty effect. One thing that struck us was the absence of any fellows working in the fields and orchards, the work being carried on by old men and women. Of course the men of age arc away fighting. Practically all the people you see are women in black, old men, and boys. We were within fifteen miles of Paris, on the outskirts, and from the train one could see the Eiffel Tower and other notable buildings. It seemed funny to be passing so close and not being able to go there. "We reached here at about eight o’clock last night. It was 11 p.m. before we got off the train, and we then started a five-mile walk with the horses and our gear to the camp. It was not so bad, the roads being good. We will only be here about a week and then go further north. This place is only a base for equipping troops, and as we did not bring our guns we are waiting for new ones, and will then move off.

"The Australians are supposed to have had a scrap, but whether this is true or not I do not know. We feel the cold here a good deal, so I don’t know how we will get on when we get further north. However, summer is near now, so it will not be so bad. I must say that our trip through France was a most interesting one, and the ways of: the people delighted our boys, many of whom say they are going to live here after the war. I can tell you the French have a country worth fighting for.

"In tlie harbor here one can see the masts of three ships that were sunk by submarines."