|
| 03/03/1916 |
The greater part of the detachment of 1st Light
Horse Field Ambulance camped between here and EL GAAR blockhouse left
for Mena a couple of days ago. 1/7 Cheshire at EL GAAR and EL ZAWIA have
been relieved by other companies. Howard REES returned to his people
today, thinks 53rd Division are bound for France.
Word came down from Brigade last night that we would strike camp on the
4th. Enroute for KHATATBA where we would entrain, destination unknown.
The most likely place we are bound for would be Menea where the
remainder of our Brigade is. Mesopotamia, Mersa Matru and Ismalia are in
the running.
Chevaux de friese we leave as it is so perhaps a cavalry regiment will
move into the vacated camp.
Ambulance motor rendezvous - cacolets.
341 camels will be required to shift the stuff we have accumulated.
Weather the last 2 or 3 days has been pretty warm, too hot to hanker for
riding. We are taking the 1st L.H.F. A. Ambulance detachment with us
tomorrow.
|
| 04/03/1916 |
Left EL GAAR and arrived BIR HOOKER today.
|
| 05/03/1916 |
Waiting for instructions.
|
| 06/03/1916 |
Instructions must have turned up late last night.
Left BIR HOOKER this morning.
General of 159th Bde and Bde Infantry rode a mile with us and when they
left we were called to attention, and gave eyes left and advance arms.
Rather a poor exhibition, some unslung their rifles and some did not so
that it was a very incomplete salute.
Sweltering hot day and horses felt it. At midday feed we "off
saddled". BIR VICTORIA converted into a blockhouse with
entanglements and trenches. Filed through enclosure and watered at well
which has a windmill and big tank. Detachment of R.W.F. here.
On horse picket during night. Heaviest dew I have ever seen. Fell like a
Scotch mist, saddlery and blankets very wet. Column of troops.
|
| 07/03/1916 |
Mist lasted until the time we left, about 9.00 a.m..
Weather much better for travelling. Arrived KHATABA about 1.00 p.m. and
crossed over the canal by a bridge. Watering at canal as we drank the
well dry at Bir Victoria last night. This was the first drink for the
day. Laid out horse lines near station. Royal Welsh Fusiliers here
belong to 158 Bde 58 Division, I think it is the 5, 6 and 7 Battalions
and 1 Battalion Herefords make up the 158 Brigade. Officers wear a bunch
of black ribbons at nape of neck so that at a distance one could mistake
them for the pigtail which it took the place of. Men mostly speak Welsh
and as most of the officers do not this is very handy.
Commenced cleaning saddlery. Colonel FULTON said the signallers were
once a clean lot but now they are a darn dirty lot.
|
| 08/03/1916 |
Destination is still a secret, but the usual rumours
say we are bound for Assuit down south. Bet Ray DOUGLAS that we were not
going to Alexandria 10p, and looks as if I win. The night before we left
EL GAAR, CHERRYvi sent the message telling us to shift and in the
morning bet Bill BOYER a quid we would be out of it in a days time, and
Bill had to pay up.
Cleaning saddlery and equipment all day prior to inspection by the
Colonel. Inspection at about 5.00 p.m.
Fall in at about 9.00 p.m. to see who was off camp. Some Australians had
rolled a barrel of beer belonging to Tommies, off the station and
breached it out on the sand, leaving a note - "Good Luck to the
Tommies from the Australians"
I don't think they found the culprits.
|
| 09/03/1916 |
It took three trains to convey us, HQ and C
Squadron. Major MILLS in command, left about 1.00 p.m.
Got a good compartment, six to a compartment. We passed the west of
CAIRO, quarries, windmills Napoleon forts, Helwa, Sakkara, pyramids.
BENISUEF, here we watered the horses, but they would not drink (or at
SA). English Tommies had dixies of tea ready for us, cooked on station.
'CITY OF LONDON' on shoulder straps. Fair sized place. MINIA we saw
Sergeant HUNT, pretty dark by now but appears to be some fine places
along the line.
ASSUIT reached near midnight. Australian Camel Corps (red triangle)
officiating with dixies of hot tea. They have been there about a week
and say that ASSUIT is a pretty religious place. Lot of Americans there
and there and they have American Mission and niggers were very anxious
to know whether they "believed in God" and "had been
saved", gave them a speech on their arrival.
Two hospital trains, one empty and one full. Full one was full of men
who had been convalescenting at LUXOR and were returning to duty. We
knew last night we were proceeding to a place called SOHOG but now we
are to proceed up Nile still further.
Fed and watered at EL ASSUIT.
|
| 10/03/1916 |
Read all night excepting for perhaps an hour when I
sat dozing (Clementina A E W MASON)
arrived at a place called GIRGA or GUERGUEH about 40 miles (?) south of
Sohog and 70 miles (?) north of LUXOR at about 5.30 a.m.
Entrucked and led horses through a fair size Egyptian town with some
large high houses about ¼ mile from station and put down horse lines on
a field which had been cleared of its crop. Water at the Nile. Up tents.
No leave to go up to town will be granted for two days result that
picket collected about 60 men in town. Special constables with high
brown fezzes with a red or green vertical stripe and solid sticks about
4 feet long keep an eye on troublesome niggers. Brass numerals on fez
and ordinary native clothes, black, walked through town to station and
saw hardly a female. Went into a restaurant to get a glass of beer but
it appears that by order of General MAXWELL all liquor is prohibited
from sale in this town from the time of our arrival.
|
| 11/03/1916 |
Lecture by Colonel FULTONi during the evening,
subject, our work a Wadi NATRUN, our good discipline there, the Bedouin
in front, goodwill. Information frontier, whole. Harped a good deal on
the American Civil War - hardships and starvation. We should not
complain about food and it would be far worse before the war is over,
(we have been living on biscuits,
marmalade and bully beef since leaving EL GAAR) Someone interjected,
"Your marmalade is not up to much." At which the Colonel said,
"Well its better than raw pie melon."
We had an armed guard at each station along the line which incensed the
men very much. Colonel explained this was to keep off civilians whose
business was illegitimate.
Warned us off the native women. There was a special quarters where the
women were medically examined four times per week. We are the first
British troops to come to this town and the niggers hardly know how to
take us. Cautioned against giving prices they will perhaps ask for as
they want to keep prices down. Eggs are 7 for a piastre, oranges are
however 2 for one piastre. Population here is 17,000 and 8,000 are
Copts. All the rich people are Coptic.
|
| 12/03/1916 |
Sunday. Church parade this morning - compulsory.
First leave granted today. General leave in afternoon. GURGAH is
disappointing. Mr PHILLIPS gave us a talk on Egypt and its people in the
evening. Also American mission and a house boat or darbadieh.
|
| Regimental colors are black and white |
-GIRGA-
|
| 13/03/1916 |
Saw an armoured train pass through going south a
couple of days ago. Engine in centre, open platform with either machine
gun or light gun shields at each end. From trucks shaped something like
cattle trucks with sandbag loop holes, manned by Tommies. Roy DICKSON
and CHERRYvi going through signallers exam today. Dickson is only a
temporary corporal and if he fails, he looses the stripes.
New establishment has come out and provided signal officer for regiment.
COXALL is coming back. We had up to now had four signallers on squadron
number, but if is to go back to what the usual two men and a corporal.
HQ is to consist of six men (or 5 men and one sergeant) we have 9 men
and one sergeant at present. |
| This afternoon we were in touch with Tommies at
SOHAG by helio from the roof of the station hotel. |
We have been issued khaki drill tunics and all have
our colours approved, old tunics collected and gone to wash. On opening
pocket (it was sewn) little slip of paper inside. "To the wearer of
this coat may God bless and keep you and wishing you a safe and speedy
return.", then follows address in Stoke on Trent of a tabbie.
|
| 14/03/1916 |
| The 48 men who broke leave and went into GIRGA and
were collected by the picket. They had the option either to be tried by
the C/O or to go up for a Court Martial. Decided the latter. They had
two days to consider whether they would still prefer this and are still
standing out for one. |
| G.O.C. inspected us this morning. We turned out in
drill order and stood in front of out saddles. |
| Tonight the local fire brigade arrived on the scene
and hosed all the space adjacent the officer's lines. The first engine
is pulled by a small donkey and is a London make and bears a wonderful
shine. The carriage it is mounted on is painted red, and the front seat
is big enough for two. The men wear uniforms and were assisted by a gang
of civilian labourers. In the wake of fire engine which whistle warning
came four water carts hauled by well groomed mules. To go into action 5
or 6 men are required to lift engine off carriage. It then stands about
6 or 7 feet high. A canvas trough is fitted up and the tanks backed and
emptied into it. The horses broke lines a couple of times where the hose
came near them. |
This is a ploughed field and has broke up into a
fine powdered dust. The flies are becoming bad and I am tipping that if
we are here long fever breaks out.
|
| 15/03/1916 |
Corporal DICKSONviii and Ben HOPE had a scrap. HOPE
won.
Sgt. READ and others crossed the river and climbed cliffs, attempt to
establish a transmitting station between EL QAAR and SOHAG, I was on
station here in camp.
|
| 16/03/1916 |
A and B Squadrons left here. A (I think) goes to EL
QAAR and B Squadron takes up position west of here on edge of desert. C
Squadron stays here for the time and will relieve.
|
| 17/03/1916 |
Transport arrived by train today. Ours and a
detachment of A.S.C. On the top of roof of station Hotel today in
communication by heliograph with B Squadron. Saw many interesting
things. Arrival of some labour back home from Suez Canal defensive
works. Sub omdar and police officers has crowd dispersed. What happens
where such functionaries traverse the streets. Aeroplane (military)
passed over town flying low in a northerly direction.
|
| 18/03/1916 |
G.O.C. Southern Force Major General PEYTON (I
think), arrived here today and inspected us standing in front of our own
saddles (disassembled) as we had been waiting all morning and he did not
arrive until about 2.00 p.m. and a dusty wind was blowing General Peyton
did not engender many respectful thoughts owning to warm weather
squadron does not go out until 4.00 p.m. Rumoured that a great many of
our reinforcements at Heliopolis are going to France as artillery. It
appears that A Squadron will relieve Scottish Horse.
|
| 20/03/1916 |
Seventy or eighty reinforcements arrived from
Heliopolis Details Camp today.
WARD (Les) is with them and is to be Corporal (vice LOMAX) it is said.
They went through some sort of an examination at Heliopolis and are
going through a pretty severe one by our old Doc (DR MAINWARING ).
Mick LYONS has been killed in CAIRO. Shot through the stomach by an
officer of the picket.
|
| 21/03/1916 |
About ten of the reinforcements arrived yesterday
returned to Heliopolis failed by the Doctor. Bad teeth, varicella etc.
Corporal DICKSON17 left today for the Hospital.
Pay day today.
On duty at Station Hotel roof, helio communication with B Squadron.
|
| 22/03/1916 |
Station Hotel this morning. Cherry left for Sohag
this morning with a dose of chancres and owning Station Hotel the sum of
5 shillings.
Issued sand muzzles and fly fringes for horses, also first issue of
dubbin since we have left Cairo.
Last night I was on picket. Shift was from midnight to 2.00 a.m. In the
small hours of the morning I lay awake waiting for Jim KEANE of the
previous shift to call me. At about 3.45 a.m. I happened to notice
BOTHER was awake too and I inquired what time was being suspicious that
it was past 12.00 p.m. I then went out and found no one on picket so I
woke my relief and then went back to bed. It appears that Jim KEANE had
called me at about 12.00 p.m. and I answered, "Alright." He
then went to bed thinking that I was awake. But though I had an idea
that something had happened I do not remember being woken.
I heard that the new battalions running from 33rd to 52nd and comprising
the 2nd Australian Division has arrived in Marseilles. The 2nd Division
has had a lot of the 1st Division drafted into it, stiffening it I
suppose.
|
| 25/03/1916 |
Colonel FULTON gave a red book lecture last night.
Likes to hear himself talk I imagine, because nothing he said was of any
practical importance to us. Causes of war, necessity of discipline, etc.
Sgt READ says that Cherry's stripes were fixed up but he has lost them
now.
Lt COXALL, Sgt READ acting Corporal LOMAX plus BOYER, PRINCES and
GARRETT are to attend a signal school early next month. There is also to
be a bomb throwing and Machine Gun school of instruction. These schools
are to be at either Sohag or Zietoun.
Letter from Winnie, Victoria Coffee Palace at which they must be having
a long stay, dated 8th February. Clive she says is now a corporal and
before he leaves MELBOURNE will perhaps be a sergeant. Leaves in March.
He is a signaller in Motor Despatch Corps (?) car driver.
|
Figure 3: Winnie, Fred's cousin.
|
| 27/03/1916 |
Lt COXALL commenced as OC Signallers today. JEFFCOTT
has returned from Hospital. WARD is taking over A Squadron. While LOMAX
is going to be down to signal school. 1st Light Horse Brigade is Sohag,
2nd Light Horse detachment lies out north of B Squadron.
BEIT KHALAF B Squadron - EL QAAR A Squadron. |
