Month: March 2016

11 March 1916

Several very heavy showers of rain this morning and much cooler, they say that now we shall have seven days of rather strong weather and then the heat will really set in.
I had my hair cut this afternoon. Saw a funeral of some important person going on, a very weird military procession. I went with Bradley to an Arab bazaar in the town this afternoon, a filthy place but very interesting; we each bought a bourgo, which is a little brass thing the women wear on their noses to hold their veil and hood together, so only their eyes show. It’s the only place you can get them in the town. It was funny to watch the Arabs sawing wood – holding the wood between their toes and sawing with both hands.
A field battery came into camp this afternoon to rest the night, on their way through to somewhere. A lot of silks have also come in.

10 March 1916

A very hot morning, and I spent most of it getting ready for pay and payed out at 11 o’clock. I was camp Orderly dog today, but there wasn’t much doing.

There was a shower of rain for two or three minutes this morning, it was rather nice and freshening.
The R.A.M.C. have got a monkey for a mascot; whenever anyone goes near, it runs out of the tent and climbs up onto their shoulder. It tried it on with me this afternoon, but when I saw one flea appear on my hand, I’d had about enough.

9 March 1916

I had to move this morning to some tents in the main part of the rest camp, the other side of the road. I spent most of the morning working out the pay for the men for tomorrow. I saw a white camel going down the road this morning. I went up into the town this evening, and got some money changed for pay tomorrow.

I hope they won’t keep us waiting about here much longer.

8 March 1916

Another baking day. I saw the “Karoa” leaving harbour this morning, I hear she is taking some troops to Salonika. I spent most of the morning hustling various tin hats on the telephone, trying to get orders to go on and join our batteries. Eventually I was told that we shall be moving on in a day or two.
Had a lizard hunt in our tent, but they escaped; one big one about eight inches long ran up a tree close by, and I suspect we shall get him later.
I tried a piece of sugar cane this morning; you see all the natives chewing it, but I shan’t have any more – beastly sickly sweet stuff. Wrote home today, I believe a mail is going tomorrow.

7 March 1916

No order for us to go on yet.
I went up into the town this morning with Bradley to get one or two things. This afternoon all three of us took a gharri and went to see a native catacomb. An extraordinary sight, it is an underground burial place, and you can see all the tombs of the old kings and queens and their families. You can look through a little hole in some of the tombs and see the bones. We went and had tea at the Union Club and then took another gharri with a pair of grey arabs and drove to the Nouzha gardens; they were very pretty indeed, and there was also a small zoo in them. Our driver tried very hard to sell us one of his arabs, but there was nothing doing. We dined at a funny sort of restaurant place in the town and then had a look at the Casino, but it was rather a rotten show.
I hope they won’t keep us hanging around here long, as there is nothing for the men to do.

6 March 1916

A blazing hot morning, it makes one drip even with the helmet and the khaki. I went down to the ‘Karoa’ to pay our wine bills, and they were very busy unloading her cargo.
I went up into the town this afternoon – it is an extraordinary place. We had tea at the Mohammed Ali Club; it is a very odd mess here, mostly composed of R.A.M.C. doctors. The waiters are Egyptian, and they wear long white robes, red fezzes, and sashes – a villainous looking crew, and only two of them, whose names are Mohammed and Abdul, understand any English.
The evenings are very cool here which is nice after the blazing heat of the day, and I believe they call this one of their coldest months.
Some yeomanry have just come into the tents behind us. They have just come out of action of the Western Front against the Senussi, and I believe have lost rather heavily.

5 March 1916

We were lying off Alexandria by six o’clock and began to go into the harbour around seven. We anchored in the harbour for an hour or so, and it was very amusing watching the police (Egyptians with red fezzes) trying to keep the Arabs and people away from the boat. But the police were bad oarsmen and the Arabs invariably scored off them, and there was a lot of jabbering and shaking of fists. We lay out in the harbour for a couple of hours and then a tug came and towed us into our berth. There was a transport full of Australians disembarking next to us.
It was several hours before we disembarked and the whole quay was crowded with Arabs and beggars in the most weird clothes, all scrambling and fighting for anything you threw them, while an exasperated Egyptian bobby, trying to look fierce and important, was pursuing them with a stick and attempting to keep them from the ship. He made them howl, too, when he got a good one in, but it made him look very much off his dignity when a Tommy threw a hot baked potato which hit him full in the small of the back, much to the delight of the rabble.
Bradley, Pearce, and myself with our 60 men have got to go to Gabarri Rest Camp for a day or two to pick up our Batteries. We walked up into town this evening, and a more filthy place I’ve never seen, swarming with natives of all colours, from jet black to white, and all dressed in very gaudy robes. It really is a very pretty sight, but the smell is something awful. I saw a good many camels going along, rather a mangy looking lot, and any amount of Arab ponies, some very nice.
I sent a cable home, but they say it will probably take six days. Also changed some money. At present I am very much at sea with the piastres and things. Bradley and I are sharing a tent and have started by putting a thick layer of bug powder all over the floor.

4 March 1916

Went up on deck soon after five, and mounted the submarine guard at 6.15 am. A very calm day and no sign of a submarine. We shall get to Alexandria during the night but shan’t be able to get into the fort till the morning. I have seen no land since we left Malta, so shan’t be sorry to see it again.
I heard this evening that there’s a wireless message that two transports have been sunk between Gibraltar and Malta. If it’s true, we’ve been very lucky.

3 March 1916

A much calmer day than yesterday, but there is still a good swell. We passed three empty transports this morning, evidently coming from Alexandria or Port Said. We steered a zig-zag course all morning and have seen no sign of a submarine yet. Saw a lot of flying fish about this afternoon, they kept three or four hundred yards out from the ship. They looked like small white gulls at first sight, some of them flew quite high out of the water and went 15 to 20 yards before they went in again.
I am officer of the watch from 10 o’clock tonight till 6 o’clock tomorrow morning.

2 March 1916

Went up on deck soon after six and we passed about three miles off the [Galite] Islands, but it was very close and we could see them well. We lay about three miles off the harbour for a short time while a patrol boat came out and told us the route we were to take. We couldn’t get a mail onshore, as we had hoped. There is a very strong wind blowing and a nasty, choppy sea. I payed the men out this afternoon. There seemed to be a good many men-of-war in the harbour at Malta.
Tomorrow we get into an area where a French transport was sunk on Feb 26th. The Captain thinks it is probable we shall see something, so has given us the plan of action. If the submarine appears ahead he is going to try and ram her; if she appears on either side he is going to try to get stern on to her and go for all he’s worth, and the same if she appears astern. We’ve got a submarine guard of 48 men divided into six detachments on the fo’castle, one on the saloon deck on the port side amidships, one on the starboard side, and two on the poop. I am to have charge of one of the poop detachments and we’ve got to keep up a volley fire on her periscope. I think I’ve got a very good post as our twelve pounder is mounted on the poop, so we ought to do some good between us.
Shall turn in early.