Glorious Deeds of Australasians in the Great War

by E. C. Buley

The first of these distinctions fell to a non-commissioned officer of the 14th Battalion of Australian Infantry, for a remarkable exploit performed on the night that followed the attempt made by Liman von Sanders to drive the Anzacs into the sea on May 19. Sergeant Jacka, then a Lance-Corporal, was the hero of this feat of daring.

On the night of May 19 a body of Turks suddenly delivered so fierce a bomb attack upon a section of advanced trench held by ten men and a sergeant of the 14th Battalion that every man in the trench was either killed or wounded. The Turks followed up this success by jumping into the trench, and Captain Boyle, who entered this section of trench by a communication trench, was wounded by a shot fired by them, but was able to give the alarm.

Jacka immediately jumped from the communication trench up to the step or bench behind the last traverse of the section of the trench in which the Turks were, and with fixed bayonet held them at the traverse, round which they feared to come. Meanwhile Lieutenant Hamilton, a gallant young officer of the 14th, went to the other end of the captured trench, and began firing at the Turks with his revolver. He appears to have accounted for three of them before he was shot by them through the head.

At his end Jacka, single-handed, kept the Turks at bay. The cry of officer wanted brought up Lieutenant Crabbe with a platoon, three men of which, Howard, De Gruchy and another, were all friends and fellow-townsmen of Jacka. Howard sprang forward, followed by the other two, but when he put his head round the traverse he fell, wounded in three places. At this moment Jacka rushed around to the other end of the trench, and took the Turks in the rear. Five he killed in succession with rifle shots and two more he caught and bayoneted as they were trying to escape by climbing out of the trench.

At the same time the party at the other end of the trench advanced and accounted for four more Turks, thus clearing the trench effectually.

Jacka has a remarkable record, as he was at the original landing, and fought through the whole of the Anzac battle. When the final withdrawal took place he was one among five of the original members of the 14th still remaining.

No more V.C.'s were awarded until the August fighting, when this distinction was awarded to a number of the men of Anzac. Foremost among them was Captain Shout, of the 1st Battalion, who died at the post of duty after earning deathless glory for himself and the country that will be for ever proud to number such men among her sons.

On April 27 Lieutenant Alfred John Shout won the Military Cross and his promotion for conspicuous bravery and ability as a leader. From that time forward he was a shining example of cheerful courage to those associated with him. His name crops up in countless letters of Australian soldiers; his coolness, his audacity and his good cheer were on the lips of all.

His battalion was the reserve of the 1st Brigade when the Lone Pine position was taken by assault, and was soon called to take part in repelling the fierce counter-attacks delivered by the enemy. A feature of the position was a long communication trench, one end of which was held by the Turks, while the other led almost directly to the Brigadier-General's head-quarters.

While General Smythe was standing outside his dug-out on the morning of August 9, the Turks made a very desperate attack by way of this trench, coming round the last traverse in full view of the General, and only separated from him by a barricade breast high. They were driven back behind this barricade, and then Captain Sass, with three men, determined to drive them farther back with bombs and rifle shots. In this he was joined by Captain Shout.