Major —— told me yesterday that the best troops in the world would get so completely demoralised under a shelling like that we gave the Turks that every man would be absolutely limp, and could not even aim when firing. Then, the more shells we have the better, as we all know here and at home. Yesterday we used very little shrapnel, it was almost entirely high explosives. At home it was discovered that we had used too much of the former in France. The demoralising effect of shrapnel is slight, and it has little effect on troops under cover, but you might as well fight an earthquake as the other, if it is anywhere near you.
Yesterday's casualties up to evening were put at 3000 to 4000, but this number will have been added to over night.
10.55 p.m.—Fighting has gone on all day, and with great success on our side; we have regained our lost trenches and taken several new ones.
I had a very exciting and hot motor ride in search of the Liaison officer, at General Hunter-Weston's request, word having come in that he was badly wounded. I had many narrow escapes, especially from high explosives fired at a battery astride the road through which I had to dart, and afterwards from bullets when I left the car and went forward on foot. On stepping out of the car a man seeing I was on business stepped up to me and immediately dropped dead with a bullet through him. I searched our own and the French front lines amidst showers of bullets but could find no trace of the man I wanted. I had taken Col. Yarr's orderly with me, an old regular. After clearing the battery, where big shells from Asia were dropping on all sides of us, and at a terrific rate, he picked himself up from the floor of the car and swore roundly, and said Col. Yarr would never have taken him into such a hot place.
July 15th.—About 5.30 a.m. we had a Taube overhead, which dropped two bombs on W. Beach, the acres of boxes at the Ordnance Stores being aimed at. A man's arm was blown off and two or three mules killed. We have moved our ammunition from Tekke Burnu, where it was too exposed, and the Turks seem to think we have mixed it up with these stores as a deception, hence these bombs to-day. The machine was at an enormous height, and its approach was neither seen nor heard, and the French monoplane gave it a start of at least five minutes before pursuing. The Taube went in a westward direction, ours directly north, evidently with the view of cutting it off from its usual landing place. Our machine returned after forty minutes, but I have not heard if it was successful.
I went to Aberdeen Gully this morning having returned from H.Q. yesterday forenoon.
July 16th.—Woke this morning about 6 after a delightfully peaceful night. I lay in my bunk, surrounded by muslin to keep the flies out, and felt wonderfully contented with my lot. Such peace could not last long, soon the booming of guns was heard some way off, others nearer followed, and one over our heads joined in the chorus, and by 10 o'clock rather a fierce Turkish cannonade commenced.
6 p.m.—I took the temperature of the air to-day for the first time and found it 92.5—not the hottest day I have felt here, still uncomfortably warm. Walked over to Y. Beach in the forenoon, and up The Gully later, meeting the Hants and Worcesters marching down with their full kits—all off to Lemnos or somewhere out of the reach of shells. These are the very last of the 29th Division to leave except the three ambulances.
July 17th.—W. Beach. Returned from Aberdeen Gully to-day. Last night the Asiatic guns were troublesome about W. Beach, also a Taube which dropped bombs about the ammunition dump. By shell or bomb a fire was started that cost us 1,000,000 rounds of rifle ammunition.
I had an order in the forenoon to inoculate the H.Q. Staff against cholera. On going over at 6.15, the appointed hour, I found General Hunter-Weston had gone some hours before, along with Col. Yarr, to Lemnos for a much-needed rest. I inoculated two other Generals and forty-five others, finishing up with a dose for myself.