Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-11-24
DANCED TO DEATH
Remarkable Episodes in
Gallipoli Fighting
(L1ondon Observer

Many instances or the remarkable
GOODNESS and courage exhibited by the
Australians in the Dardanelles cam
paign are related by Captain c. E. w.
Bean, the official Press representative
with the Australian forces.
1T lay just outside the parapet. Two
days after we had taken the Lone Pine
trenches. when there came one of the
breathing intervals in that siX-days'
counter attack, someone noticed it and
pulled it into the trench 1t was on
the extreme left hand edge of the cap
tured trenches, lying just as it had
FALLEN in the red sunlight during the
last hours of that fateful afternoon.
The bayOnet was broken off within an
inch or two of the hilt. The magazine
was full, but the cutoff was closed
and the safety catch was pulled back
and the whole rifle from the broken
bayonet very nearly to the butt was
purple with blood. There was no trace
of its owner-I do not know where he
fell. That broken rifle spoke more
clearly of his qualities than the most
fullsome tombstone. The long looked
for day had come and they were go
ing straight for the Turks with the
Dayonet, and he was not going to spoil
II with any rifle firing. He had bolted
and barred his magazine-for him il
was bayonet or nothing. If ever man
went into it with whole heart that
man must have done so.
Danced to the Trench.
| have often wondered whether he
was one of four men who were watched
n fri af
er battalion. during that charge on
Lonesome Pine. / could not see them
myself, as they We're on the extreme
left, but my frien9. saw them, and so
did some of the Fifth Battalion, who
We're watching with him. They said
that the four men who went out on the
extreme left Of the Fourth Battalion
in one of its lines during the charge
on Lonesome Pine ran half the Way
across and then danced the remainder
right to the Turkish parapet. No one
knew of their fate-the fog of the bat
tie would soon hide them, and if an
average holds good three of the fou,.
must have been hit. 1t is Just a fancy.
put II was Just where they reached the
turkish trenches that this relic was
found And | often wonder if one of
those dare-devils was the owner of the
broken bayonet.
A Face in the Dark.
They came down 10 fighting with
even cruder weapons than broken bav-
onets or jamtin bombs i'm that Homeric
struggle. 1t was in the grey light of
.he thlfd or fourth morning, when men
began TO doubt whether the things
tney saw before them were the real
lllllss themselves or the fancies of
thelr own worn out brains that one Of
hcer-he was a captain, but by this
tine ne was commanding his regi-
ment-thought he saw as he passed
oo"n one of the captured saps a face
staring down at him from over the
parapet above his head. He had pass
ed the point, but the image had photo
graphed itself on his mind, and as he
turned quickly on his heel he thought
ne could see the face still there. He
stopped down and tossed pebble IN
towards 1t, but it did not move. Then
ne sald quietly to a man who was be-
size hlm Il think there's a Turk
watching us from over that parapet
there-do You see the place? Pick up
lump or earth and heave it at him
and see if he moves"
Inc man made no mistake about IL e
lump OF earth. He picked from the
side OF the trench dry clod about six
inches square and heaved in the direc-
ton of the object.
II caught the object fair in the face.
There was q. splutter and a scatter and
the sound Of falling earth and some
thlng wallowed off between that maze
or sandhills and mole burrows which
was still neither ours nor theirs-at
least certain Turks. brave men. used to
Wriggle up near corners of it that we
certainly by this time claimed as our
exclusive property. 1t was Turk this
time sure enough. If the officer had
not turned at that moment the next
moment would probably have been his
last.
1t is not surprising that our men
should face death handsomely in a
Homeric fight like that one, fight aft
er their own hearts. But confess that