The Washington herald., 1916-05-22

my section, and somehow got lost. Wan
| dering about for a long time, trying to
find my way back, I suddenly came
across small pub at the sight of
which / had most violent thirst. So
l knocked-but nobody answered.
knocked again-but still no answer.
| irabbing the doorhandle, was intend
| Ing to force my way in when one Of
those Jack Johnson shells came along
and blew the pub clean out OF sight,
leaving the knob in my hand.
Australian slang has como to stay IN
England. One hears 1t everywhere. The
"Anzac" soldiers talk in slang. They
add to It new words Of Egyptian Arabic,
\ or French, or German, modified to their
own accents. The following dialogue
actually took place between two AN
zacs' in Gallipoli:
Said the first: II have Just heard some
| bonza news"
What? Another furher
mo, dinkum oil this time; the boys
have imshied the Turks on the left, and
got fifty prisoners. who say they have
had mafeesh tucker for three days"
| The Egytian Arabic flavor is strong
| here. "BOnza" means splendid" Fur
| fe" means 'rumor." 'Dinkum'' means
genuine" and "dInkum oil" "authenti-
| Gated news" The word "imshi'' stands
! for escaped while "mafeesh" stands
| for nothing"
! Poor captured Turks. then, with their
hard-luck tale of "mafeesh tucker" Let
us hope the gallant "Anzacs" fed them
at once. As a matter of fact, the Turkish
| prisoners have always been splendidly
treated, and the following letter, writ
| ten by a Turkish captive, Suleiman Su-
rurl, points TO the fact. It's a queer mix
| ture of plety and sharpness toward the
main chance"
| epistle to friends and relatives, at Is
| my holy duty as a brother to tell you
! how comfortable I am since I have been
| taken prisoner, especially at this time
! Of the year when the weather Is so cold.
My brothers, I trembe at the thought
of the time I was in the trenches. I
| cannot help being sorry when I think
of the scarcity of food and the cold in the
| trenches and the bad treatment you are
: receiving at the hands OF your superiors.
! and at the various miseries you are en-
| during. Indeed. 1 weep In blood.
| Directly I was brought in they gave
me hot tea, plenty of food. jam and ci-
garettes, plenty of blankets wooden
| clothes and boots such as I have never
known before" poor old Suleiman, his
plight must have been deplorableD
"In fact" he continues, in a flight of
genial warmth, the treatment I have
| received is such as a father might
wish for his son. and cannot be better
! From creates to lowest all are treat
ing me a brother. Our religion is re-
spected. The English are no enemies OF
our race, in reality they are true friends
of ours. My brothers. my only wish for
you is that you may have the same COM
| fort as l am having. Therefore find q
way of getting rid as soon as possible of
| this misery. Come here without delay.
and throw yourselves into the bosom of
this great and good nation.
"I call on the Almighty to watch you
and comfort you.
! Your compatriot and comrade-in-arms
"Suleiman Sururi.'
The officers home on leave have many
interesting tales to tell. The struggles
OF his orderly with the slippery French
| tongue was the theme OF one the other
day. My mans a fine cook" the major
declared, but he somehow cannot learn
for the names of things 1t took him
quite a long time to learn that 'oeufs'
meant eggs But once 1t penetrated his
brain, he never grew tired of purchasing
them. and each day I had eggs cooked
in every variety of way. After a time
1t grew monotonous, and I was delighted
to see him march in with a boiled fowl
Paddy. how did you get that" asked.
II didn't know you knew the French for
chicken"
mo more OF do. sorr.' was the an
swer, but the ovid woman jabbered
'Voulez vous des oeufs?' and fetched
them. NO sez Oi pointin' to the eggs,
and talkin' bowld.Je voulez mamma Of
thin oeufs" And bejabbers. the ovid
girl understood me- "
Another officer declares that he over
heard the following conversation between
a British dispatch rider Somewhere In
| Flanders and a Frenchman. Something
had obviously gone wrong with the dis
| patch riders motorcycle. and he was ges-
tlculating in a vain endeavor to explain
the situation to his sympathetic but quite
| unenlightened companion.
| ''Vous comprenez. le sacre noIsette Il
est CONNIE loose sur les blighted cuel-
| quechose. Donnez moi une spanner, mon
ami, vous comprenez? Une Roi Dick-une
| Roi de Richard-King Dick vous silly
ass. Regardez! Can't you see le brutal
noisette il fait all loose? Ouvre-coming
or-oh, hang! spanner-une spannaire
! "a make forme. Oh, blow. Allez vous
fat-tete-ed chump. Departez a Hades"'
But the Frenchman smiled on tranquil
| ly. He didn't understand in the least
Perhaps it was as well that he didn't.
! But he is droll, that young English
mani" he was murmuring to himself
| only 1t is sad that I cannot be of as
| sistance at this so important crisisr"
| A sense of humor is the strong point
In the modern soldiers character. And
II 1t were not so life would be infinitely
harder. For laughter makes loads lighter
and seeing the funny side takes much of
wars discomfort away. Oh, thrice blessed
sense Of humorl