El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-03-17
ARABS ARE HARD
TROOPS T0FIGHT
Hover on the Flanks of the
British and Move Rapid
ly; Travel Light.

London. Eng. March 17.-Edmund
Gambler in the Daily News gives an
interesting account Of the hordes Of
Arab cavalry which swarm on the flank
OF the British columns in Mesopotamia.
He says:
THE mobility Of the Arab cavalry.
who ride light and are unsparing Of
their horses. is something outside ex-
perience. On approaching a Turkish
position to reconnoiter our scouts will
often see a horde OF Arabs emerge
from the dark masses and spread in
fanlike movement over the whole no.
rizon. These irregulars are eternally
swoOping about for no apparent reason
Drop a shell in front of them and they
viii swerve like flight Of teal, make
a wide detour at full gallop and ap-
pear on the other flank.
'The atmosphere is most deceptive,
and in the haze Of mirage IL is diff
cult to tell II the enemy are horse or
fort, or to make an estimate OF their
numbers Everything is magnified. A
low-lying mud village becomes a fort
with walls twenty feet high. a group
of donkeys, n palm grove. Camels APP
pear on q near horizon like huge dis
sipated Compasses. There Is not
cavalry regiment with the force which
has not az some time or other mistaken
sheep for infantry.
Arabs shoot Both Ways.
'In no theater Of the war is our cav
airy so essential, for the Arabs make
up a kind of irregular arm for the
Turk. They are always lowering on
our TANKS ready to take advantage Of
any accident or confusion by the way.
And they follow like jackals in our
rear. Two jibbinE ponies in Jaipur
transport cart had to be unyoked ana
the cart abandoned. The Arabs were
on II before the rear guard had passed
on eight hundred yards. After this
the nondescript horde closed in, en-
boIdened by the loot They are frank
" plunderers, and murder is merely
the preliminary to pillage.
'1Gominally the Arabs are fighting
FOR the Turk, but they are the most
uncomfortable allies. Their sympathies
are but skin deep. and they turn on
their friends and murder and loot them them
too. II opportunity delivers them into
their hands The Turks use them, but
put no trust in them.
''The Arabs. Of course. melt away
whenever our cavalry charge. We can
never get in among them. They are
light and carry little kit. and seem to
be independent OF supplies. Their
horses look thin and poor, but are hard
and well fed. and they don't mind using
them up.
british Heavily LOADED.
"Our chargers are handicapped with
their six stone OF accoutrement The
Arab, hOrseman has his bag OF dates,
a small ration of grain for his horse.
and nothing else except his arms and
ammunition. These are Of no regular
pattern rifle always. a dagger or
sword or both, waist belt and bandolier
Of ammunition, and occasionally
lance.
They fire from the saddle FOR choice.
and employ no dismounting tactics
Zach man holds his own horse. and
stands or kneels firing. Their tactics
are always to surround smaller force,
shoot the horses and close in; or TO
lead our cavalry on to an infantry
ambuscade. They fear ambuscade them
selves. and are chary Of following US
up. The are naturally more tor-
midable in "A regiment when they wait
until our cavalry are mounting, and get
jim their fire before they take up an
other position.
only attack small BOdies.
'-They Will only attack small bodies
when the odds are five or six TO one
They have cut mp a patrol or two, but
have never got in on a troop or squad
ron, much less on a regiment. and are
not encouraged by their superior num-
bers. which are, indeed, discounted by
our guns.
March 9, in the skirmish near Shaiba,
is. ! think, the only occasion on which
they have charged. They believed they
had taken us in an ambuscade and at a
disadvantage in the deep mud. We were
$50 cavalry, with two sections Of horse
artillery, and vastly outnumbered- We
had no time to close in ranks and
them i'm extended order. We were in
terlocked. For a minute il was sword
and lance. Then they gave. As they
retired they came under our infantry
fire. which did bloody execution. It
was the best fight hey have put up"