The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-01-06
HEROISM
IN PRESENT WAR
EXCEEDS THE PAST
Irish Regiments at Chocolate
Hill and at SalOniki Warmly
Commended in Dispatches

Dublin, ireland, Jan. 6.-The Irish
people have recently been aroused by
the reports of gallant service by the
Irish regiments. Just as the Sixteenth
Division of the new army, 1.-THE Irish
Brigade that rallied upon the invita-
ton of Mr.. Redmond from the Irish
National Volunteers, North and South,
was preparing to go to the trenches,
of the Tenth Division round Lake Do
rian in Macedonia. The Tenth Dt-
vision was the first purely Irish Di-
vision to take part in the war. It re-
ceived its baptism of fire at SulVa
Bay, and fresh from the ships was
thrown against the entrenched posi-
lions on the Anafarta ridges. No Off
cia1 account of it's valor in that des-
perate fight has yet appeared. But
the Unofficial accounts of the capture
of Chocolate Hill and Dublin Hill by
the Dublin F'usiliers and of the frontal
attack by the Iniskillings on the An
afarta trenches, are among the most
stirring chapters in Ire1and's military
annals. The Tenth Division repre-
sented Ire1andd, North and South,
though drawn mainly from the South.
The General who organized it is
Irishman General Sir Bryan Mahan.
a first cousin of Sir Edward Carson.
But close to the relationship of the
soldier to the politician, the Generals
popularity is confined to no political
party. in Ireland. He is an Irishman
first and last and all the time, and
full of pride in his Irish regiments.
For some reason yet unexplained he
was not in command at Su1va Bay:
but when the SaIoniki expedition was
decided upon he was given the. COM
mand Of the British forces, and among
the first to land were the remnants OF
the gallant regiments that had fought
around Sulva Bay.
To the gaI1antry of the Munster
FusiHers, the Dublin F'usi1iers and the
Rangers, the General as
scribes the safe execution Of the plan
for the withdrawal to the yardar. And
the Generals censors have also al
lowed the press correspondents to de-
scribe the work of the regiments.
They state that but for the stand of
the Tenth Division and the fereeness
of its counter-attaeks with bayonets
when there was no artillery to help
5hten, the retreat of both the French
md the British armies would have
been cut off and he orderly with
travail would have become a rout
Two companies of the Inniskil1ings
posted on a bluff held up the Bulga-
ian advance for a considerab bic time,
md stood their ground until they had
allen almost to mani
This, frank recognition of the vaIor
If the regiments has had an excellent
effect in Ireland Tt was an suspicious
that the news should have
come as the Irish olunteers Division
vas preparing to strike its tents. The
Division was recently reviewed by the
Queen. One of the brigades IS COM
posed almost wholly OF Nationalist
rom Belfast and Derry. The regf-
nent contains some of the best fight
ng material of Ireland; and the. Irish
public have followed every step of its
and training with unprece-
Tented interest. It's new general, Cen
raj Hickie, is a Tipperary man,
Meantime the enrolment of the re-
erves for the various Irish brigades |
;oes on. Fifty thousand men have
'een asked for within the year.