Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1916-11-15

VENGEANCE, AS PER ORDERS. I
HAD JUST TIME TO NOTICE THE
GURKHA BRINGING Ills RIFLE UP
TO HIS SHOULDER WHEN ALI,
TIE WORLD SEEMED TO FALL ON
MY LEET LEG, AND I WAS ON THE
SHIN BONE. AND \. STREAMING
VACANCY WHERE THE GREATER
PART OF MY CALF HAD BEEN.
WE'LL, WE HAD OBEYED OR
DERS. Had located the enemy's fire
and drawn fire. The only thing that
Here was the difficulty. An attempt to
crawl brought a shower of bullets. and
also revealed the fact that the other
leg was punctured. Remained only the
Gurkhas. Sending off my orderly with
orders to find the others, and order
them off to camp to report, l lay there.
hoping for the best. l was doubtful.
however. for it is against all Gurkha
principles to leave a wounded British
officer. and the sound of shots soon
convinced me that the gallant, but pig
headed. little men were engaging the
u~naNailing, but gradually the cessa-
ton of firing raised hopes again. How
long l lay, l do not know. Pain and
loss of blood deceive one. ] had a silk
handkerchief twisted above my knee.
which had partly stopped the wastage.
''' NEi'S Ny oiSh, w HeH rust
ling in the near grass notified me Of
people coming, apparently all around.
shaking the broad, felt, Gurkha hat
off my face, had a look. TURKS, UN-
DOUBTI1DLY, STALKING UP RIFLE
IN HAND. THEY WE'RE BIG. UN-
FORMS. BUT DID NOT LOOK VERY
BLOODTHIRSTY. BULLETS ARE
NOT so BAD. BUT TO. LIE AND BE
sKEWERED is QUITE ANOTHER
THING. They had no such intention.
however. A rifle at my head and the
remark, DO you reject?' seemed a good
imitation of an order of Hands up!"
Anyhow, 1 tossed my revolver awsy7
and obeyed.
Next 1 gathered I was being asked
whom 1 was. English officer" seemed
satisfactory. Next came the order to
march. 1 signifed my helplessness,
w%hereupon I was pulled to my feet to
fall again. Then they started to half
carry, half drag me, but were stopped
by an order from a newcomer, who
proved to be a courteous and kindly
Turkish captain. who lent to the
trenches for a stretcher. Observing my
extreme thirst he set one OF his men to
collect the little gourds lying about and
split them with his bayonet. This, L
believe from my own experience and
from what 1 have heard, is the usual
attitude of the Turk when his blood ia
overheated in battle.
Well Treated BY captors.
Oddly enough my kindly captor is
lying in the room below me.
wounded in the thigh. We exchange
occasional messages. Soon 1 was al
the dressing station wher l received
first aid and drank about a gallon OF
water. Also, here too, the answers to
various questions were t%elephoned, I
concluded, to headquarters. Anyhow I
was presently on the o again with
a double squad of bearers, by which I
surmised the journey was fairly long.
Everywhere we met soldiers, but in no
case did they show any luminosity.
Finally, upon reaching Headquarters.
IRENE and though the utter ignorance
L expressed as to numbers and dis
was not received exactly with
pleasure, the kindness in no way re-
Taxed. Asking for water, l was given
coffee, a la Turk; cigarets, and later.
and various affable members of
the staff strained my knowledge of
French to the utmost.
| had also the experience of seeing
British a%eroplanes skim overhead, to
be followed very shortly by a hot and
accurate bombardment. For once
did not bless the accuracy of our ~ guns
Later I was offered dinner, felt too
sick to accept, and then had a chat
with the comnandant who expressed
his regrets at my condition. assured
me that 1 was his guest, and informed
me that my destination was CONSTANT
nople, first zen voiture" to the field
hospital and the coast, thence by Red
steamer to the capital.
Over the journey 1 will draw a veil:
There are few roads in Gallipoli and
those execrable, the voiture was a four
wheeled springless wagon; the coun-.
try hilly and rocky. the cart innocent
of straw. Imagine this combined with
a broken and unset leg wound and half
a deficient calf. imagine it if you can.
lot of every one of the thousands OF
wounded, and they zeal it UNI
complainingly, save that here and there
you hear the voice of one calling on his
God in his extremity.
Here again courtesy and kindness
were the. order of the day-in fact, as
. gentleman, the Turkish officer is
very hard to beat. Toward the French
and British there is no animosity. We
are ordered to fight-we fight, that ia
all, but I believe IL an Italian force is
landed in the Dardanelles there will be
another tale to tell.
various changes as hospital routine
renders necessary, have brought me
10 my present ward, which 1 have to
myself, being the only British officer
In the hospital. In the next room are
q convalescent French sergeant. who
looks after me like a long lost brother.
OF New York and hoping to re-
turn there after the war; A New Zea-
land mounted rifleman with a hat
tered foot n another Frenchman suf-
fertng from q multitude Of bayonet
We are fairly comfortable and. re.
celve many ktndnesses. notably from
the Red Crescent officials.
p - P. - = r. -