The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-04-13

Venice of the East, but the reSem- blance can. I imagine, only be seen in a photograph. It is built on the waters edge, certainly, but it is a filthy, dusty, dilapidated, hot, and stifling hole, swarming with Arabs who fit hither and thither with un- canny movements.
 We were glad to board a river-boat and shake Basra's dust from our feet. At that time there were very few river boats, but now there are scores of paddle-boats, screw tugs, "stern- wheelers, ''N from all over the world, working on the river to keep the Bri- tish army supplied. London has sent the old Thames paddle-boats which used to be so well patronized on the Greenwich and Kew route. They may now be seen tugging away on the fast flowing Tgris, heavily loaded with army supplies, their paint blistering in the sweltering sun.
 From the rivers of India, Egypt and many other places boats have been brought and the River Tigris | is now as busy as the River Thames, with highly-organized fleet of boats running between Basra and Bagdad
 a distance of five hundred miles. -, We were dumped on board the PA
 with bully beef and biscuits for a
 seven days journey, and off we start
 ed. Every inch of the deck was GOV
 cred by troops and their kits. Sitting
 on our knees, knees "dovetailed'' fntC
 one another, we watched the slowly.
 receding signs of civilization on the l hank Tp Ia palm-tree, and on either side were
 miles of flat desert. It began to dawI
 on us that a. cup of tea was necessary
 Breakfast to be polite) had been a $ a. m. It was now 4 D. m.
 The only way to get water, how ever, was to hoist some from the ri gris. An empty fruit tin, lying on tn,
 deck near by, made a good dippe at the end of a piece of string. I le
 it down over the boats side and filled
 it. The mud in the water made
 look like cold tea.
 However, after much persuasion
 the native cook condescended to pu
 the water on his fire. When it boilet
 a spoonful of tea leaves were drop ped in, and the tea was ready fo drinking. Zigzagging and twisting and spilling boiling tea down tn : necks of many, managed to get bacI to my own square foot of deck space After our tea we thought of be6 } for it is the "early bird that catche the best spot" Some would hay t stand all night. Talking sympathetic , ally to one of the crew I "wangled : a hammock for the night With thi
 cl11nur ho+ , was Al. Many others started turnin in, and soon every inch of the dec r was covered.
 ] All went well for an hour or two g then a storm broke. The awnin s above us began to leak, and very 500 = we were all soaked. There was nc
 where else to go. so we just had t e stick to it. Turning over in my clan r my blanket, I dozed.
 . Presently-thud!
 e The rain had frightened my han n mock-ropes, and the one at my hea I had given way.
 1t With my feet still tied up to tt = deck-post, I slowly came to my sense e Who was that groaning? The soun l. was very near, yet I could see notI O ing wrong. I put out my hand, an n suddenly it dawned on me. I had fal
 en on top of the person who had bee Il sleeping on the deck under my han .e mock. I wriggled to one side, maC e my apologies, and then went to slee st again, with my feet still held up
 the post.
 1T This sort of existence went on f in seven days. Past the Garden of Ede of Ezra's Tomb, Amarah, villages, al V- desert we steamed, the river windil n, so much that boats could be SC,
 ahead of us, boats to the left of | e. boats to the right of us, and also b D. hind, all travelling on the same riv, D. we are getting into the dang m zone now" said one of the crew. re Sand-bags, kit-bags, sacks, a, us sheet iron were placed all around t ve decks to guard against snipers on t lie lriverbanks, and Maxim guns we g, mounted. In the darkness of the nig ed several shots whistled by, but t so snipers scored no hits. A little riy he gunboat came shifting round a he dashed away again into the blackn, pc satisfied.
 ch At dusk next evening we came
 with the British troops.
 Ho There has just been a devil of
 fight here!" a voice shouted from f
 I bank. '"The Turks are running! ' d. have many casualties"
 By this time our boat was tied as to the bank, and the wounded swar le. ed on board.
 a A Scotsman was first on. 1 reme ny bered him as one of the party "
 had just come from Egypt. III, we arrived here two days a Ter and were marched straight into
 tion," he said. "I only stopped ( ls- in the arml It's broken, though, a ed hurts some."
 ed Next morning I was up early try have look round. The tain ar Ith was still advancing on the heels of {